Chance to escape work and enjoy our winter ridn activites comes with some days off. All three ridn disiplines in four days is a year-end bonus.
Unexpectedly, Alix and Adam were able to spend a whole day with us the day before Xmas and we all went up to Gore to snowboard. I have not been to Gore in over 10 years, but their non-holiday price and promise of enough terrain to enjoy were enticing. Killington has plenty of mountain(s) open now, but their steep 'Peak' fee was a deal breaker for taking the whole family for me. Donna did not get to snowboard all last year with moving and hockey taking her mountain time away. So, it was a good chance to get her going again for the year.
Adam is an avid snowboarder having put in 85 days in one season while he was in high school. However, his board was moved to a location not suited to preserving the integrety of his edges when he moved out of his nuclear family home. Luckily, my Burton Malalo was in good shape and he had fun 'surfing' the big-nosed board down the hard-pack, packed-powder conditions. That board is unique in its ability to both carve edge and float in powder. Under Adam's direction it got the ride of its lifetime. Adam gave me some quick tips on getting air (more than an inch, but less than a foot still) without twisting my body and landing off balance. Needs more pratice, but surprising what just a little advice can do to build the confidence to try new things.
We had a good day with everyone enjoying the pleasures of sliding, edging and gliding down the slopes. Gore was not crowded at all and had enough good blue diamond runs for all of us to have fun together. We rode the gondola all day. The clouds cleared around noon and the periwinkle blue sky opened up making the scene of ice, trees and Adirondack mountains and lakes special. On our way home we stopped in Glens Falls and had some Mexican at Raul's while watching the drivers negotiate the traffice circle downtown, then desert and coffee across the street. It was a great day with A+A and to get Donna back out on the snowboard - I hope we can all do it again soon.
Christmas day and Alix came by briefly in the morning; Jesse, Lisa and Hector came over in the late afternoon/evening. In between Donna and I got our outdoor activity fixes in. Donna took Chance for a run up Summit Mountain Road, around the lake and down Dutchtown Road returning on CR-47. A 4.7 mile 'around the block' run that has plenty of hills and views of VT's Mt. Equinox. I donned the ice biking gear and set off on the Epic to see if I could stay on top of the snowmobile trails that connect the sheep pasture on Brennen Road Extension over to the other side of Bain road through corn and hay fields. These trails were just hard enough to support the tires and riding was good. There were some spots where the tires sunk in deep enough to up the resistence too much, but not too many. Some places where truck or tractor tires had cut down to the ground saved the day. In all I got a good 45 minute workout of about 5 miles of riding with good climbing and heart-pounding aerobic work. The frost line was evident halfway up the mountain all day long making the scenery special, too.
Today, the freezing rain just stopped and it is now in the low 30's and cloudy. I will check to see if the snow on the new trails is compacted enough to ride. As it turned out the rain never let-up and I never went out. However, Sunday I tried the new trails, but the thick snow and now soft mud made riding very difficult. Around 3PM the skies cleared and the temperature soared to 42 degrees. I dug out the clamp-on rear fender and put it on the Lemond cyclocross bike and headed out on the wet mushy roads to see what I could do road riding. It was great! I wound up doing 20 miles around Cassyunna Lake with the ice fishermen as witnesses. On the east side two huge condors came out of the west sky and did a fly-by. I put on the head and tail lights coming off the lake and climbed back over "Corgey" hill to home. Donna thought I was out on the trails the whole time.
Snowboarding, mountain biking and road riding on the last weekend of 2009! A great conclusion to a challenging year and hopfully a positive augur for 2010!
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Machette Instead of Board
Instead of heading up to Killington I stay home and build more trails. I just could not get into the car after a 1000-plus mile driving week. The conditions were good and more terrain open, but another 200 miles in the Outback were not going to happen.
Instead, I get out the trusty machette and hack away at the trails needed to connect the two networks I had built over the summer. It is a perfect time to attack the tangled brush and thorns as they are brittle and some are dead. The snow is hard and crusty and about 6 inches deep, just enough resistance to keep it from being ridable. But, stomping it down while clearing the small trees and brush will make it ridable if we get rain and freeze. A good 2-hour plus workout too, on both Saturday and Sunday.
Instead, I get out the trusty machette and hack away at the trails needed to connect the two networks I had built over the summer. It is a perfect time to attack the tangled brush and thorns as they are brittle and some are dead. The snow is hard and crusty and about 6 inches deep, just enough resistance to keep it from being ridable. But, stomping it down while clearing the small trees and brush will make it ridable if we get rain and freeze. A good 2-hour plus workout too, on both Saturday and Sunday.
Friday, December 18, 2009
Killington First Day
Great day of snowboarding last Sunday at Killington. Conditions were ideal with the only tough hardpack on East Fall Lower. Chute, Rime, East Fall, Ridge Runer all in good shape. Over on Skye Mountain, Bittersweet was good, but you had to fight a real balst of wind on the top. Looking forward to more of the mountain being open this Sunday.
Legs held up well for the first riding of the year. Half way through the third hour my legs started to get rubbery, so I left Skye and came back to Snowden to take some final runs down Chute. http://www.killington.com/winter/mountain/trail_map/W09-10_Killington_Trail%20Guide.pdf
Legs held up well for the first riding of the year. Half way through the third hour my legs started to get rubbery, so I left Skye and came back to Snowden to take some final runs down Chute. http://www.killington.com/winter/mountain/trail_map/W09-10_Killington_Trail%20Guide.pdfThe Express Card should be a good deal for this year as you only pay for the days you go, and Sundays are considered mid-week. We will see if I get to other mountains or not; hard to beat K.
It started off sunny, but the clouds moved in after 2pm. The ride home was very touchy. As I went west from Rutland on Route 4 the rain turned to ice and the traffic slowed to 20 MPH, but my trusty Subaru got in the left lane and we cruised along at 50 MPH no problem. A SUV flipped over and they were taking people to the hospital as I went by. The rest of the ride was slow as the freezing rain turned to snow packed roads, but got home safe.
With travel and extreme cold this week, I did not get any other activity this week until tonight. And that activity was spinning on the Y-foil in the basement. Good tunes made the hour-long spin go pretty fast and managed to get good 'climbs' and 'sprints' mixed in. Not ideal, but better than nothing or trying to do something in the dark at 7 degrees on frozen roads!
With travel and extreme cold this week, I did not get any other activity this week until tonight. And that activity was spinning on the Y-foil in the basement. Good tunes made the hour-long spin go pretty fast and managed to get good 'climbs' and 'sprints' mixed in. Not ideal, but better than nothing or trying to do something in the dark at 7 degrees on frozen roads!
Saturday, December 12, 2009
F the Y
Not that there is anything wrong with the Y, it's not Y's fault. But, we decided that there are too many good things to do outside, and now we have room inside for setting up training equipment, why pay the dues, fight the roads, take the time to travel, go through the hassle? Hence, F the Y.
As it is I am forced to use the equipment found in Holiday Inn Expresses and Comfort Inns across the Northeast and US when traveling at work. I have my Y-foil on a trainer for indoor spinning, Donna will get a treadmill and we have free weights and mats for calestetics, what more do we really need?
However, it is the opportunity to push the limit on outdoor activities at home that is most appealing about F-ing the Y. I just returned from a 14 mile ride on mostly icy / dirt roads around the house - out Coach, up Allen to Summit Lake - out and back on Dutchtown Road, and home. It was 25 degrees with little wind and with the right gear, it was a comfortable 1:16 workout with good climbs, fresh air and georgous scenery. I think I had one car pass me on Dutchtown, that's it!
My Epic has its Noikian studded tires on, and pink vet wrap to cover the white frame so some over-zealous deer hunter doesn't see a flash of white and shoot me. For me, a hoody under the helmet, two technical shirts, my winter riding jersey and yellow wind jacket, CamelBack filled with warm water (under the wind jacket) on top. Below: cycling shorts, midweight cycling pants and wind pants I bought for $2 at a bike store in Bennington, VT. On the feet: wool socks, Seal Skin waterproof socks and Shimano winter MTB boots.
Last Sunday I did the annual Lake Desolation MTB ride. A set of pictures and description can be found here: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/album.php?aid=45506&id=1424203679&ref=mf. While the loggers have made a mess of this area, it is still fun to get out with a group in such challenging conditions.
Killington is open and I will be heading up tommorow! F the Y.
As it is I am forced to use the equipment found in Holiday Inn Expresses and Comfort Inns across the Northeast and US when traveling at work. I have my Y-foil on a trainer for indoor spinning, Donna will get a treadmill and we have free weights and mats for calestetics, what more do we really need?
However, it is the opportunity to push the limit on outdoor activities at home that is most appealing about F-ing the Y. I just returned from a 14 mile ride on mostly icy / dirt roads around the house - out Coach, up Allen to Summit Lake - out and back on Dutchtown Road, and home. It was 25 degrees with little wind and with the right gear, it was a comfortable 1:16 workout with good climbs, fresh air and georgous scenery. I think I had one car pass me on Dutchtown, that's it!
My Epic has its Noikian studded tires on, and pink vet wrap to cover the white frame so some over-zealous deer hunter doesn't see a flash of white and shoot me. For me, a hoody under the helmet, two technical shirts, my winter riding jersey and yellow wind jacket, CamelBack filled with warm water (under the wind jacket) on top. Below: cycling shorts, midweight cycling pants and wind pants I bought for $2 at a bike store in Bennington, VT. On the feet: wool socks, Seal Skin waterproof socks and Shimano winter MTB boots.
Last Sunday I did the annual Lake Desolation MTB ride. A set of pictures and description can be found here: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/album.php?aid=45506&id=1424203679&ref=mf. While the loggers have made a mess of this area, it is still fun to get out with a group in such challenging conditions.
Killington is open and I will be heading up tommorow! F the Y.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
RuppRider Returns ... Again
Well, the last time I posted was nearly a year ago. No promises to keep posting, but thought I would give it a go.
Lots of events since last January - numero uno is moving from our idyllic location for road cycling, mountain biking and snowboarding to an even better locale about 20 minutes north. Donna and I rented a four bedroom farm house for 13 years unable to move because it was so economical and so well located for our activities. We received many signs that it was time to make a move: old pets dying, home prices falling, interest rates doing the same, even a $8K incentive from Uncle Sam. We looked and looked but really struggled to find a home in our price range that offered the same location for easy access to our Ridn. Finally, on the day we had to put our beloved greyhound Liberty (Mr. Tiny) to sleep, Donna, trying to relieve some of her grief, went on a ride to check out a site we looked up on the Internet. With Mr. Tiny's guidance we found the ideal house for the right price where it would be half the commute for Donna and with plenty of opportunities for Ridn.
The road cycling is even better than before being close to some of the climbs that are sought out on MHCC Rides. Our five acres offers terrain that is perfect for mountain bike trail building and is adjacent to 600 acres on the north slope of a small mountain that is only used by locale deer hunters. We are now 20 minutes closer to West Mountain, Gore and most importantly now only 50 minutes from Killington!
We moved in March and it was shaping up to be a great snowboarding year with lots of early snow and, even with a January thaw, more snow in February and March. However, moving took too many free days from work and I did not get in the days I thought I would. As we got settled in the spring cycling season unfolded. It was very easy to get in some major climbs for this area without having to ride far and I could come up with 20-mile circuits that had 2000 or more feet of climbing without any problems at all. So, there was not any excuse for not getting into good cycling shape early on. The mountain biking was another story. The rains started coming in June and got worse in July and then, when you thought it could not get wetter in the woods, August came and the deluge turned up a notch. Since riding in the woods was not a viable option at most established trail locations, I used the opportunity to build a small network of trails on our five acre lot. It took some practice to not make the trail too difficult. But with stone walls, steep climbs, mud, rocks and roots there was plenty of technical terrain and leg-searing climbs in a small distance of singletrack. Thirty minutes of looping through my trails forces me to stop at least twice to try to get some oxygen back into my blood!
Another advantage to our new location is the proximity to a co-worker that has been interested in cycling. Terry lives about five miles away on our most used road. We started riding together in the spring and kept each other motivated to ride more. Soon Terry bought a new bike and was getting fitter and fitter. Not much later, he got his son interested in the sport and now the three of us ride together. I started out as the leader of this trio, but now I am the one they have to wait for at the top of the climbs! I don't mind as it is very satisfying to watch two more people get the cycling bug and their enthusiasm inspires me to keep going for more.
Our Fall weather has been mild and road cycling continues to be on the Ridn menu. Work will always intrude, but the nearly car-free pavement with the best scenery and terrain you can get in the northeast is right at my door. Today I did a 2 hour/35 mile ride in 46 degree weather. The first third is a descent through the clay farm land to the Hudson River, the next third is the flat paved and dirt roads right along side the river, followed by the climb back up through the rolling hills and Cossyuna Lake to home.
Lots of events since last January - numero uno is moving from our idyllic location for road cycling, mountain biking and snowboarding to an even better locale about 20 minutes north. Donna and I rented a four bedroom farm house for 13 years unable to move because it was so economical and so well located for our activities. We received many signs that it was time to make a move: old pets dying, home prices falling, interest rates doing the same, even a $8K incentive from Uncle Sam. We looked and looked but really struggled to find a home in our price range that offered the same location for easy access to our Ridn. Finally, on the day we had to put our beloved greyhound Liberty (Mr. Tiny) to sleep, Donna, trying to relieve some of her grief, went on a ride to check out a site we looked up on the Internet. With Mr. Tiny's guidance we found the ideal house for the right price where it would be half the commute for Donna and with plenty of opportunities for Ridn.
The road cycling is even better than before being close to some of the climbs that are sought out on MHCC Rides. Our five acres offers terrain that is perfect for mountain bike trail building and is adjacent to 600 acres on the north slope of a small mountain that is only used by locale deer hunters. We are now 20 minutes closer to West Mountain, Gore and most importantly now only 50 minutes from Killington!
We moved in March and it was shaping up to be a great snowboarding year with lots of early snow and, even with a January thaw, more snow in February and March. However, moving took too many free days from work and I did not get in the days I thought I would. As we got settled in the spring cycling season unfolded. It was very easy to get in some major climbs for this area without having to ride far and I could come up with 20-mile circuits that had 2000 or more feet of climbing without any problems at all. So, there was not any excuse for not getting into good cycling shape early on. The mountain biking was another story. The rains started coming in June and got worse in July and then, when you thought it could not get wetter in the woods, August came and the deluge turned up a notch. Since riding in the woods was not a viable option at most established trail locations, I used the opportunity to build a small network of trails on our five acre lot. It took some practice to not make the trail too difficult. But with stone walls, steep climbs, mud, rocks and roots there was plenty of technical terrain and leg-searing climbs in a small distance of singletrack. Thirty minutes of looping through my trails forces me to stop at least twice to try to get some oxygen back into my blood!
Another advantage to our new location is the proximity to a co-worker that has been interested in cycling. Terry lives about five miles away on our most used road. We started riding together in the spring and kept each other motivated to ride more. Soon Terry bought a new bike and was getting fitter and fitter. Not much later, he got his son interested in the sport and now the three of us ride together. I started out as the leader of this trio, but now I am the one they have to wait for at the top of the climbs! I don't mind as it is very satisfying to watch two more people get the cycling bug and their enthusiasm inspires me to keep going for more.
Our Fall weather has been mild and road cycling continues to be on the Ridn menu. Work will always intrude, but the nearly car-free pavement with the best scenery and terrain you can get in the northeast is right at my door. Today I did a 2 hour/35 mile ride in 46 degree weather. The first third is a descent through the clay farm land to the Hudson River, the next third is the flat paved and dirt roads right along side the river, followed by the climb back up through the rolling hills and Cossyuna Lake to home.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Return of the Blogger after a Long Posting Gap
Since Early July, 2008 I have not Posted any activity in RuppRidn. No good excuses, just needed a break. Ridn Activities went on, along with injuries, recoveries and work.
Here is a summary of the Ridn Activities:
> Donna and I kayaked at Russ's beautifully renovated home on Hadlock Pond over the 4th of July weekend. I really enjoyed the upper body workout and getting the accelerated motion result from the extra effort put into paddling. In "spare" time I would like to take kayaking up as another activity to get a more well rounded workout to go with all the leg stuff I do.
> Also on July 4th weekend we went on a short hike to the Blue Ledges section of the Hudson River. A good test of the knees on a short and flat 2-mile in / 2-mile out hike. The water was great and the scenery spectacular.
> The third leg of the 4th weekend activity was a Bruce Ride - Lake Luzerne - Bow Bridge version. With nine riders setting a fast pace, it was fun and the weather perfect.
> Donna and I did some road riding together on our great local roads. With the hot weather we did early morning rides, or late afternoon, to keep cool on the road.
> I tried a long Time Trail after doing well on the Tuesday 10-mile time trial. The Stillwater TT had a 20 and 40-K option for my age group, and I opted for the longer test. It is an out and back race against the clock with no drafting on River Road. Having a big race like this with the course within 3 miles of your house makes it even better. I did well on the out, averaging 8-minute 5k splits. But after the turnaround, I lost my focus, stregth, rhytem , etc. I averaged 21.9 MPH and 1:07:43 time, which was not a good placing. The aero postion for that long was painful for several hours AFTER the race.
> Next day Donna and I rode in the Tour de Paws, a charity ride in Manchester, VT benefitting the dog rescue efforts there. It poured the whole ride. We did 40 miles on great roads. After returning we enjoyed a great meal put on by the organizers and drained the bikes!
> Marty was down for a meeting and he came to the house for a mountain bike ride on our home trails along with Donna. It was fun taking someone new on our home trails.
> I did a MHCC "Tour" ride that featured a tour of the Serrota factory in Saratoga. While these rides are supposed to be at a slower pace than the "Quick" rides I normally do, it was not. I got in with a fast group and we averaged over 19 MPH for the 50-mile ride on a super hot day. The factory tour was very interesting, but I still am not enticed to pay the premium price for their bikes.
> Next day was anotehr Bruce "Quick" ride called Hill of a View. The ride features many tough climbs that I did not do well on with the ride the day before still in my legs. Also, one of the riders had 3 flats before he broke a spoke and we finally (justifiably) abandend him towards the end of the ride.
> End of July and I finally do a Friday Grafton MTB ride this year. Had a good time with the usual crew and rode some new single track the Chris has built.
> Home trail and home road rides with Donna between T-storms and avoiding the heat of the day. I borke the derailleur hanger and tip of my rear triangle frame on the Epic on a simple home trail ride. I immediately went home and found a rear triangle up for bid on Ebay. After researching and asking many questions, I decided to bid on it and won the auction for only $40 plus shipping. To buy new it would be at least $250 and probably closer to $400. Very luck, since I have saved the Ebay search and have not seen another Epic rear triangle frame up for bid since!
> More Bruce and local road rides as well as home trail rides make up August. Our annual Teddy Ride - a 80-mile, 4-corner ride up in the Adirondacks was turned around at the first corner by bad weather. It was still a 58-mile ride, but we were disappointed in having to cut it short. We got soaked before we made it back anyway.
> Did a ride with Donna at SMBA. It was good to get back out on these trails again. There are some additions that are more appealing to intermediate riders with makes it fun.
> Our summer business celebration was delayed until August this year and moved to PA. So, my annual VT mountain bike adventure with coworkers did not happen. Instead I found a bike path ride along the Lehigh River starting in Jim Thorpe, PA, going 25 milers up river and then returning. Terry and Marty joined me after I did it the day before to check it out. Almost perfectly flat on a good solid base, I used the Cannondale with the Cane Creek aero rims. Terry's spokes were bent and needed fixing at the turn around point. It was Marty longest ride ever as he is now getting into some road riding.
> Late evening road rides in late August are fun because you can start so late in the day and still have time to get a good ride in. But the days are getting shorter now. Donna and I did one that had us out at Christie Rd talking to Mike and Stacy until we decided we better get going. It was pretty dark by the time we got home. On another occasion I started out from the house and within a 1/2 mile saw a bunch of riders going the other way. I turned and hooked up with them. They were from the bike store in Schylerville. Marty, a world-class speed skater and great cyclist in the off season is leading rides out of the store on Monday evenings. Donna and I rode down to the store the next Monday and we did a ride out to the Saratoga Battlefield. We had to leave the group and go like heck to make it home and still wound up in the dark on River Road without a light.
> August is also Rupert Mountain ride. Another Bruce ride, 80-miles with killer climb early and lots of intermediate climbs late. Eight riders enjoyed a perfect ride with the best that NY and VT road riding can offer. I get to ride to the ride!
> Time to break out the lights. Both the tail light for late returns on the road bike and the high pwoer headlights for the mountain bikes. I got the Yeti out for a night ride on the home trails. I always enjoy night riding and can not help the first couple of time from getting adrenelin rushes as the shadows crossing your path look like animals streaking at or past you. On the way out I went past Carol's barn on the road. On the return I came from behind the barn and went through some tall grass. Unseen until I was upended were the 15 to 24 inch diameter logs strewn in the grass. I went over the handlebars and hit on my right chin, head and shoulder. Bike and headlamp were not damaged, however.
> Early September is MHCC Century ride time. I started out with the fast group as usual, but this time the fast group was super fast and I was dropped on the first little climb. I got dropped by another group and Bruce and Art were up ahead and I was solo in heavy headwinds. I stopped at the first water stop and waited for a group and went with them. I found two guys that were doing their first century rides. They were both good atheletes and in good shape, but not experienced cyclists. Remembering my first century I decided I would hang with these guys for the day. We stopped and fixed a couple of flats and had a great day of it. The serious climb up West Mountain Road was a challenge, but I stayed at the top and waited for them. I finished and Donna and Harry were waiting at the picnic.
> I could not let the season end without taking the Yeti to Killington for a Downhill MTB day. With the rain we have had all summer the trails were very slick and slippery. It took me about 1 1/2 runs to get used to it, but after that it was a blast. IN all I got six runs in and covered most of the black diamond trails.
> Sacandga Art Ride - good weather and good people, about 20 for the Quick version and 20 for the Tour version. Excellent pizza to take home for Donna.
> SMBA solo rides - enjoying getting to know the trails with new ones being great for solo riding. I was returning from trip to VT that I had bike in the car and never used, so stopped at SMBA before getting home.
> Early October and fall colors are at the peak. Did a great ride with Donna out the Battenkill, Skellie road and around Cassyunna Lake.
> Lake Desolation MTB Ride - early for this ride this year, we have done this in November before. Lots of mud and rocks and climbs and another foray into the Graphite mine shaft.
> More night rides on home trail on Yeti, no logs causing headers of handlebars, though! Mixing good riding on roads on weekends and home trails at night during the week has kept me in decent shape so far into the early fall. However, a trip to CA in which I could not bring or rent a bike put in a week of no activity.
> Finally purchased a new snowboard that have been researching (and driving Donna crazy) all summer long. The Lib Tech Dark Series board has Magne-traction, which is a wavy edge that lets you keep an edge on the hard pack and ice, and Bananna-traction, that is a reverse camber so you do not catch an edge as quick. Donna says this is all just marketing BS. We will see. I got a great deal on it and now can not wait for the snow to hit the mountain.
> With Donna road to McDougal Lake Road to check out a house we saw listed in one of the Real Estate booklets. Nice house, nice road and good ride.
> November 2nd and Killington is open and I am there with my new board!! With limited lifts the crowds were a bit heavy at first, but lighter towards the end. K-1 Gondola open and top to bottom riding in Rime, Reason were great. Board worked as advertised, too. I wanted to take it easy on these new muscles, but was having too much fun. Sore the next couple of days. Did a night mountain bike ride, but had to take it easy from the soreness. Then at Salem office, I reached down to pick up my computer bag, and OUCH! My back went into spasms. This was a Thursday, by Saturday I was at Donato's office.
> Broke out the Lemond cyclocross bike and put the trusty Cane Creek road rims on it with road tires. Back was good as long as not out of saddle. Did some MTB-ing with Bruce, but back still not right. Had to take a full two weeks off and several sessions with Donato, but finally got back in good shape. However, neck and shoulder issues from the tumble over the logs has persisited.
> More Lemond rides, taking it easy, keeping in some shape and still trying to get neck and shoulder better. Weather makes activities limited now to spinning indoors and Snowboarding. The Snowboarding actually helps the neck and shoulder as long as I don't fall hard.
> Studded tires are mounted on Epic for some Ice Biking on the home trails. XC skiing is good now in mid Decmber and Donna goes out with me on her new Snowshoes.
> By Christmas I have gone to Killington five times snowboarding, so it is shaping up to be a great year. The conditions have been good overall, with some days limited to hardpack, but the new baord makes it ridable.
> Very hard to keep weight off and stay in shape. We have lost some long time furry friends: Cherry our Bassett, our cat Sundance, and our Greyhound Liberty - all have been with us 12 years or more and all are gone in the past 2 months. Not a great way to end the year.
> Cold and windy weather make outdoor training hard to accomplish. Donna and I are hitting Dan's sping class on Saturday. XC skiing has been great, using headlamps at night has been fun on the home trails. Even Snowbarding has been a challenge. One day they shut down the main chairs and Gondola at Killington and I had to go back to the car and drive over to Bear Mountain to get out of the wind. Once I was there it was great. And, we have been getting big snow amounts. I did a Pico Powder Day again this year after a big snow fall. The trails, Glades and Woods there are amazing. I took this past Friday off and went to Killington for one of the best condition days ever, knowing that this weekend was going to be brutally cold and windy.
This brings us up to date and I will try to make more frequent entries into the blog going forward. We are working on some exciting things and will keep posting.
Here is a summary of the Ridn Activities:
> Donna and I kayaked at Russ's beautifully renovated home on Hadlock Pond over the 4th of July weekend. I really enjoyed the upper body workout and getting the accelerated motion result from the extra effort put into paddling. In "spare" time I would like to take kayaking up as another activity to get a more well rounded workout to go with all the leg stuff I do.
> Also on July 4th weekend we went on a short hike to the Blue Ledges section of the Hudson River. A good test of the knees on a short and flat 2-mile in / 2-mile out hike. The water was great and the scenery spectacular.
> The third leg of the 4th weekend activity was a Bruce Ride - Lake Luzerne - Bow Bridge version. With nine riders setting a fast pace, it was fun and the weather perfect.
> Donna and I did some road riding together on our great local roads. With the hot weather we did early morning rides, or late afternoon, to keep cool on the road.
> I tried a long Time Trail after doing well on the Tuesday 10-mile time trial. The Stillwater TT had a 20 and 40-K option for my age group, and I opted for the longer test. It is an out and back race against the clock with no drafting on River Road. Having a big race like this with the course within 3 miles of your house makes it even better. I did well on the out, averaging 8-minute 5k splits. But after the turnaround, I lost my focus, stregth, rhytem , etc. I averaged 21.9 MPH and 1:07:43 time, which was not a good placing. The aero postion for that long was painful for several hours AFTER the race.
> Next day Donna and I rode in the Tour de Paws, a charity ride in Manchester, VT benefitting the dog rescue efforts there. It poured the whole ride. We did 40 miles on great roads. After returning we enjoyed a great meal put on by the organizers and drained the bikes!
> Marty was down for a meeting and he came to the house for a mountain bike ride on our home trails along with Donna. It was fun taking someone new on our home trails.
> I did a MHCC "Tour" ride that featured a tour of the Serrota factory in Saratoga. While these rides are supposed to be at a slower pace than the "Quick" rides I normally do, it was not. I got in with a fast group and we averaged over 19 MPH for the 50-mile ride on a super hot day. The factory tour was very interesting, but I still am not enticed to pay the premium price for their bikes.
> Next day was anotehr Bruce "Quick" ride called Hill of a View. The ride features many tough climbs that I did not do well on with the ride the day before still in my legs. Also, one of the riders had 3 flats before he broke a spoke and we finally (justifiably) abandend him towards the end of the ride.
> End of July and I finally do a Friday Grafton MTB ride this year. Had a good time with the usual crew and rode some new single track the Chris has built.
> Home trail and home road rides with Donna between T-storms and avoiding the heat of the day. I borke the derailleur hanger and tip of my rear triangle frame on the Epic on a simple home trail ride. I immediately went home and found a rear triangle up for bid on Ebay. After researching and asking many questions, I decided to bid on it and won the auction for only $40 plus shipping. To buy new it would be at least $250 and probably closer to $400. Very luck, since I have saved the Ebay search and have not seen another Epic rear triangle frame up for bid since!
> More Bruce and local road rides as well as home trail rides make up August. Our annual Teddy Ride - a 80-mile, 4-corner ride up in the Adirondacks was turned around at the first corner by bad weather. It was still a 58-mile ride, but we were disappointed in having to cut it short. We got soaked before we made it back anyway.
> Did a ride with Donna at SMBA. It was good to get back out on these trails again. There are some additions that are more appealing to intermediate riders with makes it fun.
> Our summer business celebration was delayed until August this year and moved to PA. So, my annual VT mountain bike adventure with coworkers did not happen. Instead I found a bike path ride along the Lehigh River starting in Jim Thorpe, PA, going 25 milers up river and then returning. Terry and Marty joined me after I did it the day before to check it out. Almost perfectly flat on a good solid base, I used the Cannondale with the Cane Creek aero rims. Terry's spokes were bent and needed fixing at the turn around point. It was Marty longest ride ever as he is now getting into some road riding.
> Late evening road rides in late August are fun because you can start so late in the day and still have time to get a good ride in. But the days are getting shorter now. Donna and I did one that had us out at Christie Rd talking to Mike and Stacy until we decided we better get going. It was pretty dark by the time we got home. On another occasion I started out from the house and within a 1/2 mile saw a bunch of riders going the other way. I turned and hooked up with them. They were from the bike store in Schylerville. Marty, a world-class speed skater and great cyclist in the off season is leading rides out of the store on Monday evenings. Donna and I rode down to the store the next Monday and we did a ride out to the Saratoga Battlefield. We had to leave the group and go like heck to make it home and still wound up in the dark on River Road without a light.
> August is also Rupert Mountain ride. Another Bruce ride, 80-miles with killer climb early and lots of intermediate climbs late. Eight riders enjoyed a perfect ride with the best that NY and VT road riding can offer. I get to ride to the ride!
> Time to break out the lights. Both the tail light for late returns on the road bike and the high pwoer headlights for the mountain bikes. I got the Yeti out for a night ride on the home trails. I always enjoy night riding and can not help the first couple of time from getting adrenelin rushes as the shadows crossing your path look like animals streaking at or past you. On the way out I went past Carol's barn on the road. On the return I came from behind the barn and went through some tall grass. Unseen until I was upended were the 15 to 24 inch diameter logs strewn in the grass. I went over the handlebars and hit on my right chin, head and shoulder. Bike and headlamp were not damaged, however.
> Early September is MHCC Century ride time. I started out with the fast group as usual, but this time the fast group was super fast and I was dropped on the first little climb. I got dropped by another group and Bruce and Art were up ahead and I was solo in heavy headwinds. I stopped at the first water stop and waited for a group and went with them. I found two guys that were doing their first century rides. They were both good atheletes and in good shape, but not experienced cyclists. Remembering my first century I decided I would hang with these guys for the day. We stopped and fixed a couple of flats and had a great day of it. The serious climb up West Mountain Road was a challenge, but I stayed at the top and waited for them. I finished and Donna and Harry were waiting at the picnic.
> I could not let the season end without taking the Yeti to Killington for a Downhill MTB day. With the rain we have had all summer the trails were very slick and slippery. It took me about 1 1/2 runs to get used to it, but after that it was a blast. IN all I got six runs in and covered most of the black diamond trails.
> Sacandga Art Ride - good weather and good people, about 20 for the Quick version and 20 for the Tour version. Excellent pizza to take home for Donna.
> SMBA solo rides - enjoying getting to know the trails with new ones being great for solo riding. I was returning from trip to VT that I had bike in the car and never used, so stopped at SMBA before getting home.
> Early October and fall colors are at the peak. Did a great ride with Donna out the Battenkill, Skellie road and around Cassyunna Lake.
> Lake Desolation MTB Ride - early for this ride this year, we have done this in November before. Lots of mud and rocks and climbs and another foray into the Graphite mine shaft.
> More night rides on home trail on Yeti, no logs causing headers of handlebars, though! Mixing good riding on roads on weekends and home trails at night during the week has kept me in decent shape so far into the early fall. However, a trip to CA in which I could not bring or rent a bike put in a week of no activity.
> Finally purchased a new snowboard that have been researching (and driving Donna crazy) all summer long. The Lib Tech Dark Series board has Magne-traction, which is a wavy edge that lets you keep an edge on the hard pack and ice, and Bananna-traction, that is a reverse camber so you do not catch an edge as quick. Donna says this is all just marketing BS. We will see. I got a great deal on it and now can not wait for the snow to hit the mountain.
> With Donna road to McDougal Lake Road to check out a house we saw listed in one of the Real Estate booklets. Nice house, nice road and good ride.
> November 2nd and Killington is open and I am there with my new board!! With limited lifts the crowds were a bit heavy at first, but lighter towards the end. K-1 Gondola open and top to bottom riding in Rime, Reason were great. Board worked as advertised, too. I wanted to take it easy on these new muscles, but was having too much fun. Sore the next couple of days. Did a night mountain bike ride, but had to take it easy from the soreness. Then at Salem office, I reached down to pick up my computer bag, and OUCH! My back went into spasms. This was a Thursday, by Saturday I was at Donato's office.
> Broke out the Lemond cyclocross bike and put the trusty Cane Creek road rims on it with road tires. Back was good as long as not out of saddle. Did some MTB-ing with Bruce, but back still not right. Had to take a full two weeks off and several sessions with Donato, but finally got back in good shape. However, neck and shoulder issues from the tumble over the logs has persisited.
> More Lemond rides, taking it easy, keeping in some shape and still trying to get neck and shoulder better. Weather makes activities limited now to spinning indoors and Snowboarding. The Snowboarding actually helps the neck and shoulder as long as I don't fall hard.
> Studded tires are mounted on Epic for some Ice Biking on the home trails. XC skiing is good now in mid Decmber and Donna goes out with me on her new Snowshoes.
> By Christmas I have gone to Killington five times snowboarding, so it is shaping up to be a great year. The conditions have been good overall, with some days limited to hardpack, but the new baord makes it ridable.
> Very hard to keep weight off and stay in shape. We have lost some long time furry friends: Cherry our Bassett, our cat Sundance, and our Greyhound Liberty - all have been with us 12 years or more and all are gone in the past 2 months. Not a great way to end the year.
> Cold and windy weather make outdoor training hard to accomplish. Donna and I are hitting Dan's sping class on Saturday. XC skiing has been great, using headlamps at night has been fun on the home trails. Even Snowbarding has been a challenge. One day they shut down the main chairs and Gondola at Killington and I had to go back to the car and drive over to Bear Mountain to get out of the wind. Once I was there it was great. And, we have been getting big snow amounts. I did a Pico Powder Day again this year after a big snow fall. The trails, Glades and Woods there are amazing. I took this past Friday off and went to Killington for one of the best condition days ever, knowing that this weekend was going to be brutally cold and windy.
This brings us up to date and I will try to make more frequent entries into the blog going forward. We are working on some exciting things and will keep posting.
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