Is This A Logo??

Is This A Logo??

Thursday 27 December 2012

Survived the Apocalypse, Christmas, and the Quest for Rich

Well looks like we survived Dec 21.  Apparently none of the predicted occurred:


 
Some were disappointed:




They say the Mayan’s got it wrong...but the Mayan’s never said anything about the end of the world...that was our own trusty media?


Anyways that rant is for another blog...

I am still working on surviving the holidays given the abundance of calories I am ingesting.  Also working on surviving my choice of Christmas gifts I got for Lois.  She wasn’t too thrilled with the electric toothbrush I got her.

 

She wasn’t even happy that I hired a maid to clean up the mess.

 
 
Yet she was thrilled I hired a professional chef to serve Christmas dinner:

 

I was so confused...guess I will never understand women...

The cats enjoyed Christmas though...



And they let me know if they didn’t like a gift...



And they got me something..as always..



Anyways...As far as the holidays go, I have been eating way too much...and way to much nasty stuff.  So I have been trying to ride as much as possible to offset the calorie intake...lest I look like this.

 
I have actually been getting in some very good bike rides.  The conditions have been perfect ...cold enough to get frozen trails for mountain biking...yet warm enough to allow road rides.  I have been able to hit the trails with Rod, and on a couple of BicycleWorks group rides.  All of which are properly challenging and great workouts and calorie burns.  Especially on our local trails, which are some of the most challenging trails around.

Also managed a couple of road rides with Fig, who always pushes me to challenge my limits.  Rich (nickname CL) joined us on one ride, which ended up with a bit of an adventure...or something.  It goes something like this...  When Fig and I ride together we tend to challenge and push each other, and often end up going faster than we intend to on what we planned to be a leisurely ride.  Not quite like these guys...

 

Actually that is more like Lois’ back seat driving.  Anyways back on topic...

Rich has not been getting out as often as he used to...and is a little out of shape.  So he would end up dropping back, and we would stop to wait.  However, it was cold (it is December after all), and stopping when sweating is damn chilling...so eventually when he dropped off far enough instead of stopping, we would just slow to let him catch back on.  However, at one point we looked back and there was no Rich...we slowed...still no Rich; we stopped...waited...no Rich.  We assumed he made a wrong turn at the last intersection...so we did a 15 km loop in the direction we assumed he went...but did not run into him.  Well there were only two more options that he could have taken from where we were (unless he had packed it in and went home), so we decided to split up and take one of the routes each...and meet back at the Kilbride General Store where we had last seen him.  So went our Quest for Rich...Fig went East...I went west.

I soon ran into this person...

 
She hadn’t seen Rich...she was on a quest of her own.  (In case you are wondering this is rather obscure reference to an 80’s movie...yes I am old...I will leave you to determine which movie).

I then ran into this person who was also lost and hungry but in control of the situation...

 

Ran into this cool little dude...but he hadn’t seen Rich.



And then I ran into some real weirdos cycling...

 



 

As you can imagine, this was too weird and I was really getting worried for Rich.  I eventually made it back to the General Store...met Fig...he had not found Rich either.  We were worried he would end up like these guys...

 

Fig was so worried he wanted to call a rescue team...he preferred this team...

 

I wanted to call this team...

 

I guess we just have different preferences.  While we argued about it Fig got a text message.  It was Rich; he HAD bailed and went home.  Oh brother.  After all the extra kilometres searching for Rich we had had a thorough ride and headed back ourselves.

As for other rides for the rest of this week, there is a Holiday ride planned for tomorrow, and there is Riot’s Birthday ride planned for Sunday...but the 27 feet of snow we got last night may put a dent in the plans.  OK...27 feet may be exaggerating but it took me over an hour to shovel the driveway this morning!!

I will also be pouring coffee and Irish cream

 

And donning my good Canadian hat



This isn’t my brother...but it could be...

 
 
To watch the World Juniors and Spengler Cup hockey tournaments that are tradition for this time of year.

Go Canada!!

Stay posted!!

 

Wednesday 19 December 2012

Mayans, Christmas, and Mountain Biking?


Thought I had better get a post in before the end of the world on the 21st.

 

Actually there are Mayans but you get the picture.
Anyways one thing we can’t complain about is our December weather?  It has been just cold enough to freeze the trails, or warm enough to road ride, and I have been fortunate enough to do both...and play some hockey.
Besides the weekly league games I was in a hockey tournament last weekend.  Lois attended one game and took some pics.  Yup...I am a goalie.

 
 

And we were fortunate enough to win the thing.


Anyways back to the biking thing.  Got in a few mountain bike rides with Rod.  In case you don’t remember from a previous posting, Rod is a powerhouse. 
This ain’t Rod but you get the picture.
 
 

 
There are not Rod’s quads, but you get the picture.



 
 
A regular ride for Rod is a workout ride for most guys.  One of Rod’s workout rides will destroy most guys...he likes to pick every hill possible...especially the nastiest ones...so it makes for a worthwhile ride when you aren’t walking up a hill he just made look easy.  No wasted time or effort on these rides!  We’ve gone out in early mornings when it has just been cold enough at night to freeze the damp trails to catch the trails while they are still frozen and epic!
When it hasn’t been cold enough to freeze I have been getting out on the road.  Not many instances worthy of reporting.  Other than, perhaps last Saturday; a road ride with Fig.  It was dry, but cold...0 degrees Celsius and a small breeze from the North East.  So we decided to go east and north so we could have the tail wind on the last half of the ride (planned for a 60 – 100 km ride).  So off we went, and Fig himself picked some of the best sprint segments and then some of the longest, steepest hills around...so the first half of the ride was great...fast, and some god awful hills (Bell School Line hill, Sixth Line hill...and others that I think I blacked out on cuz I don’t remember where they were) ... so it was making for an awesome workout.  Then at about the 45 km mark we decided to head back.  Fig was starting to cramp a little and whimper.  Now, again, if you don’t remember from a previous post, Fig is a young 30 something, fit, and one of the fastest cyclists I ride with.  Rides with him are always a challenge worthy of testing my limits.  But this time I was dropping him, and he was close to puking. 
This isn’t Fig but you get the picture.
 
 



I suggested we get to Moffat, and he could get something to eat...that may help.  Moffat is the home of Dar’s Delights...a little bake shop that makes some of the best buttertarts around.


So we get to Moffat and Fig scarfs down 4 buttertarts, and we head south for home.  Well wouldn’t you know it...the wind has shifted...and doubled in intensity...so we now are dealing with a very stiff, cold headwind.  Fig is dropping...I am waiting...and trying to chide him into speeding up...”Ya ain’t gonna let a fat old guy beat you are ya??”.  But it wasn’t working...he was hurting.  Then up the Cedar Springs Road to Brittania east climb...I got to the end of Brittania looked back and Fig was barely in sight.  I waited, when he showed up I donated him the rest of my water, as he made every excuse possible (the cold, the wind, he was sick, last night’s Christmas party...).
This isn’t Fig but you get the picture.





 This isn’t Fig either but he wishes it was.

 


OK...enough picking on Fig.  It’s just that I don’t end up in front of him all that often...so gotta milk it when I do.  Just hope he doesn’t destroy me next ride.  I’m sure this is what Fig is doing as he reads this.

 

Anyways we made it the rest of the way home without incident.  Not sure about future rides this week...as this is the weather forecast (In French and English!)
 


 
End of the world?  All because of this?

 

 Guess I better get Christmas shopping after all.  After some struggle getting it up from the basement, I did manage to get the tree up last week.
 

 

 

Just kidding...this is actually our tree corner.


And the mantle place.


Our cat carolling.

 
And a gratuitous Rudolph pic.

 
 
 
 
Anyways here I go again.  So off topic, and out of time, with so much more to share.  Next time.  And if that isn’t before Christmas, I wish you and yours all the best.

 Merry Christmas, Happy New years!!
 
 
 
 

Sunday 2 December 2012

Mountain Biking, Zen, and the New World?


Well the last 6 days have seen me on the trails thrice (that means three times), on the trainer twice (two times), and hockey once (once times).  The trainer was because I fubarred the shock on my trail bike...so into the shop it went for a couple of days.  So for those days I trained Sufferlandrian style.  (Not Gangnam style...that would be stupid.)


See what I mean?

I have now also drunk the Kool Aid (shoulda made it Captain Morgan Silver...that stuff is candy!!), and am tracking my activity on Strava...under the pseudonym ‘Michael Tourond’.  See the summary on the gadget on the sidebar here.  Oh yeah, I am high tech.

Anyways, if you don’t remember, a couple of posts back I mentioned that someone once questioned why I bother to race mountain bikes at my age, and at the risk of getting on my soap box I will address that.  You might think it was a young kid asking, but no, it wasn’t.  Well I don’t think this portly pontificator ever saw more than the couch view of any sporting event so I didn’t really bother to get into it, cuz I knew he wouldn’t get it.  But I know both of you reading this will understand. 

We all make our own definition of what getting old means...the problem is too many of us let the shite our culture spews at us make those definitions for us...cut your hair; wear a suit; it’s OK to get fat; you should be slowing down, pissin your pants, not working out and certainly not racing mountain bikes!!  Anyways, I mountain bike race for a whole host of reasons, mostly because I can, and I am not afraid to try.  It is our culture based on instigating fear and profiting from it that leads to the thinking that generated this question in the first place.  Now this soap box is quickly getting high enough...I’m getting queasy.  This whole culture/fear thing is a deep passion of mine, I could go on forever, and if you get me going on it this soap box will get so high you will be reading this post like this...

 
Then on a soap box that high I will need to trade in my bike helmet for one of those tall pope hats.  But they are heavy, and will end up riding like this...


Actually I have never seen a pope in a bike helmet but I have seen one with helmet head...

 

Anyways, I am wandering off topic again.  So I hope that answered the question...and I hope you are not as confused as me.  I apologize for the soapbox thing...this is a MTB blog, not a life lesson blog (RiotOnReality???).

Speaking of confused, I often get Lois to preview my blog posts for me...and for some reason she wanted me to throw this pic in...Not sure why...

 

Actually that is a pic of EnglishJim before he started mountain biking...this is Jim now...

 

Definite improvement.  Actually in that MTB getup Jim kinda looks like the Knights that say Ni...doesn’t he??

 

You be the judge.

Actually, EnglishJim messaged me this week that registration is open for the Summer Solstice 24 Hour Mountain Bike Race (which will sell out fast), so hopefully NewfieSteve, who wants to be Captain, will get us registered soon!!  The team is ready and waiting!!

                                                       

So, I better get training already!!  Up, up and away...

Until next time...stay posted.