Will it ever end?

 Cycling  2 Responses »
Dec 202010
 

I never have liked this time of year. The days are shorter, the weather colder, and it rains a lot. And this year is certainly no different. In fact, it may even be worse than most.

November started off with February like temperatures, and when the weather did finally return to more seasonal temperatures the rain started. And as of last Wednesday it has been relentless. I did manage to ride through the rain drops last Wednesday, but since that time the rain has prevented me from getting out on the road. (It even seems to be effecting internet access.)

I did a spin class on Saturday, with some other club members, which was OK. There was even another one scheduled for this morning, but it was at 6 AM, and that is WAY TOO early. (It seems some people still have to work for a living.) So today I’ll probably end up going to the gym, and riding the life cycle or Expresso machine. I might even end up doing the spin class at the gym, but…….

Any more I just don’t know about anything. Nothing seems to be a good substitute for the camaraderie out on the road, followed by coffee [or tea] afterwards.

All’s well that ends well

 Cycling  2 Responses »
Dec 112010
 

Well as it turns out, I got the new bike after all. It seems the owner(s) finally resolved enough of their legal issues to at least sell off their remaining inventory of show bikes, and I was fortunate enough to be offered one.

I even got a better deal than originally expected, as this bike included handle bars, stem and saddle (which the original deal did not), saving me an additional $200+. I did have to buy two water bottle cages, a new seat bag (for spare tube, CO2 cartridges and a tire iron), and a new mount for my Garmin GPS, but those were cheap in comparison.

And on top of that I should be able to get at least $500 for the race wheels that came with the bike, bringing my net cost down to under $2,500. I did buy a set of training wheels for about $200 as a replacement.

The only issues being, the bike is sold as is, i.e. no warranty or liability protection, but hey, what fun is life, if you can’t live it on the edge. :) Plus the color scheme wasn’t my first choice, but I am growing fonder of it by the hour, and it does color coordinate better with most of my riding apparel.

So I spent all day yesterday installing the miscellaneous stuff, and making the necessary adjustments for this mornings shake down cruise. Things were looking good, but as I’ve come to expect, nothing is ever perfect.

The fog this morning was intense, and the roads were extremely wet, so there was no way I was going to take my new bike out in that kind of weather. Instead I went to the gym, and waited for the sun to come out, after which I was able to get in about 11 miles, including a short hill and a few overpasses.

I didn’t get the amount of miles I was hoping for, but it was enough to get a feel for the bike, and make sure everything was working properly. And I have to say I was impressed. It was stiff, yet comfortable and handled the rough roads better than the Specialized.

I can’t wait for tomorrow’s ride.

Some days it’s just not worth getting out of bed

 Cycling, Life  4 Responses »
Nov 272010
 

After feeling so terrible during Thursday’s bike ride, I took Friday off, hoping to rejuvenate my body. Instead I went to Surf City Cyclery to buy a new set of tights and gloves, in an attempt to lighten up the load just a little, in anticipation of this mornings ride.

I knew it was going to be cold this morning, but I was not expecting it to be below 40°F, my self imposed cut off point for going on a bike ride (there isn’t enough clothing to keep you warm below that temperature), so when I woke up this morning to see 37°F on the wall thermometer, I was in total dismay. (And it’s not even sunrise yet, so it will get even colder.)

I know it’s a lot colder in other parts of the country (so I shouldn’t complain too much), but this is southern California, and this is only November. We don’t normally see these kind of temperatures until February, in the height of winter.

As if life isn’t depressing enough for me, why does the weather have to spoil one of the [very] few pleasures I look forward to. Maybe I’ll go for a ride a little later when it warms up some, or more likely I’ll just end up going to the gym and ride the lifecycle, that is if I can stop wallowing in my sorrow long enough to do that.

I don’t know about the rest of you, but I could sure do with a little global warming about now!

Two hours later, I managed to stop wallowing in self pity long enough to get dressed, and still meet the group at the start of the Hammer Zone. It only warmed up a little, to 44°F, but as long as you stayed in the sun, and didn’t go down any steep hills, it was tolerable. And I feel a lot better about myself now, too.

2 pounds sure doesn’t sound like a lot, but….

 Cycling, General Health, Life  1 Response »
Nov 252010
 

2 pounds is the amount of added clothing I’ve needed the last couple of days due to temperatures being in the low 40′s when I go for my bike ride in the morning.

At least I hope that’s the reason I’ve been struggling on the bike so much this past week.

And today’s ride was just the pits. Not only was I the last one up the hill, but my time up the hill was the slowest in, I can’t remember how long.

Then on the way back, I couldn’t even keep up with the group, and ended up riding most of the way home alone.

I’m sure the 11.1 g/dL hemoglobin didn’t help either, but that hasn’t seemed to have had much of an effect lately. Up until this week, I actually thought I had been riding pretty good, so I have to attribute it to the weather.

Still I was demoralized, and I sure hope this isn’t a preview of what’s in store for us this winter. We didn’t have much of a summer this year, and I’d hate to think we’re not going to have a fall either. These kind of temperatures are usually reserved for mid winter. It could make for a very arduous winter riding season!

If it sounds too good to be true

 Cycling  3 Responses »
Nov 232010
 

I just discovered yesterday, the new bike I was expecting to get next month (yes, the one I originally decided not to get, but then changed my mind because it was too good a deal to pass up), and which I already forked over $2,750 for, is no more.

The explanation is the financing for the new business fell through, and the partners in the business have parted ways. Tony, the principal promoter of the company and an ex-professional cyclist, claims all the money will be refunded by December 15th, and he is working on resurrecting the business in the near future.

I hope it works out for him, but I’m not going to hold my breath.  I’ll just be happy if I get my $2,750 back.

But in the mean time, not only am I out a new bike, I just sold my spare bike, and now don’t have a back up for emergencies, and replacing it is going to cost a lot more than $2,750. Plus I spent another $200 on a new set of wheels to replace the race wheels (which I was hoping to sell) the new bike was coming with. Fortunately I didn’t buy the stem, handle bar and saddle yet.

I actually do have an old aluminum bike I could use in a REAL emergency, but it does need some work, and after riding a carbon fiber for so long, going back to an aluminum bike won’t be much fun.

It just irks me so much. A $7,000 [retail] bike for $2,750.  I should have known better. It truly was ”too good to be true”. But the sales pitch was good, and the cycling club was behind it. What could go wrong?

Now I know how the victims of Bernie Madoff must have felt.

 Posted by at 9:36 am

Been there, done that

 Cycling, Life, Politics, Restaurant Reviews, Vacations  1 Response »
Oct 092010
 

Well I got my dose of NE Ohio and Pittsburgh this past week, and the experience can pretty much be summed up by those 4 words.

I didn’t expect much from Newton Falls, but neither did I expect what I saw. The area is unbelievably depressed. Abandoned factories, store fronts and houses are everywhere, and what houses aren’t abandoned are unbelievably dilapidated.

It was truly depressing, to see a place I lived for 4 years, and where Edie grew up, deteriorate so much.

But I was even disappointed in Pittsburgh as well.

I had heard so much about how Pittsburgh had changed, and while there where a lot of improvements, especially in the downtown area, most of the city was either unchanged or depressed as well.

The streets are narrower than I remember, the houses smaller, the streets in worse condition than in LA, and riding a bike in this city can definitely be hazardous to your health. Plus all my favorite breakfast and deli haunts were replaced by Starbucks and Brueggers.

Even the famous Primanti Bros Restaurant that has been featured on many network TV shows was a disappointment. They say it’s been around since 1933, but I don’t remember it from my time living in Pittsburgh, and I think I know why. Anyone who thinks a sandwich topped with [tasteless] cabbage (they called it coleslaw) and [tasteless and soggy] french fries is any good, can be fooled into believing anything, and I’m not easily fooled. This place exists on the hype alone.

It was still good to get home to see what I wasn’t missing, and to get any thoughts of ever moving back out of my system.

It’s so good to be ‘home’ in Long Beach, CA, and back on the bike again. Pittsburgh doesn’t have anything on LA or Long Beach (except maybe for the Steelers, but I can still root for them from afar). I plan on being here for the duration, even if Meg Whitman gets elected governor.

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