To the beach

It was a nice Memorial Day ride. Up through Simi Valley, around Moorpark, down Santa Rosa canyon to Camarillo, to Port Hueneme, and then down the coast to Malibu and the beach. All told 55 miles in less than three hours. I thought it would take me almost four to do the ride but I felt strong and the legs just flew on the bike. I surprised myself through out the ride. It was a good start to the week. Tomorrow will be a shorter ride.

The rest of the day was relaxing. We stayed at the beach for a while and then drove down PCH. There was people every where. The 10 was backed up for miles from the beach. We got to see the Santa Monica Pier. We would have stopped but too many people. We just put it on the to do list for another day. It looks like fun to ride up and down the pier along with some of the rides.

Then it was to the Fortuna's for a relaxing time at the pool with a bunch of friends from church. There was food, music, pool, and good conversation. It was a good ending to the day. I must say, this has been a full weekend. It was good to be with the family and hang out. All of us are tired. Cassie probably the most; she went to bed at 7 PM. The boys will go next here shortly. I will be close behind.

There is only about seven weeks to the STP. 200+ miles to ride. I need to be ready.

Skid Mark

Well, skid mark left its mark on the track. We built a wood track car that was run on an aluminum track. Our mark was not in the speed of our car but in the way we carried ourselves after being the slowest. One good mark was that our car continued to get faster with each race. All of the other cars kept slowing down. We'd eventually caught them but the time trials just didn't go long enough. Ooh well, there is always next year.

Legoland was lots of fun. It was good to see some friends from Phoenix as well. Go to www.javapolitan.blogspot.com for more pictures and commentary on this outing.

Tomorrow, it is time to be on the bike.



Just a note, to all of the veteran's, thanks for serving this great country of ours. To all the families who have given the ultimate sacrifice, please accept my humble and most heartfelt Thank You!!

Pine Wood Derby Time

Just a reminder of the August Torture ahead .... if you can't take the heat .... don't get on the bike!!

Tonight is the night we race the car. Craig and I have worked hard on the car and are ready to take the trophy. Even if we don't, we had a great time making the car. I hope that it is fast. We have called it the "Skid Mark." It is all brown with two read racing lines on the top of the car. We will take a picture of it at the race.

It has been a good week to get back into the riding, a little of spin class with some road work. We are going to Legoland on Saturday and meeting some Arizona friends there. Monday I plan on taking the long way to the beach and getting in some serious miles. Only about seven weeks to the big ride. I know I am physically ready. I need to get the mental edge. Time on the bike will heal all wounds.

It was sad to see the Spurs go out but in true Alamo spirit, they fought until the very end. It is true that Manu fouled Dirk but Tim got hacked. The refs must be consistent in tight games. It used to be that almost no fouls at all were called in the last 30 seconds unless they were blatant. I remember a Knicks/Bulls game at the wire. It was brutal under the basket but no foul. The foul would have only changed the outcome of the game. In the Spur's case, the call and the no call changed the outcome of the game and all in one teams favor. I admit, I cannot root for Dallas. In fact, I cannot root for any of the teams left. I am out of this year's NBA Finals. I can be found with my wife, on the banks of the San Jacinto, hoping for a bite on my line. (In order to understand this, you should watch TNT with The Jet, Barkley, and EJ)

I'm outta here...

The Hat

We spent much of yesterday at a Junior Olympic Track Meet for all of the elementary schools in Simi. Cassie ran on the 6 x 67 relay team for her school and their team took second place. They did well with the handoffs and Cassie ran well, catching two other girls from the stagger.

We got hungry after watching the qualifying heats so we went for lunch to a Simi staple and landmark since 1951, The Hat. It is famous for two things, a Pastrami sandwich and chili cheese fries. We had both. The chili cheese fries was a meal in and off itself. Wow!! The pastrami sandwich was good as well. We can see why they have been in business for so long. They focus on what they do well, the gut bomb that tastes so good. Christine even commented on the quantity she ate of the chili cheese. Now, compared to me it was a little cause I tore it up. Any way, it was fun to eat there. It had a diner type feel to the restaurant and everyone was helpful and friendly.

Riding has not been on the radar this week. I was in Seattle the first three days of the week at Milgard training for new supervisors and managers. After sitting in the classes which were taught by GM's and VP's from the company with opening remarks from the President, I felt again the reassurance that this is the company I want to work for. They preach what they believe in and base their business on that philosophy. I like it!! After Saturday's trek through the Santa Monica Mountains, I took it easy the first few days while in Seattle and then hit the spin class on Friday and played softball last night. I felt quick and fast. I ran down a few flies that no one thought were catchable. It was fun and we even won. We are now 6-1. We lost last Saturday 19-17 in a barn burner where the last team up won the game. This week, it was more defensive with almost all of the runs coming in the first three innings and then only 1 being scored in the last four. Final 9-6.

I got some new road shoes. They were on sale at the local bike shop and I have been looking for a while so I picked them up. Here is what Shimano says about their shoes, "Shimano's SH-R151 Shoes are sleek and fast. They boast super-light and rigid carbon soles for exceptional power transfer ideal for blazing acceleration and sustained efforts. Three strap closures ensure a snug, efficient fit and the nylon upper sports a mesh area that lets in cool air to keep your feet dry and comfortable." Nothing like upgrading equipment. I rode with Cassie this morning for about 30 minutes. The feet felt good. We rode up a short hill and I am talking to Cassie and she can't respond because she is breathing so hard. We turned around and came home. I told her we would try and ride some more next Saturday together. This week it is back on the schedule with spinning classes, a little swimming, and time on the bike. Time to get ready for the STP.

Also, Craig and I got started on his pinewood derby car. Taking what we learned from last year and from watching "Down With Derby", we are now expert pine wood derby car engineers. We shaped it with Craig doing some cutting and all of the sanding. I bored some holes in the bottom in strategic locations. We weighed the car and added weights to it to get close to five ounces. Then, we melted the weights and poured them into the holes I bored out. I forgot that hot metal makes wood burn. We had this nice pine burning smell in the kitchen for most of the night but the car is okay. After the metal cooled, we covered it up with wood filler. Today, we will sand and but the first coat of paint on. Actually, my part is almost complete. Craig will sand and do all of the painting. All I have to help with is putting the wheels on. We both are excited for this Thursday night and the running of the cars!!

Finally, it was good to see the Spurs come back from a 3-1 deficit. Tomorrow night will be an excellent game.

LET'S GO SPURS!!

One down...

I must say, "Cruis'in the Conejo" was the toughest of the century rides I have done so far. It didn't help that I missed a turn and rode some 7 extra miles, three of which was one hill. One hill was five miles long and I averaged just over 5 MPH during that climb. I wanted to quit and saw others pulling off the side of the road to stop. I just kept telling myself, the top is just right around the next corner. Many times it wasn't, but I did the Nemo and kept going. I felt good on the climbs. I am glad that I have been riding, taking the spin classes, and losing weight. I felt so much better on the climbs than I would have several months ago. Training pays off.

It took me 3 hours to go 46 miles, quite a difference from the previous weekend when I rode 55 miles in three hours. I finished right at 6 hours. I think I have found a great training ride to help prepare me for the STP. I felt great for most of the ride. There was about thirty minutes after all of the climbing that I was doubting I would finish. After a PB&J and some pound cake, I got a "second" wind and pounded out the last 50. It was over very familiar roads. It makes it easier when you know where you are going. The next ride is next month in central CA. I should be in much better shape by then. I know now what else I need to do to get ready for the 200+ miles in July. I got some tips from a double veteran on the ride.

The best part of the ride was of course the finish. It wasn't because I did it. It was because Christine and the kids had come down to see me finish. My eyes got all watery and I got emotional. It was great to have them there. I thought a lot about them on the ride. It was even more special to have them there at the end.

Thanks Christine - Happy Mother's Day!!

Let me borrow a quote..

From Al Davis, "Just win, baby!!"

This is the plan.

Good luck to all on their rides this weekend, especially Yoda. May your first be memorable and well suffered.

Name this moment....

Cause if you can't, you'd better not be on a bike. Just like with any sport, if you play the game, you should know the game: its key players, influential moments and key happenings, biggest stages, history. This is one of those important moments in history. Another will be made this August when during a large outing in a smaller Texas town, OB1 will be treated to lunch, otherwise none in the history books as "The Loser Pays!"

Before I get into the events of last few days, let me just say that in there are many good things about Cali, but good BBQ is not one of them. There is okay and decent but definitely not good. We tried another one today that people said was good. It was just okay. I guess when you've had the worst BBQ in Texas, ordinary is just not good enough. Where is the Shell station when you need it!!

Anyway, today was a good day. I hit the road for 55 miles in just a little over three hours. I had planned on 70 to 75 but I overslept. Colin woke up at 4 AM, letting it fly. It took some time to get it all under control. Christine is such a trooper. She stayed with him the rest of the night/morning. She knows I'd fall asleep and probably would have gotten drenched in bile so I slept in my bed and she helped Colin. Nonetheless, I got up late and only road for three hours. I felt strong and ready for next Saturday's ride.

Finally, Let's Go Spurs!!

Ride and Swim

Just another Monday of getting ready for the ride here in ten days. I got up and went to spin class. I wanted to ride for at least an hour so I got their early and warmed up for 20 minutes. The class was intense. The instructor liked to have us "jump" and stand up a lot. This really worked the quads. I felt good at the end but by the end of the day I was done for. But I was not done, I took Cassie and Craig to the pool. I swam for 40 minutes and then nearly passed out when I stopped. I needed to eat. I felt so much better when I did.

Tomorrow, I have this nice ride planned, to the hills it is. I plan on riding the Norwegian Grade and continue up Calle Contento and then up Herbes. This will be about 20 to 25 minutes of solid pain. I am ready to go.

Until then, 2L2Q, Hammer Time!!