Dreams

Have you ever had weird dreams? Saturday night I was in Havana, Cuba drinking mojitos. It's always amazing to me how we can dream a thousand dreams in one night and only remembber a few. Dreams can also turn into nightmares, like when you dream you are being attacked and you want to scream and can't. Have you ever had one of those?  I've dreamt about crashes, broken body parts and a lot of other stuff but I have never had a dream where I'm standing on the podium. I have to start thinking more about that so I can at least dream myself to a podium finish.
Can you tel I have nothing else to talk about?
Saturday it was nice for a long ride but I finally got hit with what I call my March Madness. This is the time when the temps are ok, there's no snow or rain in the forecast but I'm so sick already on bundling up to ride that I don't even wnat to go out. I stayed home and switched tires on my mtb and did a little bike maintenance. I had no desire whatsoever to go out and ride. Sunday I felt the same way but "forced" myself to go out and ride for 2.5hrs since we are leaving on Thursday for our annual training weekend in Asheville. The punishment will be such that I'll be dropped sometime somewhere left to find my own way out. And they better not give me the car keys to hold this time, last year I made everybody wait for hrs while I took a nap at the top of the mountain, I almost didn't make it home.
Anyways, looking forward to the punishment and see how bad my fitness is in comparisson to my riding companions.

Another weekend another...

Yes, it is becoming the norm around here, another weekend another storm. More heavy wet snow is falling now with an expected 5-10 inches depending where you are at. The drive in to work wasn't as bad as i thought it was going to be with a few exceptions. Strongsville and North Royalton get an A for keeping the roads in good shape, at least the ones I drive on. As usual Broadview Hts. gets a big D, they never seem to do a good job there doesn't matter how much snow falls. Brecksville a C but the most surprising one is Solon which I'm going to give them a big F.
Then again, why I'm I complaining, worst natural disasters are happening around the world and today is Japan. First e-mail I was looking for this morning was from my counterpart and friend in Japan. He did write us a short e-mail letting us now that they are ok but many of his co-workers are spending the day/night in the office because the trains and any type of transportation are not working. He lives 2 hrs away from Tokyo and that's traveling in one of the "bullet" trains they have there.
My prayers are with them.

nonsense about the weather and more nonsense about anything

Have you ever notice that conversations between outdoor types are all about the weather this time of the year:
-Is it going to be warm enough to ride tonight
-look how carppy it looks outside
-darn is cold
-roads have to much salt on
-the weekend looks good
-the weekend looks carppy
-it's sunny and 40 outside and I'm stuck in here
-I wonder if I can sneak out early (weather related)
-no more "sick" days left (it is still weather realated)
-too wet to ride
-too much snow to ride!
-too muddy to hike
-I don't want to get my new hiking boots muddy
-I don't want to have to clean my bike afterwards

This is the time of the year where we are all sick of the trainer and rolllers and can't wait to get outside.
But, once we get home, some of us I'm not saying all of us and not all the time but sometimes; follow me? we start looking for excuses not to get out and end up on the trainer instead of being outside. That was me yesterday, but I had a good excuse, my wife has been really sick for the last 2 weeks abd even missed 3 or 4 days of work last week. Anyways, warm day, sunny day, dry roads and thoughts of going to Hinckley and do a bunch laps. Get home and my knees feel a little weak, throat doesn't feel right...find excuses not to go out...ended up doing an hr on the trainer. To top that, I got up 20 minutes earlier this morning (4am) and before I did my weight workout put in another half hr on the trainer doing what...watching the weather of course. Which led to calling myself names for not riding yesterday since the rest of the week looks how else but carppy. It seems all the nice days that I could be riding to work fall  on Tuesday or Thursday and I can't ride because I have spinning classes. Man, sure hope I can start commuting to work soon gas prices are killing everybody.
Didn't I tell you it was a lot of nonsense, thanks for reading anyways, if anybody out there cares.

I'm so focused I can't even see my feet, that's how fast I was spinning.

Like my lap top set up? I was watching this.

2011 Montepaschi Strade Bianche

Somewhere in Spain

A Hill in Spain from chris akrigg on Vimeo.

Bonnie park

Went to the store to buy a few things to make chicken soup (the day calls for chicken soup) and took a side trip to Bonnie park to see how high the river is running.

Needless to say, it is running high. The path is muddy in some places but you can always jump on the road since it's the park and drivers are "very nice to you".
Many parts of northeast Ohio are flooded or getting there.

How do you like my new banner?

Looks great in my cave. No, I didn't steal it, but I may as well have, people are looking for me, but they are not going to find me. I'm not home, I moved.

Different down hill course

This is really different than the down hill courses we are use to see.

Last night

I'll start with yesterday morning, like 4:30am. Got up got ready and went to the rec ctr for my spinning class. Good class, excellent class since I'm the instructor. Good drive to work, better day at work and a good drive back home. Non eventful day. On to k\last night. Good temps in the high 30's and sun make you feel good. so I got ready and headed down to the park to put in an hour and a half of easy riding. What I forgot was that the park roads had been closed due to flooding and as soon as I rode across 82 I hit a wall of mud that stopped me on my tracks, it took all I had not to let the bike stop. I wasn't going to go home so I turned around and headed east on the road. Going up the hill towards ridge I turn my helmet light on an within 2 minutes it goes off, I forgot to re-charge it the last time I used it. Turned around and did the most sensible thing I thought  off...went home and stuff my face with pizza.

I thought it was the best decision I made in a long time. I thought I had escaped the temptation when I went out to ride even though the smell in the house was intense. And I don't even feel guilty, not a good sign with the left over pizza we have.

Unpredictable weather?????????

Kind of late post about the weather we had on Friday but that's what Cleveland weather can be, anything can happen anytime. Lots of heavy wet blowing snow Friday morning was enough for me to stay home. I had 10 to 14 inches of snow on my driveway. It took me 2.5 hrs to clear 2 driveways. My arms are so sore I can hardly lift them and my shoulders aren't any better. I'm sure I"m not the only one.

 

Not really, this is Cleveland, Ohio
Saturday I ventured out to the park to ride since the park plows the path and It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. The warmer temps turn the snow into slush and it's easier to ride on. A little over two hrs and almost 3hrs. today. Try riding on wet wood with a lot of snow.

Right now I'm sitting here watching the Tour of Oman. At least this one has different terrain than the tour of Quatar which is all flat. I wonder how much these countries are paying the UCI to have a race there.

Downhilling in China