Into the rain

I missed the Saturday post due to our getting turned around in downtown Portland and crossing five of the seven bridges across the Willamette River. It was fun to see so much of downtown, revisiting places I can remember walking with my dad as a boy and with friends from when I worked for Willamette Industries.

Before heading for downtwon, we hung out at Washington Square Mall and found Chipotle for lunch. After going to Washington Square, we drove up the 217 to the 26 and headed towards downtown. Right after we got on the 26, I recognized the area in Beaverton. We stopped in at the cemetery where my sister was buried. It had been some years since I had been there and the first time for Cassie, Craig, and Colin. It was a moving experience for all of us. Maybe it is seeing your last name on a headstone that cause some deep reflection.

On another note, I am in Accounting on Wednesday and my phone rings. It is the Hogg who is on the climb up Sierra Road for the TdC. Yes, jealousy, sing it. Then, on Saturday I watch stage 6 up Balcolm Canyon and through Moorpark, right where I would have been if we were still in Cali. It was a great Tour. Stage 6 was incredible with all of the attacks and intensity. Watching Stage 5, the time trial in Solvang, I could only think about the ride in two weeks. It is going to be an experience. Here are the roads that the pros rode on in the TdC and Team Discovery rides on. Challenging, yes. Rewarding, definitely.

With all of this cycling, I have been motivated to be on the bike. It has been a lot more time in the garage due to the rains but tonight, I got out ... in the rain. Although it was only an hour, it was an intense hour of up and rain. The up was great. The down was white knuckles. I hope I am ready in two weeks for Solvang, the first century of the eight for this year. There will be no 5 hour century this time but it is coming. It is all in due time and Solvang is part of this goal.

Until the sun shines again, it will be into the rain...and on to Solvang.

Heartland Ferry

After a week of being in the garage, doing the U2 pain tour, it was nice to be out on the open road. My dad and I met two guys (one I knew from work and his friend) 10 miles from the house in Newberg to the small town of Donald. We rode down to the Heartland Ferry on the Willamette River to find the ferry closed due to high water. So we stopped at the State Park, had a bite, and rode home. All told, 51+ miles in 3 1/2 hours. It wasn't a blistering pace but good enough to get a good work out. It was all about tempo and leg strength building today. I now know my own century route - ride south through Salem to Albany and back. It should be a good ride whenever I get it done.

Solvang is in three weeks. This means that next week, more miles and time on the bike.

It is good to have the Hogg back in the USA. I was really looking forward to being on the TdC route this year like I was last year. With the change, no can do. I will just have to catch it on Versus and see if I can see the Hogg at the top of Sierra Road. With all of his climbing, keeping up with him at Solvang will be a challenge. I'll just keep calling him at 4 AM to get him out of rhythm.

I think Yoda is lost to the Jedi world. Probably hanging out on Dagobah in some swamp, eating bugs and drinking green junk. Don't worry Yoda, your fellow Jedis will save you but you'll have to wait till August when HHH rolls around.

What was I thinking?

I'm sitting in the house on Friday night thinking about my Saturday ride and I say, "hey, Rick (a cyclist from work) said the Bald Peak ride was a good one." Well, it was a challenging ride with about 1600 feet of climbing over 8 miles. It felt a lot like a day I've described earlier when Jens and I went for a "7" type of ride day up Mulholland. I made it work though and plan on riding it again this coming week. Something I learned is that it might be 40+ in the valley but after 1600 feet of climbing, the temperature is quite different. The view from the top was incredible. I could see four snow covered mountains. In consulting with the experts, they must have been Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Hood, Mt. Bachelor, and Mt. Rainer. It is hard to put into words the beauty of the scene. These snow covered mountains with a little clouds, some blue sky, evergreen trees all over, looking down on farmlands in the valleys. I would have hung out a bit longer but it was too cold. I started my descent, pedaling only to stay warm but really cruising.



Although the ride this week was great, there was two other things that were much better. First, we drove out to Lincoln City yesterday to have lunch. Lincoln City has a special place with Christine and I since we spent our honeymoon there. We ate lunch across the street from the hotel where we stayed after our marriage. The food was great and the ambiance better. I could not help think about how different the circumstances were yesterday than they were some 15 years ago: two college students with no kids and an unknown future. After lunch, we drove to see the "Spruce Goose" at the Evergreen Aviation Museum. It was a nice day.



The highlight of the week was going to the Portland Temple with Christine, revisiting the spot where her and I got married. It was a magical night then in 1992 and it was again this last Tuesday night.



Portland is proving to be all we had hoped it to be.

Out on the road

Nothing like a wet and cold ride to get the blood moving a bit faster. OB1-2OLD and I hit the road today for a 2+ hours ride of 32+ miles. It was a fast first hour and then a slower, more deliberate second hour. We rode from Newberg to Woodburn and back again. Rolling hills, tree farms, hops hangers, rivers, and countryside with few cars. Once the legs got warmed it, it was a good ride. It took some time to get the body feeling good but it when it did, it was like riding a bike.

This first week in the house has been fun. Christine has done most of the work unpacking everything and putting it in order. I come home and have a few projects to complete. Give us another week or so and we will be ready for visitors. To our friends and family, feel free to stop by and spend some time with us. It is good to be here. Time to hang with the family and get ready for Solvang. With 4K+ worth of climbing, I'd better hit them hills.

About the picture, it is from a coffee shop here in Portland. No cars allowed, bikes only. Check out the special in the window...