My friend Scott sent me this.
Store Wars
Dart Tater is pretty amazing. Cuke Skywalker acts better than Hayden Christiensen. And ChewBroccoli is much better than Jar Jar Binks ever could be.
Have a nice day.
Pete
Friday, May 27, 2005
There's a thin line between "Antiques" and "Trash".
And Laura and I found it!!!
Last weekend we went to a few antique shops in Strasburg, Virginia. We also walked past a few that were really funny. The ones we went into were really great. Some had all the nicely finished stuff that costs thousands of dollars. Others had stuff that had great potential... stuff that with some hard work and a bit of craftsmanship, you could really come up with something nice.
The other "antique" shops we went to were just hillarious. There is one near "downtown" Strasburg that basically looked like someone emptied a trash dumpser in front of the place. It even smelled bad. There was crap there that wasn't worth putting a price tag on. I felt like asking the guy if the price on it is what he'd pay me to haul it away. I'm an asshole, but I'm not that much of an asshole. Well maybe I am. I'm posting this on my blog, aren't I?
Enough about that. Every time we go out on an antiquing trip, we wind up finding some great stuff that we'd love to give away as Christmas presents.
Here's Lisa's Christmas present:
Yes, you got that right. It is a leather sofa made out of bull's horns. Who wouldn't want one of these? We looked for a matching chair, but couldn't find one. It would look great with that wagon wheel chandalier we gave her last year.
There are always these people who are tough to buy for. My friend Wayne is one of those. It is hard to find a gift for the man that has everything. What do you buy for the man that wants nothing??? If he's a golfer, here's the answer!!!!
Your eyes do not deceive you. Those are a pair of golfers' legs (complete with ugly socks and golf shoes) that hold up a stool for sitting on. We've given Wayne stupid golf gifts for years. If we actually purchased it, this would be the second most obnoxious gift we'd ever given him (topped only by the Potty Putter we gave him 2 years ago).
The cool thing about this gift is how you'd look sitting on it. It would look remarkably like you had 75% of a golfer stuck up your ass. What person wouldn't LOVE getting something like that for Christmas???? Talk about the gift that keeps on giving.
Well I imagine I've done enough damage with this post.
Have a nice day, dammit!
Pete
PS: Lets get retarded, YEAH!!!
Last weekend we went to a few antique shops in Strasburg, Virginia. We also walked past a few that were really funny. The ones we went into were really great. Some had all the nicely finished stuff that costs thousands of dollars. Others had stuff that had great potential... stuff that with some hard work and a bit of craftsmanship, you could really come up with something nice.
The other "antique" shops we went to were just hillarious. There is one near "downtown" Strasburg that basically looked like someone emptied a trash dumpser in front of the place. It even smelled bad. There was crap there that wasn't worth putting a price tag on. I felt like asking the guy if the price on it is what he'd pay me to haul it away. I'm an asshole, but I'm not that much of an asshole. Well maybe I am. I'm posting this on my blog, aren't I?
Enough about that. Every time we go out on an antiquing trip, we wind up finding some great stuff that we'd love to give away as Christmas presents.
Here's Lisa's Christmas present:
Yes, you got that right. It is a leather sofa made out of bull's horns. Who wouldn't want one of these? We looked for a matching chair, but couldn't find one. It would look great with that wagon wheel chandalier we gave her last year.
There are always these people who are tough to buy for. My friend Wayne is one of those. It is hard to find a gift for the man that has everything. What do you buy for the man that wants nothing??? If he's a golfer, here's the answer!!!!
Your eyes do not deceive you. Those are a pair of golfers' legs (complete with ugly socks and golf shoes) that hold up a stool for sitting on. We've given Wayne stupid golf gifts for years. If we actually purchased it, this would be the second most obnoxious gift we'd ever given him (topped only by the Potty Putter we gave him 2 years ago).
The cool thing about this gift is how you'd look sitting on it. It would look remarkably like you had 75% of a golfer stuck up your ass. What person wouldn't LOVE getting something like that for Christmas???? Talk about the gift that keeps on giving.
Well I imagine I've done enough damage with this post.
Have a nice day, dammit!
Pete
PS: Lets get retarded, YEAH!!!
My Purple Furry Breast Implant.
Okay, you thought the last post was weird????
I found this great toy and it is definitely a must buy item. I don't remember what the thing is called. I was having so much fun with it, that I threw the packaging that it came in away. I'm gonna have to go back and buy more though. This thing is totally cool. I got it at my favorite toy store, Doodlehopper for Kids in Falls Church, Virginia.
The thing is totally stretchy and it has a hole in it. That makes it great for playing with and if you're a pervert, it opens up all kinds of new possibilities for you.
Also interesting for perverts is that it feels EXACTLY like a breast implant (thus the title of this blog entry). Let me clarify that. It feels like a silicone breast implant that hasn't been installed yet. It is softer and feels better than a saline implant and it feels better than either after they've been installed, though the addition of a nipple and skin are added bonuses that this toy can't really match up with. I'm not going to go there though.
This thing is really fun to play with. It bounces and makes funny noises when you toss it up and catch it. You can stretch it and pull it over your head and it makes you look like you've got a bald purple head with spikey green hair. I'll post that up next. If you turn it inside out, you can use it as a purple bald wig. We all need one of those.
I guess that's it for now. I know you can't wait for the hair photos, so I need to get those uploaded.
Pete
I found this great toy and it is definitely a must buy item. I don't remember what the thing is called. I was having so much fun with it, that I threw the packaging that it came in away. I'm gonna have to go back and buy more though. This thing is totally cool. I got it at my favorite toy store, Doodlehopper for Kids in Falls Church, Virginia.
The thing is totally stretchy and it has a hole in it. That makes it great for playing with and if you're a pervert, it opens up all kinds of new possibilities for you.
Also interesting for perverts is that it feels EXACTLY like a breast implant (thus the title of this blog entry). Let me clarify that. It feels like a silicone breast implant that hasn't been installed yet. It is softer and feels better than a saline implant and it feels better than either after they've been installed, though the addition of a nipple and skin are added bonuses that this toy can't really match up with. I'm not going to go there though.
This thing is really fun to play with. It bounces and makes funny noises when you toss it up and catch it. You can stretch it and pull it over your head and it makes you look like you've got a bald purple head with spikey green hair. I'll post that up next. If you turn it inside out, you can use it as a purple bald wig. We all need one of those.
I guess that's it for now. I know you can't wait for the hair photos, so I need to get those uploaded.
Pete
Cartoon Characters make TERRIBLE girlfriends.
I'll bet you're wondering where this entry is going!!!!
My buddy Crashmasta knows I have a thang for Kim Possible. He was shopping at Toys R. Us this week and saw the perfect gift for me and bought it. What a freaking nice guy!
So after Wednesday's ride, he presents me with a beautiful box set of Kim Possible and Bonnie (I think) action figures. I was more than a little bit stoked.
I have some problems though. Both action figures come with multiple outfits. There-in is the problem. Neither character is 18 years old. Cartoon characters tend to not age, so I'm pretty much screwed as far as ever changing Kim into her cheerleading outfit.
There's a lot of other interesting places I could go with this, but quite frankly I'm too busy playing with my furry, purple breast implant to care. More on that later.
Pete
My buddy Crashmasta knows I have a thang for Kim Possible. He was shopping at Toys R. Us this week and saw the perfect gift for me and bought it. What a freaking nice guy!
So after Wednesday's ride, he presents me with a beautiful box set of Kim Possible and Bonnie (I think) action figures. I was more than a little bit stoked.
I have some problems though. Both action figures come with multiple outfits. There-in is the problem. Neither character is 18 years old. Cartoon characters tend to not age, so I'm pretty much screwed as far as ever changing Kim into her cheerleading outfit.
There's a lot of other interesting places I could go with this, but quite frankly I'm too busy playing with my furry, purple breast implant to care. More on that later.
Pete
Thursday, May 26, 2005
I like/hate the new Dave Matthews Band CD
Lets get Retarded!!!
Just kidding. I like that song, but that isn't what I'm talking about. As a white male in America, I'm supposed to like the Dave Matthews band. At least that is what the television told me. Normally that makes me want to run home to my security blanket music... you know... those soothing little ditties by the Sex Pistols, old Clash, Offspring, and Manfred Mann and the Earth Band. (Just kidding about the Manfred Mann thing).
I decided to do something a little different this time. I went out to Itunes and purchased the new Dave Matthews CD. I just listened to it for the first time and I really hated/liked it. I'm not sure which one yet, actually. It wasn't bad enough to make me shut it off, but it didn't have me rocking out all over my cube (probably a good thing for those that I work with). I get the feeling that I'll like it after listening to it a few times. I'm like that with some music. It has to grow on me.
I think REM is like that for me too. Back in the 1980s I bought an REM cd because I thought it would make me look cool and sensitive and attractive to this girl I had the hots for. The first time I listened to it, I HATED it! I don't mean that I mildly, kind-of hated it. I really despised it. I really had the hots for this girl though. Her name was Kim and she liked my motorcycle. So I listened to it again. It wasn't so bad. The third time I listened to it, I kinda liked it. Now it is one of my favorite CDs of all time.
Okay, as long as I'm jumping around with things, that kind of "I'm gonna listen to this so that some chick thinks I'm cool" thing NEVER really works. Never ever ever... except the above mentioned time with Kim. I think the motorcycle helped. Somehow finding a guy that "liked" the same music that she did and had a motorcycle did it for her. I guess that should have been a warning sign for me. We had fun for about three weeks, we both got bored, then went on to other things and people.
It does go down in history as the only time that I've ever had one of those hokey "guy trying to impress a girl" thing worked though... for me at least.
Uhhmmmm Dave Matthews.. I was talking about the Dave Matthews Band, right? Uhhmmm.. I'm guessing that my wife is gonna think I'm cool because I'm listening to this CD and maybe I'll get lucky this weekend. Yeah... I still like to call it getting lucky.
Lets get Stoooooooooopid!!! Yup. I'm back on that song again.
Pete
Just kidding. I like that song, but that isn't what I'm talking about. As a white male in America, I'm supposed to like the Dave Matthews band. At least that is what the television told me. Normally that makes me want to run home to my security blanket music... you know... those soothing little ditties by the Sex Pistols, old Clash, Offspring, and Manfred Mann and the Earth Band. (Just kidding about the Manfred Mann thing).
I decided to do something a little different this time. I went out to Itunes and purchased the new Dave Matthews CD. I just listened to it for the first time and I really hated/liked it. I'm not sure which one yet, actually. It wasn't bad enough to make me shut it off, but it didn't have me rocking out all over my cube (probably a good thing for those that I work with). I get the feeling that I'll like it after listening to it a few times. I'm like that with some music. It has to grow on me.
I think REM is like that for me too. Back in the 1980s I bought an REM cd because I thought it would make me look cool and sensitive and attractive to this girl I had the hots for. The first time I listened to it, I HATED it! I don't mean that I mildly, kind-of hated it. I really despised it. I really had the hots for this girl though. Her name was Kim and she liked my motorcycle. So I listened to it again. It wasn't so bad. The third time I listened to it, I kinda liked it. Now it is one of my favorite CDs of all time.
Okay, as long as I'm jumping around with things, that kind of "I'm gonna listen to this so that some chick thinks I'm cool" thing NEVER really works. Never ever ever... except the above mentioned time with Kim. I think the motorcycle helped. Somehow finding a guy that "liked" the same music that she did and had a motorcycle did it for her. I guess that should have been a warning sign for me. We had fun for about three weeks, we both got bored, then went on to other things and people.
It does go down in history as the only time that I've ever had one of those hokey "guy trying to impress a girl" thing worked though... for me at least.
Uhhmmmm Dave Matthews.. I was talking about the Dave Matthews Band, right? Uhhmmm.. I'm guessing that my wife is gonna think I'm cool because I'm listening to this CD and maybe I'll get lucky this weekend. Yeah... I still like to call it getting lucky.
Lets get Stoooooooooopid!!! Yup. I'm back on that song again.
Pete
Tandemming...
Okay, I've been talking to Tom about getting a tandem. He wants to ride with his wife on the tandem and "the boy" in the trailer. Look at the MORE board if you're curious about that discussion.
All this talk about the tandem has me itching to get back out on it. I pilfered the handlebars for my geared monkey. I need grips and to fix a flont flat. I also need to unstick the seatpost.
I got some pretty serious chemicals for getting the post unstuck. I also got a new propane cartridge for my torch. That should roach the paint, but get the damn thing unstuck. I'll get that going this weekend. I want to get out and play on that... especially since I've got two stokers who are interested in riding it.
It would be cool to lead the Friday night rides on the tandem. That's my new goal... get it going for next Friday.
Talk to you later.
Pete
All this talk about the tandem has me itching to get back out on it. I pilfered the handlebars for my geared monkey. I need grips and to fix a flont flat. I also need to unstick the seatpost.
I got some pretty serious chemicals for getting the post unstuck. I also got a new propane cartridge for my torch. That should roach the paint, but get the damn thing unstuck. I'll get that going this weekend. I want to get out and play on that... especially since I've got two stokers who are interested in riding it.
It would be cool to lead the Friday night rides on the tandem. That's my new goal... get it going for next Friday.
Talk to you later.
Pete
Days off are a good/bad thing.
Oy oy.
I'm slowly getting rid of my aches and pains from riding over the last few weeks. I took an easy week last week. I rode the road bike a few times and rode Fountainhead with Rick and Cory last Wed. The shoulder feels much better than it did last week. Taking it easy has been good for it.
I went out with Jay last night to get a ride in between rain storms. We hit Great Falls because their doubletrack is in good shape pretty much all the time. It also has plenty -o- climbing.
While the week off was great for my shoulder, taking that much time off when combined with getting minimal sleep from time at the hospital has KILLED my lungs. I felt like crapola last night. I had plenty of leg power, that wasn't a problem. I just had no lung at all.
I just need to get the kinks out. In the middle of the ride, I started feeling a bit better. I loosened up and had a few good climbs. After a while I found that I was tensing up in order to keep from twisting in a way that made my ribs hurt. Eventually I started cramping up as a result of trying to avoid the rib pain. I guess I need to approach that a little differently.
I did 45 minutes of yoga this morning and though that hurt, the ribs feel better today. Tomorrow night is another Great Falls/Riverbend ride. I'm going to try and get out early so I can get loosened up before others show up. Hopefully the rain will hold off a little.
In the immortal words of the Black Eyed Peas....
Lets get ignit. Lets get happy! Lets get stooopid! Lets get retarded! Lets get retarded in here!
Pete
I'm slowly getting rid of my aches and pains from riding over the last few weeks. I took an easy week last week. I rode the road bike a few times and rode Fountainhead with Rick and Cory last Wed. The shoulder feels much better than it did last week. Taking it easy has been good for it.
I went out with Jay last night to get a ride in between rain storms. We hit Great Falls because their doubletrack is in good shape pretty much all the time. It also has plenty -o- climbing.
While the week off was great for my shoulder, taking that much time off when combined with getting minimal sleep from time at the hospital has KILLED my lungs. I felt like crapola last night. I had plenty of leg power, that wasn't a problem. I just had no lung at all.
I just need to get the kinks out. In the middle of the ride, I started feeling a bit better. I loosened up and had a few good climbs. After a while I found that I was tensing up in order to keep from twisting in a way that made my ribs hurt. Eventually I started cramping up as a result of trying to avoid the rib pain. I guess I need to approach that a little differently.
I did 45 minutes of yoga this morning and though that hurt, the ribs feel better today. Tomorrow night is another Great Falls/Riverbend ride. I'm going to try and get out early so I can get loosened up before others show up. Hopefully the rain will hold off a little.
In the immortal words of the Black Eyed Peas....
Lets get ignit. Lets get happy! Lets get stooopid! Lets get retarded! Lets get retarded in here!
Pete
Wednesday, May 25, 2005
Friends don't let white friends listen to hip-hop...
I'm white. I know it. I'm pretty much the poster child of whiteness. I can't dance for shit, I know it, but that doesn't stop me from trying. I love music, but I couldn't tap my foot to the beat if my life depended on it. Again, that doesn't stop me from trying.
I love my car. I love listening to music in my car. I have it wired up with so much equipment that most concert venus are envious.
This morning started an unfortunate series of events the likes of which caused the naming of my blog. (I'm such a drama queen... it isn't like anything really bad happened as a result of any of these events)
Event 1: I've been chasing down a ground-induced hum for a few months. I finally got it pretty well cleaned up. Only when I use my IPOD do I really have problems. That comes from using an unshielded IPOD adapter. I just have to rip out the dash to replace that.
Event 2: I blew a capacitor two days after fixing the ground issue. I should have had a 2farad cap in, and I only had 1. OOPS. It fizzled and just gave up the ghost. I took it out to prevent it from exploding or something. A cap is used to help prevent high powered amplifiers from sucking all the power from the car's electrical system. Without the cap, your headlights tend to dim to the beat of the music. In extreme cases... well I'll get to that in a few events.
Event 3: Wednesday is my early day. I go in at some freakish hour of the morning so that I can get off early and go see my buddy Chris. That means that I-66 is mine for the taking. I sometimes go a little over the speed limit and I almost always turn the music up loud enough to repel tailgaters.
Event 4: After hearing the song in the movie Harold and Kumar go to White Castle for the last two months, I went to I-tunes and purchased the Black Eyed Peas CD "Elephunk". It contains the song "Lets Get Retarded". Just the title alone implies that the song is written specifically for me.
Disclaimer 1: I know that there should be a constitutional amendment banning white guys from listening to music like this. I'm living proof that the Supreme Court would uphold the validity of such a ban.
Event 5: I'm driving to work... a little fast... a little loud. I'm doing about 85mph and track 3 comes on. It is the song mentioned in Event 4.
Event 6: I turn the volume up a little louder.
Event 7: My car stalls. I'm at about 3500 rpm in 6th gear and moving at a fairly good clip and my car stalls. The idiot lights come on the dash, the headlights all but go out. the tach drops to zero and the speedometer needle is dropping fast.
Disclaimer 2: I knew this was coming. I wasn't surprised by having power issues in the car. I was a little surprised by the severity of it though.
End Result 1: I hit the clutch instantly. I turned the music down (it still sounded damn good even though the car had stopped running). I dropped the car into 5th gear and dumped the clutch. It roared back to life. I drove on with the volume set a little lower.
End Result 2: Daddy is going to get his baby a new deep cycle battery and a 2.5farad capacitor for the stereo system when he goes shopping next week.
Have a nice day.
Pete
I love my car. I love listening to music in my car. I have it wired up with so much equipment that most concert venus are envious.
This morning started an unfortunate series of events the likes of which caused the naming of my blog. (I'm such a drama queen... it isn't like anything really bad happened as a result of any of these events)
Event 1: I've been chasing down a ground-induced hum for a few months. I finally got it pretty well cleaned up. Only when I use my IPOD do I really have problems. That comes from using an unshielded IPOD adapter. I just have to rip out the dash to replace that.
Event 2: I blew a capacitor two days after fixing the ground issue. I should have had a 2farad cap in, and I only had 1. OOPS. It fizzled and just gave up the ghost. I took it out to prevent it from exploding or something. A cap is used to help prevent high powered amplifiers from sucking all the power from the car's electrical system. Without the cap, your headlights tend to dim to the beat of the music. In extreme cases... well I'll get to that in a few events.
Event 3: Wednesday is my early day. I go in at some freakish hour of the morning so that I can get off early and go see my buddy Chris. That means that I-66 is mine for the taking. I sometimes go a little over the speed limit and I almost always turn the music up loud enough to repel tailgaters.
Event 4: After hearing the song in the movie Harold and Kumar go to White Castle for the last two months, I went to I-tunes and purchased the Black Eyed Peas CD "Elephunk". It contains the song "Lets Get Retarded". Just the title alone implies that the song is written specifically for me.
Disclaimer 1: I know that there should be a constitutional amendment banning white guys from listening to music like this. I'm living proof that the Supreme Court would uphold the validity of such a ban.
Event 5: I'm driving to work... a little fast... a little loud. I'm doing about 85mph and track 3 comes on. It is the song mentioned in Event 4.
Event 6: I turn the volume up a little louder.
Event 7: My car stalls. I'm at about 3500 rpm in 6th gear and moving at a fairly good clip and my car stalls. The idiot lights come on the dash, the headlights all but go out. the tach drops to zero and the speedometer needle is dropping fast.
Disclaimer 2: I knew this was coming. I wasn't surprised by having power issues in the car. I was a little surprised by the severity of it though.
End Result 1: I hit the clutch instantly. I turned the music down (it still sounded damn good even though the car had stopped running). I dropped the car into 5th gear and dumped the clutch. It roared back to life. I drove on with the volume set a little lower.
End Result 2: Daddy is going to get his baby a new deep cycle battery and a 2.5farad capacitor for the stereo system when he goes shopping next week.
Have a nice day.
Pete
Friday, May 20, 2005
The best thing about the new Star Wars movie....
Okay, the morning after I'm finding things that I liked about Star Wars III: The Revenge of the Sith.
First and foremost on that list was the preview for Fantastic 4. Jessica Alba is perfectly cast for this movie. She's perfect for the part. I must confess I have a pretty serious Jessica Alba thing.
It should be a fun movie.
What else did I like about the new Star Wars movie???? Jar Jar Binks didn't open his mouth for the whole movie. I don't have to worry about any anticipation about waiting for the DVD to come out.
Uhhmmmmm... I guess that's it.
You're beautiful because I love you.
Pete
First and foremost on that list was the preview for Fantastic 4. Jessica Alba is perfectly cast for this movie. She's perfect for the part. I must confess I have a pretty serious Jessica Alba thing.
It should be a fun movie.
What else did I like about the new Star Wars movie???? Jar Jar Binks didn't open his mouth for the whole movie. I don't have to worry about any anticipation about waiting for the DVD to come out.
Uhhmmmmm... I guess that's it.
You're beautiful because I love you.
Pete
Star Wars Episode 3: The Lost Hope
I won't rant for long. I'll just say that that movie was a HUGE dissappointment and I wasn't even expecting much.
Yoda's fight scenes were nowhere near as good as in Episode 2 (they were one of two redeeming factors of Episode 2. The other was Natalie Portman's wardrobe). The lizard thing that Obiwan was riding on one planet was really cool. Watching the droids put Darth Vader together was kind-of cool.
The one GREAT thing I can say about the movie was that Jar Jar Binks didn't open his mouth the whole time. He was seen, but not heard.
Oh well.
There'll be other movies to see later in the summer.
Pete
Yoda's fight scenes were nowhere near as good as in Episode 2 (they were one of two redeeming factors of Episode 2. The other was Natalie Portman's wardrobe). The lizard thing that Obiwan was riding on one planet was really cool. Watching the droids put Darth Vader together was kind-of cool.
The one GREAT thing I can say about the movie was that Jar Jar Binks didn't open his mouth the whole time. He was seen, but not heard.
Oh well.
There'll be other movies to see later in the summer.
Pete
Monday, May 16, 2005
12 Hours of Lodi...
Hey People.
Sorry I've been off for a while. It has been a rediculously stressful time for me and I don't write well when I'm having a rough time. It just doesn't flow. Things are looking a bit up, so I think that I'll be writing a bit more.
Lodi was a great experience. I had a lot of fun. Many props to Jason for completing 8 laps in pretty miserable conditions. David and Bob completed 9 laps. David had some blistering laps on that ride. JoeP, Ricky and their partner (Markie?) won the sport class. Evan and his team took second in the sport team class. Kate took third in women's solo. Joe Foley's team had a rough time because one of their guys was injured and Joe took them to get a few stitches. That kinda nixed their performance. Joe did a few laps to finish out the day. I could tell he was really disappointed, but he's such a dang good natured guy that he didn't let it get him down. Denis rode until his lights failed, then he slept in his car. He got up in the morning and did 4 laps during the day. He sounded like he had fun doing the ride solo. I talked to Craig and he seemed like he had fun. He said it was pretty brutal. I didn't hear how his team did. Barbara said there were some fun times, but like many people I talked to, found it frustrating to have to stop and get out of the way of the faster riders all the time. It was really hard to get a flow going when you were having to hop off the bike all the time. There was really no room to pass on this course when you were in the woods. Kevin did some blistering laps. I saw him a few times over the night. He was the first person that I knew who passed me after my crash (more on that later). He stopped and talked to me for a few moments and that really helped. I was REALLY pissed at myself at that moment and that got me back in the right mindset. Kevin rode till his lights died, got some sleep, then come out and did some fast laps after sunrise. It seemed to have worked well for him. I don't know what his final count was, but he was moving really well every time I saw him.
Thanks to all that cheered me on. The course was GREAT! It was twisty and tight. There were TONS of roots. It flowed really well for the most part. I loved it on the pre-ride. The rain started, and things were made much more difficult. The roots all became like ice. There wasn't enough rain for stuff to get really muddy. The dirt portions of trail were perfectly tacky almost everywhere. The roots made it a bit tough, though.
There were many sections on the trail that were not conducive to wide handlebars. There were three spots between trees that were narrower than 28". For me, that means less than an inch of space on each side of my bars. Most of them were slightly offset so I could get one side through, then the other side. One spot was my nemesis early on (someone whacked it down late in the evening and it was significantly wider). On my second lap I hit the left side of my bars on a tree just hard enough to throw me off balance. I pivoted and hit my shoulder and ribs on the opposing tree. That displaced my already tender ribs and I had a miled disolcation of my shoulder.
The shoulder has been loose for years. It often pops out, then right back in again. It did this time, or so I though. I did another lap and a half on it before heading for the car for a much needed nap.
I put on dry clothes and crawled under a blanket in the front seat of Jason's car and slept for 90 minutes. I felt great when I got up. My shoulder and ribs were tender, but I felt strong. I went out with Jason and Denis for a daylight lap. I went pretty fast up the first set of climbs. When I got to the top, my shoulder started hurting again. I finished out that lap and started the next one. At the top of the initial climbs, I started hurting in a way that tells me I'm doing damage to myself. I did as much of that lap as I could, then called it quits. In all, I finished 5 laps.
Laura came out Sunday morning. She was great and it was perfect that she was there. She could see that my shoulder wasn't right at the end. She told me so. I figured that I hadn't fully relocated it. Once I had that fixed, I felt MUCH better. Changing into dry clothes helped too. I then spent the rest of the morning helping pack up and get things ready for Jason's return. I cheered on some folks and helped a few people that looked like they could use a drink or food or technical help.
I really enjoyed the ride, but was completely frustrated by having to fight that much adversity. Had I one less thing to deal with, I think my results would have been a lot better (especially if that one thing would have been not injuring myself). That is the way things go, however. My preparations were almost perfect. The only thing I could have done better was to get more sleep leading up to the race. That wasn't possible with all the things going on at home. I ate perfectly for the race. I alternated between Extran and Amino Vital in the camelback. I had one of the these tablet things that help replace what you sweat off on each lap. I forget what they're really called. I call them "condoms" since they are packaged like condoms. I had one gel each lap. I was never hungry and I didn't have any dehydration problems. My legs felt GREAT the whole time. When I stopped for a nap, I ate a Boca Burger and drank a bottle of recovery drink. When I got off the bike at the end of my race, I had two bottles of recovery drink.
The drive home was easy. My stomach wasn't ready for much solid food, so I fed it what I was craving. That was..... Beef Jerky. I ate a whole bag while driving home. Jason napped and talked to me a bit. We unloaded my stuff at the house, then he drove home to his place. I hauled all my crap inside. Dumped the wet clothes on the floor by the washer, took a shower, ate a canteloupe and another boca burger, and went to bed. I guess I played with the cats a bit for a few minutes before bed. They could tell something was up. They were playing to humor me. Laura wasn't home yet, so I climbed into bed and slept. The cats curled up with me. It was nice. I slept pretty much straight through till morning. I don't often sleep more than 8 hours in a stretch. I had no problems sleeping 16 hours straight.
We'll see how my shoulder is feeling for riding this week. At this point it is more of a worry for me than my ribs. My shoulder is a bit tender right now, but I have most of my range of motion. My ribs basically feel like they did a few weeks ago. They've never stopped hurting since I fractured them 6 weeks ago, but they were hurting less in my daily life... mostly just when I breathe hard while riding. They'll settle back down.
If I got anyone's Lodi experience wrong, please let me know. I'll make corrections.
Thanks for reading. I'll write more soon.
Pete
Sorry I've been off for a while. It has been a rediculously stressful time for me and I don't write well when I'm having a rough time. It just doesn't flow. Things are looking a bit up, so I think that I'll be writing a bit more.
Lodi was a great experience. I had a lot of fun. Many props to Jason for completing 8 laps in pretty miserable conditions. David and Bob completed 9 laps. David had some blistering laps on that ride. JoeP, Ricky and their partner (Markie?) won the sport class. Evan and his team took second in the sport team class. Kate took third in women's solo. Joe Foley's team had a rough time because one of their guys was injured and Joe took them to get a few stitches. That kinda nixed their performance. Joe did a few laps to finish out the day. I could tell he was really disappointed, but he's such a dang good natured guy that he didn't let it get him down. Denis rode until his lights failed, then he slept in his car. He got up in the morning and did 4 laps during the day. He sounded like he had fun doing the ride solo. I talked to Craig and he seemed like he had fun. He said it was pretty brutal. I didn't hear how his team did. Barbara said there were some fun times, but like many people I talked to, found it frustrating to have to stop and get out of the way of the faster riders all the time. It was really hard to get a flow going when you were having to hop off the bike all the time. There was really no room to pass on this course when you were in the woods. Kevin did some blistering laps. I saw him a few times over the night. He was the first person that I knew who passed me after my crash (more on that later). He stopped and talked to me for a few moments and that really helped. I was REALLY pissed at myself at that moment and that got me back in the right mindset. Kevin rode till his lights died, got some sleep, then come out and did some fast laps after sunrise. It seemed to have worked well for him. I don't know what his final count was, but he was moving really well every time I saw him.
Thanks to all that cheered me on. The course was GREAT! It was twisty and tight. There were TONS of roots. It flowed really well for the most part. I loved it on the pre-ride. The rain started, and things were made much more difficult. The roots all became like ice. There wasn't enough rain for stuff to get really muddy. The dirt portions of trail were perfectly tacky almost everywhere. The roots made it a bit tough, though.
There were many sections on the trail that were not conducive to wide handlebars. There were three spots between trees that were narrower than 28". For me, that means less than an inch of space on each side of my bars. Most of them were slightly offset so I could get one side through, then the other side. One spot was my nemesis early on (someone whacked it down late in the evening and it was significantly wider). On my second lap I hit the left side of my bars on a tree just hard enough to throw me off balance. I pivoted and hit my shoulder and ribs on the opposing tree. That displaced my already tender ribs and I had a miled disolcation of my shoulder.
The shoulder has been loose for years. It often pops out, then right back in again. It did this time, or so I though. I did another lap and a half on it before heading for the car for a much needed nap.
I put on dry clothes and crawled under a blanket in the front seat of Jason's car and slept for 90 minutes. I felt great when I got up. My shoulder and ribs were tender, but I felt strong. I went out with Jason and Denis for a daylight lap. I went pretty fast up the first set of climbs. When I got to the top, my shoulder started hurting again. I finished out that lap and started the next one. At the top of the initial climbs, I started hurting in a way that tells me I'm doing damage to myself. I did as much of that lap as I could, then called it quits. In all, I finished 5 laps.
Laura came out Sunday morning. She was great and it was perfect that she was there. She could see that my shoulder wasn't right at the end. She told me so. I figured that I hadn't fully relocated it. Once I had that fixed, I felt MUCH better. Changing into dry clothes helped too. I then spent the rest of the morning helping pack up and get things ready for Jason's return. I cheered on some folks and helped a few people that looked like they could use a drink or food or technical help.
I really enjoyed the ride, but was completely frustrated by having to fight that much adversity. Had I one less thing to deal with, I think my results would have been a lot better (especially if that one thing would have been not injuring myself). That is the way things go, however. My preparations were almost perfect. The only thing I could have done better was to get more sleep leading up to the race. That wasn't possible with all the things going on at home. I ate perfectly for the race. I alternated between Extran and Amino Vital in the camelback. I had one of the these tablet things that help replace what you sweat off on each lap. I forget what they're really called. I call them "condoms" since they are packaged like condoms. I had one gel each lap. I was never hungry and I didn't have any dehydration problems. My legs felt GREAT the whole time. When I stopped for a nap, I ate a Boca Burger and drank a bottle of recovery drink. When I got off the bike at the end of my race, I had two bottles of recovery drink.
The drive home was easy. My stomach wasn't ready for much solid food, so I fed it what I was craving. That was..... Beef Jerky. I ate a whole bag while driving home. Jason napped and talked to me a bit. We unloaded my stuff at the house, then he drove home to his place. I hauled all my crap inside. Dumped the wet clothes on the floor by the washer, took a shower, ate a canteloupe and another boca burger, and went to bed. I guess I played with the cats a bit for a few minutes before bed. They could tell something was up. They were playing to humor me. Laura wasn't home yet, so I climbed into bed and slept. The cats curled up with me. It was nice. I slept pretty much straight through till morning. I don't often sleep more than 8 hours in a stretch. I had no problems sleeping 16 hours straight.
We'll see how my shoulder is feeling for riding this week. At this point it is more of a worry for me than my ribs. My shoulder is a bit tender right now, but I have most of my range of motion. My ribs basically feel like they did a few weeks ago. They've never stopped hurting since I fractured them 6 weeks ago, but they were hurting less in my daily life... mostly just when I breathe hard while riding. They'll settle back down.
If I got anyone's Lodi experience wrong, please let me know. I'll make corrections.
Thanks for reading. I'll write more soon.
Pete
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