A layoff no more...

Well after two months off the bike I rode last week and then again yesterday. It was great to get back on the bike. Last week I rode the infamous Fully Loop in Fullerton with Ricky and Danny from STR. It was nice they wee able to ride with me because that trail is pretty convoluted. I rode the Heckler and she rode just as good as I remember. To be honest I don't really know why I wasted the money on the Specialized. I bet the Heckler would've gotten me the same times if not better last year at Southridge.

Then yesterday, feeling very down and out at work, I got home and went for a ride on the normal trails behind the Farm. It wasn't to rough but I did have to walk a few of the tougher looser hills. (Not so unusual out here where all of the trails are made by dirt bikes) I rode the Heckler again and it was awesome. I ended up needing to tighten a bolt on the big chain ring which has made me check all of the bolts I can to make sure things are good. I was actually impressed with my spyness since I spent an hour hiking the shoreline at work. So that's two hours of a workout in one day! Not bad at all.

I was going to ride again today but I was really feeling it a bit. I spent about a half-hour hiking the shoreline today at work and going uphill I could feel my legs tiring quicker than they should've. So I held off today. I'll have to ride next week.

Hey there...

If anyone is intrested I just started a less sports/exercise blog to explore the other...intrests of my life! Check it out at www.sanctuary-theotherside.blogspot.com

Random Idleness...

Life has been throwing me enough curveballs of late to have my world spinning a bit out of control. From the typical financial problems affecting everyone else to the threat of a lost job I just have to sit back and be glad that I have a family that supports me. I'm trying to look at things from a positive stand-point and know in the end the family will have a roof over its head one way or another. I choose to look at my current difficulties from a positive stand point! Whatever fate throws at me it'll make me stronger and open new doors for me that might otherwise not have been opened.

It's been a while...

Wow it's been a while since I posted here. Things are good....really good. I cleared my colonoscopy and do not have the FAP that my brother has. No FAP means no polyps which means no cancer. I was pretty freaked there for a while and really am viewing things differently. It's good to be home, good to have a loving wife at my side and great to have a family around me. It's awesome.

My summer plans were to spend as much time with the girls as I could and so far I've achieved that. With the economics the way they are we're not doing as many trips as I had hoped but we're still having fun so that's what counts.

I'm still riding, still running, and still working out. Things are in a good balance right now which is really nice.

I just ran into a really cool female rider that I wanted to mention. Her names Liz Hatch and she seems like a really cool person from her blog, and the articles I've read. It's neat to see someone my girls can look up. She's pretty, rides hard, she doesn't mind getting dirty and doesn't let up. The exact kind of women I want my girls to be when they get older. I doubt she'll ever read this but thanks, thanks for giving them a role model. Check her out at www.lizhatch.missingsaddle.com

Happy May Day....

Well it's May and we're almost half way through 2008, before you know it Christmas is going to be here. It's a beautiful day today that's for sure and I got out on the Heckler and spun around Santa Rosa Plateau today. Nice breeze and actually a tad bit cold for the first half hour. I got in about 90 minutes of riding and cross pathes with a few other bikers. It must've been Horse day out there because there were more horse riders than I've ever seen. Everyone was nice and I walked the bike around them a few times and all in all everyone was quite nice. It was an easy exercise day and quite relaxing really. I was supposed to take the day off completly but I just woke up and had to ride!

So I mentioned my Brother in my last blog and I'm happy to say he is out of the hospital and staying in a nice place provided by his employer for another week. It looks like he'll be home sometime next week! That is very cool news. Unfourtantly there is a downsize, it's my turn! Yep I get to go in and get a colonoscopy and there is a 70% chance that I may have the same problem that he has. I got my consult yeterday and while the doctor was optimistic that I'd be fine...no one really knows until they go in and check. I'm a little freaked by it but I'm surviving. I have 5 weeks until the procedure and while I know the procedure isn't that big of deal there are a combo of things that have me edgy. That means I have five weeks to enjoy the outdoors, continue to work on my conditioning (if they go in and have to remove my colon I believe my conditioning may be the thing that gets me back on my feet faster!) and enjoy the family. To be honest the job has taken a distant third for right now. I'm working and doing what I need to but my mind is not really in it right now. I'm sure once I know things are good and I'm clear I'll be able to get back into it!

Well its nearly another week down. I hope everyone has a great weekend and if you have tendency to pray, a shout out to the Man up stairs would be appriciated! Thanks and keep the rubber side down!

It's Just One of Those Days...

Actually its not been a bad day or anything like that just feelin' a bit tired this morning and lacking the energy to actually do what needs to be done around here. I did get a ride in for the first time in like 4 weeks or so and that felt a bit refreshing. I continue to lose weight and I'm down to 200 now and I've dropped about an inch and a half off the waist line! It takes a lot of work though; My average week looks something like this.
Monday: Chest/Back and 40 minutes on Exercise Bike (followed by 8 hours at work)
Tuesday: Ride/Run/Climbing at Threshold Gym
Wednesday: Shoulders/Arms/Abs 40 minutes on bike
Thursday: 8 hours at work followed by run/ride
Friday: 8 hours at work then Legs/Abs 30 minutes on bike
Weekends I work but usually take the days off from exercise.

It's pretty crazy and for a week or two I was waay over trained but I backed off a bit and have brought it back up slowly and watching my nutrition a bit better seems to have leveled things out a bit.

I'd like to take a minute to send a shout out to my brother who is up in Washington right now under the knife having his colon removed. I know he's in for some rough weeks and months ahead but I want you to know bro that things will work out and you'll be right as rain before you know it!

That's it for me. Sorry about the lack of pics and flash but things have been fairly low key in my world. Just hanging out, training (not sure for what yet) and hanging with the family.

Take it easy world and as always keep the rubber side down!

First Daddy/Daughter Day Hike...

So I came up with the brilliant idea of taking my 7 year old twin girls for a quick jaunt in the Santa Rosa Plateau. I had figured with all of the rain we had earlier this year that the Vernal Pools would be full. So I packed up a couple of snacks, a couple of water bottles and the camera before picing them up after school and off we went. It was a beautiful day with a few scattered clouds and some light sun. The temp was in the low 70's and the girls had a blast. They wanted to jog a bunch and were probably a bit loud but all in all it was fun. We did just under 2 miles and the girls are already asking for a longer hike. This is all in prep for our first daddy/daughter overnighter in June! Here are some pics of the girls at the trail head and some of the scenery we got to see.