The Storms are Messin' with Me

I haven't been riding in a few days. All the thunderstorms we've had lately have messed me all up. When I started out today, it was sprinkling, but I decided if I rode north I'd be ok. And I was...ended up doing about 14 miles. I'm finally starting to pass people, not just the slow dog walkers and the senior citizens with walkers. Still can't keep up with the hard core bikers though. I definitely attempted that. Oh well, tonight felt good.

Mattie and I have discovered that we can't do our hobbies at the same time. So this past weekend we decided silently not do them at all. (The storms helped with that decision too.) We have one hitch and one way to transport a bike... and the same way to transport a boat (a small boat). So we're trying to figure out how this is going to end up working. The hitch was pretty controversial, so getting another one may take a while. I'd hate to give in twice!

I'd love to be able to bring Meadow with me when I ride. It'd be awesome if I could get one of those carts for the back of my bike. But I'm pretty sure that is frowned upon. I have found that most people don't appreciate treating your beloved pet like a human.

She'd have an awesome time though...or a sidecar, that'd be sweet too.

I thought I'd add some pictures finally. These really are of my actual bike. I really need to get it tweaked though. I'm still in the learning process of how to actually take care of a nice bike.

L

A Goal Accomplished

Just got back from a 24 mile ride!! Rockford, MI to Sand Lake, MI. I'm pretty excited although my knees are paying for it. I think I'll have to do that one a few more times before I can move to the next level. I was feeling like I couldn't make it to Sand Lake and I looked up and saw the WATER TOWER! I was so excited; I'm pretty sure I had a similar facial expression my brother did when he qualified for the Boston Marathon. His goal was a much bigger one, but I have to feel good about these smaller ones, otherwise I won't make it!

The White Pine Trail used to be a railroad and I got to thinking as I was riding; It would be so cool if every unused railroad in the U.S. was turned into a bike trail. Maybe the U.S. would be a healthier country. It really is a beautiful ride. I have a few songs on my iPod that bring up some emotions in me. I was surprised how my emotions were really magnified when riding through wide open spaces and corn fields. Crazy.

My husband and I had this conversation last night and he said I should blog about it. I've noticed that people in my generation are generally pretty tech savvy, however most of us still carry around planners and calendars with us. So weird! Why don't we just use the calendars on our Blackberries and iPhones. I bet the generation younger than us does. Most of my 30+ year old friends all use some kind of 'paper' calendar or planner. I guess we just aren't quite ready to fully get rid of our 'paper.'

Well hopefully I'll still be walking tomorrow!

L

Hello World!

So I have entered the world of blogging. I'm surprised it took me this long. I'm not much of a writer, so I guess that explains my tentativeness. Obviously I turned 30 this year, (although, I told everyone it was my 25th birthday...it didn't work) and I was not thrilled about it, unlike my sister-in-law who is already planning her 30th which is more than a year away. But life goes on...

One reason I started this blog is to document my summer training. Last year I started biking a lot on the White Pine Trail (it runs from Grand Rapids, MI to Cadillac, MI) and really enjoyed it. I despise running as it just hurts too much and at this point can't afford and don't want to join a gym. So I started biking. After an injury in the middle of the summer, my biking decreased and I was bummed.

This year, I got a new bike and a new determination. On October 2 and 3, 2010 I will ride 187 miles! My goal is to complete the White Pine Trail Tour. You can check it out here tourwpt.org. My training is starting out a little slow, but life kind of gets in the way and I still have 106 days!

I hope you enjoy my blog!

L