The Most Awesome Bike in the World

Isn't it?

Painted Kettlebell

As promised here is the pic of my newy painted kettlebell. I didn't end up painting it the way I wanted, but I like it anyway. The stencil I made didn't want to curve around the kettlebell. So I scrapped that idea and just left it plain red. I'm glad I took the paint off the handle too. It allows me to use chalk more effectively. I was doing some snatches with it the other night and it felt good in my hand.

Before:

After:

The Dude

Painting My Kettlebell

I've been looking at painting my kettlebell for a while. I got 3 more kettlebells for xmas so now I have a set of 35 pounds and a set of 53 pounds. Now I want to paint each pair in a different color scheme. It will be easier to differentiate them and will make them more aesthetically pleasing to look at. My initial thought was because they kick my ass so much I wanted to go with a "punisher" theme. I'm not a comic book junkie, but I did like the movie. So I found a Punisher skull picture online and printed it out, laid vinyl tape over the front and back of the logo, and then cut it out with an exacto knife. So that gives me a stencil to paint the logo on. That is as far as I have gotten. I need to get supplies before I go any further. I'm planning on painting the 53s red with the white Punisher logo. As for the 35s I have not figured out what I want to do with them yet. I have a few ideas but nothing that is really standing out at the moment. I'm leaning towards a camo pattern, but not sure due to the complexity. I'm hoping to get the 53s done this weekend. I'll post pics once I have them all done.

Cold Workout

The ice storm the rolled through on Thursday made for a good workout this weekend. I was out shovelling and scraping ice Friday night and Sunday. Sunday was the best, it was 0 degrees with -30 degree windchill. I lasted about an hour, but that was because I broke my scrapper. After fixing it I decided I was too sweaty (and tired) to go back out. I'll have to get back out again to finish up since we have family coming over Wednesday night.

The Dude

A New Day

My back pain and cold are nearly gone. So today I got up and did a kettlebell workout. I about threw up since I hadn't worked out for a couple weeks. I normally workout after work but usually I'm not in the mood to work out when I get home so I end up skipping it.

The Dude

On the DL

I hurt my back a couple weeks ago and have been on the mend since. My back is feeling better so going to try it tonight to see if I can get back on track.


The Dude

A New Start?

Deleted

Going Forward

After a long hiatus and a busy summer, I'm back.

The RAGBRAI That (Almost) Was

Well after a long awaited RAGBRAI, we didn't go. My wife came down with the flew and we cancelled our trip on Thursday. To be honest I was glad it turned out that way. There was something about cycling, drinking, 95 degree heat, humidity, sun, crowds, and hangovers that didn't appeal to me. I guess when it comes to cycling I like a more cool, calm, and sober approach. I like to drink as much as the next guy but there is a time and a place for it. I realize some of you reading this are thinking (or saying) "pussy!", but to each their own. There is something about BRAN that appeals to me, primarilly the cooler temps and lesser crowds (if 600 is not a crowd). Don't get me wrong BRAN has it's faults, primarilly the attitudes of the people that organize it, but it is a good ride otherwise. So I don't think I'll be riding across Iowa anytime soon. Now what I did instead is another story for another time.

The Dude

Long Time No Blog

Wow it's been over a month since my last post. I've been lacking in my blogger responsibilities.

The weekend of July 4th Kelli and I rode 20 miles on the trails Friday morning. I got a flat 4 miles in so we probably would have gone further. Saturday a group of us met up at the Wabash trail head in CB and rode to Malvern to had breakfast. Good food, great ride, and great weather. 45 miles that day. We didn't get off the couch Sunday.

This past weekend I met my brother in Chicago for the NASCAR race. We had a great time and caught up on things.

This weekend is RAGBRAI! Wow, I'm under trained but will be alright I have this new ability to climb hills with ease so the seat time my only concern. I'm going to squeeze in a couple 20 mile rides this week after work to try to acclimate to the heat a little better. After tailgating all weekend I've got a good start I just need to adjust to riding in the heat.

The Dude

Bike Ride Across Nebraska

My wife and I got back last night from doing the first 4 days of BRAN. It was a great ride. Day 3 had a 20mph headwind, but otherwise it was very enjoyable. The scenery was great, I had no idea Nebraska had such beautiful scenery. There were a couple of times I thought I was in another state. States typically associated with beatuifull scenery like Wyoming and Montana. Hopefully my pictures turn out and show what I'm talking about.

BRAN Time!

This coming weekend is BRAN (Bicycle Ride Across Nebraska). My wife and I will be riding the first 4 days. The weather looks pretty decent, highs in the low 80s and lows around 60. As rainy as it has been I'm expecting rain and can deal with that. I actually like riding in the rain. It's camping in the rain that I don't like. The route this year will be real scenic and not very hilly, which is nice.

BRAN is a really good ride for the money. You get fully supported SAG vehicles every 10-12 miles, gear transportation from town to town, use of school shower facilities, a smaller less chaotic ride, and you really get to be personal with the people in each town. Unlike RAGRAI, BRAN is more of a family atmosphere so you don't see people getting drunk. People do drink (I'm one of them), but it's more controlled and responsible. The ride is very oganized and eventhough it is limited to 600 riders it rarely fills up.

www.bran-inc.org

The Dude

Clydesdale in Horse Country

This weekend we went to Lexington, KY to visit friends. I rented a Specialized Sequoia from a local bike shop and went for a couple rides. Lexington is in what is called Bluegrass Country. It is also what I would call horse country. There are a ton of multi-million dollar horse farms surrounding Lexington. So not only did I get a good hill workout but the scenery was phenomenal. Rolling green grassy hills, black painted fences, thoroughbred horses, stables that look like mansions, and well paved roads. Best of all Lexington is a cycling community and motorists are used to seeing cyclists on the roads and are patient when passing. I felt very comfortable out riding on the roads. Overall it was a good weekend with a couple good hilly rides. I got 44 miles in on a holiday weekend away from home. It's 44 miles I normally wouldn't have gotten so I'll take it.

The Dude

Slump Buster

Deleted

Enter The Kettelbell!

Last night got my Kettlebell (KB). I was very impressed with the speed of delivery and the quality of the KB itself. I ran through a couple of the warm up exercises so I knew what I was doing and then I started the timer and ran through a repeating sequence of 3 warm up moves for 10 minutes. After that I jumped into my workout. For 12 minutes I did what is called the swing, the most basic move in kettlebell workouts. It is the basis for which everything is built off of. I did 40 reps and then did what is called an active rest in between sets. My active rest consisted of running in place. So I repeated that non stop for 12 minutes. I managed to cycle through the swings and active rest 5 times. 40 swings per cycle = 200 reps in 12 minutes. I was literally soaking wet at the end of my workout. When I was training for the marathon it would take me far longer to get a shirt soaking sweat worked up. WOW it kicked my ass. In 25 minutes I got an awesome workout. I didn't go to a gym, or work out for 2 hours either. This was done in the comfort of my home and at a time of my choosing. It doesn't get much better than that.

Today I'm not too sore, although my soreness usually doesn't set in until two days after. So we'll see how I feel tomorrow.

The Dude

Kettlebells

My brother has recently taken up training with kettlebells. I had never heard about them before so after I got back from his house after Easter I did some research on the internet about them. I thought they looked like a good way for me to get back into lifting weights. I lifted weights religiously from the time I was 13 until I was about 25. Then I just got burnt out and also got married, so my priorities changed. So 50 pounds later I need to get back into shape. I've wanted to start lifting weights again, but just have not had the motivation to since the first thing I think about is how much I hated lifting that last time I did it regularly. Kettlebell training is completely different than anything I've ever done. It is a very old school way of training. There is a lot of technique involved and the movements are very explosive.

Last week I contacted a certified kettlebell instructor (the only one in the area) and arranged for him to come over Saturday to give me a demo and training session. I have to say I was kind of worried about what I was getting into. I haven't lifted consistently for 7 years. So I was worried about how sore I would be the next day and days after. Anyway Eric came over on Saturday and gave me an impressive demo. The types of things you can do with the kettlebells is amazing. Then he showed me the techniques and had me try some of the Olympic lifts. I did cleans, jerks, and snatch. I had issues getting the technique down for the cleans. Once he took me through the technique for some of the lifts he ran me through a short training session. OMG! It absolutely kicked my ass. I don't know the last time I felt that fatigued and out of breath. It felt good and bad at the same time. It is such a weird combination of exercise it's hard to explain. It's like sprinting and lifting to failure at the same time. Eric did a great job presenting kettlebells to me. I'm planning on getting back with him in a few weeks to go over my form.

I ordered a 35# kettlebell last Friday and it will be here on Wednesday. I'll start my workouts that night and continue to report on my progress here. I'm really excited to see how this training will effect my cycling. It really works your whole body but it really works your core muscles. I'm really lacking core muscles and often have a sore lower back after a hard ride. I'm also really bad at hills. I'm hoping the increased strength in my legs (and hopefully weight loss that comes with working out ) will assist me with BRAN and RAGBRAI. Ride On!

The Dude

Let The Training Begin!

April 5th was my first weekly Wabash Breakfast Ride (WBR). My wife Kelli couldn't make it but out friends Chris and Karol did. We met at the trail head in Council Bluffs at 8am and headed to Malvern, IA. Early on we decided to cut the ride short. I was sick the day before and felt dead, and it was Chris and Karol's first ride of the year and they didn't have their cycling legs/butt yet. There is a good little diner in Silver City we were going to stop at to eat and turn around and head back from there. By the time we got close to Silver City we were starving and ready to eat. One big problem, the place was closed. Not only was it closed, it for sale. So we decided to grit it out and ride an additional 9 miles to Malvern. It was brutal, but we made it and had a great brunch. It was a great small town Iowa experience. Everyone was really nice to us and made us feel like we were from there. We took several breaks on the way back, the best one was the stop we made at the Mineola Steak House. We did a "one and done" which is grabbing a beer and leaving. We took our time having that beer too. we struggled our way back to the trail head. 5 hours and 46 miles later we were done.

Sunday I got up and did some yard work. Then I cleaned by road bike and degreased/lubed my gears. There is something therapeutic about cleaning your bike. I set up my work stand in the driveway, set my bike up on it and set out on an hour clean job.

I got out tonight for a short 16 miler. It was really windy and a little brisk. My feet were pretty cold when I got done. I need to wear my shoe covers next time. My bike rode great, it's amazing how a clean chain and gears can make a big difference.

The Dude

Spring is in the air!

Well after travelling the last 3 weekends I am looking forward to April. I have verry little planned and can get back on track with cycling. BRAN is the second week of June so I've got 2 months to get back into shape for that type of riding. I am far better prepared to ride in cool spring weather than I was last year. So I plan to get a jump start in April while the weather is cool. Now that we are post day light savings time I can get out after work and have plenty of time to ride. I'm planning on logging about 300 miles in April and 500 miles in May. That will give me close to a thousand miles in the saddle before BRAN. Then I just need to maintain for RAGBRAI at the end of July.

This coming weekend will be the first weekly Wabash Breakfast Ride that I organized. I've made it a standing reservation for Saturday mornings. I sent a note out to all my cycling friends and let them know I'd be there every week unless they heard differently from me. It makes it so that I don't have to organize who is going to be there weekly. I'll be there to ride regardless so if someone joins me, all the better. We start at the trailhead in Council Bluffs, IA and ride to Malvern, IA 22.5 miles to the southeast. There is a great little family run diner there that we'll have breakfast at and then head back. It will give me a great excuse to get some use out of my new cyclocross bike and also to get up and get going on a Saturday.

The Dude

Sham Rock On!

What a weekend in Virginia Beach. We were there for the Yuengling Shamrock Sportsfest. We did some sightseeing, some eating, a lot of running, and a lot of drinking. The run went pretty good, as well as 13.1 miles can go anyway. My wife and I ran together the whole time. We ran the first 6 miles and ran/walked the last half. By the end my legs felt like tree trunks and would barely function. We finished in under 3 hours as planned at a time of 2:47. After we finished we put on some warmer clothes and waited for one of our friends to finish the marathon. It was her first marathon and she finished in 3:14, qualifying for the Boston Marathon in 2009. Not to shabby. One of the reasons I signed up for this run was because it was sponsored by Yuengling beer. There was a huge tent set up on the beach right next to the finish line that was full of kegs. I celebrated the run and the St Pats holiday with several beers (11). Did I mention they were all free!

The downside of running 13.1 miles is the aftermath. Oh yes the pain that ensues is brutal. Unfortunately I had a little extra pain beyond the norm. I have (warning, self diagnosis) a tendon in my foot that I think is strained. It only hurts when I walk and doesn't hurt to the touch. If it still hurts in another day I'm going to see a doctor. I hate going to the doctor so that means it's bad. I've been icing it a lot so we'll see how it goes.

So now that the run is over I can turn my concentration on to cycling. I've got a long list of rides I want to do this year. I just need my foot to heal so I can go full out.

My Own March Madness

March has been so far and will be a busy month. Last weekend I made a run to my families farm in Missouri to prepare for our annual spring camping trip. Sunday I went with a couple of me friends to help them pick out new bikes. They are pretty green to cycling and don't know much of anything. So I was glad to help. You don't realize how much you know about bikes until you help someone pick one out.
This coming weekend (St Patty's Weekend) is the half marathon in VA Beach. We leave Thursday and Get back on Monday. I'm pretty under trained and so is my wife, so we are just going to have fun and run as much of it as we can and not try to kill ourselves. It will be a great weekend and I'm looking forward to it.
Next weekend we are flying out to Pittsburgh. We'll spend a day taking in the sights of downtown Pit and then drive up to spend some time with my brother and his family. We haven't seen our 2 nieces and nephew since early January.
Finally to finish off the month is the aforementioned camping trip in Northwest Missouri. We'll be joined by 6 of our friends, and every one's dogs. It's a good relaxing weekend given that the weather cooperates.
After that April will slow down and that is when I start my cycling season. It was 66 in Omaha today. I went out and got 20 miles in. I felt strong considering it was my second outside ride. I think all the running I did over the winter helped me more than I thought.