Truer Words - A Journal

Our First Attempt at Camping

seth@macrobyte.net — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 15:09:17 GMT

This was quite a weekend.

Occasionally, our ecclesia goes camping together. It's not every year, but probably 3 out of 4 years, in mid-June. Wanting to share new experiences with Lauren, I decided to give it a go this year.

I've never camped. Maybe 30 years ago, when I was little, Jed and I used to camp out in our back yard, but otherwise I've never camped. That's ridiculous.

We all got spots near each other at the Hopeville Pond State Park (thanks to Ellyn for organizing the whole weekend). Not being a camper, I have no tent so Mark and Michelle loaned us theirs, and an air mattress. Gary and Ellyn loaned us a couple of sleeping bags, and Lauren and I headed over there Friday evening.

Mark helped me set up the tent (he wasn't staying over night) and pump up the air mattress, then we all settled in around the campfire. At about 10:30 I said goodnight to everyone because she was falling asleep on my lap and I wanted to let her sleep in the tent. After a diaper change and lots of fun taking out my contacts near total darkness, she was curled up like a kitten on one of the sleeping bags, fast asleep.

That lasted for a little over an hour. More than enough time for me to fall into a deep sleep.

Then, she woke up. Happy. VERY VERY HAPPY. She came over to me. She patted my face. She laid her head down on my chest and said "aaaaahhhhhhh", then went back to sleep for three minutes. Then she kissed my cheek and slept with her head on my arm... for a few minutes. Then she laid down completely on top of me and slept for a few more minutes. Then she tried to get into the suitcases.

This went on for hours. She wouldn't settle down, and would cry when I try to put her back on her own sleeping bag. Otherwise, she was perfectly happy... but also totally wide awake and unwilling to let me sleep.

At 3:45 AM I finally gave up. By 4, we were both back in the truck and headed home.

I think if I were ever facing torture, I could handle some pain, but they'd break me in a day or two with sleep deprivation.

I/we slept until late morning, then drove back to the camp site. Saturday night we didn't even try: just went home, got a good night's sleep, and went back again Sunday morning.

I'm glad we tried, and I hope we can try again next year when she's a year older.

The Noisy Fox Has Babies

seth@macrobyte.net — Fri, 16 May 2008 17:25:12 GMT

Remember the noisy fox I wrote about last year? It's still out there, making its calls a few nights per week. I rather like it.

Well, someone answered the call, because now there's at least one baby.

This is only the second time I've seen the kit, but it's the first time that it stayed put long enough for me to get a picture.

Update May 21:

The mother brought at least two kits into the back yard for a little playtime yesterday. Couldn't get a shot of the babies, as she called them back into the woods as soon as I went on the deck to take pictures, but I got her staring right down my lens.

Sound of a Fox, I Think

seth@macrobyte.net — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 18:46:08 GMT

Twice in the last month, I've seen a full grown red fox in our yard. The second time was yesterday morning. They're bigger than I expected!

Last night, some animal was calling out in the woods behind our house. Here's what it sounded like:

(Reading this on the mailing list? Here's the sound file.)

I don't know that it's the fox making all that noise, but I think it is. It sounds a little like the territorial call as listed on this page of fox sounds.

Ride #14: A Fine Early Spring Day

seth@macrobyte.net — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 18:28:10 GMT

What a beautiful day for a bike ride!

It was a little chilly (43° F, 6° C), and slightly breezy, but clear and sunny and I was able to work up a good sweat.

I've taken to carrying a small camera with me on all of my rides. So besides the incessant stats that have come with every ride report, I'm going to post a picture with some of them, too. Including this one of the Pawcatuck River, about half way through my ride. (If you're on the mailing list, you may have to go to the web page to see it.)

There's a hidden motive for posting the photos: I'm going to try to convince Steve (and Mike and/or Paul) to come down here for a ride in May again, like he and Mike did two years ago. I know Steve likes the scenery down here, so the idea is that the pictures will do most of the persuading, and I'll just have to ask.

I'm six months behind on updating my stats, but I've been faithfully recording them on paper so eventually they'll all be up to date. For now, there is no "2007" section in the cycling area of this site.

Which reminds me that I need to get the ball rolling on the PMC fundraising. Donors!? The old PMC page still has the right link, even if the page only talks about the . I've raised $500 so far this year (thank you, Mr. You-Know-Who-You-Are), the goal is $6601.

Stats: 43.72 miles (70.38 km) in 2h 27' 25" for an average speed of 17.79 mph (28.64 kph).

Yes, that's slow. It's also very early in the season! (Oh, and I'm not 100% positive about the ride number. It may be ride 13, I'm not sure yet.)

Catching Up, A Little

seth@macrobyte.net — Thu, 15 Jun 2006 18:06:49 GMT

I was scolded last night by a relative (whose name is not "Ellen", but sounds the same) for not posting anything here since last week. "I've had nothing to read!" she lamented, "You didn't even mention the wonderful picnic at the Schlageter's house!"

"She just wants to toot her own horn," her daughter (whose name is not Mindy, but sounds like it) said.

"Hah!" was her witty response.

Anyway, yes, it's been quiet around here. Next week is the Rails conference in Chi-town, and I need to have my first Rails project "functional" before then so that my client (who is also going to be there) has something to demo.

Also taking up my time, recently:

I spend 30-45 minutes (almost) every day working on the new deck, usually at lunch. Mostly, I'm staining parts that Jed later installs (it'll get a touch-up second coat when we're done).
The bike! My weight still isn't going down (much), but my performance and endurance are gradually improving. I'm done pretending to understand why things are so different this year! (I have more stats and reports to post, sorry I fell behind again.)
Friday night I led the Bible readings at the hall. At least, I led them "officially." We had a special guest, which "eased the burden" on the leader, significantly.
Last Saturday I was supposed to ride in the Quabbin again (first time in a few years), but I wimped out at the last minute due to the flooding rains promised by the professional liars at weather.com. (They got a few quick spatterings, nothing more.) Instead, I rode 55 miles around here, and didn't really work at all that day.
Sunday (after Memorial Service) Corinne and I both enjoyed the "wonderful picnic at the Schlageter's house." It really was a great time! Almost everybody showed up (even Stan and Windy Isbell!), the weather was perfect, food was good, and the Drake kids were there (neither of my nieces, though). What more could I ask for?

Frisbee, that's what! I brought three to the picnic, but I was actually out-Frisbeed for the first time in my life! I tossed it around with Darren for a few minutes, then with Michelle... but then Bill wanted a chance and he just never tired of it! I finally called it quits after a few decades, and had to admit that Bill:
- is a better Frisbee-throwing-machine than I am
- is very stubborn
- has the ability to catch and throw on auto-pilot while his mind wanders
Either way, I've been humbled.

Opossum PIe, Anyone?

seth@macrobyte.net — Wed, 07 Dec 2005 19:49:43 GMT

Wow are Opossum ugly. This baby is only slightly less ugly than the adult variety seen on the side of the road every day (the kind with the treadmark pattern running the full length of its body).

This little guy tried, for about thirty minutes, to find some way into my office through the sliding glass doors into my office from the back yard. (This might have something to do with the weather, it's really cold, but I think it's just because he's a young'un, and he's hungry). Then he went up on the deck and completely freaked out the parrots in their room (which has big windows looking out on the deck). It was their screams of terror and fury that finally convinced me to do something about him.

Not that it was difficult.

I put some cat food on a paper towel, in the bottom of cat-carrier. He surprised me by not running away when I went outside, so I just put the carrier down in front of him. After a minute of sniffing, he walked right in and started eating. I just walked up to it and closed the door... on his tail. Oops. He spun around at the incredible speed that only possums can manage -- at least 1,000 millimeters per hour -- and looked at me. That it. I opened the door again, pushed his tail out the way with my hand, and closed it.

Now he's incarcerated in my office, while I read him possum recipes ... and wait for Groton animal control to call me back.

"Woo doggie, that there's some good country liviin'!"

Update: Sorry, Richard. Opossum, not possum. My bad.

2005 Tri-State Seacoast Century

seth@macrobyte.net — Sun, 25 Sep 2005 21:36:32 GMT

Saturday I rode in the Tri-State Seacoast Century for the third time. It's a 100-mile bike ride along the coastlines of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Maine.

I didn't get to sleep until almost 11:30 on Friday night. Not good, considering that I was supposed to meet everybody at Steve's house by 5:00, and he lives about 80 minutes away. I was out of bed when the alarm went off at 3:00, and straight into the shower... but I think I fell asleep just standing there as it was almost 3:30 by the time I got out.

I was on the road by 4:20, but didn't have enough gas. That added another ten minutes, as I bought some (bad) coffee and powerbars at the gas station.

Google's directions to Steve's house said to take exit 7A off I-95 in Massachusetts, make a right, "go 0.4 miles, continue for another 0.4 miles, then turn left onto Chauncy Street." Here we have a whole bunch of problems. ;-) First, there was no Chauncy. Second, I was stupid-tired and upset about already being late. Third, I can't stand the way online directions always say things like "go 0.4 miles, then continue on the same road for another 0.4 miles." This stuff is all script-based, so why don't they merge that into a single "go 0.4 miles?!"

Anyway, being stupid-tired meant that I was just looking for Chaunch Street and not paying any attention to the mileage, and went too far because I never saw the sign. After an extra mile or so, Rt. 140 grew a median (so I couldn't do a U-turn) and rudely dumped me onto I-495. More minutes flushed away as I drove up to the next exit to turn around and try again.

When I finally pulled into the driveway, I was frustrated and just hoping they'd all jump in Steve's van and we could go immediately. (So, I'd drive my car up, too.) Steve tried to talk me out of it, and after I'd relaxed for a minute I agreed. We put the bike on the van and all five of us were finally on the road.

Five? Yeah, all folks I've mentioned many times before: Mike Lucas, Jason Cicero, Jim Boyko, Steve Davis, and myself.

None of us had a camera this time, so there are no pictures. That's an unfortunate first for this group. :-(

Start of the Ride

Last year we waited nearly 30 minutes in the sign-in line at Hampton Beach State Park (NH). This year we waited at least... a minute. Very nice.

We hit the road at about 8:00. That's an hour later than we had intended, but it worked out nicely: it was a chilly day, and the extra hour gave the sun a little more time to do its thing.

Jim wasn't feeling up to riding the whole century with us, so he waited at the park for us to complete the first ~20 mile loop down to Mass and back. In fact, it turned out that he had other plans entirely: he was only going to do about thirty-five miles with us to the Nubble Lighthouse, have lunch, and then continue North to Kennebunkport to meet his wife, Katie.

Those first twenty miles were bumpy but uneventful. Well, mostly. My jersey had ridden up a little and was showing a crescent of skin on my lower back. Steve yelled, in his most drill-instructor-like voice, "Dillingham! Pull up those shorts!" Ahem. I guess I'm glad he didn't have his camera with him, after all!

To Nubble Lighthouse

Jim was waiting for us at the entrance to the park. After a quick pit-stop, we were on the road again.

The wind was in our face at about 12 mph. Normally the opposite is true for this part of the ride, but this also explains the chill: the wind was coming out of the North. It's ok, though, as we were really trying to restrain our pace for this part of the trip, and the wind definitely made it easier to stay slow.

Along the way we picked up a sixth rider, named Rob. Nice guy, alot like us in that he just loves to ride and does a lot of it.

Lunch at Fox's Lobster House ("One Nibble on the Nubble and You're Hooked!"), right next to Nubble Lighthouse, was a clamroll and onion rings. Mmm, gotta love fried food in the middle of a long bike ride. (I think everybody else had lobster rolls.)

The weather at the lighthouse was perfect. The wind had stopped (a bad sign, actually), temperatures were in the high 60's, and it was perfectly sunny and clear with very low humidity.

Back to the Park

After the lighthouse the route continues North for a little longer before looping around and heading back South towards the start. Rob stayed with us, he said he liked our pace. Jim stayed with us for awhile, too.

Near the point where we expected Jim to part ways for his trip to Kennebunkport, we stopped at an intersection. Two ladies were there ahead of us, and one of them didn't unclip fast enough... whomp! She fell over on her left side. It looked funny, but she was stuck so Mike and I helped her back up.

In the confusion, Jim just seemed to disappear. Not one of us saw him go! He may have turned off the route before the the lady fell, and just never said goodbye, or he passed us and made a right while we were trying to help her back up. Whatever, it was very strange.

Rob pulled at the front for a little while, and then apparently blew up and was shelled off the back. Again, he never said a word, just pulled for a little too long and then sort of vanished. I actually expected that (the vanishing, not the silence), unfortunately. He liked our pace on the trip up, but we were intentionally keep it low. We were somewhat less restrained on the return trip.

Oddly, we picked up *another* rider named Rob for the last twenty miles or so. He was as strong as any of us, and worked well with our paceline to keep the speed up.

Speaking of the paceline: I've taken to calling Mike's pulls, "chasing the dart." Mike is a fantastic rider, and we all know that age (he has 20 years on me) is the only reason we can keep up with him. Unfortunately for us, his size and complete lack of bulk mean he doesn't make a very nice draft. He guessed that this is why we kept emphasizing "short pulls," but he was only half right: we were all trying to take relatively short pulls (less than a mile) to keep our strength up. (It didn't always work out that way, but nobody from our group took really long, hard pulls.)

I mentioned that the lack of wind at the lighthouse was a bad sign: that's because it was turning around, and was in our faces again for most of the trip home. It wasn't as strong as last year, but it would have been nice to ride home with a tailwind!

Lesson for the Future: Don't Skip the Water Stop

As we approached the final water stop, Steve suggested we skip it. He had enough water (especially at the pace he drinks it!), and wanted to just push all the way back. Nobody objected, so we blew right past it.

This was a mistake. It wasn't long before Mike realized he didn't have enough to finish the trip. We only saw one open store after the water stop, but it was just a couple of miles later and Mike didn't think he needed to stop. (If he'd known that was the last one, we definitely would have stopped.)

Next year, don't skip the water stop.

It wasn't tragic, Steve shared some of his with Mike, but that's obviously not the best solution.

Final Push

For the last ten miles, we really turned on the juice. Mike says we gained 0.3 mph overall in the last ten miles alone. Cool. Steve, Rob and I did a lot of the pulling, but nobody was dropped and we all finished together.

Unfortunately, I didn't reset my cyclometer until after the first 20 miles, so I don't yet have the numbers. This certainly wasn't a 20 mph century (I'm guessing it was about 19), but this ride is definitely not about speed so I think we were all fine with that.

If It's Brown...

Another lesson to remember for next year. Don't go to Brown's! I wasn't hungry, but the other guys were. Steve ordered a burger, Jason some fried chicken ("fingers," I think), and Mike got some fries and something else that I can't remember. Steve said his burger was, "the worst I've had in a long time," Jason had to wait 35 minutes for his food, and Mike had to wait almost 45 minutes!

This was silly, as the Davis's were planning a big barbecue for us at their house anyway. Brown's is expensive and excruciatingly slow. Next year, let's just go to the Davis's. The waitress is prettier and much friendlier, the food is much better, and they serve free appetizers and beer while we wait for the meal!

Stats: I'll drop them in as soon as I have them. Steve? Jason? Mike?

Pan-Mass Challenge 2005: Day Zero, Huckleberries, West Stockbride to Sturbridge

seth@macrobyte.net — Sat, 06 Aug 2005 02:08:46 GMT

"Mumble mumble mumble ... something something something ... national public radio ... " Where's that darn snooze button!? I can't find it! Let me sleep!

Wait! I can't hit snooze. It's time to ride!

I dragged myself out of bed and took a shower to wake up. It wasn't terribly early, I just wasn't waking up...

Note: this story has been udpated with some new info. The previous version, though long, was incomplete.

Sunday Picnic, Chess, and Frisbee

seth@macrobyte.net — Tue, 05 Jul 2005 18:53:58 GMT

Sunday afternoon, Corinne took a nice, long nap, and I went over to Gary & Ellyn's for a cookout with "whoever wants to show up with some food." (I brought a half-dozen jalapeño hamburgers, and some tortellini salad, all made by Corinne.)

A bunch of us sacked out in the living room in front of the Red Sox game while we waited for the food to cook. Thankfully, that didn't take long: watching regular season baseball on the tube is painfully boring.

After we ate, Darren challenged me to a game of chess at the table by the pool. I haven't played in a couple of years, but the only person I may have played against more often than Darren was Simon. (Simon and I played many games per day for a couple of months, Darren and I have been playing since we were teens.)

I started off well, capturing some of his key pieces and a number of pawns. He made a strong comeback, and had me on the ropes for awhile, even predicting (numerous times!) that I'd be in checkmate within two or four moves. We were frequently interrupted by people asking incredulously if we were "still playing the same game!?" My patient and completely fallacious response was that Darren takes a really long time to move. :-D Actually, in the old days I would take so long to move that he would either play another game with someone else (concurrently), or read a book!

In spite of his bold predictions, I staged my own strong comeback and nearly had the game sewn up... until I made a completely stupid move that resulted in instant checkmate. I should have used Darren's magical "undo" feature to make my bad move go away (ahem!), but instead I just conceded defeat.

After the game, Jed joined us for some frisbee in the front yard for about 45 minutes. Then we had supper, followed by more frisbee with three of the young'uns (Tommy, Tamar, and Autumn) doing very good imitations of Monkeys in the Middle. The festivities didn't end until it was almost too dark to see the frisbee about to hit you between the eyes.

All that throwing and chasing of the frisbee resulted in some really stiff, sore muscles. Monday morning, my right pec was on fire, and my right ankle hurt enough to make me wince just going down stairs. :-) It was worth it.

(Added an hour later: I'm so forgetful! One of the reasons I posted this was because Darren-the-lefty told me this morning (in an email) that his left arm was so sore he had to drive with his right.)

It's too bad we only have one vehicle. I didn't find out until later that Corinne wanted to go to the picnic after her nap, but didn't want to ask me to come get her. (There's another one, same place, next weekend...)

Ride #13: What a Beautiful Day!

seth@macrobyte.net — Tue, 05 Apr 2005 22:34:32 GMT

Fantastic weather today! When I rode through downtown Mystic, the bank's clock said 65°. It was a little windy, but it always is here along the shore.

I stopped at Mystic Cycle for the first time this year, to pick up some Perl Izumi gloves. I left the winter gloves there, promising to come back for them later.

What was the first thing they said to me when I walked in? "Seth, is this the first time you've ridden in shorts this year?"

Yes, I'm a little pale. :-)

I finished my ride (40 miles), averaging eighteen plus for the second day in a row. That's a relief. I felt "stuck" in the seventeens last month.

Almost home, and I realized my speed would have been significantly better if I had lubed my chain. After washing the bike last week, I switched back to my road oil after using an ATB "harshest conditions" grease all winter, but I forgot that it wears off a lot faster than the thick stuff.

Stats: 40.26 miles (64.81 km) in 2h 13' 47" for an average speed of 18.05 mph (29.07 kph).

Ride #88: It's Cool to be Cold

seth@macrobyte.net — Mon, 25 Oct 2004 16:31:51 GMT

I'm starting to get used to riding in the cooler weather, and now I don't think it's so bad. Certainly wouldn't be fair to say it's slowing me down any, not even with the extra layers I have to wear.

That will surely change when it really does turn very cold, but for now it's just given me something else to talk about.

This ride would have been longer, but for a road in Ledyard that was closed to "thru-traffic." The detour made it almost impossible to return to my regular route, so I had to leave out about nine miles.

Stats: 40.03 miles (64.44 km) in 1h 57' 58" for an average speed of 20.35 mph (32.77 kph).

Ride #78: Tri-State Seacoast Century with Steve, Jason, and Steve

seth@macrobyte.net — Mon, 27 Sep 2004 12:31:38 GMT

September 25, 2004

(There's a photo album for this ride. You can also click any of the pictures on this page for larger versions with descriptions.)

I set the alarm for 3:30 AM, and actually managed to drag myself into the shower when it went off. (Man it's hard to get up that early, even for a ride I've been excited about for weeks.) The car had my gear and my bike on it by 4:05, and (after a couple quick kisses with my mostly-sleeping wife) then I was on the road. The plan was to meet at the parking lot of Foxboro Furniture at 5:30.

Photo: Steve, Seth, Steve and Jason

Steve Davis, Steve Harper, and Jason Cicero arrived in Davis's car at exactly the same time I did (5:33 AM). A few minutes later my bike was moved to the rack on the back of his car, my gear was stowed in his trunk, and we were gone again. It's another ninety minutes from there to Hampton Beach for the start of the ride.

We waited in line for twenty minutes to register/sign-in, but once we reached the front of the line it only took ten seconds. The lines (queues) were alphabetical, different lines for different last initials. I joked that next year I would have to register as Don Quixote so I wouldn't have to wait in line at all. :-) (OK, that wouldn't really work because the lines were A-E, F-J, etc.)

When we were ready to leave, I couldn't find...

Continued...

Ride #68: Half Century, Half Solo, and Another PMC Rider

seth@macrobyte.net — Wed, 08 Sep 2004 12:28:04 GMT

I arrived at Mystic Cycle for the Tuesday Night HIll Ride just a couple minutes after 5 PM. One other rider, Timmy, was there. The shop was closed, as Rick and Rob had taken the whole crew to Martha's Vineyard for a couple days, so there wasn't much chance of anyone else showing up. After waiting a few minutes to be sure, we left.

It was good to have someone else to ride with for a change, but I had no idea how strong Timmy was. He looked familiar, and said he'd seen me in a "lot of rides," but that's about as far as our knowledge of each other went.

When we made our right onto River Road, we saw five other riders coming our way from the left. "Cool, maybe they're going our way," he said. They looked strong enough, individually, but were all strung out shoulder-to-shoulder across the road rather than riding in a line, which was extremely weird. We slowed down so they could catch up, and we all said hi.

I rode next to one of the newcomers for a minute and said, "Hard to believe it's been a month already!" He looked at me in confusion for a couple seconds, and I just stared at him, offering no further clues. Eventually he realized what happened exactly a month ago: the PMC. (He was wearing this year's jersey, I wasn't.) "You rode!?" he asked. "Sure did," I responded. He then told me that was the best weekend of his life. Wow! I have no problem saying it was my best weekend on the bike, but the best weekend of my life!? Nope.

Timmy set the pace at about 27 mph for the whole length of River Road. At the end it was just he and I again, as we'd dropped the rest of them one-by-one with that crazy speed. "For somebody who wanted to ride with a group, you did an awfully good job of blowing it apart," I said. Timmy looked around, surprised I was the only one left (or perhaps surprised I was there at all), said, "oops," and just shrugged.

Route 201 (North Stonington Road) has always been where I lose touch with the stronger riders, as it has a couple miles of very shallow incline. Not today, though... we kept the pace at about 21 mph, and I stuck with him all the way to the end of it. That was the most gratifying thing to happen on this ride all year.

The "official" route takes you off of 201 to the left, on some farm road that hits a couple more decent hills before dumping you onto Route 2. You then have to ride on 2 for a couple miles to get back onto 201 again and make the climb up Cossaduck Hill. I don't mind the farm road, it's a nice ride, but not nice enough to make up for risking your life on Route 2 so close to the casino. I usually skip that part of the route and stay on 201 (which does merge with 2 for about 1/2 mile, but it's further from the casino).

Anyway, I told Timmy that I was taking my shortcut, and that he'd probably catch up with me on Wyassup. He was ok with that, and we went our separate ways.

Cossaduck was no real problem, which was a pleasant change, nor were any of the other hills until I reached Route 49. Then, I seemed to lose my ability to focus on the ride. I'd look at the spedometer and it would say 12 mph, so I'd pick it back up to 20. Then I'd look again a few minutes later, and it would say "15" but my cadence was only 55. I had this problem all the way home, I just couldn't seem to shake it.

Timmy never caught up with me. I waited at the top of the last hill on Wyassup Road for a few minutes but he never showed. With my crazy lack of concentration, I decided not to do the last three hills, and went home with just 40-something miles.

Stats: 41.35 miles (66.57 km) in 2h 13' 44" for an average speed of 18.55 mph (29.86 kph).

Sunday Morning, PMC Stage 2, Bourne to Provincetown Inn

seth@macrobyte.net — Sun, 08 Aug 2004 14:09:46 GMT

It's Like an Insomniac Convention

No matter how good you felt on Saturday -- and I felt great -- 112 miles on the bike will wear you out, and a good night's sleep ends up very high on the agenda. That's why having to get up at 3:45 Sunday morning feels so incredibly WRONG!

But get up we did, and Corinne once again drove me to where I needed to be, from our hotel in Plymouth to the MMA in Bourne, and then drove herself back to the hotel for some more sleep. She dropped me off at about 4:45.

I deposited my bag in the truck...

Continued...

Wear Yellow Ride

seth@macrobyte.net — Wed, 16 Jun 2004 09:15:15 GMT

The Narragansett Bay Wheelmen (a Rhode Island cycling club) is having a special ride tonight where everyone is expected to wear something yellow. It's part of a national campaign by the Lance Armstrong Foundation (and Nike), to raise awareness and support for people with cancer.

Complete information can be found in the message Bruce posted to the forum.

I wish I could attend, as it sounds like it'll be a lot of fun.

Ride #18: 500+ miles, and The Turtle

seth@macrobyte.net — Thu, 03 Jun 2004 19:27:26 GMT

My right knee has been bothering me for a few days. It's probably because I'm still adjusting to the new bike, but it could also be that I pushed myself a little too hard the first few weeks, after seven months off the bike. Whatever the cause, I take knee pain very seriously (in fact, talk of knee injuries gives me a serious case of the willies).

Seven told Mystic Cycle to set up my bike with the saddle more than 2 inches lower than my old bike. They're known for preferring a more "upright" riding position, but my old setup was completely wrong so I decided not to argue the point. Well, after 500 miles on the new bike, I still felt a little cramped up. Combine that with the knee pain, and it was time to move the saddle up a little. I stopped in to talk to Mystic about it, and they agreed... so up it went. Just 1/2 inch, but it really made a big difference. The knee hardly twinged at all for the rest of the ride. (Although, I was still babying it, so we'll see how it does over the next few days.)

"Babying" the knee, in this case, means high-cadence. I didn't worry about speed, I just kept the feet moving and tried to make sure my knees had no lateral motion during the downstroke.

I bet Greg will like the rest of this story...

Just 3/4 of a mile from home, I stopped short. A very large turtle with a bumpy/pointy shell and a spiked tail was lumbering very slowly across Route 184. Traffic was getting heavy, and I didn't want it to get run over. On the other hand, I like my fingers where they are (on both hands), so I didn't try to pick it up. (Plus, trying to pick up and carry a 40+ pound turtle while wearing cycling shoes... that would have been funny.)

Stopping to watch it was enough, though, as traffic in both directions stopped completely to watch, also. This included (among many other vehicles) a bus full of kids on their way home, and some guys in a pickup truck, both of whom cheered the turtle as he crossed the street, yelling and clapping.

The turtle ignored them both.

Stats: 34.73 miles (55.91 km) in 1h 59' 55" for an average speed of 17.37 mph (27.97 kph).

Practice Destroying the World

seth@macrobyte.net — Tue, 20 Apr 2004 08:45:43 GMT

If you'd like to figure out just the right type (of rock/snowball), size, velocity, and angle to use in order to inflict the most damage on the planet with a comet or asteroid, the University of Arizona has a new Earth Impact Effects web calculator that fits the bill perfectly. Just the thing for aspiring super villains.

(If that link doesn't work, try this one.)

Thanks to Flip for the link.

Finally, a Picture of Steve at the PMC

seth@macrobyte.net — Mon, 15 Dec 2003 11:47:36 GMT

I finally ended up looking at most of the pictures in the PMC photo album, but I never did find a picture of Steve Davis. But, it turns out that was because I thought his helmet was all white, and that's what I was looking for as I scanned the thumbnails.

By Saturday night, I had decided that he was just too darn fast for the cameras. ;-)

Steve saw my comment about not being able to find him, and told me where to look. So...

Steve Davis, in perfect focus and yet very fuzzy at the same time! It's a conundrum, I tell you.

(This pic from the Barnstable SAG stop (waterstop) on the second day.)

Me, Bonking in the PMC (Photo Album)

seth@macrobyte.net — Sat, 13 Dec 2003 15:59:25 GMT

I've looked at most of the pictures now, and found five or six with me, and another fifteen or twenty with people I know or at least remember.

Here's what is probably the last picture I'll find with me in it. I'm at the very back of the crowd.

This was the worst part of the weekend, for me. You can't really tell from this picture, but we're heading up a really, really steep hill to a water stop at the top. That's the stop where I was completely bonked, and had to wait forty five minutes for my bike to be worked on.

19 miles to the finsh from this point. A really long 19 miles.

Oh man, I can't wait for next year!

Me, in the PMC (Photo Album)

seth@macrobyte.net — Fri, 12 Dec 2003 14:22:32 GMT

Today the PMC released their photo album from the 2003 PMC. It's huge, mammoth, and gargantuan. And really big. It would take days to go through the whole thing. (Especially since they're serving every picture securely, which has me completely baffled. What's the point of serving all those photos via https, except possibly to make the site run extra slowly!?)

I've only seen a few hundred of the pictures, but I found two of them containing your's truly, one with Chris Rossen, and one with Jim Boyko. Didn't see any with Steve Davis, though I'm sure he's in there. I recognize lots of other faces, and I even found a shot of the other clydesdale.

Here's the first picture showing me, from the beginning of the first day, very early in the morning and in the rain. That's me at the front of that pack, found in this set. I found one other picture with me in it, towards the end of the ride, but it's so bad there is no way I'm linking to it.

They obviously had some really good photographers, as most of the photos are in perfect focus with a shallow depth of field and very well framed (bracketed).

This stirred up a lot of nice memories.

Ride #51: Creeping Up On My Bike

seth@macrobyte.net — Mon, 11 Aug 2003 18:43:48 GMT

A couple days after the PMC I was too sore to ride, and I've been sick ever since then. Doc said it's strep, but then found out it's not. Don't know what it is, but it just doesn't want to let go. I still sound like a frog, but now the coughing is worse (in the beginning, there was no cough at all).

The weather was nice this morning, and I did feel a little better, so I snuck up on my bike and rode for 22 miles. I brought enough stuff with me (drinks, gel) to go longer if I felt like it, but I decided not to push it.

The bridge was up in downtown Mystic, so I waited there for a few minutes. Then I stopped at Mystic Cycle just a couple miles up the street. I'd stopped in right after I got back from MA, but the inmates were running the asylum and I didn't stick around. Today was better, Rob, Rick, and the Olympian-head-mechanic-dude were all there.

I kneeled down in front of the counter to pick out some more gel packs. Rob had been in the back room, but when I stood up he was behind the counter and I guess I surprised him. "Seth!" he yelled. We all stood around yacking for awhile about the PMC, and my spiffy PMC jersey. ;-) They especially liked the story about Senator John Kerry and the draft.

I rode very slowly. I'm still not very healthy, but I don't want to completely turn back to mush while waiting for the immune system to do its job, so I mostly kept it below 18 mph.

How do I feel now? Like I went out for a bike ride while still sick. Imagine that.

Stats: 22.16 miles (35.67 km) in 1h 16' 23" for an average speed of 17.40 mph (28.02 kph).

More Manchurian 'Miss Kim' Lilac Pictures

seth@macrobyte.net — Sun, 29 Jun 2003 20:41:38 GMT

The incessant spring rains were obviously very good for my lilacs, they were fantastic this year.

For a few years I've been trying to take a picture that fools you into thinking you can smell them -- remember that I only get a couple days each year to try -- and I think I've finally done it. You need to know what they smell like already, of course (my photography's not that good!), but if you do then check out the largest version of the last picture on my latest page of manchurian lilac pictures.

Ride #33: Zippy

seth@macrobyte.net — Sat, 14 Jun 2003 17:16:19 GMT

As I mentioned, the weather this afternoon was gorgeous. Upper seventies, a bit humid, and nearly windless. Very good cycling weather.

Not much to say about the ride itself. My now-standard 36+ mile ride, but ridden at my best time so far this year.

Stats: 36.15 miles (58.20 km) in 1h 55' 20" for an average speed of 18.80 mph (30.27 kph).

Temple Mountain

seth@macrobyte.net — Fri, 06 Jun 2003 11:55:48 GMT

We lived in New Hampshire when I was a teenager. A couple times each week, we'd drive over Temple Mountain in Peterborough to go to Bible classes or meeting in Hudson.

During the riding season, I'd see cyclists climbing up that beast on their bikes, on Route 101. Some of them clearly weren't going to make it, but I envied every one of them for having the opportunity to try.

I'd like to do it this year. I've been thinking about it more and more, and if the season continues to go as well as it has been, I think I'll be ready by mid-Summer.

2003 ACS Relay for Life

seth@macrobyte.net — Sat, 31 May 2003 17:14:43 GMT

To everyone who sponsored me in the relay last night: Thank You! I really appreciate it. You know who you are.

This was my third year, and it was definitely the best so far, mostly because there were even more people. Our team was bigger (more from the ecclesia decided to participate this year), and there simply a lot more people there. Also, Ellyn and family really did a nice job of setting up the team "camp site," so there was food and nice chairs.

Two years ago it was very hot. Last year it was very cold. Last night there was a chance of rain, but it never happened (surprising, considering the rain we've had this year). Temps were in the upper sixties, with no breeze, which is perfect for walking.

I walked from 10:10 to 11:10 PM, and went around the track eleven times. Afterwards, I made myself a steak-and-pepper sandwich on the grill, and hung around chatting with Ellyn, Mark, Jed, Eric, Avonlee, Jasmyne, Bonnie, Mandi, and Katie (listed in the order I remember them sitting around the circle) until 1 AM.

Eric was threatening to fall asleep in his chair, and I was feeling a little too comfy in mine, so I went home when he started setting up the tent for he and Av (daughter). Bonny was home with the boys, she was going to walk this morning.

Really had a great time, I wish we could have get-togethers like this (with or without the teeming masses of strangers) more often.

Next up: my first century is next Saturday (one week), and then there's the PMC on August 2nd, for which I still need to raise at least $1100.