30DOB - Day 5

We two ventured forth

Through headwind and rain.

Climbing up hills

And ignoring the pain.

But on the way back,

The wind in our sail.

Spinning in top gear

And riding like hell.

30DOB - Day 4

My brother John is in town and he brought his bike with him. Cool! We headed out just in time for the rain. John has fenders on his bike and he wore booties to keep his feet dry. I am not that smart. My shoes were soaked and I was filthy by the time I got home. But not having fenders meant John could not draft on me since my rear wheel was throwing crap all over the place.

 Cats on the Internet is all the rage these days.

John looking reasonable clean and dry.

 Fish Lake Trail is awesome--and needs completing.

 Dirty!

Rode hard and put away wet.

30DOB - Day 3

Pictures and a few words today.

A shadow of what I once was.

A lion sculpted by the late Bill Sanders stands guard at his place.

Yard art.

Um...tar art?

Thinking back on the good old days.

Another sight you'd miss if you were in a car.

If you're going to draw a penis, think big.

Don't let them keep you from the good stuff.

"Till" tomorrow.

30DOB - Day 2

Life. It's beautiful. It's hard. It gives us a big comforting hug and then out of the blue an unexpected knee in the groin. It warms our bones and weathers our skin. It's fun and loving and pleasurable and we pay a price the longer we stay on the ride.

At times it may loom over us, threatening an uncertainty. We watch. We measure. We think the odds are long and decide to take a chance. Or perhaps we change course.

And we learn that every path presents a peril. When trying to avoid adversity we often just trade one obstacle for another. It's easy to focus on the hard parts. The parts that hurt. The parts that make us want to give up.

Those who persevere thrive because they understand defeat is a state of mind. They accept that hardships are a part of their journey. They treasure the beauty, the experiences, the relationships, and the uniqueness we bring to life. How we live is our choice.

But keep your eyes open because if you suspect a knee coming, turning aside just a little is not cheating.

April Fools

Google Maps had a Treasure map option today.

30DOB - Day 1

I dressed down this morning. The Internet said it was 43 degrees outside and that it would be toasty during my ride home after work. So no wool socks. No pants. No fleece pullover. For warmth I wore a cap and a pair of lightweight running gloves. 

I took the long way in via the Children of the Sun Trail, taking Freya to Regal, Regal to Euclid and back to Freya, finishing off with Upriver Drive and the Centennial Trail. I spotted some feral chickens on Regal. Okay, maybe they were just loose, but they looked fierce. 

I forgot about the construction on Francis but I was able to make it across without a problem. Maybe I got there ahead of the crews. Last week it was pretty busy and I had to use Centerline to get across Francis on the way home. I'll probably do the same today. On the plus side, that adds a little more distance to my ride.  

While on Upriver Drive, I spotted a runner going in the opposite direction (into the sun). I thought it would be a great shot for the OTM Facebook page but I wasn't sure of the time since I was on my way to work. I had forgotten to put my watch on so I did what kids do these days when you ask them the time. I pulled out my smartphone. Unfortunately, my running gloves are soft and fuzzy so they don't hold onto slick objects very well. My phone slipped out of my half-frozen fingers and skittered onto the pavement at about 15 mph, cracking the screen. That's not exactly how I planned it. The phone still worked and I did have time to chat with the runner so I turned around and caught up with him. Even though he was wearing earbuds and presumably listening to some sort of motivational music, he could tell I was talking to him. He looked at me like I was an alien creature of some sort, turned his head forward, and ignored me from then on.

My morning is off to a good start.

Turning back around, I followed the Centennial Trail into town. I found another runner and he was more than happy to be made Internet famous on the OTM Facebook page, improving upon my morning but not helping my smartphone any. 


A raucous flock of seagulls were hanging out in Riverfront Park by the giant red wagon and a couple flew over me while I rolled by. Suddenly, some large white blobs plopped on the asphalt directly in front of me. I've always heard people say bad things happen in threes. Had I been going a little faster the seagull crap shower would have capped off the cracked screen and isolationist runner. Arriving at work, my fingers and toes were feeling the cold.  

Road find!

After work, the sun was shining brightly and I worked up a good sweat on the trip home. It was slow going at first because Riverfront Park was teeming with people, which is a good thing. I found a screwdriver on Regal and tossed it in my pannier. Now I have something to protect myself from fierce-looking feral chickens.