And the Bike Commuting Starts

This week I started my new job in Madison.  One block from the capital square.  Where there isn't parking anywhere.  Unless you pay.  Out the nose.

So I started the week parking about a mile away and walking.  Felt great!  But it was a little slow.  (I was acutally 30 min late my first day - mostly from trying to figure where I could even find a spot to park.)

On Wednesday, I loaded up the road bike and took it with.  I parked in the same area and zipped in to the office.  On a bicylce 1 mile is nothing.  So Thursday I parked a little further away - 3.4 mi and rode from there.  The weather was great - got up into the 50s.  The snow was melting.  And there was plenty of road spray.  I was wearing my work pants (dockers).  They were soaked for three hours.  While I was sitting in my desk chair in my cubicle.  That was *sooo* comfy! (Ha!)

Lesson #1 - ride prepared.  Either have extra clothes with you or ride in riding gear.  So you can change.

Finally, on Friday, I was running behind and had to park closer - 1.7 mi away.  I had on the right gear and packed my work pants.  I didn't need to today.  Roads were dry.  And so was I when I arrived at the office. 

So that was my first week - about 12 miles total.  I will park further away as I get my lungs back in shape.  I need to get a fender and a lock for my Parkway.  They don't want me keeping the bike in my work space.  And I'm not leaving the Synapse outside.  It's not a spectacular bike, but I like it and it did cost a few Benjamins.

Probably the biggest challenge to riding - other than getting out the door on time so I can be at the office on time - is my lungs.  Being asthmatic (and having not worked them for too long), they burn in the cold fresh air as I pump away.  Like my atrophied leg muscles, they'll get stronger too.

Soon, I'll be riding all the way in (only 10 miles) from home.  Looking forward to more time on the bike.

An Actual Ride ... on Real Roads

This past weekend it got above 32F!  Snow was melting.  The sun was shining.  Perfect day for a ride!

This would be the first ride of the year.  Well, the first REAL ride.  While getting in the saddle on the trainer down in the basement is exercise, it is not riding on the roads.  So, with Carol busy on a work project, I took advantage of the time and weather to go for a "short" ride.  (Short being a relative term.  Compared to rides I was doing last summer, it would be nothing.  Relative to my current fitness level it would be... not short!)

This would also be a great chance to try on my LIVESTRONG thermal jersey and pants.

Umm, yeah.  Not thrilled with the way it's fitting.  All that time not riding last fall and through the winter is showing up.  Spandex has no mercy.

10.67 miles and 43 minutes lated, I was gassed, achy and wet.  And loving it.  My lungs were burning and my legs ached.  As for the wet, there was plenty of road spray.  And then I took a fall going through some slush.  LMAO.

A great ride.  A great day to be #lovingthebike.

A staggered start (or a tale of guilt)

Ok, that's not really the right word, but I can't think of it offhand.  It's more like going in spurts - go, stop, go, stop.  Like a 15 y.o. trying to leave from a standing stop driving a manual transmission car for the first time.  Got the picture?

So, the last time I wrote, It was Jan. 10th.  It's been three weeks since.  I haven't had a lot to write about since then in terms of actually doing anything related to riding.  Oh, I've been on the trainer a couple times, including that day, the day after, and on Saturday the 15th.... Sixteen days ago.

There are excuses and rationalizations I could provide.  Some legit.  Others not so much.  And the truth of the matter is that the next two weeks won't have a lot of seat time either.  These are my final days at my current job, the one 250 miles away from home.  Soon, I'll be starting my new job in Madison and I will be home full time!

So, there you have it.  I have logged about 2h 35m (guessing that equals maybe 40 mi) on the trainer so far.  Nice thing is that I was able to move up to 45 minutes pretty quickly.  (In contrast to last year, when the first days were hell.)

I am excited and anxious.  That was reinforced this weekend with the route announcement for RAGBRAI XXIX (see http://ragbrai.com/routemaps/2011-interactive-maps/).  The jerseys are on sale, too!

NICE! (and only $60.00)

 The other development lately is something called #bikeschool on twitter.  I have picked up some followers (and started following back) who are seriously into biking.  Each Thursday night at 8:00 they have bike school, where all the posts include the afrementioned hashtag and a moderator (teacher) throws out some questions and people chime in with their responses.  Fast, fun and funny.  People from the Twin Cities , Austin, Milwaukee and beyond all sharing.  Kinda cool.  Have only made two so far, but the hour flies by. 

Anyway, I am getting ramped up to ride.  Even if I haven't actually ridden much yet.  And I feel a little guilty for not riding more.  But I cannot change the past, only determine my own future.  And that future includes more time in the saddle.

Oh, and as you can see, thanks to the Fat Cyclist, my blog is UCI approved!  Woo Hoo!  Thanks Fatty!

Commuting by Bike

Today I accepted a new job that I will start next month.  Currently, my job is 250 miles away from my home.  So commuting by bicycle really isn't feasible. 

Well, not from home anyway.  I do have an apartment in the next town over.  I could actually bike back and forth.  Except that my work schedule keeps me in the office for 12, 14, 15 or more hours each day (when I'm up there).  I rarely leave the office before 10p.m., and occassionally after midnight.  Only to return the next morning at 8 or so.  The reason was so that I could be home on Fridays.

So, instead, last spring and summer, I kept my old bike in the office and would ride in the evening, then return to the office to work some more.  That worked well and I had some great rides out in the countryside in NW Wisconsin (near the MN border in the Cities area).  Although I did get honked at once and someone in the passenger seat flipped me off.  Gopher fans I figure ... I was wearing my Bucky jersey.  (I wonder what they would have done had I been wearing my Obama jersey!?!)

Well, because of the distance and time away from home, I have been looking for a situation that was closer to home.  Now I have one.  Working for the state in an office building a block from the Capitol Square in Madison.  According to Mapquest, I am about 10 miles from the new office.

10 miles.  That's a 40 minute ride.  On my bike.  (vs a 25 min car ride at rush hour!)  Sounds like I will be able to commute to my new job on my bike.  And still be able to leave on time to pick up my daughter from after-school care on time.  Cool.

I may start using the old hybrid bike - a Diamondback Parkway, circa 1994. 

But I have ridden it so little, the tires still have the new tire threads on it.

On the other hand, I find the road bike to be a lot more comfortable!  We'll see.  Spring can't come soon enough!

Time on the Rollers is Time on the Bike

Ok, so on Monday, I said I would bring the old bike, the Schwinn, home so I could set it up on the CycleOps trainer and start riding.  Well, I did!  Ok, it's not that big of a deal, but it is a start.  Considering I haven't ridden since early September, it was an important start.

Even the Schwinn was sad to just be sitting at the apt in New Richmond.  So, I loaded it up and brought it home.

As I was strapping it on, an older woman said, with a hint of jealousy, that I must be heading someplace warm.  Well, Madison is a little warmer than New Richmond.  And the basement is warmer than it is outside, so I guess she was right.

On Friday, I set it up and actually rode.

 

30 min on Friday and 20 more on Saturday.  A rest day today - my legs are still sore, as is my seat.  Tomorrow and Tuesday more seat time.  It wasn't a glorious start, but it was a start.  And I feel good about it.

1/10:  Another 30 minutes today.  Sore and sweaty after the ride, but feel good about getting the ride in.

Tomorrow, I ride again!  (Though I do need a new tube and new tire.)  After tomorrow, it won't be until Saturday until my next ride.

2011 - A New Beginning

Or is it more like Groundhog Day (the Bill Murray movie)?

Since RAGBRAI XXVIII ended back on July 31st, I have riden a total of four rides.  The chaos of life and work caught up to me and didn't find - or make - the time to ride like I should have.

Now, it's winter in Wisconsin.  It's 15ºF out right now.  And snowing.  And I don't have any winter gear.  At least I didn't until I found these! 

Thermals!  But I still need a base layer, winter gloves, a balaclava, boots for over the cleats.  (Just started riding last spring, so still acquiring the necessary gear.)  Should have gotten out when the temps hit the 40s last week.  Whoulda, coulda, but didn't.

In the meantime, all the weight I lost getting ready to ride RAGBRAI - not a lot really, only about 15 lbs - has all come back, plus some more. 

I follow some folks on Twitter (@thenoodleator; @TheBeerRunner; @lovingthebike; @bikerly; @eggman; @rcmckill; @GrouchoSports) who are all still riding, running, training.  I hope to be inspired by their dedication.  Instead, I mostly feel guilty.  They're doing it... no excuses.

RAGBRAI seems so far away.  Both in the past and in the future.

But, on the bright side, registration for #XXIX now open, both directly on the RAGBRAI site as well as through Team LIVESTRONG.  I need, for my sake, to get registered and to get started on training.  For the same reasons I started to ride last year... to take care of me - physically and emotionally.

So, it's January 3rd.  I'm up north and can't do anything about it now, but I think on Friday, when I am home again, I'll set my old bike up on the CycleOps (trainer) and start riding. (My home is 250 mi from my office - so I stay up here during the week and return home for the weekends.)  Even if it's only a couple days a week, I need to get started.  And now is as good a time as any.

RAGBRAI XXIX, here I come!  Wanna join on the ride?

Also thinking of riding the Miller Lite Ride for the Arts (June 5 in Milwaukee) and GRABAWWR Lite (June 18th, Land O' Lakes, WI).

Wrap Up

RAGBRAI XXXVIII went from July 25 - 31, 2010 and was an amazing 442(+) mile jaunt across the state of Iowa.  This was my first time on the ride.  I will be back.

I want to thank everyone who supported my ride by contributing to LIVESTRONG.  I especially want to thank Robert W. Baird & Co and The Baird Foundation for their major support and sponsorship of the ride.  Thanks to my good friend, Lisa, a Director at Baird, who helped me secure the sponsorship.

And THANK YOU! to everyone else who supported the cause!  We shattered our fundraising goal for of $10/mile and raised almost $6,000 to help cancer patients and their families.  Those who contributed to this effort are:

Avery Railing/Jim Avery;   A’viands/Derek Sage;   Brad Olson;   Carol Richards;   Cathy Avery St Jean;   Chuck & Cindy Avery;   Dave VanSpankeren;   David & Golda Cohen;   Debbie Pelegrin;   Diane Pertzborn;   Erin Green;   Health Partners;   Howard & Dorothy Richards;   JA Counter/Linda Skoglund;   Jeff & Kathy Gullion;   Jim Weise;   John Gibson;   Joe Andrashie;   Karen Kucharz;   Kathy Johnson;   Keith Lucius;   Key Benefits/Linda Mont/Manal Rizek;   Larry Black;   Mario Garcia;   Mary & Harvey Avery;   Mary Timm;   Mary Johnson;   Meg Farrington;   Mike Connor;   Mike & Britt Worringer;   Nancy Anderson;   National Insurance Services/Stephanie Laudon/David Branback;   Nick & Meg Street;   Providence Capital Network/John Vonder;   Randy Rosburg;   Ranei Johnson Scholler;   Rick Ketter;   Rod Hawkins;   Ron Berg;   Sara Eichten;   Shannon Bruns;   Sue Schnorr;   Tim Patterson;   Tina Hafeman;   Trish Sheridan;   and   Woody Wiedenhoeft & Janet Rosseter 

I want to thank, again, Team WiscAwesome - Mike, Britt, Lindsey, Holly, Brandon, Rachel, Maddie, Meghan, Karen, and of course our SAG guys, Jim & Qing - for allowing me to tag along.  I had a blast that week.  I hope we can ride again sometime.

Finally, I especially want and need to thank my wife Carol and our daughter Olivia.  I work in a town 250 miles away from home during the week, so our time together when we have it is even more precious.  So, spending a whole week away on something I wanted to do for me was a huge sacrifice for you.  I appreciate your support and understanding.  I love you two more than anything.

RAGBRAI: it's not a race, it's a ride.  And an event.  There are many ways to experience it:

• You can ride athletically, pushing yourself and riding hard; or
• You can ride it casually, enjoying the scenery and the people.
• You can party all week, enjoying the bloody marys during the day and the beer at night; or
• You can ride as a family, sharing it with your kids.
• You can attend and participate in all the sponsored/planned events; or
• You can strike out on your own, or simply hang back with your friends.

There is no wrong way to experience RAGBRAI.  Just make it your way.

RAGBRAI XXXIX will be from July 24th to the 30th.  The route will be announced in January, but registration is already open!  Let me know if you want to go along for the ride!

Until then, maybe I'll see you on the road.

Oh, and thank YOU for reading my little story.  I appreciate the feedback and comments.