A Quick 5.5 Miles

Even on short rides in the neighborhood I learn a few things
- set the headlight to flashing OR the blue light on the frame to flashing, not both
- 5 year olds think I have a cool bike. No really, they said so.  "That bike is so cool!" exclaimed Child A "What kind of bike is that?" questioned Child B  "A really cool one!" answered Child A "Yeah!" agreed Child B
- a headlight and a flashing blue light on your bike makes you cool to 5 year olds
- my neighborhood is flat
- flat is fast
- my neighborhood is an endless wind tunnel
- nighttime dark is darker than early morning dark
- nighttime dark is kinda scary
- dark makes you not care about the wind
- need a new battery for my taillight
- busy streets are unnerving at night
- flat and dark make you pedal faster regardless of the wind
- logging a 5.10 minute mile pace makes you want to ride on flat in the dark again
- I do not miss getting chased by dogs

16 Miles and Only One Stop - Yea Me!

- I forgot my playlist only lasts 12 miles
- restarting your playlist while riding, not as easy as one would think
- good to see I'm not the only one who does the "butterfly stretch" one leg at a time to adjust the crotch of your shorts while riding
- my surgery knee really hurt this morning...until the one legged rider zipped past me making me glad my knee was there to hurt
 - judging by the bazillion bike riders at the park, Sunday is the best day for riding (OK you're right I'm exaggerating, it was 2-3 less than a bazillion)
- eight miles without stopping is uncomfortable
- eight miles without stopping is even more uncomfortable on the return trip
- decided to eat a light breakfast before riding to see if having more than OJ in my system made the end of the ride any better
- note to self - go back to just OJ
- buzzin past my usual rest stops just seemed wrong
- I found the other turnaround on the George Bush side of the park system, it's at Fry road
- turnaround to turnaround and back should be 26-27 miles - my next goal
- new places to enter the park are still hard to find even with Google maps
- all the riding groups and pairs out this morning made me miss having a riding partner
- sign posted: Nature Area - Watch For Alligators   Seriously?!
- didn't take any chances, pedaled faster in nature area
- wonder if the people walking off the path 'in the woods' with the small dog knew they were in the nature area - probably should have warned them
- my thighs look great...while held in place with spandex
- start/finish was at the Harris County Precinct #5 parking lot - yes I had seatbelt guilt
- tandem bike riders really have their partner's back
- saw Sexy Spandex again today, boy he makes his bike look good!
- bet hubby would look equally as good in spandex *starts looking at Academy ads*
- Secret - strong enough for a man but made for a woman...unless she's on a long bike ride in 90+ temps, then it gets questionable.
- the swings have quotes from the families, benches have nothing
- Fit & Active sour cream & onion cracker crisps and coffee do not go well together
- hubby said my butt looks cute in my bike shorts.  I love him for lying to me!

People Watching

Let me preface this story by saying I know we all have to start somewhere and I hope these two continue, but it still didn't stop me from being amused.


When I go to the park with the four little people JoJo and I get a chance to people watch while they play.

Yesterday people watching was good for a laugh.
Two 20-something slightly pudgy gentlemen entered the park dressed to workout carrying water bottles, jump ropes, face towels, iPods, with determined but pleasant looks on their faces.

I thought to myself  "Guess we will finally see the workout stations around the track being used"

The serious boys stretched, jogged in place, stretched some more, put their earbuds in place and started their run around the track

I was directly across from where they started, when they passed JoJo and I saying they were winded is putting it mildly! They were working hard (at a pace not much above a power walk)

They got back to their start point and looked like they were about to die! Flopped down on the bench, leaned forward, elbows on knees, breathing like they had just finished a marathon...instead of 1/10 of a mile, that's right the track is one tenth of a mile long.  After several minutes of recovery time it was time to jump rope.

They grabbed their ropes like they were going to sure enough show anyone watching just how jumping rope should be done!  Ten jumps later they were back on the bench...dying.  Recovery time for jumping rope is several minutes longer then recovery time for running around the track.

Fully recovered it's time to run again, but first we stretch riiiiiight leg, leeeeeft leg, jog in place for 1,2,3,4,5 and start. This lap was not going to go well for the boys, breathing was labored a quarter of the way into their lap.  Legs quickly turning to jello as they passed JoJo and I.  

One of them fell back, being able to continue quickly became an issue...could he push thru the pain...did he have the will to complete the lap?  He did! (I high fived him in my mind)  Again it was time to collapse on the bench gasping for breath.  Do they have enough left in em to jump rope again? I wondered to myself.  They did!  They grabbed their ropes, dragged them to their 'jumping spots' and attempted to start jumping.  Guy A - 1, 2, tangled up...straighten the rope out with a look on his face that let you know he blamed the rope for the mess up 3, 4, 5, 6. tangled, ropes fault, 7, 8, 9, 10 threw the misbehaving rope to the ground and returned to the bench.  Meanwhile Guy B wasn't doing much better - apparently the last lap he ran (and nearly didn't finish) took a whole lot out of him - he was having trouble getting the rope over his head! 1, back of the head, straighten rope out, 2, 3, back of the head, fix the rope, foouu, nope back of the head - look at rope as if wondering how it stopped working since it's last use, try again, 4, 5, 6, back of the head...throws rope down, returns to bench looking as if tears were going to burst forth at any moment

The boys remained on the bench, breathing returned to normal, and smiles even crept onto their faces.  They sat and talked for a while.  When they felt they had enough energy they gathered their items, high fived each other and walked to the car.

2/10 of a mile, 20 jumps (well for one of them at least), and 40 minutes later - workout complete.

24 Miles! Go Me!

Noticed a few things while ridin today...

- I ride the way I swam in HS - for distance, not speed

- cloud cover, low temps, and padded bike shorts make you think you can pedal forever

- pedaling forever is overrated and I should know better

- my bicycle does not have a seat belt, nor is one required

- I need to stop panicking that I don't have a seat belt on when I see a police car

- Terry Hershey/George Bush park is home to lots of cardinals 

- cardinals are beautiful birds...unless they are dive bombing you

- now I know how the pigs in Angry Birds feel

- if you are walking for exercise you should not be able to carry on a phone conversation

- the walkers, joggers, and cyclists at the park before me missed a few spider webs

- I can do the Spider Web Ninja Dance and continue in a straight line...spider web ninja level improving

- there are way more hills on the Terry Hershey side of the park then I remember

- hills are evil

- changed gears more today then I have in the last 10 months of owning the bike!

- my butt's 8 mile limit has been extended to 24 miles (possibly further) thanks to my new bike shorts

- too bad bike shorts don't help with butt muscle pain

- it was a nice change riding without my nether regions going numb

- passing your vehicle makes you think "9 miles is enough for today"

- not giving in and pedaling on makes you proud of yourself

- well built men in spandex make the ride just that much better

- enough frogs croaking at once sound like small dogs barking

- being chased by an angry goose is worse then being chased by a dog

- having my butt wrapped in spandex bike shorts is probably what made the goose mad

- to the older gentleman - while I applaud you for getting out and jogging, this (makes circular motions with her hand in front of her chest) jigglin all over is upsetting, please put your shirt back on

- not taking the turn-around at Eldridge to avoid one hill resulted in two extra hills and an almost endless incline

- rain is very refreshing when you are hot and tired

- rain blowing at you while you are moving at 10 mph hurts

- rain makes seeing out of your glasses a bit of a challenge

- after two miles it is no longer fun to ride in the rain

- wished my truck wasn't four miles away when it started raining

- on cloudy days I should put a towel in the truck just in case the weatherman is right and it rains

- a washcloth sized rag isn't big enough to dry off with

- bike shorts slide on but must be peeled off

Only 10.5 miles today

Observations from my ride today...
- while Eldridge Park is pretty, it's not the park for me
- W Airport & Burney have sidewalks
- to the lady in the blue tank top - while I'm sure your friends all tell you that you should be the next American Idol (why else would you be singing that loud out in public), I am here to tell you they are lying
- riding on a busy street isn't as butt clenchingly scary as I thought it would be
- the confused look on Anthony's face when I showed up with just my bike and used our house as my 5 mile pitstop was priceless
- my helmet makes a good shield against low hanging tree branches
- the city needs to trim some of their trees
- walkers & joggers outside of the park are kind, walkers & joggers inside the park...not so much
- while wonderfully refreshing, riding thru a sprinkler makes my glasses hard to see out of afterward
- it's impossible to clean off glasses with a sprinkler spattered shirt
- there are no 'love to fly in your face' large bugs on busy streets...guess they are all stuck to windshields instead
- the new wider shoulder on Burney gives me lots of room to ride without fear...OK OK with less fear
- most drivers make sure there is lots of room between me and them as they pass...cept for the Smart Car driver, but then again he was probably mad my bike was bigger than his car!

Observations & lessons learned on my 14 mile ride today

-make sure your phone is charged before leaving home
-riders that talk to themselves sound ridiculous...wait...I talk to myself
-herons are crazy for whatever it is the lawnmowers at the park churn up
-even in the "I'm gonna die any minute" mode my phone will keep the MapMyRide app going for 90 minutes
-butterflies while prettier than dragonflies still make you do the "OMG! Bug on my face!" dance
-don't try to find a new entrance to the park without finding it on GoogleMaps first
-recumbent bike riders are nicer the second time they see you...probably cuz they know they have lapped you
-my butt has an 8 mile limit before it starts to hurt
-lip balm applied right before starting your ride catches and holds small bugs
-a ride without music...is long
-to the man with the unzipped riding jersey - I understand you are hot due to the thick carpet on your chest but nobody wants to see that! Zip it back up!
-herons at the park make you feel like you're in a scene from 'The Birds'
-gel shorts - not gonna talk about em cuz I still haven't bought em
-a ride without music makes me grumpy
-the last two miles of any ride over the distance of 8 miles are the longest two miles ever
-to the man in the red sleeveless riding jersey - Thank you, just thank you *closes eyes and visualizes him once again, swoons ever so slightly*
-the wind slept in until 9:30 then it was like the Devil had come out to play
-dragonflies are very active in the early morning causing me to look like I can't ride in a straight line

ACK!!

Sitting here quietly reading my email, minding my own business, when suddenly there is a huge cockroach on the right side of my monitor!

Jumped up, screamed, tripped over things that weren't in the way, ran to the garage to get the Raid
Got back, out of breath, filled with anxiety cuz what if it flies at me...got no further than the doorway to the computer room and instantly felt ridiculous.
No no, not for being afraid of the roach - for being afraid of the roach in the Orkin ad running on the right side of my computer screen!

That's right, no real bug!
*angrily shakes fist in the air* Damn you and your ads Comcast!

Things I learned in the pool today

- it is possible to feel hungover in the morning without drinking the night before
- our instructor will increase the workout based on what he suspects we did the day before
- 7a sometimes really is just too damn early to be awake and out in public
- we don't have the time or patience for prissy people
- worried about your hair and nails? our class isn't the place for you!
- we come together like a family when one of us gets hurt/sick
- men take longer to pick up the exercise routine
- overhead presses do not make the crick in your neck feel better
- equipment that falls apart makes you and the people around you giggle
- giggling makes the instructor work you harder
- we love to hate our instructor - he's the best!
- bein in the water always makes the day better
(OK yeah, it's not the beach, but I gotta take what I can get!)

Things I learned/observations I made on my 21 mile ride this morning

-I need to stop talking about buying gel bike shorts and actually go buy them!
-The wind does not wake up until after 8:30a - after 8:30a, game on
-55/60 y/o women look ridiculous pushing their dogs in a stroller
-The dogs in the stroller looked embarrassed
-Cool weather makes you think you can pedal forever
-My butt has muscles I didn't know it had...and now they hurt
-While 10.5 miles ain't no joke, 21 miles is humorless
-A dragonfly to the face while traveling 10 mph is both scary and painful
-Doing the *OMG There's A Dragonfly On My Face!* dance will cause you to lose temporary control of both your good sense and your bicycle
-The Dragonfly dance is more dangerous than the Spider Web Across My Face Ninja dance