Thanksgiving Wrap Up

Wow, what a whirlwind the past few days have been. Despite (or because of) everything going on, I was able to get out for a ride this afternoon. Looking through my mileage log, I noticed I am mountain biking further into the season than I've ever done before.

Wednesday evening, Maggie came in from Rochester to spend the night and meet up with Mom and Dad for the trip to Utica for Thanksgiving. She and I brewed with Chris. Thursday morning, we cleaned up from the brewing (which is always a mess) and played some Wii while waiting for Mom and Dad to arrive. They picked us up and we headed to Utica to celebrate Thanksgiving with the Riordans, which was a feasting fest. I typically only overeat once a year and it is always on Thanksgiving. My favorite dish this year was the candied yams. I think I am becoming a fan, but then again, anything you smoother in sugar and more sugar is probably going to turn out pretty delicious.

Friday morning Dad and I began the process of replacing a garage door. Note: if the printed instruction manual and the DVD instructions are not in synch, this could lead to having to redo a few steps... Maggie and Mom graciously helped out by cleaning things around the house, something that falls below biking on my priority list.

The demolition destined door.

First we dismantled the old, rotting door, which wasn't too much of a challenge. Next we framed in the opening for the new door (it is one foot shorter). Once this was completed we started assembling the new door. The printed instructions never instructed us to install the fourth panel and we moved on to installing the tracking... this required us to redo a few steps the next day. Friday, we were able to get the track installed and thought we only had a few hours of work to wrap things up.

Day one progress - the two step ladders were very handy for vertically challenged folk such as ourselves.

Saturday dawned cooler and we started to reevaluate our progress from the day before. We thought the track looked good and installed the fourth panel by taking apart the roller assembly. Once it was in, we removed the nails securing the panels and raised the door half-way to check for alignment. All seemed well but when we put it up all the way, the tracks were being forced out - way out. We realized we failed to make sure they were square to the door, which required us to redo the track hangers. The instructions told us to make sure the diagonals across the two hangers were equal but we failed to realize this didn't necessarily mean they were square. Once they were squared, the door worked fine and we installed the springs. I set about preparing to pour some concrete to repair the asphalt/concrete that was broken at the entrance. I promptly smashed my hand with the hammer and will likely have a pretty amazing bruise for quite a while. We ran short on concrete so Dad continued mixing while I went to get more - 240 pounds in the boot of Bonnie makes her ride a little harsher... In all it took 460 pounds of mix to fill in the hole I made to get to mostly solid subgrade.

Concrete poured, door aligned (for the most part - it is off 3/4" on one side) and working, sunlight gone and cold weather firmly settled in, we called it a day. Dad wanted to install some siding but we will wait for another time.

The evolution of the drill - chest drill on the right with a ~12" long 1/2 bit

Today I got up and installed the handles and picked up from the project. I used a chest drill my grandfather had in his workshop to drill the 1/2" hole required. Now I am truly thankful for the invention of the electric drill. This device took all my weight and what minimal arm strength I have to operate... I also needed to reinstall the sensor on my automatic door opener as it was being tripped by the bracing on the back of the door every time it closed. I guess it was a weekend for garage doors.

So with all of the projects (mostly) addressed, it was time to take advantage of the very unseasonably warm weather and get out for a ride. Like last weekend, I went to Green Lakes where I knew I wouldn't get shot. I got in about an hours worth of riding before the sun set and took away the 54 degree temps. Without cloud cover, once the sun goes down it gets chilly fast. I felt decent on the bike, more so than last weekend, and made fewer stops to take pictures, something I typically do to capture the moment and my breath. It was a bit muddier this week and my tires, again, were too inflated, leading to some "holy cow, I am glad I cleared that" moments. I managed to keep the rubber side down for the entire ride.

If this weather continues, I may be able to pass my second lowest season total.

One of many deer who call Green Lakes home - and creates the need to debate what should be done about them.

Tear it up!

Spring...

Fall

That's what a runner said to me as I met him on the only piece of single track I know of in Green Lakes State Park. Obviously, he didn't know me because I can't recall ever tearing up any trails I've ridden on... but I always enjoy myself. The weather didn't unfold as predicted - the sun came out just in time to go away - but by 1pm the temps were tickling the low 50s so I decided to get out for a ride.

At first, I thought of going for a long-ish mtb ride somewhere like Shindagin or Bear Swamp. But then I remembered shotgun season is open so, in the interest of self-preservation, I considered my safest options - a road ride or mtb'ing somewhere hunting is prohibited. Limited options are present for the latter and, despite toying with the idea of completing a ride around Otisco Lake, I opted for Green Lakes. It is close, closed to hunters, and offers some time on the dirt.

On my way to the park, I saw some flocks of birds doing the "dance" they do occasionally. I wished I'd been able to get closer but the few glimpses I was able to catch while driving were amazing. This video is more intense than what I saw but it was still really impressive.

Once on the trails, I saw more bikers than I've ever seen in one ride at the park. Many were on cyclocross bikes. The trails were a bit damp and the psi in my tires way to high, making some corners interesting. I rode the loop twice and, by the end, was well spent as I've not had many days on the bike this season. I did, however, pass my previous low for miles in a year... sad that that was a significant goal attained.

Why do it when you can over do it?

This past Sunday (unintentionally) I set out to see how long one can function on a fig cookie, pumpkin bread, and a few ounces of soda... but more on that later.

Before

After - the fine work of JB Collision

Friday morning, after picking up a repaired Bonnie, I set off for Virginia to attend the wedding of two friends I made while at VT for grad school. I got into Alexandria just in time to enjoy a Cajun Chipotle Panini from Nickels and Schefflers on King Street. I used to eat one of these a week when I was at VT and began fantasizing about this sandwich at 8am when I got on the road... I think the owners thought I was a little off but humored me when I told them my story. I spent some time reconnecting with a couple of my former professors before taking the Metro into DC to meet up with a friend for dinner at the Black Squirrel. I miss having my car be an option and not a necessity...

On the way, I briefly got to see the new bike shelter at Union Station (sorry, no pictures) which seemed to be being put to good use. En route to the restaurant, the bus we were riding cut the corner too close and clipped an SUV. The driver of the SUV must not have been too concerned because, after looking at the damage and giving the bus driver a few choice words, she drove off. We spent a good deal of time catching up on the events of the past two years and consumed a few more good beers so I got on the road to Westmoreland State Park later than anticipated...

The next day dawned cool and rainy, not what I'd hoped to hear as I had planned to get some riding in before the ceremony. Instead, I helped prepare decorations for the afternoon's festivities - let's just say it is a good thing I don't do that for a living because I'd probably starve... The rain cleared off and temps rose slightly for the outdoor ceremony. Ben's mother's family is from Ecuador and Rita's family is from Bolivia so it was a bi-lingual wedding. While I recognize a few words of Spanish here and there, much of what was said was not understood by me. What was understood, though, was the emotion. I'd never experienced being in a situation where I didn't speak the language but could feel the words through the emotion expressed. It was an amazing experience and there was a lot of love in that room. From my personal history, I've been very wedding averse but this one inspired me to reexamine my own life and renewed hope.

After park regulations forced a shutdown of the reception, we moved a copious amount of alcohol to the after party. By 2am we'd only kicked the pony keg of Blue Moon... there was still a keg of Yuengling to go. I decided to bow out at this point due to the 8 hour drive ahead of me the next day. The hardier kept going until 4:30.

I met up with folks briefly in the morning before heading out to meet up with some more friends in Alexandria. I first stopped by the George Washington Birthplace National Monument. I would have liked to stay longer but was able to walk around some of the property but I am glad to see what I did. I made it to Alexandria and met up with my friends and their family for a while. There was a lot of catching up to do and not enough time to do it all so I hope we get together again in a few weeks during Thanksgiving.

Now back to the limitations of a sleep deprived and poorly nourished body... It was mid 70s and sunny, conditions I am unlikely to see again for countless months. So despite the impact it would leave on my drive back to Syracuse and physical capacities of my body, I decided to ride at Schaeffer Farms. I really enjoyed riding here while at VT so it was great to have this opportunity again. As for my physical state, I really think that I should explore this scenario more often - I felt great! The major limiting factor was my stamina due to lack of riding this season, not my current state. I actually felt like I could ride for much longer than the one hour I did my best to keep it to. I didn't want to get on the road too late for what I thought was a 4.5 hour drive (it turned out to be six...). But it was worth the tired Monday for the way a great weekend was culminated. Why do it when you can over do it, right? I suppose someday I will attain better time management and balancing skills but for now, I'll just keep plugging away. Sitting in a car for six hours after biking is not the best plan, nor is eating the way I did, but I survived and had a great time. The ride put me within 5 miles of being able to surpass my all-time season low total. A weak goal, but one I hope to accomplish before the snow comes back for good this year.

How connected are we really?

It seems I have traded the brain numbing television for the virtual life of a thread stalker.

It's 9:30pm and just realized I've spent nearly all of the past 12 hours in front of a computer. And I do this at least five days a week. During working hours, I am required to be on this thing, typing away to be productive - at least in a way that is socially acceptable in our culture. Afterward, I come home and spend the majority of the evening surfing the web, scouring the myriad of social networking sites for what I've missed in the lives of friends and acquaintances. Is this necessary? Wouldn't I be more connected to them if I unplugged myself and picked up the phone or wrote a letter? Are we diluting ourselves to 0s and 1s in an effort to remain connected all the while losing greater touch with our immediate reality? I can't get back the time I've spent this evening finding out that someone I know baked cookies...

Is it really necessary to share with my friends that I made beer on Saturday? Should I have used that time to go riding instead of working and brewing, most of which the time was spent being sucked into the interweb?

Judging by this post, the answer is a resounding yes.

Summer in November

Since Saturday, we've been enjoying unseasonably warm weather. Almost as warm as our past summer... While I wasn't able to get out for any recreational riding, which is a major bummer, I did some commuting today. It reaffirmed my belief that getting around town on a bike can be as quick as, or quicker than, getting around by car. I left the same location as two co-workers who were in a car and made it back to work, locked up my bike, and was at my desk before they got back. This scenario improved my health, relieved some stress, reduced my impact on the planet, and gave me more time in the office.

Evidence of a former life

My undergrad is in landscape architecture and for a while I helped to redesign streetscapes in PA. A friend of mine found this one on Google Street View in Spring City, PA. If you turn 180 degrees from the starting position, you can see what it looked like before. I always find it amazing to see things I worked on built. It is powerful, the stroke of a pen - draw carefully.

My Halloween Trick

No riding even though the weather was pretty decent for part of the weekend. Instead, Bonnie gets a trip to the repair shop after someone in a hurry backed into her. Thankfully, she came by later to say she was sorry and square up on the insurance information.