This blog thing is easy!

If you only do one a year! So here ins another big one to fill in the highlights of the year.

Still riding! 206lb this morning. About 20 bikes under my belt in the last year.

I like to tinker and started bike flipping. Pick up a neglected bike put a few hours into cleaning and fixing and sell if I don't fall in love with it. I'm not getting rich but I do make enough to cover the keepers.

I regret selling that Peugeot. Had some sentimental value for some reason. The Mountain commuter didn't really pan out all that well. The handle bars being the biggest issue. Lack of hand positions and the long top tube just didn't make for a real comfortable riding postion for long distance. I did put 1200 miles on it last year but shortly after my last post a 1995 Cannondale T700 touring bike showed up. Second I saw it I knew I had to have it. Little haggling it was mine for $220. Back wheel had a hop in it (bent) but not bad.

I have put about 1800 miles on this bike so far and still enjoying it. Picked up a closeout back wheel at REI for $35. It was for a 9 speed but with a spacer I could run my 7 Speed. Not long after I bought the wheel (and before I even installed it) I ran across a ad on Craig's for a STI set up that included a set of Tiagra 9 speed brifters, 105 rear derailleur and used 9speed 11-28 cassette, 26/36/48 Octalink cranks and for a few bucks more a Tiagra front derailleur. Never thought I would like STI shifters so much but I do. Fenders racks and this is what the bike looked like by the end of the year.

Janice and Mom bought me a Brooks Champion Flyer for X-Mas. The red bottle is the air tank for the Air horn.

I also picked up a 1989 Cannondale R600 road bike that I really liked. Full 105 groupo. 700x23 tires. FAST bike but the gearing was really tough on the hills around here. I bought it with the intent of being a Sunday rider or for riding in events and Centuries.

She turned out to be a cruel mistress. Looks so hot but made me hurt so bad! New seat helped a lot but the problem was the size. 58CM made for low bar to seat combination. GREAT for going fast but not so great for my achy back on long rides. I did put a taller stem on the bike and that helped but it was making the bike something it wasn't.

I had been looking at rides to take part in and noticed the Tour de Cure benefit ride for American Diabetes Association. This one hit close to home since one of the reasons I got back into riding was my blood sugar level getting up into the "Pre Diabetic" levels. My riding cured me of that but I am still at risk. http://tour.diabetes.org/ I decided to do the "Metric Century" or 100K (62 miles) ride. Farthest rides I was doing up to this point was 40 miles.

AT&T has a national team and since I work for them I decided to join that team. Problem was while they had a huge showing for last years rider there was no Team for 2009 showing. I dropped a e-mail to Dan Bariarti (sp) the National captain and before I knew it I was the Atlanta Team captain. What i didn't know at the time was why there was no team. The past team captain had taken retirement in the company merger Re-org that had been happening. The CWA was also in contract talks for renewal. It seems that the person that was going to take up the Captain duties was CWA and was waiting for the Contract to be signed. If it wasn't signed and they went on Strike was the reason.

Leading up to the ride I did a lot of training to get up to where I could do this 60mile ride. Much of that riding was on the Silver Comet Rails to Trails MUP on the R600. I had a chance to drive part of the course. They call it "The Silk Sheets", rolling in scenic. Sounded nice and flat. It was anything but that. Rolling or "Rollers" are a series of hills and in this area they are pretty steep. I soon realize that the tall race gearing on the R600 was going to be murder on me. I decided that the T700 was the bike to ride. It would be heavier by 10lb but it had lower gears to make the hills easier.

So the day arrives (May 17) I load my $220 Craigslist touring bike made commuter onto my $10 garage sale bike rack on the back of my $1400 1986 4Runner and drive down to the event. Rain in the forecast. I find a parking spot between a 5 Series BMW and a Chevy Tahoe with $2k worth of custom rims. Both with $2-3k+ Carbonfiber race bikes hanging on the back. The types of bikes that weigh 17-18lb. Owners in full team kit wearing $200 bike shoes. I put on my $35 REI scratch and dent shoes unload my bike that is pushing 32lb compete with MTX trunk bag with rain fly and go sign in.

Start is loose. Their is an official start time but it is optional. Once you have you wrist band you can take off. So I am sitting there with 100+ other riders who are mostly in full kit on $2k+ bikes. I don't like the start situation. this is not a race but these folks are lined up like it is the Tour de France. One person fall and it would be a mess of others crashing. I didn't want any part of it and took off about 10-5 minutes before the official start.

I set a goal of a 15mph moving pace. Decent speed for the hills but a pro rider would be well over 20mph. The course had SAG stops about every 10 miles. Just before the first SAG the "Teams" in matching Kit start catching me as to the stronger single riders. Now competition is human nature and you get a group of people and they are going to push each other to see who is faster. So these folks are keeping about a 20mph pace to my 15mph pace. We come to the the First SAG and the team is still dismounting. I am feeling good and decide to pass the first SAG and ride onto the second. Again I get about a 10 minute lead and about 17miles from the start the "Teams" catch me. This time the mob mentality is in full effect and I start getting Heckled about my "Touring" set up and in particular my trunk bag in its silver rain fly. Comments like "What is in the cooler?", "Where is the picnic", "Whens Lunch?" Good natured but still the Mob mentality that alone nothing would have been said. I took it in stride and returned a few comments like "coors" ect.

20 mile SAG and I catch back up. Refill my water bottles, Eat a couple bananas and a BP&J. Good fuel foods. Between the 20 and 30miles SAGs is a 3+mile long uphill grade. There is no flat spots to catch a rest, you peddle to you get to the top. Of course this is the point where it starts to rain. Now I have fenders and a bike with no fenders just soaks the rider. Back wheel slings water and what ever is on the road on your back. Front tire slings water at the frame where it sprays onto your feet. Some of the slings off the front tire and blows into your face. Riding a a group the guy in the front of you is slinging it on you. It is miserable. I have fenders and a lot of those problems do not happen. I get rained on but I don't get the road grime and my feet stay fairly dry.

So half way up that hill I start catching the weaker riders that dropped from their "team". I get to return the Heckles. "Ready for that beer yet?", Almost time for lunch, are you hungry" etc. Again in good nature and we all laughed. It was on this hill that I caught up with the oldest rider. I have not found out what her name was but she was easily in her late 70's if not mid 80's. She was on a Hybrid and keeping a good pace on that hill. She was an inspiration to see. I beat her to the 30 mile SAG and she had her own fan club waiting for her cheering her on. I had to join in. She was great to see out there toughing it out.

The rain did not stop. I pressed on and caught or was caught by a few other riders with better rain gear and fenders. We rode together for a while till we got back in the rollers. For some reason I attack hills and get to the top as fast as I can to keep momentum. I dropped the folks I had been riding with. That felt good to have that much energy left after 40+ miles. I ended up having 5 hours of saddle time and average 15.1 mph moving time.

Well I will fill in the rest on a separate post. This one has gotten pretty long.