Washing Machine!

Wash! Spin! Dry! In high school we had this in water cheer where we splashed around like fools screaming the different cycles of a washing machine. Man, I wish I had a youtube video of it. We took over the lanes and created havoc, and thus intimidating the other teams. We had this other one, where we'd jump up and yell "We're Naked!" and then everyone went under water leaving one hand pointing one finger up. Yeah, we're number 1.

My cove swim this morning was nothing short of intimidating. Wow, right? Rachel got worked by the cove? No way. Okay, it wasn't that bad. But I just experienced swimming in a new light. I suppose I can understand how people get sea sickness. I'm not saying I was close to puking, but I could feel the uneasiness of not being able to control your insides. The cove rocked me.

Woke up, rolled out of bed. Made it to the cove. Saw my buddy, Glen, who I met with Nikee on an afternoon cove swim a while back. Saw he was sporting a new De Soto! Sweet, another one converted! (and he's sold by the way. JT's shop has them 40% off; you can't beat that.) Somehow I convinced myself I had time to swim to the shores and back.

It wasn't that cold today. But the choppiness of the surf was just painfully annoying! I can usually find my groove and the cove practically rocks me to sleep. But this rocking was different. It was coming from both sides! WTF? There was no rhyme or reason to the sets. We finally made it to the lifeguard tower at the shores. Took a rest, and headed back, through the surf and through the wash cycle.

These are my usual cove thoughts; long stroke, strong pull, beautiful lines, breathe in, breathe out, balanced rotation, engage the hips, let those legs enjoy the ride.

Today's cove thoughts: holy sh*t these waves are rocking you, you are swimming around your head, you aren't rotating, your pull sucks, you aren't using your hips, you are relying on your kick to get you home, your feet are cold, your hands are blocks of ice slipping through the water rather than pulling it. Get it together. What are you doing? Swim straight! Where are you going?

So, I'm alive right? Glen and I made it, 53 min, not bad. It felt like forever. Yet, I left the cove satisfied. It threw a new facit at me. The cove "mixed" it up today, and sadly, left no time for Panikin.

Another big weekend is in the mix. After my massage tonight I may meet up with Nikee at Critical Mass, no mom, it's not a church service. It's a monthy crazy bike ride around San Diego. The last time I did it was back in March, when I first moved here. Tomorrow will probably be the Del Mar ride. My friend Ally from LA (from Grand Rapids) is coming to visit! Wine Steals tomorrow night. Sunday is going to be a big day of Superfrog preparations; I'll save that for later. Maybe I'll throw some laundry in the washing machine as well.

Route Planning

The past two weekends Bethany and I have planned and executed Saturday bike rides. We decided the usual Del Mar 101 Olympics ride was getting a bit old. She's doing the Solvang Century and I just like to punish myself, so we figured hills would be a great option. Our first ever R&B ride...hmm I just thought about that, and it may stick. (we both have a pretty horrible sense of humor.) Anyway, it was the Valentine's Day hump ride counterclockwise through the Great Western Loop. Brought to you by your TCSD sweethearts. The ride went well...for us! The poor souls on the ride...I think we had 25 people show up. Around 6 flats and 1 crash. Everyone is okay. But still, there was a little guilt felt by us. But it didn't stop us from planning another ride the following weekend.

We've been discussing an LA train ride for a while and the end of February worked for most everyone involved. We took the Metrolink from Oceanside to Orange and followed a more inland route back south. This has now become my favorite ride. During one downhill curvy tree cave section I was smiling the entire time...even through a smelly horse farm. We had 10 people come up and all 10 make it back...it was great to see everyone working together, even when one of our riders was having a rough day. 73 miles. 3000ft climbing. A good ride...minus the part where a bee flew into my helmet and stung my forehead!

Yesterday wasn't really planned by R&B. The boys, Brendan and Stephen (BS, wow that was too easy) somehow duped us into it after we had a couple beers post train ride at Pizza Port. What'd we sign up for? A 85 mile 5600ft of climbing out and back ride from Solana Beach to Palomar Mountain to watch the final stage in the Tour of California. R&B had our moments, but somehow we made it. Palomar was great...going down! The TCSD put on a great party with a much needed cheeseburger...great fuel for the way home! Seeing Lance and Levi was amazing, even if I was subjected to the infamous TCSD borat thong'sters. Wow. 5:55:55 in the saddle (sweet, I know)

This weekend's rounded totals...160 miles on the bike. 10 and a half hours. Two full days. 200 miles weekly total. I just made it over the 1300 mile mark on the Guru. PS I didn't totally forget about running...I ran 6 miles Friday night after work; and enjoyed it!

Last weekend Stephen and I went to Snow Summit with Anatoly and Mystique. Great fresh snow, finally! Hopefully we'll be able to make it out once more this season.

A New Guru

No, no. Not me. But hurray! Stephen got an '05 Guru Grono w/Dura Ace from a guy in Arizona last weekend. After receiving the measurements Saturday afternoon, we packed up and headed to Phoenix. We met him at an In and Out parking lot of all places (Stephen's favorite fast food). After a couple of laps, he was sold. And now he is the proud owner of a TT bike. I hope he's ready to put on soome good miles this summer/fall preparing for Ironman Arizona.Man Guru's are pretty. Let it be said that I had no influence on this purchase.

A little Guru love in the back of the Tahoe.
My sister was nice enough to host us on such short notice. We went to a small Pub in downtown Phoenix on Saturday night. Sunday we awoke to rain, so we watched a little cable before heading out for his first ride. We did a portion of the same loop I did over Christmas break. It was a pretty flat, fast ride up to the base of Estrella Mountain. It was a quick trip with a lot of driving, but after seeing his little kid excitement face, it was worth it...and hopefully it'll be worth it when he's rocking the bike course in AZ this fall!
Tuesday was supposed to be JT's ride. But after reports of 44 degrees at 6am, Bethany and I decided that 2 more hours of sleep cuddling in my bed sounded much nicer. We ended up going for a 3 mile run once the sun warmed things up. After work she put together a trainer session. What a blast! We had the tunes going, and I'm sure our roommates thought we were crazies. At least we didn't have to turn the heat on!Today I went for a 6 mile run and felt alright. Tomorrow it's JT's ride and hockey. Depending on the water conditions, a cove swim may be in order for Friday morning. Saturday, Bethany and I are hosting a Valentines Day Great Western Love ride. Hopefully the rain will hold off!

weekend fun

Early Fridays Rule! Friday morning I swam in the cove, went to work for 2.5 hours and then left with Caleb for the Great Western Loop. A beautiful sunny 80 degree Friday afternoon made for an awesome ride. Here I am trying not to look like I'm dying up the hills. We did the clockwise loop in 3:07 for 44.7 miles. Friday evening Bethany and I went on a date to Tender Greens. My new favorite restaurant, by far. I had the flank steak, mashed potatoes, and cesear salad. So yummy! (We went last night as well!)

Saturday brought an early wakeup and drive to Solana Beach for the start of a fairly epic ride. Bethany, Allen, Me and Stephen rode to Carlsbad for the start of Rachel's ride through Camp Pendelton to San Clemente. The way out I averaged a slow 16.4mph but picked it up on the way back for an overall average of 17.7mph...for 76.4 miles! We were flying through Pendelton. It was awesome. On the way back Stephen and I stopped at Red Mango for some froyo. We quickly changed and met Mark at Dixon Lake for an evening outdoor climbing session. It was Stephen's first time climbing outside. He learned how to rappel and completed a 5.9!

Getting ready!On the 5.7 version. Wee! So that was fun. I enjoyed experiencing this with him and coaching him through it. I think he is hooked now that he's touched some real rock. Back to the plastic tonight. We went to Pizza Port after climbing. As usual, it was delicious.

Sunday we went to Snow Valley to use our $10 lift ticket. It was kind of a joke...icy in the morning and slush puppies throughout the afternoon. The hill was pretty small, but we had fun giggling all day. I got to try out my new snowpants...and yes they are actually waterproof. My old brown ones were NOT and my butt quickly froze after a couple rides up the wet chairlift seats. We made it to Mystique's parents house for the last half of the Superbowl. Monday was a quick 3 mile run and today was JT's ride.
Having fun at the sunny mountains of southern California!
Anatoly rockin' the crazy hair no hat look. He was pretty exhausted after riding a circa 1990s Burton board.