Ride Across America, December 2001

Monday, December 17, 2001
We are now well above the $1000 mark. At $1563 we are actually on our way to $2000. I wonder if we can break $2000 before Christmas?!
67 days from now Rhonda, Texas ( our dog) and I will leave Shelby and head out west!!! The excitement is building!!
Training is going well. I was able to go up to Winston-Salem and ride with some friends from Cycle North Carolina. We did a 60 mile ride which included a trip up the steep Pilot Mtn. The good thing about going up is that you get to come back down. My top speed that day was around 42 mph.
Thanks for your support, have a great day.
Stephen J.

Thursday, December 6, 2001 Yesterday, Rhonda and I donned some dress clothes and headed out into the business world of Shelby in search of corporate sponsors. It is a cold cruel dog-eat-dog world we live in. Overall we had a fair response. Most businesses said to come back in January due to the fact that all funds has been allocated for the year. Hampton Inn of Shelby did promise a couple of nights free. This was very encouraging. It will be nice to look forward to a warm dry bed on some nights.
One thing I am attempting to do is to contact the hotels that are on the route. Most of the major chains have hotels somewhere along the way. Our hope is that we can acquire more complimentary rooms, as this will make the trip easier.
Consider this: You have been on your bicycle for two weeks now. It has been raining off and on all day and the high temp is only 45. You shiver now and then but don't worry this is only your bodies way of generating heat. And suddenly you remember that when you get to town in 10 miles you have a hotel room waiting for. And then you remember the kind soul who donated that room. So, you get to the hotel and before you even take a shower, you send an e-mail newsletter telling how thankful you are for a warm room tonight as opposed to a cold tent to sleep in.
Thanks for your support. stay tuned for more exciting stories!!!
Stephen J.

Ride Across America, November 2001

Tuesday, November 27, 2001
Exactly 88 days from today Rhonda and I will begin our drive out west. As we count down the days we continue to trust that the funds will be provided in order to reach the goal of $50,000. We have gotten to the $900 mark and are holding steady.
Training is going well. The warmer than usual weather has thrown me for a loop, but I am not complaining about being able to wear shorts for a few more days or weeks?!!
Not much to tell right now. But in 88 days we should have lots to share.
Have a great day and stay posted!!!!

Your Friend,
Stephen J.

Ride Across America, October 2001

Friday, October 26, 2001 The winter winds are blasting. The forecast calls for snow in the mountains. The long sleeves and heavy coats come out of the closet. Old man winter has stopped by for another visit.
Some cyclists hang up their cycling shoes for the season during this time of year. Others simply put on more layers and keep riding.
I have backed off for a little while. I always get burned out this time of year. It is good to take a break from the daily routine. It helps a person regain perspective.
120 days from now, we will begin driving west to SanDiego. Plans are beginning to come together. Special thanks to Adventure Cycling Association for donating the route maps. An individual has also promised to donate a laptop computer. This make it easier to update you with our progress during the ride.
Thanks also to Cliff Bar and Mountain House Foods for discounts.
We still need several things to make this trip a success:
-digital camera
-gas card
-hotel pass: we plan on camping out, sleeping in our tent most of the time, to save money, but the occasional hot shower and soft bed will be welcome when it is pouring down rain.

Thanks again for your support and prayers. We are still at the $200.00 mark. Let's see what kind of impact we can have in our community!!!
Have a great day,
Stephen J.

PS I would love to hear from you, don't hesitate to e-mail me!!!

Sunday, October 14, 2001 My wife and I just got back today from our trip across North Carolina. Rhonda volunteered at the rest stops while I rode. With around 1000 cyclists registered the volunteers ended up making over 1000 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches each day for the week. Kudo's to the volunteers.
We rode across the northern part of the state from Mt. Airy to Elizabeth City. The temperature of the first morning was 36 degrees and warmed up after that. We slept in the tent each night.
We averaged 60 miles a day with the shortest day being 48 miles and the longest was 82. One day the route took us to the top of Sauratown and Hanging Rock Mtns. some steep climbing and some fast descents with speeds reaching 45 mph. Overall we rode approxamately 450 miles in seven days.
Good news: The web-site is in full working order. Please continue to spread the word to family and friends in your area. I am still looking for corporate sponsors so if you know someone who may be interested let them know about me.
Thanks again for your interest in this project. Please contact me with any questions or comments. Have a great day,
Stephen J.

Thursday, October 4, 2001 Fall is in the air. The cool mornings bring a new challenge to training rides: What to wear!! It is cool when I start out but will it warm up or stay cool? Evening rides with the group are also getting shorter as the sun sets earlier. There have been some very nice sunsets though.
This Friday Rhonda and I will be driving up to Mt. Airy, NC for the annual ride across North Carolina. You can check out details by looking up the Cycle North Carolina web-site : www.cyclenorthcarolina.org
A t-shirt design is in the works. The proceeds from sales will go to the fundraising process.
I had my first TV interview with the Gardner Web U. television and radio station. This was on the air last Sunday night and will air again, so if you live in the Shelby area, check your local listings!!
We broke the $200 mark this week. Only $ 49,800 to go. Please help me make this goal!!!
Thanks for your support, Have a great day,
Stephen Janes

Ride Across America: September 2001

Sunday, September 30, 2001
In approximately five and a half months I will be embarking on the trip of a lifetime. We plan on leaving North Carolina the last week of February. We will be driving out to San Diego with as few stops as possible. We also plan on spending a day in Henderson NV with my older brother.
Lots of people have asked about my training. It is pretty straightforward. I ride my bike every day that I can. I usually ride between 30 and 60 miles at an average pace of 18 miles per hour. Lately I have been logging about 150-200 miles per week. I plan on keeping this regimen until Cycle North Carolina, an annual ride across the state, and then ride about 30 miles a day until the end of the year. In January I will resume some longer rides, gradually building up.
I need your help to make this event a success. Please help me get the word out to people who would like to sponsor this trip. Feel free to print anything you see on my website or e-mails and hand them out. I have a brochure that I have made up to pass out. I would be glad to send you a copy if you are interested in making copies to hand out in your area. Also, it would be great if you could organize a fundraiser in your area. My only request is that you would be sensitive to the rights and privacy of others.
My goal is to raise $50,000.
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to e-mail me. I would love top know that you are interested in this venture.
Thanks for your time, have a great day.
Stephen Janes

3 Hours On The Ridge

I arrived at Pleasant Ridge Park Saturday morning, unsure of what to expect.  I had heard about the race via Facebook from a friend and expected to see more Asheville folks.  It turns out, I was the only one representing WNC.

The volunteers were super friendly and I got checked in and changed.  At the pre-race meeting, everyone was slightly chilly, but the temps promised to warm up to close to 60.  After "the talk",  the race director said,  "Oh, look,  it is 10 am sharp.  Ready- Set- GO".   And that is how the race started.

20 of us rolled out of the park and up the pavement through Camp Spearhead before finally entering the single track.  We made a short loop and ended up back at the start/finish pretty quickly.  Then we started getting down to business.

The single track here, built by none other than "Shrimper" and his crew, reminded me a lot of Squirrel Gap trail, but a little bit easier and let remote.  Definitely narrow, twisty single track with some rock gardens and switchbacks thrown in for fun.

At the start everyone got a red rubber bracelet.  The bracelet granted a 1 time access to "Sassy's"  a short cut trail, which eliminated about 1 mile of the most techy section of the loop. 

I was caught in traffic and not going my pace, so I used my pass on the first lap.  It was good to get out on my own and settle in.  I figured if I got caught and passed, then,  well,  they were just faster than me.  Nothing I could do about it but keep moving forward.

Laps 1-3 went by and I was feeling good.  At the end of lap 3,  they told me the time was 11:45am.  Cut off for one final lap was at 12:45pm.  I had barely 1 hour to complete 2 laps.  I asked a fellow single speeder who was going about the same pace what his lap times were.  He told me about 30 minutes.

Ok,  do I ride hard and try to get 3 more laps or settle in and finish with 5 laps total.  My goal coming in was to get 6 laps, so there you have it.  I pushed the pace but stayed within myself in order not to blow up.  I watched the time, trying to decided if I could do another lap at this pace.

I neared the finish line and yelled across the field to Tyler Crotts and asked him to hand up a bottle for me.  He did and that act helped me out.  I crossed the lined and they called out 30 minutes left to the cut off.  The previous lap according to my watch had taken 31 minutes.  I took about 15 seconds deciding what to do.  Never give up, hammer down.  I went redline and pushed up the climb that consisted of most of the first half of the loop.   When ever my body thought it had enough, I gave just a little more.

Ugh,  I was moving forward but I had not given this type of effort on the bike in a long time.   Relax,  pedal, breathe.  Eddie Odea sat on my shoulder and reminded me to hold my position and focus on breathing and pedal stroke.  I pushed up one little grunt climb and hopped back on the bike, easing off the brakes and allowing myself to coast through the corners, powering out of the apex, and spinning through the flatter portions of single track.

I finally saw the field and the tape marking the course leading to the finish line.  I spun through the field and wanted a new bottle.  I didn't want to miss the cutoff by seconds so I skipped the bottle.  My bottle was still half full so I would use that to nurse me back to the finish.  I crossed the line and made the cut off.   I was done.  But,  I made the cut off, so I wasn't really done.  I knew there were people ahead of me, and tried to pick up the pace, but could not.  I settled in to try to recover and finish 1 more lap.

It took me closer to 45 minutes to finish, but I did.  They didn't really keep track of standings after the top 3 but by my calculations, I wound up in 5th place men's, and 4th single speed.  Complete results are the only thing that I would like to see different at the event.

It was great to get out in some new territory and experience the burn in my legs and lungs again.

This event was awesome and here is why:  It was so simple.   No t-shirt, no swag,  1 table for neutral water support at the finish line.  Simple prizes 3 deep, 3 categories.   And it only cost $25.  That's it.

While I love the races that are around and have grown, and throw a huge party,  I appreciate the grass roots feel and low cost provided by 3 Hrs On The Ridge!   I hope to be back!

Snake Creek Gap TT #2 2016

I got packed up headed out for Dalton one more time.  I love the drive through the Ocoee Gorge so that is the route I chose to go.  It was really pretty, with snow on the ground and flurries in the air, but for some reason it felt like the 4 hr drive was taking a loooong time. 

I finally got to Dalton and drove up to the Quality Inn where I had made my reservation.  I suddenly realized that the hotel with outside access rooms,  several other hotels nearby and a restaurant right in front might have been a bad choice if I wanted to get some sleep.   I drove over to the hotel I normally stay at and asked if they had any rooms left.  Yes, they did, but only a jacuzzi room.  And it was cheaper than QI.  Sweet,  I called to cancel my reservation and moved in.  I wasn't sure if this was a good sign, but I was giddy.

I went up to "The Snake Pit" checked in and then back to the hotel to enjoy my evening of solitude and relaxation.   

I slept well enough that the 5am alarm went off and I rolled out of bed excited.  After years of struggling with pre race food intake, I was trying Ensure before this one and had high hopes.  I had tested it over the past couple of weeks and looking forward to how my body would respond this morning.  I sipped on Ensure and coffee, got packed and prepped. then drove down to meet Ron Marcus and Daryl for my shuttle out to the start. 

I'm excited that the Ensure did the trick and I was able to get nutrition into my body and did not get the empty stomach jitters or motion sickness that I usually get. 

We lined up and took off one by one. 

It was cold.  24 degrees cold.  I felt good but my body did not respond.  I wondered what was up but found out later that everyone was feeling the same.  Sluggish and little like riding underwater.  It is hard to get the body to go at temps that cold. 

So,  I assumed my pace and rode my race.  Several times I wanted to slow down and enjoy the ride, but kept reminding myself that if I did that, I could easily slip into 3rd, 4th 5th.....   I kept the hammer down. 

Other than the bitter cold, I felt good, so I was pleased about that. 

I finally ticked off the miles and hit the normally 40 mph pavement decent.  Today, however, thanks to a strong headwind, I could only hit 30mph.  Bummer, I always look forward to that drop in elevation!

I rolled to the finish in 4h1min,  2 in faster than last month.  After changing into warm dry clothes, I ate 2 bowls of chili and a bowl of peach cobbler.  After all the single speed riders finished, I landed in 2nd place with 3rd barely 1 minute behind me.   I was really glad that I had not slowed down to enjoy the view.

Great start to my season,  looking forward to what the year holds!

Feb 2

 Headwinds had me riding slow.  I had no power,  couldn't even spin.  I could not figure out what was going on.  It was going to be a long day.   30 minutes later the front tire finally went flat.  I had forgotten to twist the valve closed and the air had slowly leaked out.  I didn't realize it at the time though.  I went to replace the tube and found that my spare was a previous flat..... 

 What now?   Co2 and ride to Epic Cycles in Black Mountain.  The tube held but I replaced it anyway.   It was cold, drizzly and windy.  I wanted to go to Old Fort to feel some warmth, but it looked like rain.  I cut the ride short.

 At the Eastern Continental Divide on Hwy 9 there was still snow,  and wind and drizzle for shizzle my nizzle. 

And of course I found a gravel road to ride on. 

Gravel Bikes

Gravel roads, or "groads" as my friend Michael C. calls them,  have become very popular for training, racing and just getting out. 

I have been using  my steel frame mtn bike as my gravel grinder, set up with Kenda Small Block 8's, and it has been serving me well.  But, it is on the heavy side and one size too small so it lacks in performance and speed.

I started setting some money aside with the hopes of getting one of the Salsa Warbirds
but ended up getting a tooth crowned instead.  Back to the drawing board, I went to visit Kevin H at Liberty Bicycles here in Asheville and he recommended the Vittoria "Open Pave" in 700x27.  I was skeptical but he knows his stuff so some trust was in order.   

I got them mounted up on my Foundry Ratchet and took off for the gravel roads of Bent Creek.   After 8 miles of pavement, I hit the gravel for the big test.   They did the trick.   I was a little slow on downhills and turns, not wanting to flat or washout, but the tires are great.   They enabled me to ride the entire gravel road loop before heading back out to the pavement and back home again. 

If you want all the technical specs, give Liberty a call.  If you want to go groading and only have a road bike, go get a pair, mount them up and start riding!  

Back to saving for that Warbird!

The Snake 2016

9 days into 2016 and I rode my first race of the season.

I left Asheville and headed down to Georgia.  Switching between country music and classic rock for the 4 hr drive and cruising with traffic.   I had considered trying to carpool with some other folks headed down for the race, but sometimes a guy just needs to be alone.  Its good to clear the head and not have to worry about anyone else for just a little while. 

I got to Dalton, checked in at the hotel.  This time, I brought some pre made spaghetti and salad with me, and I went ahead and ate that before heading up to check in.    I picked up my number and my shirt and met up with Ron Marcus who was providing shuttle for me.  We made plans to meet at 6:30am and head out to the start.  Daryl would also be joining us for the ride out.

Back to the hotel room and lights out by 8pm.

I managed to get some sleep until around 2 am, then it was dozing and waking until my wake up time of 5am.    I wish I was better at early mornings but I suffer.  As long as I can remember, I have struggled with early morning.  Hungry, but nauseous.  Can't eat, so I nibble and try to get some food down, because if I don't,  I get car sick on the way to the venue.   Ugh. I need to figure out what to do here.....

I met up with Ron and Daryl and we headed out to the start.  I focused on relaxing and sipped water.  I was really glad 30 minutes later and I was intact when we pulled into the gravel lot.  Ron is a smooth driver and I was grateful.

I rode around the lot warming up and then lined up to start around 10th.   I took off and got into a rythym ready to ride my pace.  I really love the GA mountains and planned to ride my own pace and enjoy the views.

For the first hour, I was feeling pretty rough.  Still nibbling and sipping liquids.  I felt so rough that I contemplated quitting.  I knew that if I did not start feeling better, this would turn into an epic hike a bike.  I kept eating and sipping and after around 2 hrs, I arrived at the midway point.  I felt slightly better so swapped bottles and moved on.  I might have been able to save 1-2 minutes here but as first I could not find my bag that was covered up with a sign, and then I fumbled with getting the bag open and bottles swapped.  A volunteer finally came over to help out.  I was grateful for that.

The temperature was between 40-50 with some wind up on the ridges.  Perfect for me.   The course was mostly dry too.  Today would be the day for a PR.... I only lacked the fitness.   Not a big deal.

Up and down, along the ridge, soaking it in and having fun.  I maintained my pace and managed my nutrition and I started feeling better.

Up the last gravel climb and a left onto the last 8 mile section.  It is a really fun ridge line ride with lots of techiness mixed with some smooth fast single track.  I maintained my pace until I passed the fire ring.  Sweet,  1 mile to go, I told myself in my head.  I picked up the pace and started to hammer.  After a mile, I was still a couple of climbs from the towers that mark the final decent to the finish.  Crap,  that fire ring marks 5 to go, not one.  I slowed down again and resumed my pace.

Finally I rounded the bend and headed up the last climb past the towers.  I took it easy on the gravel decent, lots of fresh loose gravel there and hit the pavement.  I took up the whole lane and got up over 39mph.  Rounding the last bend, and crossing the finish line, I wasn't sure if I had broken 4 hrs.  It was really close.

I felt great and I was pleased with the ride.  I felt more confident on the technical sections and was able to climb at a steady pace.

After hanging out for a while at the finish,  I turned the van north and headed home.  It turned out that Jamie Bookwalter needed a ride up to East Ridge, so I dropped her off on the way by,  grabbed a double tall mocha from Starbucks,  cranked up the country music, and put the pedal to the metal.

I found out on Sunday, that I got second place in the single speed category!

Edit:  34 miler, 4hrs 3 mins

Feeling Bad= Feeling Good

What if you think you are feeling bad, but are actually feeling good?  

I have had a pretty challenging life so far,  who didn't?  I haven't met anyone who said childhood was a piece of cake.   It is life, I suppose.   And we deal with it.  But what happens next?

I think I have managed to work through a lot of my challenges and have been able to provide a calmer, safer, more stable environment for the wife and kid.  I hope so anyway.  Feedback from friends tells me I'm doing a good job, and I have honest friends and a lot of solid friendships which I am thankful for. 

So, after having dealt with challenges ( I'll always be working on being a better man) and having come to grips with things that have happened in the past,  there is a gap left there.  Not that I miss it, but when I get used to having something in my life, good or bad, when it is gone, there is a gap, an emptiness that needs to be filled. 

Well,  for a while now, I have struggled with what this gap actually is.  I've been feeling like something was missing,  but I have everything: wife, kid, dog, bikes, house, food friends, love etc.  Was I sad, depressed? What was this emptiness I was feeling?

Why do I still feel empty?

Then I realized, what if that emptiness I feel is actually peace?  What if the lack of stress and turmoil is this "empty" feeling.   Kind of like without light the room is dark, but in a good way.  What if that dark is something good?  It is not a fireworks show, it is not angels singing, it is not a Vimeo movie of someone standing on a mountain top. 

It is a stillness,  a quiet relief,  almost explainable......

Inner peace. 

Below Freezing

I took a ride out on some gravel with Kevin H this morning. Temps never got above freezing and we both had ice in our beard most of the ride.  It was cold.   The ground frozen solid.  I find it hard to move when its this cold.  With all of the layers, it is extra work to move the legs. 

I was cold for most of the rest of the day.  I think part of the problem was that my bottles froze and I only drank a little less than one bottle when I should have had more than twice that.... 

My motto for this season is: " If Michael Cosgrove is riding, I am riding"....  

New Year

2 days into the new year and I'm realizing something that I can never comprehend.  I am in a place in life that I never thought I would be in and I don't feel like it is something I have earned or tried to get to.   I consider myself successful, not by the capitalistic standards that are used in most businesses,  but by the beat of my heart.  

I have the opportunity to do something I love.  After so many years of trying to do what I enjoying and being held back or prevented for one reason or another,  I'm finally doing what I love: sharing my passion for the outdoors with kids. 

While there are things that I need/want,  I have everything I need for today..... and then a lot more.

I'm gonna share something with you, because it is the basis of my world view.  I don't have all the answers and know that I never will.  I have found a way to cope with this crazy, confusing, awesome, amazing, terrible life and have a deep desire to share that. 

I believe that we were created for a purpose: to love.  I believe that after that, everything else falls into place.  But, you gotta start with loving yourself.   I'm 43 and and finally at a place where I feel like I am starting to accept myself for who I am. 

I don't do everything right, but I don't do everything wrong either.  Growing up, I lived in an environment where I never felt like I was good enough,  I lived in fear of disappointing those around me,  failing my family and failing God.   That fear has followed me around for my whole life.  I've managed to work on it, but I don't know that I'll ever be able to overcome it completely.  It is more of an annoying trait now than a fear.

And that is how and why I (and the wife) stepped out in faith and started Trips For Kids WNC.  I had a dream of what I could do to help the kids in our community and the only way to get that rolling was to step out and do it.  

And here I am, 5 years later and still loving it!    I can't wait to see what another 5 yrs brings!

Sunshine

  

Happy Holidays,  time to ride, avoid the rain and enjoy family time.  I have absolutely no complaints about the warm weather,   the rain is slightly annoying and I could complain about that some, but at least it seems to clear up every other day so that we can get outside.

 Spent a little time in Roanoke riding around Carvins Cove.

 Back home,  I took a ride aruond Bent Creek. 

All this gravel grinding has me thinking about a proper gravel bike,  I could go a lot farther with something lighter. 

 And an evening sail with the family before the next storm rolls in!  Sunshine and smiles for miles!

Clouds

 Recovery from my tooth work and feeling  a little restless I got out for a quick gravel ride out at Bent Creek. It was not very crowded which was nice.  I might have seen a dozen folks and only about 3 bikes.

It was overcast in the parking lot then turned to fog, then cleared up and I could see a large cloud filling the valley below.   Pretty cool view.  Sometimes I wish we had less trees.  The forest is cool and all but we have some really great views that are obscured.  It is part of the feel and mystery though. 

I'm hoping to get out to ride today but life might put me on the rollers.  I don't hate the rollers yet, and could really tell a difference on yesterday's ride.    The key will be making sure I have good music to listen to while I ride.   That makes all the difference. 

Crowned One

My name means crowned one.....not the type of crown I had in mind when I discovered the meaning when I was 12 years old.  

Head cold had me sidelined last week and then the dentist appt on Monday morning and the ensuing discomfort, kept me off my bike the entire day. 

I'm not sure what caused the most discomfort,  the dental work or the bill.  Holy toothache Batman.  With insurance, I paid $642.   Merry Christmas huh? 

I also can't figure out why the staff always smile at me so much when I'm at the dentist office.   Are they really happy to see me?  Do they feel sorry for me?  Are they excited to get in my mouth and poke and drill?  Kind of creeps me out.

Ugh,  I gotta get back on the bike.  It is always hard this time of year with so much going on and the kid being out of school.  Oh yeah, and rain.  Looks like some more roller work! 

2 Rides

 I got out for a ride on Sunday morning,  mostly warm but chilly up higher in the hollers.  I'm loving the warm miles I have been getting lately,   hopefully it will make the dead of winter from mid Feb through March easier to manage. 

Later,  the kid asked if we could go for a ride..... of course we can.  And we did.  We did a short 45 min loop and called it a day. 

I'm taking a day off from training today,  which works out well.  It is rainy and windy.  I'm planning on doing some core work, just need to get motivated to make it happen.

Christmas wrapping at REI Asheville started this weekend.  It is always a fund time, great way to spread the word about the program too. 

My weekend.

 I had the day open and planned a big road ride to get some saddle time.   This is one thing that I let slip the past couple of years and I paid for it.  The lesson: if you want to do long rides, you have to do long rides...

I rolled out of the house after it warmed up.  Wearing a vest, knee warmers and arm warmers.  The day was sunny and a high of 70 was forecast.  No complaints here.   I pedaled out through Swannanoa towards Black Mtn and eventually south on Hwy 9.

A quick stop at the spring to refill and I was on my way again.  Up and over the Eastern Continental Divide, my thoughts wandered.  Down through the pastures and farms, past the Straight Away Cafe, I considered stopping for lunch but it was a bit too early.

Winding around and mostly down, I spotted another set of tire tracks on the wet pavement in one of the curves.  I never caught up with them.

 Left turn on Old Fort Rd for the climb up and around Round Mtn.  The road turns into Bat Cave Rd and then descends down into the valley where Old Fort is.  I again considered stopping for food, but decided to just stop for water, eat a bar and keep riding.  

 I decided to take a right turn and ride through Graphite and up Mill Creek rd on the gravel.  I was surprised to ride past a small pond and see a bald eagle sitting on the edge.  At first I thought it was a decoy, possibly to scare geese away, and then did a double take when it turned it's head. 

 I climbed back up the mountain , through Black Mtn where I stopped for a little snack.  I was hoping for the prepackaged sandwiches, but they didn't have any, so I went for the honey bun with 460 calories and a Coke.   I should have only eaten half of the honey bun but I was so hungry.  My burps tasted like honey bun the last hour of the ride.  

 The last bit of the ride, I was spent and excited that I had gotten the mileage.  This was the longest ride that I had done in a very long time, and I look forward to building up over the next few months.  I love this loop, though I have only done it 3 times.  I have a couple of ideas to mix it up a little bit.  It is definitely nice dropping down in elevation and feeling the warmth on my skin.

Forgot to add:  68 miles of sunshine and smiles!  

Not Yet Cold

 The air is cold, but the ground and trees are not yet frozen.  I can still smell the warmth of the leave decaying,  still smell the dirt.  In another month,  it will be frozen, and smell like ice.  It will feel like the inside of a freezer.  Frozen solid radiating ice.

December is in full force.  Always a crazy busy time of year.

Word about The Bicycle Thrift Shop seems to be spreading.  I love being able to help people, I'm just the middle man though.  Community members donate bikes and The Shop gets them to new homes! 

Ride on!

National Guard

With the most recent attacks,  I can't help but think about the 3rd world countries that I have lived in.  Countries with civil unrest, stringent gun laws, high crime and their people divided. 

Reminds me of the time the town of Rubio, Venezuela was under curfew.   I was out in the school yard playing basketball with some friends, one evening, and a tank rolled slowly down the street,  turning it's turret to aim towards us and the soldier telling us to go inside...

I'm saddened and infuriated by the increased attacks by Americans.  Americans attacking their own.  Shouldn't we be calling them traitors? 

The war is here and it is not going to get better.   People get upset and want more gun laws,  I'm not going to argue that perspective,  enough people are already doing that. 

We need viable solutions, now.

How long until someone reaches out and organizes the traitors for a full scale attack?  I'm not CIA think tank, so it would surprise me if this hasn't been thought of already.

We need to do something now. 

The National Guard comes to mind: " Under State law, the National Guard provides protection of life and property and preserves the peace, order and public safety". (source: http://www.ngaus.org/advocating-national-guard/evolving-role-citizen-soldier)

Each state has their own force,  can we start with schools, posting 3-4 armed guards? 

What do you think?

Under state law, the National Guard provides protection of life and property and preserves peace, order and public safety. - See more at: http://www.ngaus.org/advocating-national-guard/evolving-role-citizen-soldier#sthash.QXxcSE5c.dpuf

Under state law, the National Guard provides protection of life and property and preserves peace, order and public safety. - See more at: http://www.ngaus.org/advocating-national-guard/evolving-role-citizen-soldier#sthash.QXxcSE5c.dpuf

Under state law, the National Guard provides protection of life and property and preserves peace, order and public safety. - See more at: http://www.ngaus.org/advocating-national-guard/evolving-role-citizen-soldier#sthash.QXxcSE5c.dpuf

Running With Refugees

In this time of crisis around the world,  I have a friend and Trips For Kids WNC supporter who is raising funds and awareness for a people group that I had not heard of.  They have been living in refugee camps for 40 years,  in the Saharan desert.

photo courtesy of Blue Ridge Outdoors

 Read the story here:
http://www.blueridgeoutdoors.com/newswire/59318/

photo courtesy of Blue Ridge Outdoors

It is a pretty amazing survival story.  A peaceful people, with hope for a better future.

T-giving Weekend

The wife and kid headed to visit with family and I stayed behind to help with the rescheduled AVLCX race at REEB Ranch. 

Without having people running around the house, distracting me and getting in the way, I decided it was a good time to patch and paint the kitchen.  We painted it 11yrs ago when we moved in, and it has had some wear and tear.  I also decided to stain the kitchen cabinets to add to the freshness. 

What should have taken a day or two, turned into 3 days of work.  The staining was tedious, but bearable.  The painting alone would have been fine.  But, I decided to get creative and picked out a color that was way too bright.  I finished it and went to bed hoping that it would make more sense in the morning.  Up at 7am and off to HD to get the proper color and start over.  I was able to get one coat on before heading out to the races and then got the final coat on later that night when I got home. 

 Race day went well and AVLCX pulled off another stellar season of local homegrown grassroots racing.  Its cool to see people driving from hours away to participate in these races.

 Sunday finally rolled around.  With my project gone bad turned good complete, I had all day to play.  My legs aren't quite ready to go all day yet but I needed to get at least 3 hrs in.  

I parked at Rice Pinnacle and headed out towards Bent Creek gap.  Pavement- Lake Trail- and eventually Explorer Loop to Bent Creek Gap rd.  Up and over the ridge, Specner Gap- Spencer Creek- Never Ending Rd- Fletcher Crk- Lower Trace (out and back)- Wash Creek Rd- back over the ridge- Sidehill, Campground Connector- Hardtimes- back to RP. 

27 miles and I felt like I could keep going.  Common sense and the rain told me to pack it up for the day.  Its good to see my endurance coming back and the consistent riding paying off.   I'll be starting my more focused training soon,  looking forward to getting some "snap" back into my legs!

Shout out to the assorted friends I saw along the way.  Its cool to know that on any given weekend, I will most likely cross paths with a friend or two, out in the middle of nowhere!

This Life

The most successful people I know are passionate about something,  helping others.   When you devote your life to helping others, regardless of how much return you get,  life tends to make a lot more sense.  

There are still a lot of things that don't make sense; hate, greed, war, etc.   But when a person invests time, energy and money into making the world a better place,  a sense of self worth is born. 

I was talking to a friend and we were discussing depression.  I mentioned that I deal with depression.  I have for a long time.  I remember back to the uber conservative Christian college that I graduated from.  They told me it was demons oppressing me.  I spent so many nights on my knees, "fighting"  asking God to fight the demons,  asking for forgiveness for whatever I did.  It didn't work.  Some would blame God for not helping me.  I blame the teachers for not helping me. 

15 yrs later, I have worked through all of the symptoms and have figured out the root of the issue.  Lack of nurturing and poor roll modeling are contributors. 

I don't have all of the answers, but I believe that I serve a power that is greater than me.  I have been given the options to look at myself, change and become  a better person.  The wife says that I have been successful. 

But guess what?  I still get depressed.  Knowing the triggers, I am now more aware of when and why.  The neighbor yelling at me and blaming me for everything brought back a flood of memories.  Being able to identify that, helps me work through the feelings and emotions and get my head on straight again.  One thing I have noticed though is that my depression is similar to a cold.  One day I'm sluggish and tired.  The next I'm down. And then, it takes a couple of days to feel back to normal.   Sunshine and fresh air definitely help, but in reality,  it just takes time. 

Why am I sharing such personal info?  Because I know a lot of you are going through something similar.  You don't even have to tell me, I can see it in your eye,  hear it in your voice. 

Life is tough and we have to stick together.  Draft off of each other. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Crazy Stuff

It is great to be back on the bike.  I feel like a new person with new motivation.  I feel like I have finally figured out who I am.   The key to contentedness is mixing who we want to be, with our circumstances and accept who we have become. 

Things at home are great.  We have all settled into a rhythm and help each other out on a regular basis.  Communication is great too.  

I was able to get out for a long ride this weekend.  Look for more in the future.  We talked about it as a family.  About how it challenges me and makes me happy.  We agreed to make time for it. 

 3.5 hour ride and I was feeling awesome.  Tired but awesome.   I decided to tackle  a project that has been in the works for years.  The neighbor's driveway blocks the water flow in my yard and threatens to flood my crawlspace.  He agreed to let me install a drain to help alleviate the problem.  The problem is, the is another neighbor who uses the drive way to access the property that he is living on.  He is not the owner of said property and only has right of way to use the drive way.  Therefore he has no say in who digs in the driveway. 

Well,  he got riled up about what I was doing to improve the area and called the Buncombe County Sherrif's Dept and told them I was destroying property.   Nice.  CPL Ice showed up and I told him what was going on.  The neighbor, James, got more riled up and argumentative when the officer told him I had a right to do what I was doing.  2 more officers showed up and I got the project wrapped up.  From what I understand, the deputies were concerned for my safety and stuck around while I finished up and went home...... 

Then James' girlfriend, Elaine (these folks are like 70 yr old) walked up to me and hissed, " You're an ass".   I just kept my mouth shut. 

I think the drain looks pretty good.  I turned on the hose to test it out and it seems to shed the water well too.  But now, since I did the work,  its not gonna rain for 3 months!  

 I can't figure out why people are such jerks.  I'm just minding my own business, trying to make the world a better place and people freak out. 

After a lot of pondering,  I thought that maybe these stupid interactions happen simply so I can show the kid the proper way of handling the situations.  If he can learn how to confront with tact and stand up for what is right in a peaceful manner,  then bring it on.  Then it will be worth it. 

 Back to winter riding.  Thanks to a lot of help from my friends, I'm pretty well outfitted to ride in the cold.  It was windy and near freezing, but I was comfortable and enjoyed the ride! 

 Thanksgiving week, coming right up!

Sick

 We had a teacher work day, so I took the kid fishing.  We have been trying to fish more recently, without much luck.  I'm definitely enjoying the time with the kid, but come on,   let us catch some fish.  I spend a lot of the time wondering if I should cast on the other side of the boat, like Jesus told his disciples to do.  Ah, the ingrained thoughts.  

We got a couple of nibbles but nothing hooked.  Suddenly, the kid thought he had a snag but it was a fish.  Then his reel fell apart.  I told him to pull on the line but it felt like there was nothing there. 

I put his reel back together and started to reel the line in.  The fish was still there.  I handed the reel to the kid so he could finish the job.

Then we came home, cleaned and filleted it and fried it up.   Deliciousness!

I'm proud of the kid,  all I caught was a cold. 

The Funk Root

 So,  it seems the funk has gone, but a bit of the stench remains. 

Two weeks ago, I went for a ride with Kevin Hessler.  The guy is cool.  After the ride, I realized how much I enjoy riding, challenging myself, hanging out with other people.  I realized that deep down inside, I really do miss the racing scene.  But not just the scene, the community that is the core of the scene. 

I had backed off and just done a couple of local races, ORAMM, Pisgah Stage Race, attempt at P111k.  But,  not having set goals, I wandered around, training when I felt like it,  giving a half effort.  It didn't work for me.  Low to no success is not what I was after. 

I realized last week that I should try adding a couple more races to my schedule next year and get some consistent training in.   I never want to feel as badly as I felt for that long again.  

The thing is, I love helping other people.   But I have realized that I have to balance that with me time.   I overdo it on the former and don't pay attention to the latter.  I do this a lot.  Sometimes I even feel guilty for going out for rides.  In my head, I tell myself that that time could be spent doing something productive for someone else.   I have to train my brain to understand that if I don't take time for myself, that I won't be healthy enough to help people around me. 

Now I gotta look at finances and schedule, to see which races I can get to!

Lookin' forward to 2016!