Well my relations in Colorado, Baltictiger (my sister) and Howard (of "Why Howard Laughed" fame and my brother-in-law) are very avid bicyclists. In fact Howard (http://rktect.blogspot.com/) has biked 8,000 and 10,000 miles over the last two years with Baltictiger joining him on many of his adventures. Now do not get me wrong, biking has helped keep both of them in fantastic physical condition and it has led to many new friendships for them, but now they have pulled me into it.
Last year during one of his rides Howard met a gentleman that sponsors a bike team in the BP MS-150 bike ride from Houston to Austin in April. Well Howard has been looking for a reason to come down to Texas to bicycle so he arranged with the gentleman to get three team spots in his group.
Well lets do the math,
Howard+Baltictiger= 2,
Howard+Baltictiger+XO=3,
hmmm I sense a conspiracy here.
Bro-in-law and sister would only come down and do the event only if the XO participated in the event and being the family guy, I said "Yes I would love to do it"
You ask, "Where is this post going???"
Well the last road bike that I owned was passed on to Goodwill about 8 years ago in favor of a mountain bike. That mountain bike saw limited service and was recently sold to finance the new road bike for the XO's folly.
After multiple visits to the various bike shops in Austin with the CO and lower rates in tow, searching the Bicycle magazine "Buying Guides", and talking with co-workers who are avid cyclists like Howard, I made the jump and now am a proud owner of a Trek 2.1 6ocm road bike.
I won't go into the deep specifics of this fine machine (if you would like to dear reader then head to http://www.trekbikes.com/ ) but I am very happy with it.
Now comes the riding... wish me luck fellow readers and donations to my life insurance policy can be made to the CO.
Actually in all honesty, they did not con me into riding I actually enjoy the challenge.
XO
Note: Both photographs were taken by 1stLT "CJ" and Ssg "AJ" budding photographers that they are... and yes "CJ" put his fleece on backwards but he won't listen.
2 comments:
Excellent choice in tools, young Jedi. We are gonna have a blast! Don't worry about your speed in the coming months of sweat and toil. Just work on endurance and learn everything you can about road biking and how to handle a fine machine such as the Trek 2.1. We will not be racing from point A to point B. With a ride like the MS 150, it's all about the journey, not the destination. The team we will be part of will take care of all details at those destinations. We just have to push the pedals, take the photos, and find reasons to smile! I'm so glad you agreed to do this. Besides we'll be coming out a bit early to hang with the platoon, so it's not ALL about the bike ride, you know.
And be sure to post about your cycling progress and experiences these coming months. The learning curve is very steep, indeed, even if the roads are not. (Or maybe they will be?)
Great bike! (great pix too--I see the kids are following in Dad's footsteps.) :)
If you find it hard to get away to cycle, some folks use those kiddie trailers and bring the kids along....
Another idea is to buy a trainer and set your bike up on it inside.
Believe me, as you head into your 40's, you'll be glad you took up cycling.
However, as I said about EBJ taking up cycling at 77, I bear no responsibility for any consequences, bad or good.
Oh yeah--a lot of people name their bike; maybe the kids have some ideas in that department!
C.
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