John’s Ramblings

I guess it’s the end of the season… the end of summer as well as the end of a really fine warm-weather-cycling-season. It hasn’t rained hardly at all, and save for a couple of little heat-waves, it hasn’t been roasting, either.

I’ve been in a bit of a funk, evidenced by the lack of postings in this space. Here’s the scoop on what John’s been doing with his idle time:

• Being idle
• Working
• Lounging
• Drinking some wine
• Relaxing
• Waiting for inspiration
• Occasionally, riding my bicycle

I’m not sure what my problem is, other than I’ve spent 238 hours on that bike in the last 8 months. I also think I’m going through a mourning process for summer. The days are getting shorter FAST (at this point, we lose 3 to 4 minutes of sunlight each day). The cottonwoods have started the march to winter by shedding their leaves first, but the others should not be far behind.
On Labor Day I slipped out early whilst the wife was busy languishing for what I thought would be a 50 mile morning ride. I took off on a route I found on the internet, missed a turn, and ended up with an even 70 miles on the day. I also bagged two ears of corn, assorted stone fruit, a banana, and two beef tenderloin steaks for supper. I had the presence of mind to take with me the little knapsack thingee they gave us on RSVP to stash the food in, and time-trialed the last 10 miles or so to the car. A nice haul, but I felt silly for missing a turn and ending up dodging peekups in Enumclaw. Not really a remarkable ride in any respect, but the back stretch through the foothills along Kanaskat, Cumberland, etc. was really lovely. I felt miles from anywhere (which I was), and free enough to take the foolish picture here of my unattended handlebars at 25+ mph. I need to do this ride again in a couple of weeks, when the leaves start to color-up in earnest. Let me know if you want to come.

I’ve spent a little time last week getting my office space set up with my trainer and bike for offseason training. My office isn’t all that huge, but it’s my territory (so no one will be tripping over my stuff), and I don’t need a lot of room to write SQL Stored Procedures, in all honesty.

Last Saturday was a Newcomers ride for Cascade Bicycle Club. We rode the Foothills Trail from Puyallup to South Prairie. We has a nice group this time, and no one showed up for their first ride in 30 years on a bike they borrowed the night before (it has happened). 30 miles out-and-back. We had another ride leader volunteer to sweep the ride, which gave me the luxury to be the “rover” while Terri did leading duties. There is a stretch of the trail where you cross several streets, so I would sprint ahead of the group, plug the intersection until all had passed, then sprint past them to the next street. Not that there was all that much traffic, but it gave me a little sprinting work, anyway.

Yesterday I went out in the late afternoon for a spin around the valley, 23 miles. The purpose was mostly to get my butt in motion, but secondarily I was re-scouting the route for our Newcomers group ride down here this coming weekend. As it turns out, they are doing some major road construction in the coming weeks, and they have instituted some dubious detours for cyclists using the Green River Trail. I’ll likely need to ride this route again on Friday, to see what sort of obstacles we’ll be leading our noobs through.

3,391 miles year-to-date. Perhaps I need another goal at this point, like trying to hit 4,000 before December 31?

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