Tidal Rhythms...

Yes, it's been very quiet of late. Winter is a season of slumber and introspection (unless you're a skier). But without the serene beauty of snow-covered hills (accompanied by a crackling fire, a hot toddy and a warm heart--two, if you're lucky...), we wouldn't even notice the arrival of springtime. Can you tell I grew up in California?

It's all about balance--the ebb and flow of life.

It's been a wicked wild winter for Yours Truly (I love alliteration!). I am a seeker, a spirit in motion, and I learned several Life Lessons during this, my first "off season." I piloted a heavily-laden U-Haul truck over the Rockies in late December ("Kidz, don't try this at home..."), cast the demons out of my beloved titanium road warrior (under the tutelage of Bates McLain, brother Celt and Master Velo Exorcist), and lived to tell about it. We unraveled the mystery that had the Campy "experts" stumped, and somewhere Tulio Campagnolo is nodding and smiling benignly. If you want to hear "the rest of the story" (and as all my friends can attest, I am nothing if not a storyteller), you'll have to buy me a pint. Money well spent, I can assure you: "There I was ..."

Warmer days are just around the corner and we'll all be out there eatin' up the tarmac and getting fitter by the day. And we'll all have plenty to blog about soon enough. So many potential crashes, so little time! (I'm just yankin' yer chain.)

See you on the road...

humph!

****SIGH**** I wish someone else would post to this blog....or tell me they are not interested. Pish!

Love/Hate Relationships

I love my bike. The feeling of the pedals eating up the ground under me as I tootle along country roads, the sounds of nature, the air in my lungs as I gasp whenever I climb a hill - it's all good.

I hate winter. The more I love my bike the more I hate winter. It's cold. It's brown. This winter has been especially hard for me because it has been just a bit too chilly to really enjoy cycling outside.

I love my trainer. Sort of. I can at least get on the bike and pretend I am out riding.

I hate intervals. They really hurt. But I can tell I am getting stronger - if only by teeny tiny increments.

I love my ipod. It is at least a little distraction to the monotony of said trainer.

I hate mean people. The ones who rob us of everything from possessions to happiness to security.

I love longer days. They give me hope.

I hate it that winter still has two months to go.

I love Arizona in the winter. Uh oh. That sounds way too much like a snowbird. But the high plateau of southeastern AZ in winter is warm-ish during the day and cold at night. Perfect. BTW, it's not all that hot in the summer either - at least, not Phoenix-hot. (And....well...it's a dry heat:)

I hate laziness - that disease that infects folks who won't get up off their chairs and DO SOMETHING to make themselves healthier; those who continually complain about aches & pains and not feeling good. You know who I am talking about - people who consider a Super Bowl party or watching NASCAR on TV a workout.

I love running. Never thought I'd say that. I have never been a runner. Not that I am much of one now, but a good 3 - 4 miles at a time is wonderful. Ditto all the positives I said about cycling, without the pedals.

I hate trash on the side of the road. Why can't people leave it in the car until they get home, then put it in a trash can?

I love a day off - even if it has to snow to get one.

I hate getting behind when I have a day off.

I love the way I feel right now - I have worked hard to get here and I intend to stay here for a very, very long time. Losing 25 lb. is not easy, but it sure is rewarding. I'm much stronger and I feel so much better - and I get to throw all my "fat clothes" away!

I have a little sign in my car that says "play everyday". I intend to. What about you?

Winter.

As a cyclist I'm not a big fan of winter. As a skiier, I love snow. But there's nothing good about snow in denver, or cold weather for that matter. No road rides since sometime in December, and tons of trainer time. That doesn't make for very good ride reports, but I figured I would post something and at least remind everyone: Spring will come!

Hiking Anyone?

It's too cold to ride! Is anyone interested in doing some wintertime hiking? I am starting my new job (yeah!) on January 5th, but like to do longs hikes on the weekends. I'm also recruiting for trail workers. Anyone interested in getting involved in volunteering in Shenandoah National Park? I have trails awaiting adoption! I'm off now to stay at Jones Mountain Cabin with Kurt for two nights. If you're in the area drop by to see us ;-)

HELLOOOOOOO...

Wow, it has been a long time since I posted here. Not surprisingly, it has been even longer since anyone else has. What's up with that? Lee tells me it's because most people consider this "my" blog. I did not intend for it to be that way. Read the name of the blog and the description underneath. Nowhere does it say it's "my" blog. So....help me here! Is anyone out there? Say something!

Everyone is busy these days - not just because today happens to be December 22 and it is the height of the holiday madness. Every day is busy for each of us. Still, sharing stories and ideas and opinions seems (to me) like such a good idea. If you agree, please post something here. If you have not been given rights to post, then ask and most likely you will be able to.

Some questions are rolling around in my head...

Who is still training? Indoors? Outdoors? What are you doing to stay fit?

Will Kathi make her goal of 2000 miles before the end of the year? I'm on the edge of my seat!

Is Guy still with us? The last sighting I know of was at the Culpeper Century.

C'mon Maddies - talk to us!

Cyclist's Lament and Other Stuff

Wow, where to start? I have not posted for a long time. I will try to do better and I hope everyone else will do the same. I, for one, love reading what you have to say - and it does not have to be about cycling.

The days are getting shorter. Way shorter. I think we MadCyclists have called it a season for our weekday rides. By 7 p.m. it is too dark to be on a bike without lights. Most of us cannot get to the starting point before 5:30 at the earliest and this week that only gives us about an hour. Now, you may say an hour is better than nothing - and you are right - but selfishly, I could manage an hour and a half or a little more if I just came straight to Moonshine Mountain & rode from there. That's my plan for the time being and anyone who would like to join me is welcome.

On the positive side of this time of year, the temperatures agree with me. I struggle terribly in the heat and humidity to the point of feeling sick; not so with these nice 60 - 70 - 80 degree days. I'll bet I could really rack up the miles if I just didn't have to work for a living. The shadows are longer but the air is clean and crisp. The leaves are beginning to change. Poplars are dropping some of their leaves and have spots of yellow in with the summer green. The dogwoods are possibly the biggest indicators that fall is here. Their berries are fat and suddenly bright red and their leaves are beginning to take on that burgundy color they display each year at this time. Virginia is beautiful in the fall. And the spring. And even the summer. It's winter I don't like. Maybe if we had more evergreens so everything didn't look so brown and grey for so long.

I mentioned that MadCyclists have probably taken their last regular weekday ride for the season. That would have been last Thursday when Mary, Aden and I met at Waverly Yowell for a quick 15 mile loop. We left at 5:30 and headed out of town and across Rt. 29 on Fishback Rd. After taking a left on Oak Park Rd. we rode the rolling hills to Elly Rd. and took a right. All was well until we got across Elly Mountain and about halfway to Aroda. Aden was in front because he tends to pop over hills much easier and faster than Mary and I. I would guess he was about 200 yards ahead of me, and Mary was maybe 100 yards behind. Essentially we were each riding alone and along the white line of Elly Road. Most of you know the rest - an idiot in a Red Ford pickup truck proceeded to tell me to get off the road & told Aden much, much more, including threatening him with his life. Fortunately for us, a Madison County deputy happened along shortly after and we filed a report. The next day I called the Sheriff & he told me who the person was and where he lived and that they were going to "pay him a visit".

Now, I don't know about the rest of you, but I think the Sheriff & his deputies deserve a huge thank-you from all of us who love to ride the roads of Madison. That this is an isolated incident for us speaks volumes in itself. We live and ride in one of the safest, most cycling traffic-friendly places anywhere! To the Sheriff & his staff - thanks for watching out for us, guys!

Today was the first annual Culpeper Cycling Century in (you got it!) Culpeper. Barry and I were the only MadCyclists (not counting Guy - you remember him, don't you?:) who participated. They had hoped for a large crowd because the entry form said there were free t-shirts for the first 250 registrants. I registered when I got there & they had boxes and boxes, so yes, I got one. Just what I needed, another t-shirt. It'll be good for cleaning the chain...

This morning was chilly but absolutely beautiful with no wind and Colorado blue skies (really! I know - I've seen 'em). We met at the Bike Stop and departed at about 8:45. Barry and I planned to ride the Metric mainly because neither of us have put in the saddle time since June to handle a century. The crowd at the start was sparse. Most were roadies though I did see a couple touring bikes and a couple mountain bikes. Later I heard they only had 40-some register. We took off through town and exited the "metropolitan area" by the National Cemetery. After crossing Rt. 29 we briefly followed Rt. 522 to another road that skirted the bottom of Mt. Pony, home of the film and video archives of the Library of Congress. Oh yeah, and for you Civil War buffs (yawn), also the site of a signal station during the Great Conflict. The hills we climbed there were the only ones for the first 30 miles. I am not kidding - the route was pancake flat. We trucked along at about 20 mph most of the way.

After a 3 mile jaunt north on Rt. 522, we turned left to head to our first rest stop at about mile 23 in downtown Mitchells. I have kept myself on a pretty strict eating pattern for the last six weeks or so but I used this long ride as an excuse to indulge in COOKIES!! Homemade peanut butter cookies.....yum.....I had two :) Barry and I stopped for 10 minutes at the most and then headed on. The next rest stop was in about 28 miles. We crossed the railroad tracks that run from Orange to Culpeper and headed toward a not-so-distant Rt. 15. One mile from the rest stop we rounded a bend in the road and there was a cyclist down in the middle of the road. Two people were with him - Barry and I were the third and fourth people to come along. I asked if they had a cell phone (I had mine) and they said yes and had already called 911. The cyclist was face-down on the pavement & the other people had gotten his bike out of the road. They were trying to communicate with him but he was unresponsive. Barry and I jumped off our bikes and helped one of the men turn the cyclist over so CPR could be administered.

I think this was the biggest shock of all - we knew him. His name is Ron and he and his wife ride with us occasionally. He is one of the fittest, fastest cyclists (our age) we know. Apparently he just collapsed, fell over, and was in full cardiac arrest. Fortunately for Ron, the guy who was immediately behind him was a professional firefighter from Fairfax (who had not ridden a bike in 10 years and was talked-into riding this ride by Bob at the Bike Stop). He took over and administered two-person CPR with the other cyclist there. Barry took over the 911 call and I jumped back on my bike and rode back to the rest stop to make sure Ron's wife was brought to the scene. We did not want her riding up on her bike unexpectedly.

It seemed to take such a long time for the emergency crews to get there and until they did, the guy (I did not get his name) from Fairfax kept up CPR. Ron would take a breath on his own, moan, and go back into cardiac arrest. I don't know how everyone else felt, but I did not think the news would be good in the end. After an endless wait the rescue crew got there and used the defibrillator on him. I did not watch. The whole experience was such a horrid thing to see and knowing who it was made it even worse for me. They finally loaded Ron into the squad truck and continued working on him there. Emily, his wife, was distraught but got in a deputy's car to be transported to the hospital.

We left to continue the ride. Another Culpeper cyclist who rides with us occasionally, Elliot, stayed with Barry and me for most of the rest of the ride. Our mood was somber and reflective. We rode out to Rt. 15 and just before we got to Rt. 15 were passed by the squad truck transporting Ron to Culpeper Hospital. We turned north on 15 toward Culpeper (I did not like that part of the route!!). We only stayed on Rt. 15 for a mile or so and then turned left toward Rt. 29. That's when the rollers started. And after we crossed Rt. 29, the rollers got bigger and looked a lot like Madison. After riding on parts of our Reva Loop and Slate Mills Loop, we found ourselves at Rt. 522 in Griffinsburg. We turned right on 522 and headed toward Culpeper for a couple miles before turning left and finding the second (and last) rest stop. It was there we heard that Ron was alive and even sitting up in bed! What a relief that was!! I indulged myself in 1/2 banana and a chocolate chip cookie (not as good as the peanut butter ones) and we were off once again.

Elliot told us the worst hills were yet to come (actually, I think he said, "hill"). Right. We rode over some rollers and then turned left to climb a sizable hill. Barry asked Elliot if this was the hill and he said, "It is one of them." Great. Thanks Elliot! We topped that one and had a short downhill, rounded a turn or two and there was the wall. OK, by riding-in-a-hurricane-in-Podunk-Pennsylvania standards it probably wasn't much, but for my legs it was! We topped that hill and shortly after that the Century & Metric routes separated. We said bye to Elliot and Barry and I headed back to Culpeper. Surprisingly, I felt quite strong but was not sure I was strong enough for an additional 35 miles the Century would have required. Sometime after that, I stopped at the top of a hill and checked my average speed - 16 mph! I was shocked and very proud of myself considering I have been struggling to keep my average above 14.5 all summer. WooHoo!

After some twists and turns, stoplights and railroad tracks, Barry and I arrived back at the Bike Stop. There we found Ron had been flown to UVa Hospital, and the news was still good. I am hoping he will be back on the bike shortly and all will be well. The news for now is certainly better than I thought it would be. Ron is very lucky the Fairfax firefighter was right behind him and could administer CPR and keep him alive for that long. We can all only hope we are so lucky.

All-in-all, it was a good ride for me except for the ghosts I will see in my sleep. I felt strong even at the finish which is a big change from most of this year, and I had a very small part in saving Ron's life.

Please, everyone, be safe out there.