It's A Good Feeling To Know

That I can still ride a bike.  I don't walk so good yet, but I can ride.

To The Coast

As we rolled out on the St. Marks Trail on my first ride back since the crash, I noticed the road bike had a bad wobble.  "Crap" I thought "I must have messed something up using it on the trainer".  Then I realized it just me; shaking.  I was so nervous.  It took all I had just to clip in and roll out.  After a few miles I finally settled down and was able to enjoy the ride.  32 miles isn't far and my legs held up fine but I found out my seat wasn't as well conditioned.

The only scare was the pack of kids riding toward us about 5 miles in.  I just stopped because I didn't want to risk having to unclip quickly.  As I sat there on the edge of the bike path one of them just rolled over and ran into my front wheel.  I resisted the urge to teach him and his "ride leader" a new vocabulary and only said "really?"

I was so happy to get that first ride out of the way.  Life was starting to seem too normal after 9 weeks of being off the bike.  

The next day we went to Gainesville to watch The Kid race CX State Champs.  I thought I would get a big urge to race but that wasn't the case.  This time I was content to just be a spectator.  For a state champs race attendance seemed low to me, I'm afraid CX isn't drawing the riders it needs to maintain a viable race series.  That's sad because it really is a fun form of racing.

MTB?

The next weekend I convinced Big Jim to accompany me to Munson so I could ride off road for the first time since the crash.  The MTB felt more comfortable than the road bike had the weekend before and I wasn't quite as skittish.  I've never been very good at turning and today was even worse.  All the trees looked close to the trail and I was a little paranoid at first.  That soon melted away and I started to get the feel for the bike again.  It felt like I was riding Munson for the first time.  So smooth and flowing.  

We had both had enough after about an hour.  I couldn't believe I was tired so soon!  Unlike the road bike my whole body was feeling it.  Mass quantities of Dos Equis and fajitas post ride proved to be the perfect recovery meal.

Now What?

So it looks like I'm back.  No fitness, but a strong desire to ride.  Walking is still a mess, both painful,and with a limp.  Doc says this will go away as the bone heals so we'll see.  The Lovely Wife will not allow me to ride alone so finding riding partners who are willing to go as slow as I am currently going can be a challenge.

I still have memories of hitting the ground and the aftermath of that September 29th crash.  I never knew what it was like to be helpless and in pain before that.  But I can't go forward if I keep replaying that day.  Life's too short to be afraid.  A little fear is healthy but too much can cripple you.  I've talked to others who have had much worse trauma that I and have fought back.

I guess the scariest thing I take with me from this is........ I'm normal.  In the back of my mind I knew something like this could happen but I had been so careful and so prepared.   It had me thinking I was just a little bit better than all those people who go to hospitals on a regular basis.  But nope, no matter how prepared or just plain lucky you've been, you can still get bit.  After all, I was just riding my bike.

Doctor, Doctor, Gimmie the News!

After wondering if everything was healing as it should.  Wondering if the pain and swelling was normal.  Wondering if I should be walking without a cane.  Wondering if I was ever going to be normal again.  I went to see the surgeon who put me back together.

And it turns out everything's hunky dory.  Insert big sigh of relief here.  They (the medical profession) could really save folks some worry if they'd just let you know what to expect.  He says I'm ahead of the curve and all is proceeding according to schedule, and for me to relax and not get in a big rush.  Doing more will not make it heal any faster.  But damn I ready to be done with this!

Some things I've learned:

Every time you lean a cane or crutch up against something it will fall down.
A muscle relaxer and a glass of wine will make you sleep like a baby.
It takes twice as many trips from the kitchen to set the table if you only have one hand.
Some people want to hear all the details of the crash, others it just freaks out.
You can only watch so much TV.
I am just starting to miss doing yard work.
I can resist the urge to bonk people with my cane who say "maybe now you'll grow up".
There are a lot of folks with much larger issues than I have.
Bad stuff just happens, I know that's scary, but it just does.
Physical Therapy will hurt that night and into the next day.
I would be a complete wreck without The Lovely Wife to take care of me.

And that's just the surface.  I won't go into all the kumba ya stuff.

What I Miss:

A day with no pain.

Walking without an aid.

Running

Yard work

A good nights sleep.

My gym work outs.

Being able to go where I want.

And last but not least RIDING MY BIKE!

For Right Now

Anyhoo, I am making progress.  It's just going very slow.  People tell me "it's only a blip, you won't remember this in 5 years".  I just don't know about that.  The Doc says 5 months until I'm basically pain free.  A year to get my fitness back.  I had hoped to be able to race the Georgia XC Series in March, but now, I'm just not so sure.  I do know that my dream of being able to race CX in my 80's is starting to look dimmer.

I can ride the trainer for over an hour, getting my HR into zone 5 sometimes.  I still have issues with sitting in the saddle that long but hey, I had that problem before I got hurt.  I have started to look longingly at my CX bike while riding the trainer and dreaming of long clay road rides.  I suppose I should start out riding on the road though.  It would be smoother and I will be used to the road bike by the time I can get it off the trainer.  We'll see.

I Can See The Light

It's around a long bend, and it's just a spot, but I can see it, maybe.

It's been a little over a month now since I took my little tumble.  I can put on my socks and sort of sleep on my side.  I can make a full pedal stroke on the trainer at PT and was even able to spend 10 minutes with resistance spinning.  Damn it felt good.  I managed to get into the bottom of zone 2 with my heart rate.  Happy day!

I'm down to one crutch and my PT tells me I should be off it part time by Tuesday.  For some reason that scares me.  I'm a wuss when it comes to pain.  Speaking of pain, I've severely cut back on my pain meds.  I'm on an as needed basis.  And yes, sometimes I still need.

I managed to crawl on the road bike on the trainer Friday.  It wasn't pretty but I got on.  I did 15 minuets, no it wasn't that much time, but it was all my butt could stand.  I got up to 20 Sunday and am planning on increasing it 5 minutes per day until I reach a time I just can't stand it any longer.

It's amazing how much muscle I've lost in a month.  How hard these little exercises are to do.  My mind still thinks I can do what I used to, but my body lets me know pretty quick how limited I am.  I hope I'm pushing hard enough.

It's weird when you're stuck at the house, the weekends aren't such a big deal.  Fortunately it's college football season so there's something different on TV.  I know, that's kinda sad when watching football is something to look forward to.

But Wait

So some time has passed since I wrote the stuff above.  I'm still on a crutch.  I can ride my trainer for 45 minutes but I can't walk more than 10 feet without an aid.  I can feel frustration setting in.  I mean it's been 5 weeks.  I'm losing confidence in my PT.  Maybe it's an old guy thing but I wish he had more experience with rehabbing older cyclists.  When I tell him what I used to do and what I expect to do he just looks at me funny.  I want to be able to do what I did 2 months ago.  And I don't want to wait 2 years to get there.

Am I being unreasonable?  Maybe PT isn't that important?  Should I accept the fact that this injury represents a large nonrecoverable step down?  I don't think that's realistic.

And Another Week

I have a very cool cane now.  It's made a difference in my confidence getting around.  I'm up to an hour on the trainer but I'm losing interest in my prescribed exercises.   Not only does my injured leg/hip bother me but because of my weird walk with the cane and the crutch my back and neck stay aggravated.  I've also become more narcissistic (if that's possible).

No pain meds for a few days now.  I hope that's behind me.  I'm doing things now I didn't take time for when I was healthy, trying to be a "glass half full" kind of person instead of focusing on all the stuff I can't do.

The improvements are so small, and they seem to come so slowly.  But they are there.  Cycling is not my life but I do like to ride a bike.  Starting out as a raw beginner again is both humbling and terrifying.  Right now I just want to be able to start.

30 Days In the Hole

Shoot it'll be a miracle if I get going in 30 days.  I'm doing my PT now.  I look forward to it.  It's as close to a gym workout as I get.  I also have an hour of exercises that I do daily.  Last week in PT I got on a stationary bike, I couldn't make a full revolution but I got close.  That doesn't seem like much does it?  And I guess that's whats so frustrating.

Progress

It's hard to go from 5 days a week on the bike to just being able to turn the crank one time.  Small things become huge.  Like putting on my socks.  Damn that hurts, and I don't make it every try.  

The days go by quickly right now.  I'm lucky to be able to work from the house so that takes up quite a bit of my day time.  Evenings are the worst.  Acceptance of my fate is tricky.  Sometimes I can get my head around it and then there's times I fight against it.  The reality can't be ignored though.

Stories

I meet others at PT with cycling injuries.  Most are younger than me.  Then there's the stories of folks getting injured while doing the most mundane things.  Getting out of the shower, running across a parking lot, walking along the side of the road, cleaning the gutters, falling out of a tree stand.

I get pissed at people who insinuate that I was doing something I shouldn't have been doing when I got hurt.  They make a face and say something like "I bet you won't be doing that anymore."  I was just riding a bike along a multi use path, not even going fast, not taking any big risks.  

If it's one thing I've learned you can get hurt doing anything.  And that's a scary thing.

Invincible

41 years of riding moto, racing enduro, hare scrambles, and motocross, and only a broken wrist to show for it.  10 years of cycling, and until this ordeal, nothing more than a scraped knee.  I really thought I had something, call it luck, preparation, concentration, or just the ability to foresee danger. I had dodged the bullet for so long I really thought I was different.  To realize that I am not as invincible as I thought is another lesson I've learned.

Changes

You hear folks say your life can change in an instant.  I knew that was true but until now I hadn't experienced any thing like this.  It has certainly given me a renewed sense of appreciation for so many things that I had been taking for granted.  Accepting help and kindness, humbling myself to accept it, has been a big change for me.

New Direction?

Others have been hurt much worse than I.  Had larger set backs than this.  I am learning something new all the time.  It would be a shame to go through this and not have it change me, I hope for the better.

You can't go through life worrying about something bad happening.  You'd miss so much!  In the end it's not really what happens but how you react to it that tells what kind of a person you are.

Will I ride again?  I am most certainly planning on it.  Will I be scared?  Yes, terrified.  Will I race?  I hope so.  Suffice to say the 60+ XC class doesn't look as easy to dominate as it did last month.

I miss the fellowship that goes along with cycling.  The post ride beers (which had gotten few and far between for some reason) and of course this is the best time of the year weather wise.

Anyhoo, if I could just put my socks on and sleep on my side I'd be ecstatic right now.   

It Ain't Easy

I have all kinds of stories from my short stay at TMH.  Suffice to say that the staff was kind.  They operated on me, put me back together, got me up on crutches, and got me out the door.  Since we are new to this health care thing there were a few subjects they could have done a better job of covering but we didn't know what we didn't know.

Home

I got myself folded into the Subaru and we made it home in a driving rain.  The crutch walk from the street to the front door was like a qualifier.  I made it but was terrified.  They had me climb steps with crutches that day at TMH but it was a different story having to do it by myself at 6 in the evening. The Lovely Wife (TLW) helped as much as she could.  I am not a good patient.

A New Life

Those first few days are a blur.  Let me say right now I could not have made any of this happen without TLW.  I wore out thank you and I'm sorry in those first two days.  I have no idea how anyone could get through something like this without help.

Friends stopped by, neighbors brought food, one even stopped by to see if I'd died, since the truck had been in the driveway all week.  I was surprised by how much I could do, and it got a little better every day.  The pain wasn't that high just constant and it worked on me so that by the afternoon I was getting down.  I did some of the exercises the PT had given me the day I checked out, and made laps around the kitchen, but the mental part was hard to get a grip on.

Last Thursday evening TLW starts to count pain pills and discovers I don't have enough to make it through the weekend.  I had incorrectly assumed they would give me enough to last until my next doctors visit.  Turns out they can't call in pain med scripts and you have to have a actual written one in your hand.  After 3 hours of automated phones and transfers TLW went to TOC and got the prescription.  She went directly to the pharmacy and got it filled.  This is on a Friday afternoon mind you.  If we hadn't counted pills I would have been without pain meds by Saturday night.  I can't imagine how that would have worked out.  At the pharmacy they acted like she was crazy when she told them she didn't know any of this.

Day by Day

The Kid came home Friday night, he's a little freaked out by all of this.  Welcome to the club.

I am able to work from the house.  I am getting cabin fever already.  I stopped looking at FB for now. My PT starts Monday and I'm looking forward to seeing what I can do.  Sure it's scary knowing how much pain they will put me through but it's better than sitting at the house, at least I guess it will be.

Anyhoo, as Dr. Sworks told me "You'll get through this, ya got no choice."

Tuesday Afternoon

A week ago today.  It had been misting most of the day and I was jonesing for a CX ride.  I'd just bought a new training plan from Training Peaks and I was anxious to get started.  It called for 1.5 hours on the bike followed by a .5 run.  I was almost done with the bike portion of the ride so I decided to cross Meridian and roll the multi-use since I was planning on doing my run there.

It All Goes Terribly Wrong

The face you make when the drugs go in.

I have probably ridden this section of multi-use hundreds of times, I wasn't even going fast.  It was just a little slicker than I thought it would be.  I lost the front end so fast I didn't even have a chance to take my hands off the bars.

As soon as I hit I knew I had screwed up bad.  I couldn't move my right leg so I just grabbed it and threw it on top of my left.  I got out my cell phone and started dialing.

The first person to answer was Big Jim, I told him the deal and asked him to head toward TMH so The Lovely Wife would have some company.  I called her.  Then I called 911.

May I Have a Cross Road Sir?

I'll admit to being more than a little stressed out.  By this time people had stopped and I was making some progress toward getting out.

I call Leon 911:

"What is the nature of your emergency?"

"I've fallen off my bicycle and have either broken or dislocate my hip."

"Where are you located?"

"On the multi-use trail at Overstreet, across from Forest Meadows on Meridian."

"Ok sir, please stay on the line with me.  I'll need a cross street."

"Mam, I'm in the woods and getting real shaky.  There's not any other streets out here.  Just send EMS and Fire with an ATV to the flashing light on Meridian and I'll have someone meet them there."

By this time I had drawn quite a crowd.  I was having trouble holding my phone. I told her I had to hang up. I finally heard sirens.

Rescued

I could hear the Rino/Mule/Gator easing its way down the path.  I was wet, cold, and dirty and had been on the ground about an hour.  I was sure glad to see those guys.  They gave me some meds and with much screaming on my part loaded me up and we began the long slow bumpy ride back to the ambulance.

Another Tuesday Afternoon

I'll stop here for today.  I have broken my hip, gone through surgery, and am at home convalescing.  We are over the hardest part (I hope).

So much changed in such a small amount time.

I'm looking forward to getting this all out.

You Know You Got It If Makes You Feel Good

Tom Brown from the air

Well I just didn't have it.  I knew something was off last Saturday before the Florida State Championship Race at Tom Brown in Tallahassee Fl on Sunday.  I was looking forward to racing, I had done the work, but I just wasn't excited.  And it showed.

Saturday Lap

The trail was as perfect as I've ever seen it.  I was a little disappointed that they took out Gun Range and didn't use Kudzilla this year but it was still fun.  I rode easy except for an opener toward the end then went to Cabos for lunch.  No beer was consumed.  Maybe that was the problem.

Race Day

The Kid finished 7th  after dropping a chain on the first lap, not happy

Clear and 66 degrees!  I got the tent set up and headed out for my prescribed warm up.  I was a little nervous but still not excited, and it showed in my heart rate during my intervals.  I just wasn't getting through the pain and into my higher zones.  I had planned to hang back at the start and move up on the multi use going out so I just figured I'd get into it during the race.  Not the best of plans.

If you're gonna be slow you should look good

We sat on the line for a while so the promoter could sort through some stuff.  Then I heard "5 seconds".  At the whistle I clipped in first try and proceeded to casually roll down the hill in the very back of the pack.  I didn't mean for it to be casual but it sure turned out that way.  I moved up a couple of places before we hit the single track but was still bringing up the rear.

I made a pass on an alternate line and saw a rider ahead of me who I knew had the ability to get on the box.  On the last climb I got a little closer.  I was breathing heavy but not in trouble, yet.  As we came around to start our last lap an expert women passed me along with the rider I had passed earlier who was in my class.  Both he and the guy I'd been chasing kicked it when we got on the multi use.  I stuck behind the lady thinking I could draft and save some energy.  I got lazy and let her pull while the other two started to gap us.  By the time I woke up and went around her I could just barely see them through the trees ahead of me.

It's Never Happened Before

So if I was going to make any kind of kick now was the time to do it.  I went into a left hand turn before a small climb, dropped a couple of gears, and promptly popped the chain off to the outside of the big ring on the front.  It's so rare that this happens, I was spinning my legs like crazy thinking it would catch.  Then I rolled to a stop and looked down.  It took two tries plus getting my glove caught in the chain ring to get the thing back on and going.  By the time I got back on they were out of sight. I lost what little mojo I had and rolled in for a 13 place finish.  Not my best race.

The After Party

The old man in the orange shirt was a little slow today 

I enjoyed the race, maybe that's one reason I didn't do so well.  We all have those days on the bike sometimes.  Fortunately Higher Ground had brought beer and was grilling chickens and that helped put a good spin on the day.

The Next Race?

I wonder if I should cat down to the 60+ class?  I wouldn't need to work so hard.  After all, I will be 60 next year.  I kinda feel like that might be giving up though.  I still enjoy racing and I enjoy the training also.  So it boils down to riding for a spot on the box with less competition or staying where I am and working harder for a spot at the bottom.  

But, catting down, could that be the beginning of the end?

Anyhoo, if that's all I have to worry about I don't have too many problems do I?

Time As I've Known It

How did it get so late so soon?
It's night before it's afternoon.
December is here before it's June.
My goodness how the time has flewn.
How did it get so late so soon?

Dr. Seuss

Man he got that right didn't he?  Dr. Seuss, I can remember my mom reading Pale Green Pants to my younger brother while he ate scrambled eggs.  I still have that book somewhere, it still has stains on the pages.  That had to have been 50 years ago.  Sneeches?  Too Many Daves, Green Eggs and Ham. We read them to The Kid, plus so many others.

Does anybody read to their kids anymore?

I love to read, and not on a Kindle, but a real book.  I love the way they smell, I like turning the pages.

I bought a book on Amazon, it arrived Friday, I was finished with it by Sunday pm.  The Fifth Wave, it's a teen book but I don't care.  I couldn't put it down.

What got all this started?  I just got back from a movie made from a book A Walk In
The Woods.  Have you seen it?

The Movie

The theater was filled with old people.  Yea, people my age, I know.  Sad.

Robert Redford was the lead character.  He's 79!  About the average age of the other theater attendees.  The lady beside me must have been 80, she was bouncing and swinging her legs like a school kid.  She giggled every time Mr. Redford said anything and screamed out in laughter at any type of a joke.

The characters were supposed to be hiking the Appalachian Trail.  They didn't look like they could get out of the parking lot.  I mean if you're going to make a movie about old guys hiking the A. T. why not cast someone who at least looks like he could walk to the front door.

Not my favorite movie.

Race Time

Enough of that whining. And speaking of old guys.  I'm looking forward to the Florida State Championship round at Tom Brown next weekend.  It'll be my last race in the 50-59 expert class as I will turn 60 next racing year and can move to any class I want.  Should I go to sport?  Maybe all the way back to base?  I even think there's a 60+ class now.  It won't matter, I'll still get my butt beat, just by a different bunch of people.

Then there's cross season coming up.  Plus the Dirty Spaghetti.  I just love this time of year.

But I Like It

The Flint River somewhere below Albany Ga.

I'm finally getting settled in after vacation.  It seemed to take a while this time.  The south in August can be trying.  But there was this:

The Social Event of the Season

Big Worm had a party, everyone who was anyone in the cycling community was in attendance.  It was an eclectic group.  Roadies sitting down with mountain bikers!  Next thing you know cats and dogs will be hanging out together.  I must have behaved since I didn't hear any stories to the contrary.

Wrecking Ball had told a story about beer and a bath robe so I modified a bottle of Sailor Jerry's Rum especially for him.  He couldn't resist.

A bottle of Sailor "Terry", specially modified for WB

The Kid Leaves (again)

Just when we'd gotten used to having him around he moved back down to Gainesville to start another year of school.  

The outside of The Kid's cabin in Gainesvile

Bikes were the first thing to get moved in

He was only down there 2 weeks, then he was back for:

The FSU SECCC Race at Tom Brown

Collegiate mountain bike racing starts early, like after the first week of classes early.  FSU hosted the first round this year so it was like a home race for The Kid.  He brought the whole team with him (all 2 of them) and they stayed with us.  It was fun to have that many young people in the house.  So much noise!

An unknown FSU rider negotiates the hairpin turn onto Cadillac 

They had a time trail on Saturday, then four cross (downhill bikes on the BMX track), and finally a short track.  Rain most of the day made for some slippery going, especially the four cross, which saw a couple of crashes.  They all got together at Tijuana Flats afterward.  And by that I mean all the teams got together.  There must have been 20 of them.  But they didn't invite me.

All I did was course marshall all day.  Glad to do it, but not much fun.

Alex leading the race

Sunday was the cross country.  UGA, FSU, Clemson, Auburn, UF, and Ga. Tech were represented.  It's a very relaxed atmosphere, no ya ya, just a bunch of kids having fun on MTBs.

Once again I was stuck out in the woods making sure the hikers and bikers didn't get run over.  I was as nice as I could be but some of those folks just wouldn't listen.  They have no idea how fast a MTB can go.

The Kid leading the Men's B

As I was directing traffic an FSU student says to me, "Man your grandson sure is fast" then he saw the look on my face "Oh, is that your son?  Sorry man, hey my dad looks old too, awww, you know what I mean".  It's those kind of comments that make you feel soooo good.  And yes, I did feel old among all those kids.

A young lady from Ga. Tech finds Cadillac a little difficult

It was all over by noon.  When I got back to the house it seemed so quiet.  Just The Lovely Wife, the cat, and me.  The night before those guys were so fired up about racing, so excited, telling race stories, laughing, eating garlic humus with garlic chips.  I'll admit to a certain level of envy (well for everything except the humus, it's still in the fridge).


I really have no business being envious.  I got to race moto for 40 years with a great group of guys. We traveled to races and trail rides with the same amount of enthusiasm as these kid have.  After I got into cycling I figured it could be the same with this sport.  But cycling seems to burn people out faster, or maybe it's just a function of getting older, or it could be me.

Anyhoo.

I wonder if the kids know how good they've got it?  Did we at that age?  When I was in college my roommate said "My dad said this would be the best time of my life.  If it gets any worse than this I'm gonna kill myself".  Of course, looking back, it was a great time.


Funny what being called grandpa will do to your head.

Rocky Mountain High

The view of Quandry from 13,000.  Those little dots are people.

Just a little bit more on the 14'r hike if you don't mind.

Before the looooong hike down

These guys wouldn't get off the trail

Keystone Co.

The Kid wanted to do some downhill so The Lovely Wife and I went along with him to the Keystone ski area.  I had no idea what to expect but we were pleasantly surprised.  It's like it's own city, complete with shops and restaurants.

The view of Quandry from Keystone

After watching a rider endo and compound fracture his collar bone I was apprehensive while watching The Kid get on the lift.  After he made a lap down the mountain safely The Lovely Wife and I grabbed a seat at a restaurant call Kickapoo.  They had tables on a deck right next to a creek. You know a beer at lunch always tastes better, add clear blue sky, mountains, and no gnats, and you've got an almost perfect day.

We bought lift tickets and went to the top of the mountain to hike a 2 mile trail.  Riding up was definitely easier than what we did the day before.

The Kid all armored up after his first run

The Kid ended his day with a big grin.  He said I wouldn't like it, said it was too technical for me.  Whatever.

Anyhoo, we had a great day.

The next day we went on the slowest road ride I've ever gone on.  All bike path.  Not the most fun but still an experience.

Headed Home

So much to do out there, so beautiful, so far away from us.  So hard to look at these pictures and not yearn to be back there.  I guess that's why we go away.  I want to try other places, we've been to Breck twice now, I wonder if the rest of the west has got anything better?  I hope we get to find out.

We Might as Well Enjoy the Trip Down

We hung around on the summit for a while.  With all the people on the trail I was surprised how few were at the top.

Proof

It didn't get tricky going back down till we hit the snow field.  There was a path about 2' deep but the bottom was ice over rocks.  Probably no trouble for most of these folks but it kinda freaked me out. People were waiting at the bottom to get up so there was an audience.  The Lovely Wife did a little slide about half way down but recovered quick.

Going back down this was interesting.

I kept thinking tree line wasn't that far down.  But as the rocks kept going, I got a hate going.  My knees were sore, I was just plain tired, and I was ready to get off the mountain.  

Sometimes you just had to stop but that only seemed to make it worse when you got back up.

Finally the tree line and a path that wasn't full of rocks

The Kid comes back to check on us

You see all kinds of folks on the mountain

Of course in the end we made it back to the stinky rental car.  7 hours is a long time to hike above 11,000'.  Some of us were faster so we could have cut some time off, but why bother, the mountain doesn't care how long it takes you.  We were fortunate we had good weather, I'd hate to be trying to scramble down that in a thunderstorm.

We saw people running up and back down, then again, we saw quite a few folks turn back at 13'000'. Some people seemed well prepared, some looked like they were shell shocked.  We saw one girl coming through the snow field in sandals.  Lots of dogs and young kids, those guys are braver than I am.

Would we do it again?  Sure, maybe not that mountain but another 14'r.  I don't think The Kid wants to go with us anymore though.  He tends to worry about the old folks, says we scare him if he has to watch us.

We were so tired we almost didn't want to go out to eat.  Nobody stayed awake past 9 that night.  And yes, we were some other kind of sore for the next few days.  Still, the plan called for a trip to Keystone the next day.  I call these days freestyle days.  We just do whatever comes up.  The Kid wanted to do downhill so that's how we ended up in Keystone.  It was interesting.  More tomorrow.

Hey Colorado

The water tastes better when you're far from home, or is it only the thirsty that hunger to roam?  I know coffee on the porch tastes better when it's 41 and frosty outside in late July.

I had hired a MTB guide along with rented bikes for The Kid and I on Monday.  It was my first time doing something like this, plus it was a little expensive, so I had my doubts.  But it all turned out great. We rode single track from downtown Breckenridge and by the time we hit 3 hours my legs were done.  I did wish for magic legs, or 19 year old legs, because I would to have done it all over again.

Tuesday

We walked out to the car to find this guy eating the grass off the back deck.  We did not disturb him.

Today was 14'r day.  Mt. Quandary, just outside of Breck was the mountain.  We got to the trail head at 6:30 and the parking lot was already half full.  The hike below tree line was like a computer generated landscape.  I hummed all the John Denver songs I knew.

Once we got above tree line things got a little tougher.  All scree and talus, which to start with had a trail through it.  That soon disappeared.

They say there are no easy 14'rs.  I now believe them.

The hike started around 11,000', I started to get tired around 13,000.  We hit the snow patch at 13,500, and the summit at 14,265.

I have to say it was an awesome view.  Very windy and 50 degrees.  Then we started down.

I feel like the guy in Avatar who gets the alien body for the first time when I'm up here. 

It was 3.5 miles to the top according to Strava, we averaged 1 mph (The Kid would want it know that he had to wait on us all the time).  The trip down would prove to be twice as difficult as the trip up.

Funny, it doesn't look steep in this picture, but we were crawling here.

Tomorrow I'll tell you how the trip down went.

The West is the Best

It was an auspicious start.  As we taxied away from the gate at the Tallahassee Airport at 6:00 in the morning, the pilot came on the intercom, "Ladies and gentlemen, we have a computer malfunction and will need to shut the plane down for a minute and see if it will come back up.  The emergency lights will be the only thing on, I apologize for the inconvenience."  You could hear a pin drop when he shut it down.  We all sat in silence until he restarted and told us it had worked, then everybody let out a collective sigh.  We would make our connection in Atlanta.  I was to be a challenging day of travel to Colorado.

On the flight to Denver the two young children behind me amused themselves by kicking the back of my seat and squealing intermittently the whole flight.

I had arranged for a rental car through Priceline with Advantage.  When we got to their pick up lot there was a long line and only two people working the desks.  After a 30 minute wait the clerk handed me the keys, he said "You don't mind a Corolla instead of a Kia do you?"  I shook my head and left to find our car.

The little Corolla was filthy with so many dents and scratches I couldn't take pictures of all of them. The inside was stained and smelled like old shoes.  We crammed the bags in the trunk and got in line to go out the gate.  Two cars in front of us an older couple must have gotten in the wrong car and the lady checking us out told them to back up, so they did, which caused the car in front of me to start backing up, so I put it in reverse and turned around to try and see out of the muddy rear window.  I hear a horn blow and felt a bump.  Yes I had backed into another car.  All manner of chaos ensued.

Fortunately no damage except to my families ears due to my sudden inability to control my temper. We got out of Denver only to sit in stalled traffic on I-70 for an hour.  Hey, at least the view was nice.

Stopping at a Mexican Restaurant I had a beer.  The temperature was 61 and windy.  I forgot about the trip out, almost.

Crews Rest, our home for the next few days

The view off the porch

Sunrise

The Giant Kid and the old Smurff

We made it to the cabin.  Monday was better.  Can I tell you about that later?

A Little Bit of that Ole Chomp Chomp

All he was doing was trying to get across the shady paved road, somewhere outside of Monticello Fl. He was minding his own business when along comes this group of Lycra clad devils on machines. "Gator!" someone hollers as they zip by.  "Damn" he must have thought, "This just ain't gonna be my day."

They all stop and gather around him.  They are not afraid, after all he can't be more than 3 feet long, what harm could he do?  "We should move him off the road" one of them says.  After all, they are all basically nice people.  All with good intentions.  Still, not many cars pass this way.  One of them approaches.

Out come the cameras as the bravest (or dumbest) one circles him, trying to grab his tail so he can fling him to safety.

His face is not shown to protect his children from embarrassment

Please notice how he is reaching across, exposing his arm to the little mouth full of very sharp teeth. Moments after this was taken he grabbed the tail, the little fellow grabbed his arm, he yelled, flinging the gator, not towards the road side but towards the circle of people gathered to watch.  Much screaming and jumping around ensued.  The group rolled away, leaving little gator to continue his march across the road, and with a new found taste for human flesh.

Tupelos

On our little crew road ride last Saturday we stopped in Monticello at a little pastry shop called Tupelos.  All of the items are homemade except the drinks.  I had a huge piece of lemon bar cake and a root beer.  We all sat outside and got a sugar buzz while watching Silk howl at his video of the incident described above.

The Kid and I sprinted for yellow signs, county line signs, and city limit signs.  I kept having to change the rules to keep up with him.  I just don't have that extra kick that his 19 year old legs have. Imagine that.

New Tire

I put a new tire on the front of my MTB.  New rubber is awesome.  I was feeling froggy last Sunday, rolling down the multi use at Tom Brown.  As I leaned into a corner I found the limit of my new tires traction.  Sand over clay is a hard surface to lean into.  No major damage except for a new lack of confidence in my brand new tire.

Hey Colorado

We leave this weekend.  Highs in the low 70's, lows in the 40's at night, 0% humidity.  It's gonna be tough to stand that type of weather.  I'm taking a jar of gnats, I'll stick it over my ear, just to make it feel more like home.

I have the whole week planned out, it's a weakness of mine.  Monday we have hired a guide and rented MTBs.  Last time out there we spent most of the morning trying to find the trails, then when we did, it started to rain so I hope this goes better.  I've never done any type of a guided trip before.

Tuesday is the day we try to summit a 14'r.  I have no misconceptions about how hard this will be. The Lovely Wife has been training for months but it's hard to train for lack of oxygen.  If she falters we'll just give her a can of bear spray and a whistle and pick her up on the way back.  Heck, I'm not sure I can make it.

Wednesday is a recovery day, The Kid wants to do some rafting but we'll see how we feel.  I have a couple of easy hikes mapped out just in case.  Most likely it will be a tourist day, eating and shopping.

Thursday I have planned another cycling day, this one self guided and much easier than Monday.

Friday we fly home.  I know, I would have liked to stay longer but all the flights headed east were red eye.  I hate flying.

PS: There are two song lyrics in this post.  The first is the title which is from a Molly Hatchet song, Gator Country.  The second is the subtitle of this paragraph.  It's from a Gram Parsons song.  I bet only Wrecking Ball knows who he was.

Anyhoo, I'll see ya'll on the next page.

Gator Cycling at the TDF

Holy Water

As cyclists, water is our life line.  In the middle of a Florida July it means the difference between enjoying the ride and just barely making it home.  This is the story of two such rides, the names have been changed to protect the weak.

Ride #1- Santos Saturday

The Santos MTB trail system near Ocala Fl. was our destination when we left the HG parking lot at 6 am.  In my mind a 6 hour round trip to ride different trails, and trails that I enjoy, is a small price to pay.  We were already sweating after loading Fred's (not his real name) bike in my truck.

We parked at the Land Bridge Trail Head, unloaded, and headed west on single track.  Fred started out behind me as he had never ridden the trail and I had a couple of trips under my belt.  I kept the pace easy, knowing we had planned to ride for 4 hours.  This arrangement lasted until Fred slipped around me when I missed a turn, I noticed the pace picked up slightly.

We got to the Ern and Burn section after about an hour.  This little piece of work has lime rock hills with short but punchy climbs.  It's tight and with no air moving around me I could feel the heat building.  I backed off hoping Fred would notice.  He just kept it pinned.  "Ok" I said to myself "It's going to be a long day if we keep this up."

Now please don't think that I was worried about my ability to finish the ride, and I wasn't mad a him for going a little faster.   I just knew Fred had had trouble measuring out his efforts in the past and didn't want him to not enjoy the rest of the ride. That's just the kind of person I am, always thinking of others.

The Santos trails are custom made for MTB and are so much fun to ride.  Plus, even though I-10 cuts right through it, it still seems like you're in the middle of a forest.  My kind of place.

Land Bridge Trail over I-10

We made it back to the truck just as our water ran out.  We had almost 3 hours in by that time but hadn't touched the trail system to the east.  I at least wanted to do Spider Kingdom before we headed home but Fred was having trouble getting up the energy to get back on the bike.  I downed a cold Coke and a bag of peanuts, and after laying around on a picnic table in the shade, I was ready to roll again.  Fred said he thought he could do a little more, so we rode east and managed to put in almost another hour.  By that time it was well into the upper 90's and afternoon thunderheads were building so we called it a ride and headed home.

When we stopped at a store to gas up Fred came back out carrying a grocery bag full of food and drinks.  He consumed two bags of chips and what must have been 4 bottles of Poweraide ("It was on sale, 2 for 1.") before we passed Live Oak.  As we unloaded I asked if he wanted to ride Sunday, he just gave me a funny look and said to let him know what I was doing.  I didn't call because he looked like he'd had enough for the weekend.  Besides, he doesn't do clay.

Ride #2- Sunday Clay

I really felt bad about dodging church, but it was going to get soooo hot in the afternoon I decided to ride in the morning.  Sam (not his real name), Silk, and The Kid were the only brave souls to show up for our little clay adventure.  We were doing the Flag Loop, Silk was going to go hard, the rest of us were not.

Dirty Proctor (a road) had just been graded, plus it was dry, so all the rocks were on top.  It made for a rough start.  Silk hit the gas and that was the last we saw of him.  The three of us kept the pace steady until we turned onto No Hope Church road where The Kid and I played king of the mountain (he always won) until I couldn't breath.  Sam got a horse fly in his helmet so he didn't play.

Did I mention it was hot?  But I still love riding those clay roads.

With water running low we stopped at a little white church nestled into the pines on one of the big plantations.  There didn't appear to be any services that day so we went around back to the well. That was the best water I have ever tasted.  And it was cold!  So cold that when Sam stuck his head under the hose he started shaking.  I could have sat down in the grass and let that water run all over me.  I settled for just sticking my head under the flow.  After that we refilled our bottles and resumed our journey.  Refreshed by holy water, can I get an AMEN!

On the last few hills I noticed Sam falling behind, which was unlike him.  He had stopped sweating and had this odd look on his face (odder than normal).  We split up on the pavement and he headed home.  Turns out he made it back, but it wasn't pretty.  Something about laying on the kitchen floor while his girlfriend brought him cold towels.

The Kid and I rolled into the HG parking lot with our bikes covered in orange dust and sweat.  The lot had been empty when we left that morning but was full of shoppers by the time we got back.  I always enjoy changing out of my kit with an audience.  We got smoothies and I drank mine so fast I had brain freeze.

I've had enough hot weather for now.  I am well aware of how fast time goes by at this age and I know I'll be wearing arm warmers before I know it.  Still, I'm ready to say uncle on this heat.  At least until next weekend.