Got stuff done?

I went for my recovery ride this morning; meandered to downtown St. Louis and back. I passed the "historic" Fox Theater along the way.

My mid-day tasks included getting Saris/Cycle-Ops to send me a new Powertap. It took more time for me to give the guy my address than it did to convince him to replace it. In fact, convince isn't really accurate; he offered to replace it. I have renewed faith in that company.

My afternoon workout was working on my structured warm-up (ask in person if you want me to explain). It was hot, the first time this year that I wanted to gasp cooler air than was available. Later in the evening I got a hold of CC to discuss testing and my training schedule.

Satisfied, Mostly

Sunday's Forest Park Criterium was almost a foregone conclusion: field sprint. Two years ago the race finished with a breakaway, but that was only because it was Jensen & Schroetlin with the two strongest teams blocking. With that said, I decided to sit in for the sprint.

Sitting in for the sprint was easy. It was boring. I'm not sure how people can do that all race. It's just not that fun. Early in the race a group of three had stayed away for quite a while, so when Zach (Mercy) and Jeff (ABD) (former teammates) told me that they were going to counter one of Mercy's moves, I decided to go for it. Jeff is/was undoubtedly the strongest time trialist at the race, so it could stick. We were off the front from minute 54 to minute 75. We were caught with just over 5 laps to go. The sprint was chaotic because it was too easy to sit in for the whole race. My legs were completely tapped, and I ended up 7th.

Feisty Felines

Toby and Sophie were roughhousing yesterday morning, and I was able to get a few good photos of it. It's usually in all in good fun, but some times it seems to go just a bit past play, into fighting. At times they'll lay near each other attending to their grooming duties, and other times they'll chase each other through the apartment. It's nice for Toby to have a friend to play with but it can become too much, like when they tipped over an end table last night and woke me up. I came out and they were both sitting there in the dark like, "What did I do? It wasn't me. It was like that when I got here."

Turin Notches a Win at Tour of St. Louis

Andy Lister won the Tour of St. Louis Carondelet Criterium today! I'm pretty sure it's the first Turin win of the season, and a solid one at that. Andy rode like I've never seen him ride before, dismantling the final breakaway. I for one could have been in better shape, but form is coming, and I was able to cover attacks and block where appropriate. A lapse of attention saw me get swarmed with 2 to go, and I had to empty the tank to get to where I needed to be for the sprint, forget about actually sprinting. 14th. I think this is the first race that I've actually finished this year. I think that's the way I'm going to play it this year. Do well for the team or do myself in. I'll update this post with photos if someone puts some online.

Friday, April 27

Today was great for riding. I rode west, into the wind through Clayton, Ladue, Creve Coeur, and into Chesterfield. On the way back, I passed a massive construction site that, when I was last in St. Louis, was an old Bell Labs building. Now, as you can see, it's just a big mess.

Erin and I met Ben for lunch, after which I drove him to the airport. While at his apartment I snapped a few photos, as requested, to prove that his apartment is actually as clean as has been claimed.

Tonight is WILD. OK Go is playing, and Erin's already on her way to the show. I had to stop at Big Shark to register for Tour of St. Louis at 5, which delayed my festivities, but I'll catch up.

Race the rain

The only predictable thing about St. Louis weather is that it's unpredictable. I met Richard 'round 10 o'clock at the Muny. It looked dangerously close to thunderstorms as we stopped at Kayak's so Richard could grab some food. The dark clouds blew past, leaving a howling wind from the south. This led us to switch directions and plow south along the riverfront, eventually taking us to Jefferson Barracks. We didn't finish a single lap before we happened upon Mike Weiss, owner and operator of Big Shark Bicycle Company. We rode laps in the barracks' park until the sky turned threatening again and we rode back to the loop area. It was good to catch up with Mike and hear stories from Tour of Georgia.

nope

No ride, so I figured an unrelated picture was in order. This one is of Chicago City Hall, site of the final scene in Blues Brothers.

First Tuesday Night of the '07

I drove down from Chicago today just in time to get on my bike and ride to the crit. The sky was threatening rain as I rode to the crit, but I figured I could always decide not to start. I rode the course, catching up with friends, and eventually overcame my fear of thunderstorms and registered. The crit was fun. I put in some good efforts. The sky however, did continue to darken. With about 10 minutes left in the crit, the rain, lightening, and thunder began. I made a full on effort, half hoping that they'd ring the bell. The bell came the lap later as I took refuge under a pavilion in the park.

Big City

I actually felt like riding my bike today. I didn't feel like I had to; I just wanted to. In the week I've been up in Evanston I hadn't ridden south into the city, so downtown Chicago became today's destination. I rode into the city via Clark St, tooled around the City Hall building, Sears Tower, Grant Park, and back via the lake front. Hopefully I'll accumulate a good collection of pictures of the city over the summer.

After watching the Amstel Gold race on TV and a skirt steak dinner I took to painting the floor of the basement. This painting job was particularly unpleasant because both the cleaner/degreaser and the paint have strong odors, and those are nothing in comparison to the paint thinner that I had to use to clean the oil based paint out of the brush. I'm glad to have a coat of paint on the floor though. I'll get some pictures in the morning.

Washed and Waxed

Greenleaf & Judson @ 8a.m.Did the Judson Ride this morning. I was on time this week. I was supposed to trash myself and that's exactly what I did. I didn't even wait to get into Winnetka to start stirring the pot. I either lead out or won most the sprints. I was happy with my wattage, and my riding. Plus you really can't complain about this weather.

After some relax time the Civic got a much needed thorough wash and wax today. I must say, my car was freakin' dirty. I had to go back with a damp rag to get all the grit, grim, and bird droppings off. After another break, I went to waxing. A couple hours later I had a shiny car. I waxed the roof twice. I'm going to hop in the shower in prep for a dinner with Don & Joanne.

4th Race of the Season

Finished PlanterWhen I woke up this morning, I didn't feel so great. I was sore and stiff from all the physical labor. I snapped a photo of the planter on my way out of the house. Not too shabby. At least it won't have to be replaced any time soon. All I could bring myself to accomplish before leaving for the race was eating breakfast.

Sean and Erik (new teammates) were at the race. It was nice to once again have teammates to warm up with. There were some big names that showed up, namely Brad Huff. It was good to see him, and I couldn't help myself making a joke about Slipstream sending him home from Europe...to Wisconsin. He's one of those people who's just a good person. I was aggressive till I got popped, then I hopped back in the race to finish out the workout. I always mean to take pictures at the races, but then never think to once I'm there. I don't think I need to drive all the way back to Madison to get another short workout in tomorrow.

Went to Lulu's for dinner with Mom, Dad, and Ronda. Yum. Spicy Shezwan Chicken.

Full Day

Today was packed with activities. As much as I like to sit and watch History/Discovery Channel when I come home, today was not for TV. I woke early to work on the raised planter in the backyard. The bottom layer takes the most time to lay because you need to make sure that the bricks lay flat, level, and in a straight line on the ground. I had only completed the first corner when I had to drive into Wilmette to see a houseView down my street for the summer. that I, Erin, and Toby will be house sitting in for the summer. Mary, the woman who lives there has an amazing book collection that must include over 5000 books. After the house visit, it was time for lunch, with the grandparents. Grandma was in good spirits and grandpa told me about his digital exploits on his new computer.

After lunch it was back to working on the planter. In only a few hours I had made good progress, but could really have used some reinforcements. Mom & dad provided exactly that when they got home and we finished cleaning up with the very last bit of light in the sky. Mom picked up Crossroads takeout for dinner. It's just plain good Greek food.

Racing tomorrow. Sean & Eric should be there.

Much Better

I felt much better today. I got up early and went for a ride with some guys (l-r: Gene, Chris, Scott, & Joe) and girl (Anne, not pictured) from the shop. We rode a lax pace up north and then with a few turns of speed on the way back. We stopped at The Italian Coffee Bar, one of the team's sponsors, on the way home.

After a refreshing brunch, I did some work in the backyard. This is actually the primary project for this trip home. I built a raised planter for my mom many years ago, and the wood has begun to rot. I'm going to remove all the wood and replace it with masonry.

I moved my car around from the front to the back and Bella came along for the ride. She doesn't look that happy because she knows that we're about to go backwards, down the driveway (the garage is underneath my parent's house).

Lethargic

Main Entry: le·thar·gic
Pronunciation: le-'thär-jik,
Function: adjective
1 : of, relating to, or characterized by lethargy : SLUGGISH
2 : INDIFFERENT, APATHETIC

Main Entry: leth·ar·gy
Pronunciation: 'le-th&r-jE
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English litargie, from Medieval Latin litargia, from Late Latin lethargia, from Greek lEthargia, from lEthargos forgetful, lethargic, irregular from lEthE
1 : abnormal drowsiness
2 : the quality or state of being lazy, sluggish, or indifferent

Not to mention that I had a headache.

New Shoe Bling

Stopped by the shop today to chat with Chris D and pick up some equipment. One of the things I got was my shoes for the next season, Lake CX400's. I've never had shoes that were so high-tech. I'm excited. I have the three-hole pattern shoe, but use Speedplays, so I might need to go back and switch 'em out.

Confined

One of my reason's for coming home was to do some work for my parents. One of these tasks was to continue (finish) painting the basement. To be honest, I need the money and the flexible work hours. Painting the basement is a terrible job. I had sorta forgotten this tidbit of information which I learned last summer. Since the basement hasn't been cleaned in about 35 years, the grime is hard-packed and must be scrubbed off. There's a lot of neck-craining to get to all the pipes as well. It took way too long to get to the point where I can apply the primer. It'll look nice when it's all done though, and I won't have to worry about it when it's eventually my job to help sell this house.

Judson & The Wrath

Did the Judson Ride this morning. It was good, except that I missed the first part of it and had to chase for nearly an hour to catch. It was by the good grace of a flat that I was relieved of my misery. I felt good and bad the entire ride. Legs felt good, but my stomach felt bad...which was my own fault. Let me elaborate.

I got to Evanston last night after spending the entire afternoon helping Erin with her HTML final project. I then packed up all my shit and drove to my parent's house (Evanston). Ron, Betsy, and Matt (relatives I stayed with in Cali) were still up - their last night in Chicago. We chatted for an hour or so before everyone was too tired to hold their heads up. After they went to bed, I found some ice cream in the freezer and proceeded to indulge myself. At some point I lost all self control and it turned into gorging. I was conscious of the fact that I was going to pay for it the next day. I did.

Race Canceled

So Tilles Park was canceled.

I'm glad that I don't have to race in 40°, wet weather, but at the same time, it would have been really good to get out and race. I guess I'll make my way up to Chicago tonight instead of waiting till tomorrow morning.

Doubtful

I've been looking forward to racing Tilles Park tomorrow, but at this point I don't know how thrilled I am with the idea. The weather people haven't all converged on a singular forecast, but each individual forecast makes me want to stay in bed. I got out and did my ride early today as to be home before the rain hits. Using weather.com's new interactive map, I can see the storm coming, and it looks nasty.

Thoughts about this blog

I created the blog to allow anyone with whom I don't often speak to keep up with my goings-on. While that's all well and good, I really like that I can keep everyone up to date visually as well. St. Louis has been really gray of late, and so, just to keep things colorful, I'm going to throw in some pictures from my past travels. This one is from my drive home from California. It's also posted on Flickr, with other photos from my trip.

Thank you sir...

For the second time in as many days, as they say, I met up with Joe to start my ride. Admittedly, neither of us had planned to ride, but when you wake up to sun, it changes your mind. He had to cut it short so that he could tend to his laptop, which was having fan issues. Just to make sure I got my fill of headwind, I went out further west before heading southeast along Midland. The rain did hit, but took it's time arriving.

Ride...

The unofficial sponsor of the training seriesbefore the rain. Ben Able, the most trustworthy meteorologist in St. Louis, said it was going to rain in the late afternoon/early evening, so I rode early. The forecast was added incentive to the day's preexisting plan to take part in the first GJWBSTS. It was a good impromptu route, taking us through scenic south county. You could tell the storms were coming by the strong winds. I put in some extra time after Joe turned home. Tailwind sprints are so much happier than headwind sprints.

Now I'm off to see Ben's apartment clean, for the first time.

Nice Weather and Good Dinner

Not to mention good company as well.

The weather in St. Louis actually made it out of the 40's today (with the assistance of abundant sunshine). I know I shouldn't be complaining, but... Let's just say it was nice weather and a nice ride. And on to dinner...

Erin and I were invited to Eleven-Eleven for dinner with Ben and his parents. Everything went: (chronologically) the wine was great, the server had a sense of humor, the appetizer was good, Beverly had a sense of humor (as the server splashed wine, salads were desserts, the entree was great, desserts were over the top. We discussed everything from technology (Ben and my forte) to the state of education in America (Beverly and Erin)(note: Stamen is really an all-arounder when it comes to discussion). It was really great, open conversation. I wish I had a camera for the "Who's Going To Drive Home?" conversation. A great night all told.

Play Cat(s)

Toby and Sophie have become accustom to each other's presence and have started to play. They still seem to be in the exploratory phase of friendship, but I'm sure that they'll continue to warm to each other. Although Toby looks much larger than Sophie in this picture, I can assure you that they're about the same size. (Sophie blinked for the flash, she's not really that odd-looking.)

Cat Sitting

Our house guest for the weekend is Sophie. I've never had a cat come to our apartment to visit Toby, and it was interesting to see Toby's reaction to the introduction of another cat to his territory. Sophie wanted to explore, but Toby wanted to play. I remember that was Motorboat's reaction when we first brought Toby over to Joe's. Hopefully they get along and play nice!

I'm No Longer a Baby

When your girlfriend tells you, "If you want to be a bike racer, you have to ride your bike," you know it's time to get out there and ride. Erin said just that a couple days ago. After a day on the trainer, I couldn't ride inside again, so out I went. It was chilly, but as soon as my extremities adjusted I was fine. I did the ol' Six Flags loop, and it was good to get some hills. I'm glad I went out, but man, I'm tired.

Cold Snap

Ugh, it's not bad enough that I'm not feeling good on the bike. Now the weather has to go and flip-flop, bringing colder weather than I've experienced all season to St. Louis. I actually rode the trainer today. I hate riding the trainer, but intervals inside beat intervals outside at this temperature.

On a side note, Nat (who was in town for the weekend and first couple nights of passover) left to go back to New York. It's always good to see him, and never long enough.

Rain Outside

I really wanted to ride outside today, but it looks like nature had other plans.

TrainingPeaks & Passover

I spent a whole lot of time playing with TrainingPeaks today. I'm amazed how comprehensive that software is. It's got everything to analyze training, so much it's almost unnerving.

Passover is this evening. We're having a seder at the apartment of one of Erin's good friends. Erin (and I, a little bit) are making a dessert-ish kugel to bring. I'm not a huge fan of these things, but there's supposed to be many cups of wine.

Done with taxes

I did my taxes among many other things today. I feel so adult...