Wed Morning Snow

It's somewhere between 8 and 10 degrees as I step out into the snow. The weather forecast was for clear skies but cold and as soon as I saw that I knew I had to go ski before work. Except for one other guy just leaving on his skis, I'm alone and the world is completely silent. It's like a film without a soundtrack. I carry my gear to the start of the trail and clip into the skis. Off I go. Before long I'm heating up, I've set an agressive pace and my heart is banging away. It's that magical time of morning when the sun is coming up. Sure, it rises in the east, but to the west is where the real beauty hits. Pink hues are spotlighting the mountains, the trees around me are lit up in yellow glows. After 25 minutes there is a split that isn't groomed. I look left at the incline of powder. Why not, I'm up for an adventure.





Those are my tracks up - it's a great workout.



On my why back to the car over an hour later I'm treated to the glorious sun.



Life is good.

Lunchtime on the River Trail

It was snowing at lunch Tuesday but still nice enough out for a ride. Bundled up in all my warm gear I took off for the river trail. Cutting through the Old Mill I tested out the traction on the dirt...perfect. I had the trail to myself except for one jogger. The snowfall up under all the trees was minimal and had been tramped down pretty well. I stopped to take a few pictures along the way.

This little guy was all alone and was not amused by my outfit. He took one look at me in my balaclava and took off.





The studs on my bike tire make such a cool tread pattern.



One hour of riding through snow left me sweaty and tired. Perfect way to spend a lunch.

Keep it coming

Still snowing! My ride to work this morning was fairly plain. Only saw one car in a ditch and it looked like it had been there all night because it was covered in snow. I took some back roads to stay off Brookswood because the line of cars was sickening and I wanted some solitude. With the heavy studded tires on my commuter, that thing has a lot of rolling weight and I'm huffing and puffing by the time I get to work after having pedaled through the snow.

I'm thinking of doing some nightime xc skiing after work. There is just so much nice powder out there and it makes for a good workout to break track.

Ho hum, not much else going on.

Snow, snow, and more snow

What have I been up to? Skate skiing and cross country skiing. The road to the mountain has been less than stellar. Seems every day we head up we pass at least 2 accidents.





And these weren't even the little cars with bald tires and no chains that fishtail all the way up the highway!

The grooming at the Nordic Lodge has been a joke. I think they are grooming once in the morning and then just letting the powder pile up all day. I've skied "Woody's Way" more times than Liza Minnelli has been married, and been around the oval at least 40 times. I'm ready for them to groom more trails. GOOD AND READY! So Sunday we xc skied out to Tumalo Falls for a change of scenery and pace. That sure woke up the stabilizer muscles in my knees!

Tumalo Falls in the winter is still very pretty.

Thanksgiving

I started the day with skate skiing - hoping to burn the calories off before they got there! That is one tough sport. It was snowing the whole time we were up at the mountain and they weren't continuously grooming so the powder built up over the groomed surface and made for some serious quad burn since I had to lift my skate skis up out of the snow each leg motion. I'm not sure what the ratio of hours of skate ski to hours of cycling is, but it can't be one to one. After 1.5 hours of skate skiing I am near dead but I can ride FAR longer than that and not feel tired.

I made a mean green bean casserole and a fresh loaf of Italian herb bread and we headed to our friends Linda and Stu's house for a big get together. I think there were around 12 of us there - all serious mountain bikers! We weighed ourselves before we started eating and drinking and then after. I had gained 5 pounds!!! It was superficial weight since a lot was liquid and food that err, uhh, wouldn't stay in my body, but still! Colin had the highest with 8 pounds!!!!!!!!!!

Pace yourself

Today we're having a big Thanksgiving potluck at work...only I didn't bring anything. I was going to bake a loaf of herb bread, but was lazy last night after I got home from the gym. I'm making green bean casserole for tomorrow though- we're heading to some friends' house around the corner from us. Everyone loves leftovers, right? Derek and I are going to cook a turkey Sunday so that we can have leftovers. We actually have two 14 pounders since they were free if you spent $100 at Fred Meyers.

My ride to work this morning was a bit sloppy. I took the river trail and cut across Farewell Bend Park. The sun was out, billions of ducks were gathered by the river and I happily splashed through the puddles as I watched car after car pass by, all loaded with snowboards and ski's heading up to Bachelor. That's where I'm headed tomorrow (and Friday, and Saturday, and Sunday)!

Have a good Thanksgiving!

From Dirt to Snow

My fancily waxed skate skis were itching to get up to mountain so we headed up Sunday. It was sprinkling a bit and the parking lot was pretty empty when we got there. By the time we got out boots on and everything it had stopped raining so off we went. It sure is weird trading bike shoes and cleats for skate ski boots. We were terrified we wouldn't remember how to skate since it had been 7 months since we last went. But after looking skeptically at the hill that leads out of the Nordic center, crossing our fingers and pointing downhill, it wasn't so bad. Before long I had the proper arms movements down and they even complimented what my legs were doing! I was pleased that I wasn't tripping and falling all over the place and flailing.

The mask is an important wardrobe component. It's functional AND it makes you look super cool.

Tacky

Saturday I waxed up the skis and then decided that we should go riding since it was so nice out. There is NO dust left on the trails and the conditions are dreamy. Yes, I just used the word dreamy in a post. We got a little over 2 hours of awesome riding in with a minimum of snow patches. There were a handful of sections a little higher up that had a couple inches of snow that added resistance to the ride, but other than that it was a great day of riding.





Saturday night we went and saw The Illusionist. I really really like Edward Norton Jr., and the movie was very good. I highly recommend it.

"I’m always thinking one step ahead. Like a carpenter who makes stairs."

correction:Andy from The Office

TGIF!!!!

Happy Anniversary

Today was my week year anniversary of getting hit by a car while riding at lunch. Guess what? Some guy got hit today riding his bike just down the street from where I was hit! Looks like some lady was pulling out of Columbia and never even saw him. His leg looked hurt and his bike was mangled. Police and ambulance were rolling to the scene. Here is what I propose. SLOW THE HELL DOWN PEOPLE. Cars are dangerous and should be treated as such, not driven recklessly and absent minded. Focus on what you are doing and look out for everything! Hitting a pedestrian or cyclists should have the punishment of losing your license. We have mass transportation now, violators should be forced to take the bus everywhere they go for a year. That would teach them to be more mindful of the death contraptions they are in.

RANT OFF

Bend got a new fm radio station this week. 92.7 is supposed to be playing modern rock. We'll see (or hear). I took their online survey a couple weeks ago and gave them my 2 cents worth. Apparently somewhere around 300 respondents...well, responded. I hope they listen and play some newer more cutting edge stuff and not just the same old stuff the other stations play.

I've been on my trainer a lot lately spinning. I invited some people over to spin with me tonight (ride bikes indoors on trainers). It provides extra motivation usually if you aren't just alone riding. Though I don't seem to have too much of a motivation problem since I love riding so much. I rode to the library the other day and outside I saw this sad sight.

Alone and silent
Tape, scratches, and loose cables
Love me, I need it

I rode the trainer yesterday for another hour and feel good, I should be able to swim maybe tomorrow. Last night I went over to a friend's house for beading. I wasn't making anything but I got a few ideas and hey, it was fun to hang out, eat, and drink the mulled wine she had been cooking all day. SO GOOD!

Here are those pics I tried to take of my dog as she was running around excited about the snow.

Snow

Yep, we finally got some snow in town! I decided to hop on my trainer yesterday and get a good hour of spinning in to get the blood flowing through my muscles and flush all the "bad stuff" out - basically just to loosen up. So while I watched football I rode. Through the blinds I could see a couple little white particles blowing around outside. Then it got heavier and heavier and then later in the evening there was a good 2" at least covering the ground. YAY!!!!!!!! Brittany of course had to spend time outside running around and playing several times. Each time she would come in COVERED in snow and happy. Tonight I'll post pics I tried to take of her.

Back on Track

Ok, let's catch up. Nothing is broken - just a bit of road rash, bruises, swelling, and some stiffness. What a relief! I sure have to give props to my chiropracter Jim Wilkens at Cascade Chiropractic Center. He was able to get me in right away and do a nice job on my neck and shoulder.

Here is a nice picture I took on my ride at lunch Thursday before the crash.



We went and saw Jackass 2 on Friday night. Sitting and drinking beer while laughing was a great way to spend the evening. The broccoli cheddar ale soup at The Dowtowner helped too. It is definitely soup weather.

Saturday night we went to watch April in a Lava City Roller Doll match. She skates for 12 Gauge Rage and they were taking on Moulin Rouge in a battle for the championships. The place was PACKED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! For those not "in the know", Bend has a womens roller derby league of teams who go head to head against each other. The matches consist of 3 twenty minute rounds where they battle it out for points. There are rules and everything, however blocking and knocking each other down seems to be encouraged! I had a great time even though April's team lost by the narrowest margin. I didn't take too many good pics, but here are a couple.

Happy Friday!

My hip is feeling better today (I don't think it's fractured) and I have a dr. appt at 10, then a chiro appt to get my neck realigned this afternoon. I woke up with a really kinked neck and shoulder. Since I have all those appt's and I'm sore, I drove today. Well, I tried to drive but my car wouldn't start since I hardly ever drive it. Derek has the day off like most Americans so he helped jump start it and off I went. What next?

The recent winds destroyed my yard. All my plants are blown down and leaves are everywhere.



Could be worse, I could live along the coast where everything is flooded and closed. All we got is a tiny bit of rain. AND SNOW IN THE MTS!!!!!!!

Well crap

Everyone who rides knows that there are two kind of cyclists. Those that have been hit by a car, and those that are about to be hit by a car. Miraculously, with all the years and thousands of miles I've ridden, and both are alot, I belonged to the second category. Until today. I got hit while riding my bike at lunch. I was coming through a roundabout and some lady pulled into it right in front of me. I saw her coming and tried to brake, but started to slide out sideways, reached out to push alongside the car hoping to ride it out, but BAM down I went and slid. My elbow is all torn up again and swollen and my hip hurts again, just like it did last time I fractured it. This really sucks.

Bachelor snow!!!!

See, I think it's the little beery snow dance I did last night. It's working!!!!!!

I'm behind on posting but I am up to the same old stuff. Let's see - I got another lunch ride in before we had our little spat of rain the other day. My commutes have been hot then cold and I never know what to wear. This morning I was hoping to wake up to some snow, but nope. It's cold enough for snow...31 degrees, but nothing is falling from the sky. I have to put the studs on my bike this weekend. I probably could have used them this morning because the roads were icy.
Last night we packed into Cascade Lakes Brewery for a combo of locals night and to get our season passes. That place was a madhouse!!!!!!! I had a couple IPA's, chatted with a bunch of people, and picked up my pass. Now it just needs to snow so they can groom some nordic trails up at the mountain!!!! PRAY FOR SNOW

My html class is going well, I finished my first week/session and am now going to work on rewriting the entire Bend Bella Cyclist site in proper html. It will take me forever to learn all the formatting for the style of the pages so there will be no short term change. But, it gives me something real to practice on.

That's about it.

Whooped it up!

Despite the weather forecast of 50% chance of sprinkles, we peaked out the blinds Saturday morning at the gloomy grey skies and decided to risk it. Hell, I bought rain gear for a reason and at least it was relatively warm. With a bit of recent rain, I really wanted to do Upper Whoops so we rode from the 41 up the southern section of Storm King, added on a new little piece of singletrack, continued across the highway on up to some fireroad where we climbed for some miles to the junction with Whoops. The trail was spectacularly tacky and as snot dripped from my nose and water channeled off the front of my helmet visor, I let the 575 scream through the sweeping corners and charge down the straightaways. Then we rode back on Storm King to finish off the nice 3 hour ride. It never really rained, just sprinkled as promised.

It was a weird day yesterday - 56 for my ride to work in the morning, but threatening to rain. Then 65 by 10:00! My legs were feeling heavy after the long ride Saturday and then the intense ride Sunday, but I couldn't resist when I saw that it was 70 degrees at noon! So, off I went for yet another ride. The 25mph winds kept me focused and I had to push hard to keep a good cadence and pace as I headed up Skyliners. Now, I never took physics in high school or college, but...If I'm riding 18 mph into a 24 mph headwind, how fast would I really be going? I spent some time thinking about this as I struggled to keep the bike upright in the bigger gusts. Coming back down I didn't have a big enough gear what with the tailwind. My cadence was up around 100 in my biggest gear and I was flying!

I'm taking an online html class. Call me a geek, I like learning new things and who knows what it could lead to. My first lesson is this week and I'm really enjoying it. Oh boy, an accountant AND a web coding geek.

HA! I might as well have washed my car yesterday. Sure thing, I posted about how nice it was outside for my ride on Wednesday, and then yesterday...BAM I was hit with high winds coming at me from every direction on my lunch ride. It was laughable!!! I struggled to get any sort of steady cadence or to settle into any kind of respectable rhythm. I was, however, happy to get another ride in before the rains hit.

About 6:00 this morning my dog awoke me by shoving her wet head up into my hand as it dangled over the side of the bed. She likes water and she doesn't mind just sitting out in the yard while it pours. It's super.

Not much planned for this weekend since I'm not sure exactly what the weather will do. If there is a break in the rain I'll probably go for a ride, if not, maybe a swim. One thing is for sure though...IT'S FRIDAY!!!!!!!

Have a good weekend.

Since I've been hearing about rain in the forecast for the next few days, I went for a lunch ride yesterday. It was pretty dang nice out. By nice, I mean that the wind was low (2-4 mph), the temperature was good for a nice tempo ride where you're too hot if you wear very much, and the sun was shining nicely. I threw together a nice loop and was happy to work the rest of the day with tired legs.

I have to write about the little girl at the pool last night, because she reminded me of how I probably seem I was as a kid. She was getting dressed in her suit and her mom asked her about the bruise on her knee and ankle. She said, "Oh mom, Erica and I were just playing." to which her mom replied, "What were you playing?" The little girl shrugged at her and responded, "We were seeing how hard we could run into the wall." AHAHAHAHAHAHA kids.

Tonight there is a Bend Bella Cyclist meeting at the Deschutes Public Library so that will be fun to see everyone together again.

Her is my little nephew Andrew, and his brother David aka Batman!

Well, I'm an aunt again! My brother and sister-in-law had their second boy. I'll post a pic tomorrow, I forgot to forward it to my work email this morning. My sister isn't due now until the end of December so I have some time to practice up on my auntness.

On my ride home last night I saw some clever kids trick or treating on their bikes. Brilliant - you can cover more ground and collect more candy!!! Since our dogs are basically out of control and extra vicious, we can't really open our doors to a bunch of kids. So, we turned all the lights off and went over to some friend's house to help them hand out candy. And eat. And drink.

I read in the paper today that Bon Bien on the eastside of Bend was sold and the new owners are going to make it an upscale nightclub and dance place...with a dress code! It is pretty much the only thing like it on the eastside, and the only nightclub type place with a dress code in Bend. So, I'll be interested to see if it works out.

I'm hoping to get a ride in at lunch today since it's supposed to rain for the next few days. I have an assorted variety of warm layers to pick from so I think I'm prepared. BRING IT!