tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55495614822484585662024-03-15T20:13:09.181-05:00Bike Washington CountyWashington County WI: A great place to be a cyclist!Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1293125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-55374170587899919432024-03-13T18:30:00.001-05:002024-03-13T18:30:00.244-05:00The Riverfront Parkway’s New Relevance<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5ylKCBNaIer_IRFIjdRMobfvH8pBuSNlGeeWKn8UEDGJ2yMt5Io0tk9YCxTRMDofjATYMy59DuNIG40_gO1lpBBq_qkmWU-Q7EwTNKdNqIsWx9SvxVlL7wf7Vd5sJQPjPNJVz-Q3JyUGN1AawRGoVegeOLsg6yylrKSqF9hGNs9W5fLe0uJpP-cNkHG8/s835/Riverfront%20Parkway.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="835" height="414" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5ylKCBNaIer_IRFIjdRMobfvH8pBuSNlGeeWKn8UEDGJ2yMt5Io0tk9YCxTRMDofjATYMy59DuNIG40_gO1lpBBq_qkmWU-Q7EwTNKdNqIsWx9SvxVlL7wf7Vd5sJQPjPNJVz-Q3JyUGN1AawRGoVegeOLsg6yylrKSqF9hGNs9W5fLe0uJpP-cNkHG8/w640-h414/Riverfront%20Parkway.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div>I made a blog post called <a href="https://bikewashco.blogspot.com/2016/02/the-split-personality-of-riverfront.html" target="_blank">“The Split Personality Of The Riverfront Parkway”</a> back in 2016 and, for the most part, my observations still hold up. The parkway is wildly inconsistent in its surface material, its maintenance, and its utility from one section to the next. Most of the parkway is just as it was 8 years ago. The section that passes through downtown West Bend, however, is utterly transformed. In recent years, the city has realized that people like to be close to water … even something so plain as the very narrow, very shallow Milwaukee River. <a href="https://www.ci.west-bend.wi.us/departments/parks_recreation___forestry/downtown_riverwalk.php" target="_blank">In 2023, the city completed a new “riverwalk” on the west side of the river.</a> It’s not just a complement to the multi-use paths on the east side. In some respects, it’s better.</div><div><br /></div><div>On the east side of the river, you can take the parkway past the Museum of Wisconsin Art up to Rivershores. You can cover the same ground on the Eisenbahn State Trail. Either way, you have to cross busy Washington Street. The new riverwalk lets you pass <i>under </i>the street, as I have been doing on recent rides like today’s:</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRaL8JgsYR6AHtB1zKzPhgotzI-cJLLe09nwNpkptH7fjRc1J4dZxfb8n8RAgTriFfx1tPH9NNfB9OW8sBUMhynbjlHOZVA4SlqCY6-adh4Ua2f0rbK8r9j84otd3q4-SZIspn8i4Ifd84oKPkK0d_usVCLGSRios4wQy4wrYMXEOjcnaWWVIB-4glTHQ/s3451/20240313_162752.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3451" data-original-width="3120" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRaL8JgsYR6AHtB1zKzPhgotzI-cJLLe09nwNpkptH7fjRc1J4dZxfb8n8RAgTriFfx1tPH9NNfB9OW8sBUMhynbjlHOZVA4SlqCY6-adh4Ua2f0rbK8r9j84otd3q4-SZIspn8i4Ifd84oKPkK0d_usVCLGSRios4wQy4wrYMXEOjcnaWWVIB-4glTHQ/w578-h640/20240313_162752.jpg" width="578" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>And, just as significantly, the new riverwalk connects more things. Some downtown businesses are already pivoting toward the riverwalk, treating the back door as a second front door. West Bend’s newly reconstructed Main Street boasts many improvements, but more parking isn’t one of them. As more people discover the riverwalk, parking on the east side and then walking to downtown businesses should be more common. Outdoor dining will become more common too, not just because of the river, but also because we like to watch people.</div><div><br /></div><div>I still think very few people will travel the parkway from end to end, and that’s OK. The new riverwalk would be an asset to West Bend even if didn’t connect to anything to the north or south. In the past 10 years we have witnessed the construction of hundreds of new residential units downtown, and more are coming. We’re moving toward a very dense urban core that can thrive because of our recent investment in bike- and pedestrian-friendly infrastructure.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-29784952457999967552024-03-08T16:00:00.001-06:002024-03-08T16:00:49.686-06:002024 Kenosha Velodrome Racing Schedule<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WashingtonParkVelodrome" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="843" data-original-width="652" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSBUcDtVzpq1xbKgvKwo03NIa1mO4ZrRAKsPdOzqx6WAX4SB26U4_IfGlUR3B-xvgzna0qiNY00-GmKTJym7j8RE7JyahroWWEkz2R0PtfSO6YMkPOVCTw9bbYsQq7kcOvNHx33dYFVsk_7h6A58sbPfiFWPf_ABQHOJCnrCpKhxiG9GR5BVnlMOjJh0k/w494-h640/2024%20Track%20Schedule.jpg" width="494" /></a></div><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-27397792812704946332024-02-29T23:30:00.000-06:002024-02-29T23:30:11.209-06:00Wrapping Up February 2024<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgouvABxXwNlUJmGIRqg6ZX_E14Y1pu2KXv5h3EGFQuURdJg8ogTsQH7UK2tFPBu3vbbJEXVtrP7_38DKxfduv9Wjkje3c7idTicbGylJVWJmGVPynlWiukF4eIGmaimbd5mNEyTe2ao2yX5rX2if0OEl5_4KxpZKGMmqU2GS7E3M_vYN0ejHN__TLV7bo/s595/2024FebBadges.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="426" data-original-width="595" height="458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgouvABxXwNlUJmGIRqg6ZX_E14Y1pu2KXv5h3EGFQuURdJg8ogTsQH7UK2tFPBu3vbbJEXVtrP7_38DKxfduv9Wjkje3c7idTicbGylJVWJmGVPynlWiukF4eIGmaimbd5mNEyTe2ao2yX5rX2if0OEl5_4KxpZKGMmqU2GS7E3M_vYN0ejHN__TLV7bo/w640-h458/2024FebBadges.png" width="640" /></a></div><div>Does anyone really like leap years? In the Southern Hemisphere, I guess it’s a good deal to have an extra day in February—it was sunny and 77° in Johannesburg today, if you were wondering. Here in the north, February 29 is usually just another deep winter day. We did better than average this time, so I won’t complain. And taking stock of the entire month, February 2024 wasn’t too bad.</div><div><br /></div><div>Tuesday was the first 60° day in West Bend since November 16 … and then it turned into the first 70° day since October 27! Unreal. We peaked at 71° early Tuesday afternoon, obliterating the old record high of 52° from 1976 and our 36° average high for February 27. Then the wind shifted to the northwest, and taking wind chill into account, we dropped all the way to 1° in only 18 hours. We also picked up a trace amount of snow. On Tuesday afternoon I applied sunscreen and rode outside in shorts for the first time in months. By Wednesday afternoon I didn’t even want to walk to the curb to pick up my mail.</div><div><br /></div><div>March is expected to begin with temperatures in the low 50s to low 60s, which is good enough to get me back out on the bike. I rode outside on three occasions in February, matching last year’s total. Those 63 miles won’t impress anyone, though, and I’m hoping for better things in March. Last year, March was a bit of a disaster: I rode only six times for a total of 141 miles. I should be able to beat that, especially as I will spend the last week of March in southeastern Pennsylvania, where the temperature historically is 10° warmer on average. I’m planning a three-week stay in Pennsylvania. If the weather is good, then that visit should be something of a training camp for me.</div><div><br /></div><div>Training in February mostly consisted of upper body strength workouts and treadmill walks. I shattered my old record of 74.08 miles of walking for fitness, set in September 2021. In February, I walked exactly 100 miles. Garmin Connect tells me that February also was my best ever month for steps—203,115 of them—but I don’t know what the old record was. And 203,115 is still short of the 10,000 steps per day ideal that so many fitness experts recommend. I needed almost 29 hours to get my 203,115 steps, which comes out to almost 60 minutes per day. I don’t think I want to devote more time than that to walking. But the new treadmill certainly has been a great addition to the home gym. It’s so much easier to do an indoor walk than to bundle up against the cold. With better weather I will return to hikes and ruck marches, but the treadmill has been the solution for walking this winter.</div><div><br /></div><div>February was a surprisingly good month for Garmin Connect badges. I earned 12 of them, as shown above. I credit the treadmill for almost all of those achievements and for keeping my weight stable throughout the month. I seem to have reached equilibrium in the calories in / calories out calculation. I’m still far heavier than I would like to be, but at least things didn’t get worse this month.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-29163777224912757602024-02-25T02:00:00.001-06:002024-02-25T02:00:00.129-06:00The 2024 ToAD Schedule<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.tourofamericasdairyland.com/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="843" data-original-width="843" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5CsOgcmFTCzxk05CvpCYIg2_aoqFGnA_sxMhps-r6FzlcHkUcNubp50pZHbqOOyrIe9g-K7k5APZ1XkhzWIkENlIELokjPoino1f2uAtztrfKXfleYsmQ_5zjNeo3U-O-SzO1GP3TsmCfyEUFkW7Lwyuc1MOjKvJYZbONzZB2oYHH6DjV8RPeKwp634U/w640-h640/ToAD%202024.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-43842513819131978622024-02-24T05:15:00.004-06:002024-02-24T05:15:48.362-06:00SafeSport Trained, Again<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoNrT-6yUzCzC6jyPfepucspwdzDodSWxABLopWbzAvMea1CQWmTsLLJ9cGtlakKW4GdeFC4eOXjr2WjrvhVA4NHkjPVxL8oEgOtZhc9QGdgMrqafuO1J7TB4ONjYtioHQ0ZOYXc61lHbGbovgzWRUAq8MQZaXu0OT4YT3-F8it1vq2LfZNQO8JxSy5k4/s1185/SafeSport.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="915" data-original-width="1185" height="494" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoNrT-6yUzCzC6jyPfepucspwdzDodSWxABLopWbzAvMea1CQWmTsLLJ9cGtlakKW4GdeFC4eOXjr2WjrvhVA4NHkjPVxL8oEgOtZhc9QGdgMrqafuO1J7TB4ONjYtioHQ0ZOYXc61lHbGbovgzWRUAq8MQZaXu0OT4YT3-F8it1vq2LfZNQO8JxSy5k4/w640-h494/SafeSport.png" width="640" /></a></div><div><a href="https://bikewashco.blogspot.com/2019/03/learning-thing-or-two.html" target="_blank">Five years ago, I completed SafeSport training for the first time.</a> I was then the captain of Team Pedal Moraine, and I thought it would look good to complete the anti-abuse, anti-harassment program. This year, renewing my certification wasn’t optional: as President of the Wisconsin Cycling Association, it was my duty to complete the training. USA Cycling requires it of all members of the WCA Board of Directors. <a href="https://usacycling.org/safesport/safesport-education-policy" target="_blank">USA Cycling might require it of you too,</a> especially if you are in a position of leadership within your cycling club or USA Cycling-affiliated local association.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-16889738824646689042024-02-22T18:15:00.000-06:002024-02-22T18:15:10.883-06:00Breaking The Seal On 2024<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji55ErEubolhYAKIqcrAO-1L8CCZCycLleVw74K3yQwPyLVP1MvHAO4A6b32uEMCiHdhscQqMyQibNk5-LwzAGuAvDn6p7w8L2pq3n4nbw-VwAhblcjU344QC8eCb0MAOax79IIRdYgLzPu1kWCqbyI5WHPXv2syCIypFSA9FH5vZM-L050VpWCT1ZEmY/s767/2024022201.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="597" data-original-width="767" height="498" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji55ErEubolhYAKIqcrAO-1L8CCZCycLleVw74K3yQwPyLVP1MvHAO4A6b32uEMCiHdhscQqMyQibNk5-LwzAGuAvDn6p7w8L2pq3n4nbw-VwAhblcjU344QC8eCb0MAOax79IIRdYgLzPu1kWCqbyI5WHPXv2syCIypFSA9FH5vZM-L050VpWCT1ZEmY/w640-h498/2024022201.png" width="640" /></a></div><div>There they are, those first precious outdoor miles of the new year! West Bend has enjoyed a few 50° days in 2024, but this was the first one I could use. And even today I didn’t spend as much time in the saddle as I would have liked. In my new role as President of the Wisconsin Cycling Association, I had a 1-hour call with USA Cycling that kept me in my home office until 4 o’clock. I used the rest of the afternoon, all 90 minutes of it, for a ride around town. Unlike most of my season openers, today’s ride was NOT impeded in any way by lingering snow and ice. Even shady park paths were fully accessible. The 10-day forecast proves that winter isn’t over yet, but there are more 50° days coming soon, and maybe this year’s first 60° day next Tuesday.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-56087909051503089662024-02-16T14:00:00.001-06:002024-02-16T14:00:00.132-06:00The 2024 WEMS Schedule<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://wemseries.com/schedule/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="337" data-original-width="850" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM17BfeIVS4pD1Z6h9sdYoCqy9QlzbjmYof0428PvrRJo11MD9trawRZ7TpBJuVqxcpDAJN7CsPu5j7UXTCtzGMS44W112D7ePxWEcsoqK_PVngbCPMenShX1jPTzmYCf_5hBVX65OPGAnf8jPjdBJ7R-k1WJ3a0FRhL8rQF3F7fDMtSAZCgiROKY5-Jk/w640-h254/WEMS%20Logo.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>9 Hours of Alpine Valley</b></div><div style="text-align: center;">June 1</div><div style="text-align: center;">Alpine Valley Ski Resort, Elkhorn</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Jack Lake Crazy Eights</b></div><div style="text-align: center;">June 15</div><div style="text-align: center;">Veterans Memorial Park, Deerbrook</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Romp in the Swamp Epic</b></div><div style="text-align: center;">June 29</div><div style="text-align: center;">Nine Mile County Forest, Wausau</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>RASTA Rock N Root</b></div><div style="text-align: center;">July 20</div><div style="text-align: center;">Washburn Lake Trails, Rhinelander</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Hundred Down in the Underdown</b></div><div style="text-align: center;">August 17</div><div style="text-align: center;">Underdown Recreation Area, Gleason</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>The Wild Ride Buzzard Buster</b></div><div style="text-align: center;">August/September TBD</div><div style="text-align: center;">Levis Mound Trailhead, Neillsville</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-73685579656737956982024-02-07T21:30:00.001-06:002024-02-07T21:30:00.132-06:00I Do Solemnly Swear<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt4A4aSCDjNQZe1i3GvjmwW_ZbgN3Sa8bJnwzVZNsHf6KYxPj_BNyzcrQx-lyW0ZYH_zrfdAW1KG3UIJlMgs5j-k-v3IPT7mLjqV7opZvFv7R7XqnDtnfi1WgfGBXgOKNxbjVQCAC5iU58jOaY-nGXrHLj_yxfipXzjFHd_QOqOrGqk4C0uS0rLw7aFcA/s1197/WCA%20Logo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="414" data-original-width="1197" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt4A4aSCDjNQZe1i3GvjmwW_ZbgN3Sa8bJnwzVZNsHf6KYxPj_BNyzcrQx-lyW0ZYH_zrfdAW1KG3UIJlMgs5j-k-v3IPT7mLjqV7opZvFv7R7XqnDtnfi1WgfGBXgOKNxbjVQCAC5iU58jOaY-nGXrHLj_yxfipXzjFHd_QOqOrGqk4C0uS0rLw7aFcA/w640-h222/WCA%20Logo.png" width="640" /></a></div><div>At the end of January, the Wisconsin Cycling Association asked me to serve as its President for 2024. I gratefully agreed. It will be an honor to lead our statewide, USA Cycling-sanctioned governing body for road, track, and cyclocross racing. (Mountain bike racing still falls under the governance of TREK’s Wisconsin Off-Road Series.) In recent years—and particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic—the role of the WCA has been greatly diminished. Its once-thriving road series has dwindled to a handful of unrelated events, mostly criteriums that are little more than tune-ups for the Tour of America’s Dairyland. In 2024, the WCA plans to reintroduce its criterium series not just as a collection of training races, but as a competitive series in its own right.</div><div><br /></div><div>The Tour of America’s Dairyland has changed road racing in Wisconsin, mostly for the better but very much to the detriment of the WCA’s Wisconsin Cup. And in my opinion, it would be silly to deny and oppose the changes when we might benefit from them. My objective is to make the Wisconsin Cup a prestigious, “can’t miss” series that crowns its champions before ToAD begins on June 13. Then, between the end of ToAD on June 23 and the start of the Intelligentsia Cup in northern Illinois on July 19, I want to see a Wisconsin state championship criterium as a standalone event.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, right now there’s a big emphasis on crits, because there’s so little time to arrange something. But crits are only part of an overall road racing season. I am already working on plans for the state time trial championships and, with luck, there may be some open road racing. I think both of those are best suited for the weeks after the various criterium series. Summertime TTs should attract not only pure roadies, but also triathlon/duathlon competitors, especially as Ironman Wisconsin approaches (September 8). Open road racing is probably the biggest challenge, as it comes with so many logistical considerations that other forms of racing avoid. WiSport continues to hold most of the open road races in Wisconsin, but they are in remote locations with little automobile traffic. My best idea for the state road race championship is to hold it on the auto racing course of Road America. That venue has been used for cycling in the past, so maybe it would be right for the WCA.</div><div><br /></div><div>Track and cyclocross are in good hands thanks to dedicated and capable volunteers. I don’t have much work to do there … maybe none! And that would be OK. I’m going to be busy. But if you have ideas for bike racing in Wisconsin, then I have time for you.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-33882725052393957092024-01-30T20:45:00.005-06:002024-02-07T20:45:02.624-06:00The 2024 WiSport Schedule<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPf3kgDZcHeuLAbygu4io4HX-fOYniFsDBG4TsMLYwMGsGgzA1flYrnCeCtBnY16SM207Rxjuno7-pX1CENkFG6Y6eoFzy-hhKmRx1XCg8S5FiUW1LkD5uJgmFWw65tCMVEHOWeCSuefPNxIe6W4c2Fm6NtqSNs8mkGDLO2UvH9QAwbCma6jM7YLxYlPI/s288/Wisport%20Logo.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="194" data-original-width="288" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPf3kgDZcHeuLAbygu4io4HX-fOYniFsDBG4TsMLYwMGsGgzA1flYrnCeCtBnY16SM207Rxjuno7-pX1CENkFG6Y6eoFzy-hhKmRx1XCg8S5FiUW1LkD5uJgmFWw65tCMVEHOWeCSuefPNxIe6W4c2Fm6NtqSNs8mkGDLO2UvH9QAwbCma6jM7YLxYlPI/s1600/Wisport%20Logo.jpg" width="288" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Today, WiSport announced its tentative 2024 schedule. Watch for updates at the <a href="https://wisport.net/schedule/" target="_blank">website</a>.<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6mvQp2HQ6g9AwygA7nnUbbGECoLup3fffpFyJqbTBw4T8P-zsSyLczb9d6wWD2kicSRLar7023AeIyqky3yFMMyfDK_LW84aZetwhpJR1PiPNbWzqBKjJ9iDzitOsaISN9ZKkpeH_yVR5Z9GlkrTOQIkr0xOlF0k6FfJQ7xqwlLq_FJs1dRtunFaA6KI/s449/Schedule.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="255" data-original-width="449" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6mvQp2HQ6g9AwygA7nnUbbGECoLup3fffpFyJqbTBw4T8P-zsSyLczb9d6wWD2kicSRLar7023AeIyqky3yFMMyfDK_LW84aZetwhpJR1PiPNbWzqBKjJ9iDzitOsaISN9ZKkpeH_yVR5Z9GlkrTOQIkr0xOlF0k6FfJQ7xqwlLq_FJs1dRtunFaA6KI/w400-h228/Schedule.png" width="400" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-25776504405503809472024-01-27T03:15:00.001-06:002024-01-27T03:15:00.134-06:00Presenting The 2024 Cheesehead Roubaix<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFpl_jOS79vnhi6VCHrgMMlPfCI7L2L2nHdYx76bxXFMeb9b9ryMMRaNSHOAmDuq4AsuRioTnvzSP4sHyvlpEnR_ZcR-hXkWTpuFGMHMUOqKPQ-Q2hJ2b72tY_ys_7gFCiZRCeB2fFK9MdiKBfZkF0XLOcJSTnzipU1Tr3X6Qr0dQ2L8egKQtIEYXPXP0/s1052/Cheesehead%20Roubaix%20XIII.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="542" data-original-width="1052" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFpl_jOS79vnhi6VCHrgMMlPfCI7L2L2nHdYx76bxXFMeb9b9ryMMRaNSHOAmDuq4AsuRioTnvzSP4sHyvlpEnR_ZcR-hXkWTpuFGMHMUOqKPQ-Q2hJ2b72tY_ys_7gFCiZRCeB2fFK9MdiKBfZkF0XLOcJSTnzipU1Tr3X6Qr0dQ2L8egKQtIEYXPXP0/w640-h330/Cheesehead%20Roubaix%20XIII.png" width="640" /></a></div><div>Cheesehead Roubaix XIII will begin at Newburg Fireman’s Park on Saturday, April 27, at 9 a.m. CDT. Inspired by Spring Classics like Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders, Cheesehead Roubaix is a 63-mile ride that features almost 10 miles of gravel roads. The ride will test your fitness with rough road conditions and about 1,600 feet of climbing.</div><div><br /></div><div>Cheesehead Roubaix is free of charge, but please consider making a voluntary contribution to the Newburg Fire Department to show your appreciation for the use of its facility. Donations will be accepted at the concessions stand before and after the ride. NFD is a small, all-volunteer department. Your generosity will make a big difference!</div><div><br /></div><div>Enjoy the free mid-ride rest stop at Community Park in Belgium! At the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/359862470128721" target="_blank">Facebook event page</a>, please confirm your attendance to help us ensure adequate quantities of food and drink.</div><div><br /></div><div>Cheesehead Roubaix is designed for self-sufficient cyclists. Be prepared to handle your own flat tires and other minor mechanical issues. The ride uses only open public roads and park paths. You are responsible for your own safety and conduct, and you are expressly not exempt from Wisconsin traffic laws. Represent the sport well. Please visit the <a href="https://sites.google.com/view/cheesehead-roubaix" target="_blank">Cheesehead Roubaix website</a> and print out your own copy of the cuesheet and map. The website also offers data files for GPS devices.</div><div><br /></div><div>See you on April 27!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-71642051341576984002024-01-20T12:00:00.001-06:002024-01-20T12:00:00.142-06:00Hugh Jass Day 2024<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAoplCI4nHVAMGqy167ast3lo_TIgQNpYgTR0nEF_0nXw2ZAeNkuBQLyRF9nqzB6daALswvjMJOGNSSTekuRc_5C2iOXx1-iTFdyvFNlZlTqewwwvNFb3frnUO_gJaLEfMB-kWShX7JP2JVgY1bTQRa1gGMVQe-wjgbaDzBQLfosINsUDptbyBsnvyIio/s2048/inside.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAoplCI4nHVAMGqy167ast3lo_TIgQNpYgTR0nEF_0nXw2ZAeNkuBQLyRF9nqzB6daALswvjMJOGNSSTekuRc_5C2iOXx1-iTFdyvFNlZlTqewwwvNFb3frnUO_gJaLEfMB-kWShX7JP2JVgY1bTQRa1gGMVQe-wjgbaDzBQLfosINsUDptbyBsnvyIio/w640-h360/inside.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Steve Jeske photo</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Today, the <a href="https://hughjass.bike/" target="_blank">Hugh Jass Fat Bike Series</a> was back in West Bend for the 5th consecutive season. If you like winter, then this was a good day to be at Regner Park. There was abundant sunshine, deep snow from last week’s storms, and below-zero wind chill. The timing was perfect. Last Saturday, you might not have been able to drive to Regner. Next Saturday, the course might be little more than a muddy track.</div><div><br /></div><div>Winter is not for me! I may have been the only person at Regner who looks forward to the above-freezing days promised in next week's forecast. But I’m glad Hugh Jass is having success and I’m especially glad that the series continues to come to West Bend. So, I did my small part: I delivered the coffee. Thanks to generous contributions from its partners, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/KohnsFillingStationKtown" target="_blank">Kohn’s Filling Station</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SHADOWMANLLC/" target="_blank">The Shadow Man</a>, Team Pedal Moraine gave away coffee and donuts today. Hopefully, that gesture will raise the team’s profile a little bit. And, hopefully, TPM’s partners will benefit too. All partners were represented on the banner at our table, and special recognition went to Kohn’s Filling Station and The Shadow Man on the sign outside:</div><div><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu-EWYMDvQjfYsLxBIweH6wA13Q0dAJzWW4b00fPe-v3XdO-czG4hs5NhoZrR002DjY2SxQa05adsh6Vwm6rQC732zVbyjb-CLQUwrwc7ZDbA_-5lhIXNOW9X4TsEsr9MS7HVec0irly4UgcQd9AWUc91PR9WaI7GutY4Zj9SmCLKlJ8a9sPMUNcvnSoA/s2048/outside.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu-EWYMDvQjfYsLxBIweH6wA13Q0dAJzWW4b00fPe-v3XdO-czG4hs5NhoZrR002DjY2SxQa05adsh6Vwm6rQC732zVbyjb-CLQUwrwc7ZDbA_-5lhIXNOW9X4TsEsr9MS7HVec0irly4UgcQd9AWUc91PR9WaI7GutY4Zj9SmCLKlJ8a9sPMUNcvnSoA/w640-h360/outside.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Steve Jeske photo</td></tr></tbody></table><div>If you would like to join Team Pedal Moraine’s roster of partners for collaborations like today’s, then please contact me via the email widget on the right side of this page.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-85299554281534815562024-01-12T23:30:00.000-06:002024-01-12T23:30:23.570-06:00New Treadmill<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL3lVMECwwVxrJmdxWS38ijpfK3HJQ7-VrIA1Ajx7kKVSMdZkCtSSmwk7lh2Xr5vt5AjWXQ3cB5mMvX_zVWUBsVqUHTGAwsoGF0P9jZeah4U-C_WLbyKFRGyFLqS1dfFxh6VoRvmRALopgXs5EwgrM59-YC0AHVQ1l_NciB5_mKN2Huqu14nEeRnv51l4/s4160/HomeGym20240112.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3120" data-original-width="4160" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL3lVMECwwVxrJmdxWS38ijpfK3HJQ7-VrIA1Ajx7kKVSMdZkCtSSmwk7lh2Xr5vt5AjWXQ3cB5mMvX_zVWUBsVqUHTGAwsoGF0P9jZeah4U-C_WLbyKFRGyFLqS1dfFxh6VoRvmRALopgXs5EwgrM59-YC0AHVQ1l_NciB5_mKN2Huqu14nEeRnv51l4/w640-h480/HomeGym20240112.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div>I set up my new treadmill in the home gym today. It’s a big upgrade over the old one, as it comes with preset workouts that adjust the speed and incline automatically. Because of its bulk, it was difficult to bring in from the garage, where it was delivered last Saturday. And because of lousy instructions and extraordinarily tight tolerances for some of the parts, assembly was much more challenging than I expected. Now that it’s in place, however, I expect to be very happy with it.</div><div><br /></div><div>My first workout was a success. I spent an hour on the treadmill tonight and everything worked beautifully. Now I probably should read the owner’s manual to figure out how to use all of those new features.</div><div><br /></div><div>The treadmill will share the home gym with my strength training equipment. For cycling-specific workouts, I keep my smart trainer in the home office instead. I tried to use it in the home gym, but that area must be a bit of a dead spot in my home WiFi, as I struggled to stay connected to Zwift there. I have not yet restarted my Zwift subscription this winter and I’m not sure that I will. If all goes as planned, then I am 10 weeks away from my next trip to Pennsylvania. When I return to Wisconsin in mid-April, I should be riding outside regularly. To commit to Zwift for only the next 10 weeks probably doesn’t make sense. I <i>can</i> use my Garmin to do smart trainer workouts without Zwift, they just aren’t as much fun because they lack the imagery of Zwift’s virtual world.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-22437315752297356872024-01-11T14:00:00.001-06:002024-01-11T14:00:00.142-06:00The 2024 WORS Schedule<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7nrQwWeojyf3dhAun9lE6vyu4Cb_z2XETr8VLTjHUnLqkh_TM6EVowcgkapq8rZbz0SkdWn1CoWTzpnLF1HFQQB7tbtBysg1tSvwlzAhjmJt2-sQ5dUR8o6OmbJMzpaOPWxEVFNkVwOjAw44hqnyzvfjRLTrEuYvYYgz5bpyeX92nQjvcfqqczmRkqNU/s2048/2024_WORS_Schedule.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7nrQwWeojyf3dhAun9lE6vyu4Cb_z2XETr8VLTjHUnLqkh_TM6EVowcgkapq8rZbz0SkdWn1CoWTzpnLF1HFQQB7tbtBysg1tSvwlzAhjmJt2-sQ5dUR8o6OmbJMzpaOPWxEVFNkVwOjAw44hqnyzvfjRLTrEuYvYYgz5bpyeX92nQjvcfqqczmRkqNU/w640-h640/2024_WORS_Schedule.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-10220306484517231962024-01-03T18:30:00.001-06:002024-01-03T18:30:00.138-06:00Do Cyclists Dream Of Biphasic Sleep?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHZQ4rnEsPeE0Xn_9LCiLvmtcKXrQ-DnKPuhJO04ekfOEFfMQp0d2xbXHN81stTwucf7Hx3OJXH-LILA9apsh7sbYt7TVNE7ClTNYLzOsjBv1jZ2-IJWYt27rVZ7qb4Tqqhv5AScRsz5RZh9DKjB8bsokfiBdLB-MgHd409afp9BTUcEGoB6u2KGYRRSA/s970/origami-blade-runner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="545" data-original-width="970" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHZQ4rnEsPeE0Xn_9LCiLvmtcKXrQ-DnKPuhJO04ekfOEFfMQp0d2xbXHN81stTwucf7Hx3OJXH-LILA9apsh7sbYt7TVNE7ClTNYLzOsjBv1jZ2-IJWYt27rVZ7qb4Tqqhv5AScRsz5RZh9DKjB8bsokfiBdLB-MgHd409afp9BTUcEGoB6u2KGYRRSA/w640-h360/origami-blade-runner.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div>Lately I have been wearing my Garmin watch for more than just walks around the neighborhood. I’m trying to get deeper into all of the health metrics that it can provide, including sleep. <a href="https://bikewashco.blogspot.com/2020/11/night-watchman.html" target="_blank">I started to look into these numbers more than three years ago,</a> but I didn’t stay consistent. Maybe there isn’t that much to see and I will give up on it again. Right now, though, it’s kind of interesting.</div><div><br /></div><div>I’m a biphasic sleeper: on a typical day, I sleep in two distinct periods instead of getting all of my sleep in one block. It’s not uncommon for me to be mentally fried at the end of an overnight shift, so I usually go to bed shortly after I’m done with work. What follows is something like this:</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg47WLjS5x9pDCZWxDxg55TccQOgHLIKECgkOEfzXwuQOyMaaNwPCLzao6qiByN3cgz46brIc8HW1uVuNT4W75ahX739lDH4ODUtITb_G44DZZ9PvkT6co1o1wSJ4xz6VmBbnthgcuz8VU6kZnLM-iTqsgDDjSGFiI8Kxnnv474-1F3lwIZO1oEinP7Jzc/s859/Graphic1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="396" data-original-width="859" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg47WLjS5x9pDCZWxDxg55TccQOgHLIKECgkOEfzXwuQOyMaaNwPCLzao6qiByN3cgz46brIc8HW1uVuNT4W75ahX739lDH4ODUtITb_G44DZZ9PvkT6co1o1wSJ4xz6VmBbnthgcuz8VU6kZnLM-iTqsgDDjSGFiI8Kxnnv474-1F3lwIZO1oEinP7Jzc/w640-h296/Graphic1.png" width="640" /></a></div><div>And that’s clearly not enough total sleep, especially because there’s so little deep sleep. (The heart rate bottoming out at 39 beats per minute is pretty cool though!) I’m always up again by early afternoon, when I have a very active period that might include exercise, grocery shopping, yard chores … anything <i>you </i>might do between the end of your workday and your bedtime. But after dinner—and especially in winter, when it’s already dark outside—my energy drops and I return to bed for as much sleep as I can get before my next overnight shift:</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv4RZfuk2xsKKAGD4-u5bY5io6EayVKB39KF7W9_k5tJdIXccEz_yDbH1Ekm2y5wF952O5BqvcEIn4u1blg8TwElG-XSPMipFpBBlEIfXJeTueyr5hmiWLDDRuWPwuAXb14VhWgG9elcrA3ZdpNnlDhRe_sMji-AsMXw_GfiQWVC1xxF4bLSWNQvnizu4/s863/Graphic2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="399" data-original-width="863" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv4RZfuk2xsKKAGD4-u5bY5io6EayVKB39KF7W9_k5tJdIXccEz_yDbH1Ekm2y5wF952O5BqvcEIn4u1blg8TwElG-XSPMipFpBBlEIfXJeTueyr5hmiWLDDRuWPwuAXb14VhWgG9elcrA3ZdpNnlDhRe_sMji-AsMXw_GfiQWVC1xxF4bLSWNQvnizu4/w640-h296/Graphic2.png" width="640" /></a></div><div>Add those up and it’s about seven hours of sleep in a typical day. A lot of people would take that if they could get it, but how many of them would still consider it a good deal if they had to get it in two blocks instead of one?</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-2038346798616216192023-12-31T20:30:00.001-06:002023-12-31T20:30:00.147-06:002023: A Statistical Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmgCMaJXniEX5RJoTffbvA2W51jO6K_pRZ1IpysgHP8X_IPvMQOtOXX2OEaMlD2kT9l6kPN4u2rmOAG8l0aKmg88LsPti6EhWg-9kl1Tg1a1PEILJEhdMwx0e9auZR9GsD_P2OK23g4mGQy5qpyHg3bHbd19umL029DIqtERmBgLqn9Gf8dk1f3-COV9s/s558/Analyze_This.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="558" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmgCMaJXniEX5RJoTffbvA2W51jO6K_pRZ1IpysgHP8X_IPvMQOtOXX2OEaMlD2kT9l6kPN4u2rmOAG8l0aKmg88LsPti6EhWg-9kl1Tg1a1PEILJEhdMwx0e9auZR9GsD_P2OK23g4mGQy5qpyHg3bHbd19umL029DIqtERmBgLqn9Gf8dk1f3-COV9s/w640-h382/Analyze_This.png" width="640" /></a></div><div>I’m calling 2023 a successful season. How could I not? I wanted to reach 90,000 lifetime miles, and I did. I wanted to race more, and I did. It doesn’t matter that I beat my mileage goal by the narrowest margin, or that I didn’t race <i>as much</i> as I had hoped. When I look back on 2023 in the years to come, I will remember it for the time I spent in Pennsylvania helping my mother after she had surgery to fix her broken hip. That was the really important work this year. Cycling, as much as I love it, is only a hobby.</div><div><br /></div><div>I rode 4,423 outdoor miles this year, 1 more than I needed to reach 90,000 lifetime miles. So, I will look for 4,999 miles in 2024 and 5,000 in 2025 to reach 100,000 lifetime miles during the season of my 60th birthday. It’s a worthy goal. I have not had back-to-back 5,000-mile seasons since 2015-2016. With 4,423 miles this year, I beat last year’s total of 4,190. This season ranked 13th out of 20 for mileage and 9th for ride frequency. I did 164 rides this year, up from 143 last year, but my per-ride total of 26.97 miles was my lowest since 2017. I set only one personal record this year: 177 miles is now my record for December. My longest ride of 2023 was only 50 miles. My 6 cyclocross races were 5 more than I did in 2022, but short of what I would have done if not for staffing issues at work that required many changes to my schedule and many overtime hours.</div><div><br /></div><div>In 2023, I spent 1,581 minutes on the turbo trainer, mostly while hooked up to Zwift. That’s my 9th highest total, all-time. I could have and should have done more. That’s also true of strength training workouts, which I missed during those 16 weeks in Pennsylvania. And I failed to hit my 260-mile fitness walking target, but only narrowly. I walked 238 miles in 2023 and I will keep my 2024 target at 260. But with my new treadmill, scheduled to arrive on Saturday, I think I will exceed that target easily.</div><div><br /></div><div>In my 2022 season recap, I wrote that in 2023 I wanted to get down to my high school weight of 185 pounds. That didn’t happen. I spent the year between 195 and 204 … usually closer to 204. In 2024, I will do a weigh-in at the start of every week instead of just at the start of every month, on the assumption that it will be easier to correct for a 1- or 2-pound gain than for a 5- or 6-pound gain! Losing weight would be so valuable to me as a cyclist, and it remains the beast I cannot slay. But there’s every reason to keep trying.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-16290736306157443112023-12-28T14:00:00.001-06:002023-12-28T14:00:00.183-06:00Some Changes Coming In 2024<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxhj5urfGJdN8JMgqp94tvabyJ7u-KZc7psiXnIIJQihv8AiBnMfQ_bfEcEhNDoguOLkgTT_WuqaMugpZxZQFj5q0VXKyS1RRYIn2RQXHtsGUAyGIJZfQJUrXbKr_qCqNQopqYrm4TP3DyGfTLjQWFgxd4xm27Ifg9uQ_uZLFlx382ekcCtDMQjD5clHM/s778/SMART.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="305" data-original-width="778" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxhj5urfGJdN8JMgqp94tvabyJ7u-KZc7psiXnIIJQihv8AiBnMfQ_bfEcEhNDoguOLkgTT_WuqaMugpZxZQFj5q0VXKyS1RRYIn2RQXHtsGUAyGIJZfQJUrXbKr_qCqNQopqYrm4TP3DyGfTLjQWFgxd4xm27Ifg9uQ_uZLFlx382ekcCtDMQjD5clHM/w640-h250/SMART.png" width="640" /></a></div><div>This post is going to read like a list of New Year’s resolutions. It’s not. It’s an intersection of obligation and opportunity. It’s an action plan that straddles January 1 only because it contains items that depend on medical and dental insurance plans which, of course, reset with the new year.</div><div><br /></div><div>I have known for a long time that my blood pressure is too high. In 2016, <a href="https://bikewashco.blogspot.com/2016/06/dave-doper.html" target="_blank">I got on medication</a> to address that issue. Medication was working for me. I was happy. My doctor was happy. Then the COVID-19 pandemic came along and I almost completely stopped interacting with the world outside of my own home. I stopped seeing my doctor, so my doctor stopped renewing my prescription. On Tuesday morning, I had my first physical examination since September 2019. I am back on hydrochlorothiazide. I think I will be from now on. And I have resumed tracking my blood pressure at home. I had not been doing that regularly since 2016, and I was foolish to stop.</div><div><br /></div><div>It’s probably true that my high blood pressure and my high cholesterol, which also requires medication, have a genetic component. I will never know. I was adopted as an infant and I have no information about the medical histories of my biological parents. But I should be controlling what I <i>can </i>control. I never touch tobacco and almost never touch alcohol. Exercise isn’t a problem, as this blog should make obvious. Diet is the problem, carbohydrates in particular. My doctor is urging me to cut out carbs as much as I can. She understands their value to me as a cyclist who trains and races, but she wants me to find other sources of calories off the bike. Bread, pasta, and cereal have been huge components of my diet. I already have begun to reduce my consumption. Soda, <a href="https://bikewashco.blogspot.com/2023/01/putting-coke-on-ice.html" target="_blank">which I love so well</a>, has to go away completely. Starting on January 1, I will track my water intake via Garmin Connect. If I drink as much as my doctor recommends, then I won’t have room for soda anyway!</div><div><br /></div><div>On January 4, I will get up to date with my vaccinations. On January 26, I will have a carotid artery ultrasound to determine whether arterial plaque is contributing to my high blood pressure. If it is, then there’s a simple surgical fix. Left untreated, carotid artery plaque is a serious stroke risk. On January 30, I will have my first dental appointment of the new year, and at that time my dentist and I will decide how to complete <a href="https://bikewashco.blogspot.com/2023/08/will-this-put-dent-in-my-season.html" target="_blank">the process that began late this summer</a>. Sometime in the next 3 months, I will have the colonoscopy that I should have had by the time I was 50 years old. I’m 58 now.</div><div><br /></div><div>This is all really important, foundational stuff. What will it matter if I’m working to improve my fitness on the bike but simultaneously leaving myself open to preventable disease?</div><div><br /></div><div>I don’t expect big changes in my approach to cycling in the new year, however I <i>will </i>change my approach to walking. On January 6, I will take delivery of a new treadmill for my home gym. (I ordered it back on December 21 before my doctor even had a chance to tell me what a disgusting tub of lard I am.) I expect to use it a lot. On days when I do not plan to ride the bike—whether that means riding outdoors or on the smart trainer—I can take an extended walk with intervals governed by the treadmill’s preset workouts and its automatic incline adjustment. On days when I will be riding the bike later, I can do a short walk in a fasted state soon after I get out of bed. Those 30-60 minutes in prime fat-burning mode should pay dividends. A smarter and more consistent approach to walking will add to my overall health and fitness without adding significantly to my training stress and fatigue.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, you can see that these are not New Year’s resolutions. They are not vague hopes and fleeting commitments. This is a time-bound list with very specific and achievable objectives. Progressing through this list will make me stronger on the bike and off.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-91031759888399668992023-12-24T16:30:00.001-06:002023-12-24T16:30:00.129-06:0090,000 Lifetime Miles<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMqUlAEpHsk-_fWdLj1UcFtIYUixQBjMOMQ-oCFiOpfNyGV-jdlJeZsOtViWSYTVgM74eMJSI8Z3U4xkkAur6QNhSiIOOm_mrp0-2VevCcP3_UhwbRhpiXVWpBRd5MLtMBOWGLRp20a9FHDeFt_fS48Q-mIYojB6VkoaSl1eMqxbzBceQM9qHakQlDTZ4/s916/CheckeredFlags.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="412" data-original-width="916" height="144" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMqUlAEpHsk-_fWdLj1UcFtIYUixQBjMOMQ-oCFiOpfNyGV-jdlJeZsOtViWSYTVgM74eMJSI8Z3U4xkkAur6QNhSiIOOm_mrp0-2VevCcP3_UhwbRhpiXVWpBRd5MLtMBOWGLRp20a9FHDeFt_fS48Q-mIYojB6VkoaSl1eMqxbzBceQM9qHakQlDTZ4/s320/CheckeredFlags.png" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>I reached 90,000 lifetime miles today, completing <a href="https://bikewashco.blogspot.com/2022/12/2022-statistical-review.html" target="_blank">the goal I set for myself</a> at the end of last season. I came into December needing 176 miles. That seemed like an almost impossible number to reach. My personal record for December was, coincidentally, 176 miles, set in 2018. Prior to this season, my average December output was only 57.5 miles. With 31 miles today, I established a new personal record:</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirgZoQOIPHF1Zx11id4fHRrC1WOWPPIm-lshYe8xpRY8qqvWGCxM5Tf7vIkXSwBXzTY0jZDGSMxCvCfXu6rvMy8my0uVlOvVmTL9aSfd3zQY3SSdLFcZ8me4rKppNx0R3EBuI7aNzsPR00at2kBQp71WNt-qDGlOoxh9r-HvyzYFXu8AT2AF60mabdeuw/s420/December%20Miles.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="92" data-original-width="420" height="88" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirgZoQOIPHF1Zx11id4fHRrC1WOWPPIm-lshYe8xpRY8qqvWGCxM5Tf7vIkXSwBXzTY0jZDGSMxCvCfXu6rvMy8my0uVlOvVmTL9aSfd3zQY3SSdLFcZ8me4rKppNx0R3EBuI7aNzsPR00at2kBQp71WNt-qDGlOoxh9r-HvyzYFXu8AT2AF60mabdeuw/w400-h88/December%20Miles.png" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div>Normally, I have reached my mileage goal for the season long before December. I’m already very disinclined to ride in cold weather, so I really can’t be bothered when there isn’t a statistical objective. West Bend hit 47° this afternoon, which hardly qualifies as cold on December 24, and I clearly have benefited from warmer than average temperatures this month. But I was content to stop on 31 miles today with my first new monthly mileage PR since August 2021.</div><div><br /></div><div>With these objectives finally in hand, I am shutting down my outdoor season. There are no more personal records within reach, my job is still demanding a lot of extra time from me, and I’m mentally fatigued. Thursday <i>should </i>be my first night off since December 7. And what did I do with my “free” time on December 7? I drove the 900 miles back to West Bend from my mother’s house in eastern Pennsylvania ... no big deal. I will have worked 20 consecutive nights by Thursday. I need a break. Then I need to miss the bike so badly that riding <u>inside</u> seems like a good idea.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-35724668249024262222023-12-22T17:00:00.002-06:002023-12-22T17:09:12.760-06:00I’m A Pop-Tart At Heart<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiel2Zu7Czopv3nXEGD9_17tT9UehjohHlsovoUezhVteJNd_cO1iJArKr4NapuuAmJzYcfQgypl9KlFXe-fPqFPlIKLyCyflnqf310KwbEOgSSoKiQUBsoFl_ECEXO12rUD0CNcSBy_dWN2TdTmx0rtI6QauR6v5N9S-f-z9knlnFMVPBDb1x9BEG1cGU/s450/Vest.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="315" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiel2Zu7Czopv3nXEGD9_17tT9UehjohHlsovoUezhVteJNd_cO1iJArKr4NapuuAmJzYcfQgypl9KlFXe-fPqFPlIKLyCyflnqf310KwbEOgSSoKiQUBsoFl_ECEXO12rUD0CNcSBy_dWN2TdTmx0rtI6QauR6v5N9S-f-z9knlnFMVPBDb1x9BEG1cGU/s320/Vest.png" width="224" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Today I deployed a new weapon in my war against cold: an ActionHeat battery-heated vest liner. This lightweight garment surrounds the body’s core with heating elements like those inside a kitchen toaster, and it fits much like a traditional cycling gilet. The V-neck is an obvious difference, but the vest is not intended to be an outer layer. For its maiden voyage, I wore mine over a thermal baselayer and under a winter cycling jacket, then finished with a wind layer. On this 43° afternoon I rode for almost 2 hours comfortably. I could tell that the vest was contributing something to that comfort. Was it as much as expected? No, but it was better than nothing. Was it worth the money? Only time will tell. Let’s see how long it lasts.</div><div><br /></div><div>The vest retails for $119. I got mine second-hand, technically, but in an unopened box for $82. <a href="https://actionheat.com/collections/heated-jackets-and-vests-for-men/products/actionheat-5v-heated-vest-liner?variant=31993915080822" target="_blank">ActionHeat</a> says the vest will crank out 90° for 4.5+ hours, 110° for 3+ hours, or 130° for 2+ hours:</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip9yGyN1lAAZ8zt7uQCNXwVl_K1S-bZmUgY6TubpOixu-KNskiK8bVi9Fd04eWx3snoxSc5ZIL3VGRxtS6CD0MlQhWD6XlLUn-PTnFX0eWQLGytbLmswcX6UyyRnu7H5bRJLwjU3bEvyW4dbcY4zVQCuTmA29Jt_5W5s85LW5D4HnTFLdXgYonDMWmeNw/s528/Battery%20Life.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="311" data-original-width="528" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip9yGyN1lAAZ8zt7uQCNXwVl_K1S-bZmUgY6TubpOixu-KNskiK8bVi9Fd04eWx3snoxSc5ZIL3VGRxtS6CD0MlQhWD6XlLUn-PTnFX0eWQLGytbLmswcX6UyyRnu7H5bRJLwjU3bEvyW4dbcY4zVQCuTmA29Jt_5W5s85LW5D4HnTFLdXgYonDMWmeNw/s320/Battery%20Life.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div>My battery gave up a few minutes to the short side of 2 hours today. As you might expect, I used only the highest setting. And 2-hour rides are not normal for me in the winter, so battery life probably isn’t too much of a concern. I plan to use the vest again tomorrow while riding in very similar conditions. If we hit 51° on Sunday—yes, that’s in the current forecast—then I won’t be worrying about battery life at all: the vest will stay home!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-20860547540665493072023-12-20T16:30:00.001-06:002023-12-20T16:30:00.242-06:00It’s Over, Over There<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjToixkCz9AobtmsaFOyB6u7hu7heMLK-jkrHx3TAIUyDXiTvbDKvxOr3HzHO5WHT3Sd5hvrQEfjw75Bsv4U5TiVHKv91CNADVa3JzoJ1iaMKdxPnO4PvQfjRXlCO0Sfjshkrs3O1if6fpTruwMwp42tzyeyqALIIej9-VAJLyfSY-7DC_Xxc54Em4FxbI/s960/Currency.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="960" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjToixkCz9AobtmsaFOyB6u7hu7heMLK-jkrHx3TAIUyDXiTvbDKvxOr3HzHO5WHT3Sd5hvrQEfjw75Bsv4U5TiVHKv91CNADVa3JzoJ1iaMKdxPnO4PvQfjRXlCO0Sfjshkrs3O1if6fpTruwMwp42tzyeyqALIIej9-VAJLyfSY-7DC_Xxc54Em4FxbI/w640-h426/Currency.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I hope they enjoyed this while it lasted.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>The COVID-19 pandemic led to a cycling boom as people looked for socially-distanced alternatives to things like public transportation and health club memberships. Retailers quickly ran out of bikes, parts, and accessories. Then, demonstrating the mismanagement we expect from the bicycle industry, retailers assumed historically high demand was the “new normal” and manufacturers increased production to meet an influx of orders. The supply chain broke down while demand was still high, leading many shoppers to buy overpriced used bikes instead of the new bikes they couldn’t get. But as the pandemic lost momentum, so did the cycling boom. And as the supply chain got fixed, shops were flooded with bikes, parts, and accessories that they couldn’t move without deep discounts.</div><div><br /></div><div>In October, British cycling retailer Wiggle Chain Reaction lost the financial backing of its biggest investor, Signa Sports United, and almost immediately thereafter entered administration, the UK equivalent of our bankruptcy reorganization. Unfortunately, but predictably, this led to a big layoff of Wiggle Chain Reaction employees. The only good news was for consumers: more of the aforementioned deep discounts. But even that good news was muted. Wiggle Chain Reaction now has eliminated international sales, so its deals are available only in the UK.</div><div><br /></div><div>I was able to place one final order, and I received it today: a nice torque wrench set, a merino wool long-sleeve baselayer, and a pair of arm warmers. The total cost of $91, including tax, is what you might expect to pay for a torque wrench set or a merino wool baselayer by itself.</div><div><br /></div><div>Every bolt on every bike has a recommended torque limit, and with carbon fiber frames and parts it is especially important not to over-tighten. Prior to today I had one torque wrench that I could use only on one size bolt for one specific torque limit. Now I can ensure every bolt is tightened correctly. At $39, the merino wool baselayer was the most expensive part of my Chain Reaction order. It’s equal to <a href="https://www.aerotechdesigns.com/mens-high-performance-merino-wool-base-layer/" target="_blank">this $100 offering from Aero Tech Designs</a> that I bought in 2020 and absolutely live in during the winter. But like its predecessor, I expect the new baselayer to serve me off the bike, not on. It will be great for loungewear and for cool weather hiking or yard chores. The arm warmers will be pressed into service on the bike soon enough. My only other black arm warmers are from Pearl Izumi and they are pretty worn out after many years of good performance. The old ones now fit too loosely except after a fresh laundering.</div><div><br /></div><div>I contented myself with purchases I could actually use … this time. Now I will keep an eye on domestic bike retailers to see if their prices plunge into fire sale territory. If they do, then I could talk myself into a few things that wouldn’t pass the “do I really need this?” test.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-80950754907777837332023-12-08T16:00:00.000-06:002023-12-08T16:00:21.307-06:00Back Home Before Winter Really Begins<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJZ7EvDQDWly3oX7czsIqVAeUGzaVWLbFSkZkg3SH2-CKi-A76rpZbCt4zlYd6ORaNxUesVUwXNOif01-YGS2Lq2tPaswfECVrdnUS556Dt7BKtiARfG8TQtune5-xfTHogxmzAyuAX2KQB5OBB3BAItOuiNxSxEHQaQE3E6bUu4WcDyeMxmikaXSAfc/s4160/20231208_151533.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3120" data-original-width="4160" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJZ7EvDQDWly3oX7czsIqVAeUGzaVWLbFSkZkg3SH2-CKi-A76rpZbCt4zlYd6ORaNxUesVUwXNOif01-YGS2Lq2tPaswfECVrdnUS556Dt7BKtiARfG8TQtune5-xfTHogxmzAyuAX2KQB5OBB3BAItOuiNxSxEHQaQE3E6bUu4WcDyeMxmikaXSAfc/w640-h480/20231208_151533.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Today was nice, but that thin layer of ice on Barton Pond is a sign of things to come.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Wow, it was 56° this afternoon in West Bend—historically, the average high for December 8 is only 35°—and I was here to take advantage of it! I got back from Pennsylvania this morning at 3:30. By mid-afternoon I was ready to ride, but my start was delayed by a broken cable lock that had secured my Framed Gravier to my car’s hitch rack during the trip. Before leaving PA, I noticed that the lock was a little sticky. Somewhere along the way, it froze up, and that had nothing to do with the temperature. This afternoon I snapped the key inside the lock, and that was the final insult. Half an hour later, after much work with a hacksaw and even more swearing, my bike was free. There’s nothing in the forecast to match today. We’ll see whether today’s ride proves to be the last outdoor ride of 2023.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-15762242889961774652023-11-30T16:00:00.001-06:002023-11-30T16:00:00.155-06:00A Walk, A Ride, And A Goodbye To November<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSMom-nry14N_TuucXTV4tZhLnk11qhDxzvHv7GGypc7gHlhW4ffQqx-47XEAxM5L_803N-jCbmhJJbB6MSaVNzvS9xje0L0ZU1XR7932sNGHMMWZRgavmMSL16uxA3ITTDvtmRTnfoOSnbw_ZlTse8mYBncaJ72MZEwyrR6EFvlKMRiKTF5ySUepHXo0/s628/Merrell.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="233" data-original-width="628" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSMom-nry14N_TuucXTV4tZhLnk11qhDxzvHv7GGypc7gHlhW4ffQqx-47XEAxM5L_803N-jCbmhJJbB6MSaVNzvS9xje0L0ZU1XR7932sNGHMMWZRgavmMSL16uxA3ITTDvtmRTnfoOSnbw_ZlTse8mYBncaJ72MZEwyrR6EFvlKMRiKTF5ySUepHXo0/w400-h149/Merrell.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">With 156 walks since October 1, 2020, today these shoes are officially worn out!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>Tuesday broke the streak. (Actually, it broke a couple of them.) Before Tuesday, I had gotten some kind of exercise every day since arriving in Pennsylvania on November 13. Tuesday morning featured snow flurries and high winds. Despite the bright sun of afternoon, the temperature never got out of the 30s and the wind never stopped. I was content to stay indoors, rest, and enjoy a brief visit with my nephew from Montana. I hadn’t seen him in years, as he rarely visits Pennsylvania and never visits West Bend, and as I never have been to Montana.</div><div><br /></div><div>On Tuesday I finally got a break after 12 consecutive nights at work. My employer continues to have staffing issues and I am covering the gaps. Wednesday was another night off. I’ll be back at work tonight, though, as it’s the end of the month. In the world of information technology, monthend always means more work and more problems. Wish me luck.</div><div><br /></div><div>Wednesday’s high temperature, like Tuesday’s, was significantly below average for this area at this time of year. As November ends, 8 of the last 10 days were below average. If I had wanted January temperatures, then I could have stayed in Wisconsin! So, I didn’t get everything I expected out of November. I covered 280 miles on the bike, did 34 miles of fitness walking, and grabbed another 9 Garmin Connect badges. On Wednesday I surpassed 200 miles of fitness walking in 2023, but I am unlikely to reach my goal of 260.</div><div><br /></div><div>Today’s bike ride brought my outdoor mileage total to 4,246 this year, and there’s still a chance that I will reach my goal of 4,422. If getting 176 more outdoor cycling miles doesn’t sound like much, then remember I will be looking for most of them in chilly West Bend. I expect to be back in Wisconsin sometime next week.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-39786589090812582442023-11-25T16:00:00.003-06:002023-11-25T16:12:10.594-06:00Wilma Quinlan Nature Preserve<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnb_1Ib80Yw_XM6b0jicdgibco_l2_OSkcAco2ZZWl9uc3a6lVhOJRzJQvDt_TdfRgmzMTg6Iv3BSmmfOqR6zLiOLzBFc9iMv9y87ngWwfMFsL4_E86Ia88kLCGJ6anUIfkn5VqmcFah6BT-cQCak59UA2ZMLzWJqUvTkggZr9C6xl5pnzsGRStexXGCY/s1052/WQNP.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="812" data-original-width="1052" height="494" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnb_1Ib80Yw_XM6b0jicdgibco_l2_OSkcAco2ZZWl9uc3a6lVhOJRzJQvDt_TdfRgmzMTg6Iv3BSmmfOqR6zLiOLzBFc9iMv9y87ngWwfMFsL4_E86Ia88kLCGJ6anUIfkn5VqmcFah6BT-cQCak59UA2ZMLzWJqUvTkggZr9C6xl5pnzsGRStexXGCY/w640-h494/WQNP.png" width="640" /></a></div><div>Eastern Pennsylvania was sunny today and yet not warm: 42° was the high temperature in Mom’s neighborhood. I took a break from the bike after three straight days of riding. Today was perfect for a cross-training hike to, through, and then back from Wilma Quinlan Nature Preserve. It’s remarkably like West Bend’s Lac Lawrann Conservancy, but smaller. It’s owned by the municipality, features a network of easy turf and gravel trails, and it’s off-limits to bikes. If bikes <i>were </i>allowed, then it would be an excellent training spot for cyclocross. The preserve doesn’t have any abrupt elevation change like Lac Lawrann’s, but it does feature a couple of longer, steadier climbs like the ones we use for CX practice at Royal Oaks Park in West Bend.</div><div><br /></div><div>With each passing day I am less confident of my ability to get the 206 outdoor cycling miles I still need to reach my 2023 goal. The weather simply isn’t going to be good enough for long enough. Realistically, I hope for 1-2 more rides while I’m here. In the week ahead, I expect to do more walking/hiking than riding. I still have a couple of important-to-me walking goals to hit.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-26157540910791597352023-11-19T16:30:00.001-06:002023-11-19T16:30:00.174-06:00Still Reaching For 2023 Goals<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDxLdEVFeXjJNwpWyUpWGRrmuaHcV6bS_M9SbyjX8eBiD4V9GAiqnvkxJQNUKRnidXI3hYGimN2UUeyDXxN0UEu4KWtHlfoFK2NsSWnv7GcLhIldtEVerjm7AIvuwmS6a28Wf0A02uxIIju4cfSsgPUhxnOAxPJG1YOd0QW3u6-P0zxn2EowJIMQzToug/s665/2023111601.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="459" data-original-width="665" height="442" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDxLdEVFeXjJNwpWyUpWGRrmuaHcV6bS_M9SbyjX8eBiD4V9GAiqnvkxJQNUKRnidXI3hYGimN2UUeyDXxN0UEu4KWtHlfoFK2NsSWnv7GcLhIldtEVerjm7AIvuwmS6a28Wf0A02uxIIju4cfSsgPUhxnOAxPJG1YOd0QW3u6-P0zxn2EowJIMQzToug/w640-h442/2023111601.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thursday's ride was the big one this week.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Today is the end of my training week. Since arriving in Pennsylvania on Monday, I have completed 4 bike rides for a total of 111 miles spread over a little more than 7 hours. And I have done 5 walks for a total of 9 miles spread over a little more than 2.5 hours. That’s just short of 10 hours dedicated to exercise this week, which ain’t bad! Consider that I had to drive 963 miles from my house to Mom’s, and that I had to work overnight on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. It's another vacation that's not really a vacation: Mom's kitchen table is my temporary office. This was a busy week.</div><div><br /></div><div>I hit a couple of modest personal milestones on the bike here in PA. This season now ranks 15th out of 20 for total miles, and 10th for number of rides. That tells you a little something about my 2023 season: ride length is down. My average ride this year is only 27.11 miles. It will be a little lower before the year is over, as colder temperatures and shorter daylight hours conspire against me.</div><div><br /></div><div>I’m still working toward several cycling goals. I need 44 miles to beat my total from last season. I need 275 to reach 90,000 lifetime miles, which was the goal I set at the beginning of 2023. Those are the big ones; the rest are Garmin Connect challenges that would be nice to complete but aren’t as important. The weather forecast through November 28 shows an average daytime high of 48° here compared to 38° in West Bend. While that’s not as warm as I would like—and it’s below average for this area—it’s still better than what I would get at home. I will try to take advantage of the difference, because when I return to Wisconsin in December there won’t be any outdoor riding in my plans.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-59640161275074537422023-11-12T00:00:00.001-06:002023-11-12T00:00:00.148-06:00Coming Soon: Santa Ramp-Up 2023<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/689493733135500" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1583" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9raSuzAXXwMbccahzUXzJBY_gT8gBVspZDegXx5UD4oUemWZjktghNSY5eimvfhZ2J78Xfv5mC-_ID_nmtVgHcOWSCBVueSKHJyJTtRODsd_YNjNP90z4AdLw-F9ZYXnYo4CUuyo9VcVlgldr8nUAm1zmpeswgURbEMBYtMcCYaqCgZUKDFx7PWt2U6U/w495-h640/2023SantaRampUp.jpg" width="495" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/689493733135500" target="_blank">Click here to jump to the Facebook page.</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5549561482248458566.post-75877348190055888022023-11-05T15:30:00.001-06:002023-11-05T15:30:00.138-06:004,000 x 15<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3B-UtO9Q755LmF-S9SuaSRvsbqslRdKrXtr_5CRLhWqqLsLB8QE7gN51156kjK813qJmwbEVCUX3g8DWrwIjCyP8RcAtCnLXMSQK9mrylcy8retyZy0Va7fJUoU1_4g_E_hvenOeDBz7PHg_40w_MS7zhFpit5hCI_ixb8xw4bRGzaFy_PZhbSJhxzrY/s861/2023110501.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="656" data-original-width="861" height="488" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3B-UtO9Q755LmF-S9SuaSRvsbqslRdKrXtr_5CRLhWqqLsLB8QE7gN51156kjK813qJmwbEVCUX3g8DWrwIjCyP8RcAtCnLXMSQK9mrylcy8retyZy0Va7fJUoU1_4g_E_hvenOeDBz7PHg_40w_MS7zhFpit5hCI_ixb8xw4bRGzaFy_PZhbSJhxzrY/w640-h488/2023110501.png" width="640" /></a></div><div>Computers are great at doing the same thing again and again. It’s usually when you make a change that things go wrong. With the expiration of Daylight Saving Time last night, my company needed to update the time on the mainframe manually. And falling back to Central Standard Time appeared to create an extra hour during which we could perform additional maintenance without affecting the 6 a.m. up time we promise our customers. In the end, we gave back that hour and then lost almost two more. First, the system didn’t come down cleanly at the start of the maintenance window. Later, the system didn’t come back up cleanly. It was ugly. I console myself with the knowledge that I didn’t cause the problems and that my efforts reduced the duration and severity of the outage. But those efforts were fatiguing, and I didn’t have enough free time in an almost 12-hour shift to get a decent meal.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, I came into today a lot tired and a little pissed off. Maybe it would have been smarter to go directly to bed. But daylight is even more precious now and I didn’t want to risk sleeping through all of today’s, so I stayed up and got my bike ride done. By itself, it was nothing special: I covered 20 miles in 83 minutes. I was just riding, not really training. But with those 20 miles I surpassed 4,000 miles for the 15th consecutive season. Oh, and I completed another Garmin Connect badge. That was a good way to put a bad night behind me.</div><div><br /></div><div>Tomorrow should be warmer but the winds should be much higher, so it could be a big day for yard work. Suddenly, my next trip to Pennsylvania is only a week away and I have a long To Do list on which cycling is a maybe and not a must.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0