Roots

Rode Root Bug, the lake loop, and part of Overstreet yesterday evening. Blank, Rupe, and K2 were in attendance and we all had a pleasant ride. Root Bug is getting pretty torn up with the roots more like steps but we only had 1 unexpected dismount which nobody but the dismouter got to see so it didn't really count. The city mowed the edge of the lake which made for a great view with the sun setting. In these days of cutting budgets it's nice to see the city can still afford to build a viewing platform along the edge of the lake even though we've ridden there almost every Wednesday for a couple of years and never seen anybody walking along the lake. I think they need to do something about the squirrels though, I've never seen so many and they're going on little suicide missions right in front of my bike.

Oh well no one threw up on the lake climb and no one had to push so our little group is getting better at this. Giant was MIA last night or we would've received much more of a butt whoopen.

A Milestone?

Played customer golf yesterday. No it's not as fun as you think it would be. On golf courses they have tees set certain distances from the greens. The better players play from the back tees, average players from the middle set, older players (60+) from another set, and then the ladies tees. A member of our group was 62 and after he hit from the 60+ tees and I had hit from the middle set his partner asked why I hadn't hit from the 60+. First time that's happened. Oh well. I gave him my usual line "I only look like I'm 60".

Maybe I should dye my hair, na wouldn't be worth the trouble.

Am I Done With This?

In an effort to "give back" something to my fellow man I searched for something I thought I had a talent for that would benefit others and I came up with firefighting. Way back in the dark ages (the 70s) I fought forest fires for the state. It was a fun job and they trained us to also fight structure fires. So fast forward to 1996 and even though I was (am) considered old I signed up to volunteer in my cities fire department. The training was minimal until the county required we take state certified firefighter training, since then the level of service we provide our communities has improved.

All this brings me to yesterday and another vehicle crash with a fatality. You see making a rescue run while the adrenalin is pumping and there is a possibility of saving a life is one thing but waiting 3 hours for FHP homicide to document the scene so you can remove a body is nerve racking. As I sat on the tailgate of the fire truck and contemplated the job ahead I wondered "am I done with this?". The jury is still out.

On a brighter note I went for a 6 mile run yesterday afternoon to clear my head. It was hot but the music on my MP3 was good and there was a nice breeze in certain areas. Sometimes after a day like that I really appreciate a good cold brew.

Fam Ride

Sometimes you just need to relax and go for a scenic bike ride. You know, just enjoy the woods, take time to look around. That's how the family (fam) ride rolls. Rupe is getting quicker with the technical stuff and with time his legs will improve. Bunk still struggles with the new and improved Magnolia trail. She has a hard time relaxing, letting go of the brakes, and just flowing. She stresses that she is holding us up (which she is) and we try to reassure her that we need a slow day every now and then and that I'm just glad she likes to go.

I don't see many families out on the trail which is a shame. Maybe they're there and I just miss them but I don't think so. For many years I participated in a sport that was just mine and there's nothing wrong with that but it's good to do things together. Let me tell you when you get a little older you realize how fast time goes by. So slow down every once in a while, take the family, you don't need to be Johnny Hot Shoe Racer all the time.

Ride Alone

Yea I went by myself last night. It flooded at Lake Jackson Tuesday evening so I figured Root Bug would be a wash and I had read where the soccer complex had over flowed onto the trail washing a section out so I opted for Munson. Besides they have been doing some rehab and new construction there and I was anxious to see how it worked.

Rupe was "too tired to go" plus he had some math homework to finish so I let him off, then Blank canceled, I never got in touch with Giant or K2 and I guess after my last ride with Wheeldeal and his group he was leary of going with me again. So I plugged in my new MP3 and set off for a solo ride complete with soundtrack.

The Feds had taken out a section through some ponds which was one of my favorite areas and rerouted a shorter path to the Tall Pines Shortcut bench. This is kinda of a trade off as the new trail is a mixture of clay and dirt, packed and bermed, and a lot of fun. The rest of the old trail was dry and sandy as I assumed it had rained down there of course it never seems to rain on Munson.

I rode Munson all the way around only seeing 3 other riders then I took the Tall Pines Shortcut and made another loop. The MP3 was a distraction at first since Rupe had been using it and had it set to repeat on Black Sabbath only. I do like Sabbath but the third time through Orchid I stopped to try to get it back to play all. After calling home to try to get him to tell me how to reset it I got lucky and figured it out for myself so I rode along with the Who and Neil Young for 13 miles.

Tuesday Ride

NA and I went for a little 10 mile ride at Tom Brown yesterday evening. Rode it in a different direction than I normally do so it seemed new. We rode a casual pace without much stopping all the way out to the Greenway and back where we ran into the TMBA doing a time trial on the Magnolia CC trail. I was tempted to take a shot at it but I felt kinda weird. I don't really know those folks and I didn't see much gray hair among the 20 or so riders hanging around. I'm trying not to make the MTB a competitive thing but I seem to go in that direction when given a chance.

I wonder what they think of the old man sitting there thinking of doing the run. I forget how I look, I certainly don't feel a day over 30. I felt like the new (old) kid on somebody else's playground.

Anyway I joined the association so we'll see where that goes.

I did get an invite to join the big group ride starting on Fern yesterday but I'm not sure if my speed or skills are up to that level yet. Blank had ridden with them before and assured me I could hang. Maybe next time.

Yard Work

Man, I spent most of my weekend doing a yard project that I should have hired somebody to do.

I did get away Saturday morning to run the Wakulla Springs 5k. The run is all off road using multi use trails the public usually doesn't get to see. The springs are only 22 miles south of Tallahassee and I don't know why we don't go there more often it really is a beautiful place.

It was 70 and muggy when we got to sign up. They were already sold out of T-shirts which meant there would be a good turn out. We already have plenty of T-shirts so we paid for the no shirt option and took a stroll down to look at the springs. Rupe insisted on using my new Clip MP3 at this race and he farted around trying to get it just right as I paced waiting to start my warm up run. I'm trying to stop striking with my heal and was making a conscious effort to increase my turn over rate during our warm up and everything felt good, just a little weak in the legs, I commented to T that I just wasn't feeling it today but then I usually say that right before the start of a race.

I had picked out my nemesis from Tails and Trails in the line up at the start and figured if I paced him on the way out I could try and take him in the last mile. This guy is my age but still has a full head of blonde hair so he's not hard to spot. In fact that's how he beat me at Tails is I didn't think he could be in my class since he didn't have any gray hair.

It helps at these local 5k's to get toward the front quickly as the talkers and joggers like to line up early and clog things up. We started out on a short section of the entrance road then made a left onto a lime rock service road then a sharp right into the first sand two track section. I was right behind blondie and we were on a good pace just a little faster than I thought we'd do in the sand. I'd pass him and he'd pass me back until we hit the 2 mile marker. I saw him look at his watch and grunt. As I passed him I said "too fast?" and he said "yep" and I didn't see him again until after the race.

I almost matched my pace from the Bainbridge 5k but the course at Wakulla was a little longer and sandy in spots so I didn't get to hit a PR. I did manage to pace and pass blondie but couldn't match the pace of the first place finisher in my class so I ended up second. I was disappointed since I was the first to put my card in my age group box I thought I had it wrapped up but it was not to be. I love running off road it doesn't seem to hurt as bad as paved routes do and the scenery helps take your mind off the suffering. Oh well, my time last year was 4 minutes slower than this year so at least I improved. They give out wildlife photos as trophies which makes waiting around afterwards worth it.

If I want to ride my mountain bike on the weekends it looks like I'm going to need to put a halt to all this yard work crap.

Wednesday Ride

Rupe, the Giant and I went to Tom Brown Wednesday evening for a little MTB ride. Lots of other riders there, many going in the opposite direction we were which made for interesting corners. Rupe kept up pretty well it seems like just last week he complained of the hills on the multi use now I have to push hard to drop him, it won't be long before I hear "on your left" as he pushes past.

The Giant had ridden his road bike a couple of times during the week and had pounded out whoops in the ANF on his dirt bike so he didn't mind a little more relaxed pace. He usually rolls hard (for us) and after an hour at his pace my legs start to go away. Anyway 12.5 miles went by quick and I enjoyed my traditional Monster on the ride home.

Looking forward to the Wakulla 5k this Saturday. I got a third there in class last year and hope to do better this year. They give away cool prizes for the top 3 places in each age class which makes it more interesting. I've been trying to work on my running form which makes me run a little tight. This run is all off road which means a shorter stride and not as much traction but the scenery is fantastic.

Hope to ride the MTB sometime over the weekend if I can find somebody who wants to go.

Ok Let's Talk About You

Since no one is reading this I don't really know who "you" is.

I'll pretend you're younger than I am since I don't think many older folks use this type of electronic media.

You probably have some kind of work issues.

You're worried about the kids (if you have any).

Come to think of it I don't have any idea who "you" are. So lets get back to talking about me.

I attended a meeting last night of parents and students. The kids are at that point in their education where they are starting to make college choices and talking about test scores and GPA' s. Some of the parents seem very concerned about scores and which school will take what. They are usually the parents of the weirdest kids. All you really need is a good back ground and to find something you enjoy doing.

If you enjoy your work you'll never have to work a day in your life.

I mean really you are going to get up at least 5 days a week and go do something so you might as well do something you like. I've found that if you like it you'll do well at it and the money will follow. Oh you might not get rich but you'll make a decent living. Any fool can work 80 hours a week but the person I admire makes a good living doing 40 and really knows how to spend their time off.

I'm going to slip out a little early and ride my mountain bike this afternoon, looks like Tom Brown today. See I know how to spend MY time.

The Age Thing

I find myself searching racing results for riders older than 50. It makes me cringe when they mention that they "even had a 54 year old racing today". Whats wrong with people my age? Don't they like to compete?

Now don't get the idea that I'm some type of top level athlete (or that I ever was). I'm just a weekend warrior and not a very good one. Though I do seem to do ok at certain running events as long as the fast Tallahassee guys are running somewhere else. I'm pretty much middle of the pack in MX and back of the pack in MTB. In both of these I'm running in the lower skill levels. It would be nice to keep the MTB ride not as competitive as I let other things get. Competition has a way of spoiling some things that should just be enjoyed.

I did manage to work my way into the A class in off road endurance motorcycle racing but I got tired of wearing holes in my body and not really enjoying the ride.

This blog thing is kind of narcissistic isn't it. Kinda all about me. Hey I like that!

Not Interested Right Now

I have had a passion (my wife calls it a disease) for motorcycles. I've ridden something for 43 years. Most of my friends I've met through motorcycles. We traveled to Wyoming and all over the east coast when we had street bikes but my real love has always been off road.

But you see that's the problem. Since I started mountain biking I have lost the urge to ride my motorcycle. It's a strange feeling not wanting to ride but I'm obsessed with this bicycle deal.

Somethings wrong for a man my age to be so focused on a hobby don't you think? My motorcycle friends say I've gone over to the dark side. I hope the spark comes back one day.

It may have something to do with the (perceived) danger of modern motocross tracks. I get really tired of having to concentrate on clearing an obstacle that if I don't clear it some spode who can't even turn a bike beats me. Track builders keep on adding more jumps because some snot nose brat is going to be the next Ricky Carmichael and he "can't get no better if'n he don't do them ar jumps" please. Do I sound bitter? Maybe like a sore loser? Could be.