First Cold Ride

06. January 2011 · 2 comments · Categories: cycling, daily life, exercise, frustration, maryland, struggles, winter · Tags:

“This may not have been the best plan.”

The thought first occurred to me as I rounded the corner on the turn from the Naval Academy to MD450 and slipped my peddles twice as I was trying to clip in.  (Mental note:  Ditch these Look peddles in favor of a pair of speedplays.)  I hadn’t been on my bike in weeks — scratch that MONTHS.  Here I was on my first ride in months going for a 25 mile ride on a cold January afternoon.

When I left around 2:00 PM it was 38F but not windy.  I was fully bundled up, layered with all the right gear from head to toe.  At first, in the sun by my shed, I worried that I had too much on.  Now, it was after 3:00, the wind had picked up considerably and the sun was sinking fast.  I’d forgotten how fast the sun sinks in January here in Maryland.

The ride into Annapolis had been uneventful.  There was almost no one out and I felt really good as I peddled down the B&A trail and over the Naval Academy Bridge.  In fact, I crushed the bridge.  ”Ha, two months off the bike and I’m still strong,” I thought to myself.  As I pulled into the city dock area, I decided that a short break was a good idea and sat down on a bench looking out over Spa Creek.  That’s when the cold started to bite at my toes.

Leaving town, I had the sense that it was going to be a long ride home.  As I peddled up the bridge — after slipping my peddles — I noticed I was struggling.  I shifted into easier gears.  I shifted into the small ring up front.  And then, I clicked my rear gear lever and nothing happened.

“Out of gears!  I don’t run out of gears on this bridge!”

Yes, it would be a long cold ride home.  ”I just need to get through these last two hills, then spin home.”  Normally, I’d consider the hills ahead as moderate, but considering I’d run out of gears on the bridge, I was mentally preparing for the worst.  ”Swig some liquid and keep peddling.”

I made it up the last two hills and sat on a bench for a minute.  My right calf was tight — like softball tight — and I stretched it out a bit before the spin home.  As I got on the bike, I slipped the peddles again!  This time I landed my left elbow smack on the frame.   After a few choice words, I re-engaged the peddles and started to spin easily. I wasn’t in a race.  When I got home, I was sure the blood in my toes was frozen.

Everyone has bad days.  Some days your legs just fail you.  Some days, the heat or the cold gets to you.  Some days, you take on more than you should.  That’s what happened to me on Monday.  Too much time off the bike, grand expectations for myself, cold weather equaled a miserable ride.

Still, a miserable ride is better than an afternoon at the desk, so I suppose I’ll mark Monday down as a win.

Post Holiday Cabin Fever — Wanderlust

02. January 2011 · Write a comment · Categories: daily life, self, travel, winter, winter blues · Tags:

The itch begins between the temples, reverberates back and forth inside your head until your eardrums start tingling and your eyes start to burn.  No, you can’t scratch this itch, it’s deep in your subconscious.  This itch gnaws at you and you can’t explain why you can’t sit still. Everything should be cool, you tell yourself, but it just isn’t because you’re a maelstrom of activity on the inside.

This is post holiday cabin fever.

Wanderlust is ever-present, I’m constantly dreaming of getting away for a while.  In these dreams I travel solo.  No wife. No son. No one but me.  The destinations vary – sometimes I’m fishing flies in a cold river in the mountains, sometimes I’m sailing solo around the Chesapeake, sometimes I’m on my bike cresting a ridge in the Appalachians — but I’m always solo.

I’ve never followed one of these dreams.

Recently, I told Mrs. TKD that this was the year for a big fishing trip.  I don’t know where it will be, or when I’ll go, but consider it on the books.  I suppose this is a fourth goal for 2011.  And with that in mind, I better formulate an action plan, or this dream will collapse in the vortex of life. I’m not gonna let that happen this year.

I don’t know where. I don’t know when. But I am going somewhere solo sometime in the next 363 days.

Come on Springtime

26. December 2010 · 1 comment · Categories: cycling, daily life, exercise, irritants, mr. grey, mrs. tkd, snow, spring, struggles, weather, winter, winter blues

The hacking started sometime around the 22nd of November.  Coughs and phlegm punctuate our conversations. One of the three of us has been sick for the entire month of December.  The days are short, the weather is cold, and I’ve not been on my bike since November 7th.  This is becoming a drag.

That ride on November 7th was a great solo ride.  I’d received word of my new job offer on that ride.  It was a glorious day with temps climbing into the mid 60s by the end of the ride.  I expected that I’d be riding the rest of the month and then throughout December.  I’d not counted on sickness and cold weather getting in the way.

The truth is, I probably could have ridden more despite the cold, if it weren’t for the sickness.  For three weeks, breathing was labored just sitting around.  The idea of actually getting the lungs pumping was well, out of the question.  But the real stumbler has been the new job.

I’ve admitted it before: I am a consummate perfectionist. When I started my last job, I stressed so hard over doing a good job that I developed migraines among other aliments that lasted for months. I hoped not to repeat that performance when I started this job, and I’ve been relatively successful, but I’ve put forth a full court press for sure.  There has not been a lot of down time.

So, I find myself here, the day after Christmas, looking out the window of my office at snow starting to softly fall in the cold winter air, and I’m looking forward to April. I’m hoping that I will be back out on the bike, and that I’ll be able to find some coverage of the Tour de Flanders.  That will indicate the kickoff of another great season of cycling.

Spring, 2010 Style

19. March 2010 · Write a comment · Categories: daily life, food, gardening, good things, gratitude, home, maryland, music, sidetracks, snow, spring, thoughts, weather, winter

And it’s sure been a cold, cold winter

And the wind ain’t been blowin’ from the south

It’s sure been a cold, cold winter

And the light of love is all burned out

It sure been a hard, hard winter

My feet been draggin’ ‘cross the ground

And I hope it’s gonna be a long, hot summer

And the light of love will be burnin’ bright

…

It sure been a cold, cold winter

My feet been draggin’ ‘cross the ground

And the fields has all been brown and fallow

And the springtime take a long way around

God damn, I love that song. For those that don’t recognize it, its “Winter” by the Rolling stones on the Goats Head Soup album.  If you haven’t given it a listen before, well, you should, you’ll recognize a bunch of good tunes on there.  And if you have, but haven’t listened to it in a while, well, give it a spin – or whatever we do with digital music these days.

Spring is here!  It was 72 F here in Severna Park today!  Beautiful days.  I grilled.  I wore short sleeves. I knocked off work a tinsy bit early.

I’ve got spinach growing in my garden – it wintered over!  So did the collards and kale that I never go around to picking.  Even after the ridiculous snow and cold we had!  And most extraordinarily, so did my parsley.  I’m excited for the spring and getting my garden going again!

Snow Day

02. March 2009 · Write a comment · Categories: daily life, entertainment, family, fatherhood, good things, mr. grey, silence, smiles, weather, winter

Well, instead of mud, I got snow on my boots this morning.  Good times.  Me and Mr. Grey went for a walk starting at about 10 after 8.  The little dude was so excited about the snow that he wouldn’t eat breakfast.  Instead he was pounding on the door and bringing me the backpack carrier.  

We took a stroll around the neighborhood in the driving snow.  I love the silence that a snow storm imparts to the normally crazy world of sound in the neighborhood.

 When we got back he was covered in snow.  And dad, frankly, was pretty tired.  The short walk seemed a lot longer with 30 extra pounds and 5 inches of snow…

« Older articles