Still a Long Way to Go

Well the last 3 weeks have been pretty dismal. It has been a tough road to come back losing a week and a half of training. This week showed some improvement, but still lacking consistent power. HR is starting to come down a bit, but just trying to stay in Z2 is tough-even on the easy stuff. My last 3 road rides have been ok; 20.5, 19.4 and 19.1 avg. speeds, but the power overall just isnt there yet. About 2/3 of the way up any long climb, I feel pretty good, but then the bottom falls out. I havent done any hill repeats in over a month, so that has got to get going again soon. I have been averaging 756 miles a month so far, bit may will be lucky to see 500.

Next race is Fairhill on June 3rd. Not sure what will happen, but I will race regardless.

Its Been a Long 2 Weeks

Yeah, you know the feeling...you cant wait for that day to come. Anticipation, anxiety, fear; it is all there. Well Wednesday, I finally got back on the bike. Now mind you, I wasnt expecting anything super d duper, but just out to stretch the legs a bit. I ended up with 23 miles and a 19.8 avg speed. Not too bad for being off of the bike for a while.  My side still doesnt allow for out of the saddle climbing-not good for the SS side of me.

Today I went out again with more brutal winds and pushed just a bit more. My legs feel great, I mean really good.  My side again still is my handicap-stupid appendectomy! I pushed hard on some climbs and also on the straight stuff. My avg Hr was 170. That would normally tell me something is wrong, but I averaged 19.7 and was able to maintain that high HR without a glitch to the system; so that is a good sign. My max reached 193, which hasnt happened in a while as well.

This weekend I am going to hit the trails for the first time and see what happens. Would you guys tell if I rode the geared bike? I didnt think so. Enjoy the weekend.

I...am...going...CRAZY!!!!!

No Riding, but Alex is Pitching up a Storm

Great Mechanics!

Well no riding means more time for coaching and having a good time with Alex. Today was opening day, but they have already played 2 games. They are 0-2 with a tie. Our team is made up of kids, with the exception of 2, that have never picked up a baseball before. They have already made some great leaps forward.

Alex has been the only pitcher as of yet. The 7-8 rules are that a pitcher pitches the first and 6th innings, the machine does the rest. So far, Alex has pitched 6 innings with 17 k's 4 walks and only allowed 1 hit. He has yet to allow a run.

Alex is on the left

The league also announce officially the Pitch, Hit and Run winners and Alex was on the podium. He goes to the regionals on the 19th to play against other kids in the area. If he wins this, he will play at Camden yards!

Today they played to a 0-0 tie. Alex's hitting is doing ok. He is 2-6 so far, but he will get his in time. He has travel team practice tomorrow and is looking forward to a great day.

I am so proud of him. What makes him so special is that he allows me to coach him. I can tell him how to fix something I see in his swing or pitching and he is receptive, as are all of the kids on the team. He is just a super kid. He is a natural and reminds me so much of myself. He is a go getter and when he does something, he does it 150%.

Tales of a Sit at Home and Play Stupid Video Games Moron

Yes, this is what I have been reduced to; mindless, pointless ways of staying out of trouble. I was looking through the archives of my old computer stuff-yes I am a Mac collector of sorts as well. I came across Diablo II. I am not a gamer by any stretch, but I like to take a few minutes here and there to let loose.

If any of you know the game Diablo, it is a game that is about 12 years old, so old that I had to download a port to get it to play on my current system. It is one of those games that you used to make fun of the kids in college sitting around a table for the entire semester saying things like "The Wemic picks up the unconscious wizard." or " I totally took your elf at stage 4 with a hand ax and enough stamina to take 3 hits points from you.". No, I never played, I had to search for these. I often wondered if they were even students, or just used the lounge area to stage there "brutal" tactics. Anyway, it is a game that over time-in this case 12 years-you build a character up to eventually defeat Diablo. Funny thing is, when you havent played something in a few years, you forget what the heck is happening. I am pushing buttons that arent doing anything and not pushing enough to make something happen! I am getting zapped by the wizards and flamed by the dragons and I have no idea what those goofy little dart blowing fools are either. Ok, calm down, no strenuous activity.

 I often forget how gorgeous the graphics were for the time, the screenshot does no justice. Yeah, I am a graphics man too.

Alright, this is the last one of these. I cant believe I am even posting this. This is what bored cyclist do that cant do anything for a week.