Weather Delay

This morning I woke up to this…

…and I cried a little.

Tour Of California

I grew up in Merced, Ca and the Tour of California made a stop there this week. Jaynann and I  put it on our list of things to do while we were home being family. We convinced my brother and his fiance to join LanceMania with us and they were kind enough to drive us around so we could see the riders.  I was not sure how many people would show up to a cycling event in Merced, but I was pleasantly surprised at the turnout. Seems like all 70,000 residents came out to cheer on Lance Armstrong. Lance was the last racer to sign in and he stayed a few moments at the desk and spoke to the crowd. He has a good thing going with the Lance Armstrong Foundation. I highly recommend checking out all the good things they are doing to fight cancer. Jaynann and I wore our Pink Fatty Jerseys and brought along a Sharpie just in case Lance was signing jerseys.

Here are a few pics from the race. We were just a few feet from the racers during the race. I was amazed at the speed these guys were at on flat roads. There was a huge dust cloud following the pack as they cruised through town.

Jaynann got a great shot of Lance Armstrong…

Cool Jerseys

Is anyone looking for a cool jersey?  My brother in law Rick is designing and selling some pretty sweet biking gear.  I got my first one back in November for Fall Moab and it has become my favorite.  Here I am sporting the new look:

Check out his site and pick up a couple before they are gone. I can’t wait to see the t-shirts and socks they will putting out soon too.  

        

Moab 2008

Group shot at the top of Gold Bar Rim in Moab, Utah

2008 was the first year I joined the guys for their annual Fall Moab trip. It was everything I imagined it to be and more.  I will not do it justice by telling my side of the story so you can follow a few links below of others that wrote, posted pictures or video about the trip.  The nights were cold, there was some good company and riding and even search & rescue were called.

Dug

Rick

Brad

“Do you know where the weight room is?”

I joined the local gym again for the winter months.  I like that they allow you to drop or add membership without penalty.  The other gym we belonged to required a two year contract and if you wanted to
“freeze” your account you had to bring in a doctors note saying you had a tummy ache.  I don’t enjoy going to the gym, but I feel like I have to.  If I don’t, my winter coat size goes from a light weight rain coat
to a big fluffy fur coat.

Here are a few things I learned about going to the gym:

-It’s a great place to take the kids so they can play.  It gives me about 1 1/2 hours to lift, sit, take a long shower and get ready for the day.

-It’s nice to be able to say, “I went to the gym today.”

-Most of the time I show up and lift for 15 minutes then hit the steam and shower room for about 45 minutes.  I think I look forward to the steam room more than I do anything else there.

-Steam room etiquette:

They provide towels, please use them.  No one wants to talk to someone with their junk hanging out.

Please keep an arms length apart, I’m no homophobe but I don’t want to accidentally rub shoulders.

Also, keep the conversation light.  No political or economical issues.

-Lastly, go to the gym before 7a or after 7p.  If you go early morning most of the people are all business.  They want a good quick workout before work or their day starts.  In the evenings the place is
empty.  It becomes your own personal workout room.

The Gaoirans Are Growing

We thought about expanding our family, so I got a new bike.  Welcome to the new addition…

After two  years on the Jamis, I decided it was time to upgrade.  I took it out last week and absolutely love it.  I can’t wait to take it out some more and introduce it to more trail.

Fall Mountain Biking

I love this time of year.  The trees in the canyon turn to their fall colors and it makes some of the most beautiful scenery the state offers.   I also love, that my wife Jaynann likes to get out for rides.  In fact, she is a much better biker than I am.  Today we went up corner canyon and got lost for a few hours.  Here we are going up Clarks Trail:

3 a.m. televsion

Recently my 6 year old has been finding his way into our bed at night.  This means that I get the boot.  I try to stay in bed and fight the urge to move to the couch, but he somehow ends up perpendicular to us and pushes me out of bed.  Last night it happened again.  I stumbled out of bed walked through the kitchen and as I was about to go down the stairs I remembered there were freshly baked cookies in the cupboard.  After 2-3 cookies, ok maybe 4, I go downstairs.  I jump on the computer and check out some Olympic updates and check the news.  I read through some headlines and sure enough I start clicking on the “entertainment and celebrity news”.  I found out that Jennifer Anniston and John Mayer are no longer a couple and I’m devastated.  It drives me nuts that I read those things, but I always click on them.

After I get done on the computer I turn on the TV.  I can’t find the remote so I’m stuck with the current channel.  Last night it was an infomercial.  I never get caught up in these, but after 30 minutes I start to think that I should buy this product.  It was the MONSTER 1200.  It’s a steam cleaner.  According to them it will clean anything!  I believed them.  I seriously thought I should buy it.  Somehow I convinced myself to wait and ask Jay if she wanted it.  I left the webpage open on the computer as a reminder so that when I woke up I would tell Jay about it.  But as soon as I started reading through it again I realized how ridiculous it was.  Now I know why it was on at 3 a.m.  They brainwash us into thinking these products work and that we should buy them NOW!  I think I need Jay to hide my wallet at night just in case I get the urge again.

Priorities

I’ve never had a problem buying “feminine products”. It’s usually a late night run to the store and only a handful of people are there. Most of the awkwardness is past because I am one on one with the cashier. Most likely they have been in this situation before.  They swipe quickly and bag fast to save any embarrassment.  The trick is to add other items to the cart other than the “poons” (tampons) for camouflage.  Once you have some cookies, Diet Coke and maybe some fish sticks you can hide the essentials in the basket.

This weekend an interesting situation presented itself.  I have never been in this situation but I think I would have reacted similarly.  It was at the local K-Mart and a couple had purchased some items but then realized that they only had cash.  Their total was $80 but only had $50 on hand.  So the woman started putting things back…a few baskets, toilet paper, and crackers.  They were still $10 short.  The woman began to put her hand over some items she thought were expendable.  So she grabbed the box of Trojans and looked at her husband and said, “These?” His facial expression said, “Are you kidding me?”  He immediately shook her off and said, “no, not the condoms”.  At this point I’m thinking, of course not the condoms.  That is the last thing he wanted to give up.  So she stared at him and gave him a look like “what else am I supposed to get rid of?”  Well it finally came down to two more baskets and a kid’s sword.

I’m not sure what I would have done in that situation, but he acted quickly and I admire him for that.  I hope I would do the same.  Is that something you talk about before you go into the store?   So, honey, will it be toilet paper or condoms?

After the exchange my wife walks up and says, “Hey, Amy how’s it goin’?”

Switchin’ It Up

I regret not signing up for Leadville this year.  The day of the deadline I sat in front of the computer debating whether or not I should do it.  It was the race fee that was holding me up.  I thought about it all winter and was 99% sure I was in.  At the time, the bank account was very low, in fact it was in the red for a while.  I probably could have put it in on a credit card, but I did not feel like I could justify the fee.

This year I have been on my bike 2-3 times a week and right now I feel like Leadville would have been a motivator for the rest of the season.  Instead I have very little motivation to get out and ride.  It’s my own fault.  Most of the rides I have been on since RAWROD have been leisure rides around Corner Canyon. I think its time to switch it up.

I used to have a road bike, but I sold it in order to get my singlespeed.  I regret selling it now because it would be a nice change-up to go from dirt to road at least one time per week.  I did not enjoy the road very much.  Every time I did a road ride, it felt more like excercise than it did a hobby.  I did have one great ride and that was with Dug.  He took me up American Fork canyon the day before I sold it and we had a screaming good time.  But it was not enough fun  to keep it, for some reason I was bored, so I was very happy to part with the bike.

Now I want a road bike.  I am going to have to come up with a business plan to propose to my wife that will convince her that purchasing one is a good decision.  Do I have a chance?  No.  Is it worth asking?  Absolutely.  Am I hoping she reads this and buys me one?  Of course.