yee haw

anyone that wants to do some motopacing, come to lexington cause I bought a motorcycle today. Now I just need to learn how to ride it and get a permit. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Lexington is putting me in touch with my inner Crab Orchard redneck side. Oh yeah, motopacing will be $1/mile regardless of the fact that the motorcycle gets 50mpg. It's a 1979 hondamatic cm400a with 7,400 original miles, it's been in the same family since it came off the showroom floor in '79.

waiting on the UPS man

It was a beautiful afternoon for a bike ride but I had to wait around for the UPS man. We had already missed him twice so this was the last chance and the note said he would be here between 2-4 or later. As soon as I titled this blog the doorbell rang, too bad it is 5:08 now and the sun is going down, it's getting cooler out there. Dang! Least I got my new phone (emergency only) I'm canceling my cingular plan and going to pre-pay wireless since I only use around 50 minutes per month. Now I got a t-mobile with the strength of Jan Ulrich. Also got a used Ipod from the ups man. Guess it was worth the wait, not like anyone wants me to go ride anyway cause then I'll just go too fast in the KYMBA series this year.

I'm glad Nick Barbieri isn't my ups man, he would have wrecked before he made it here.

Very special Valentine part II

Hash browns and bacon strips
I like the way that you lick your lips

Lemmy, youre so romantic, nobody could have said it better.

A very special Valentines Day note

So the big day is coming up, and let me be the first to say, I love love. From candy hearts to flying naked babies with weapons, what more can a person ask for? So on this most special of days were we celebrate our love for one another...

take hold of the one you love, look deep into their eyes and...

tell them you love them...

cherish them...

would be an empty shell of a person without them (you prolly still are, but work with me)...

and they will be getting nothing on this day created by the corporations to move product at a slow time of year. This should free up plenty of time to go ride. You're welcome.

What a weekend

What not to do the week before a race; most everything I did last week. Not so much on purpose, it's just the way things went. But, you can't sweat what you can't change and just gotta roll with it. So I did and what a great weekend, from top to bottom, it turned out to be.

The day was turing out perfect; 60's and sunny. Despite all the rain a few days prior, the trail was still in great shape. I rode smarter this time, took it easy at the start and kept my heart rate out of the red zone the entire ride. About 45 minutes into the race (most of that first section is climbing), I realized that I had been in the big ring the whole time and I just felt like I could push forever.

I caught the last rider to start before me just before the 1/2 way point, I didn't expect to reel him in. I didn't expect anything out of this ride except a marginal improvement over last race and here I was already catching someone who put 10 minutes on me last month. Once i crossed the 17 mile mark and started climbing, I checked my time and couldn't believe I was about 15 minutes better than my last TT and just felt like I was cruising. I started to come apart a bit toward the end and had to really focus my brains to forget my leg's pain and my body's completely depleted fuel supply. I came in at just a hair over 3 hours (by just 37 hairs to be exact), 9 minutes better than last March; 26 minutes better than last month. I hated that I was so close to a sub 3 hour time and not have made it, but still, couldn't be happier with my ride. I probably need another 5 minutes off my time next race to keep 2nd place for the series as I don't think I can equal Turners 2:50 from January. But hey, I never woulda thought I could roll a 3 this weekend either, so who knows. John wouldn't have thought he would pull 40 minutes off his time, but he did. Congrats man, thats awesome - 40 freakin minutes.

We got in another great ride at Raccoon Mtn on Sunday as the rain started to fall right as we pulled out of the parking lot. Perfect ending to a great weekend.

I had a wreck

In my bathroom last night. It was around 4 in the morning and I was taking a pee. I bent over to lean against the wall or sink or something and when I straightened back out the room started closing in, I thought about sitting down real quick but it was too late. I fell forward banging the right side of my forehead on a cabinet door handle and then went down to the floor nailing my adam's apple/throat on the toilet. Freaked the wife out pretty bad and today I can barely swallow plus I have a big knot/red mark on my forehead. I guess it could've been worse, I could've knocked my teeth out or something. My wife always tells me "the bathroom is the most dangerous room in the house." I believe her now.

Some good news though. Today I got a response email from a professional cyclist on the Rock Racing team. I want to interview him as a potential/likely source to use on my paper for my History 700 class this semester which may also go toward my thesis and dissertation work on cycling in the U.S. Anyway, he sent me his phone number and told me when I should call him. I think that is pretty awesome of him to make himself so available.

Thought you all might want something to look at. Here are two photos of me from my first mtb race ever at Capitol View park in 2003. It was muddy, I raced beginner and got 3rd in my age group.