Bicycling

End of Summer

End of SummerTechnically we still have over a month and here in Aiken we have more like two months before the summer like weather is gone, but today was the last week day before school starts. Come Monday morning the commute to work be 20x more aggravating as harried moms or dads drive their progeny to the hallowed halls of learning.

To celebrate the last work day of light traffic roads we rode the tandem to work today.

We’ll still ride the bike to work occasionally because we only have to share the school road with cars for about 30 yards (although it is uphill and seems like 50.) But we will now be alternating our car drive to work. On the weeks we go in early we will drive the more rural route because we are earlier than the school traffic, but the other week we will alter the route to include the four lane US 1 avoiding that traffic nightmare.

Started up, still up.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/07: 333

Foxhounds

Roberto Hernandez StadiumFortunately for us a thunder storm blew through town this afternoon and cooled our temperatures way down into the lower 90’s so we could go out this evening. Because…

…tonight was ASCO Valve Mini Bat Giveaway night and everyone in the company who wanted to go got two free tickets to the game. Getting in was free, but we spent $22 on concessions. The home team Foxhounds were winning over the visiting Charlotte County (FL) Redfish 5-3 when we left in the top of the 9th.

We went for a short bike ride this morning and ended up for breakfast at the same old place. Brought some bagels home for Sunday’s morning meal too.

Started up, went down, back up, back down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/07: 324

Rode the Bus to Work Today

No, not the 30 foot long diesel powered belching black smoke kind, but the tandem bicycle. The morning wasn’t half bad, but the fog had us riding through a cloud on a couple of occasions. The ride home was very warm, but not unbearable. We made a stop downtown for lunch at the Stoplight Deli. On our Friday afternoons off we like to hit the Deli first thing to beat the crowds, but today because of the time required to change into cycling attire and pedal there instead of drive, we hit it at peak lunch crowd. The line was at least 8 deep at the counter, but the food was fairly quick in arriving and, as always, tasty enough to make us forget the wait.

Meal Cost: $13.38
Tip: None
Spent Today: $13.38
Year to Date: $1664.72
Meals out, 97 of a possible 639.

The four shocks did only take four days to get here from California. I thought I was so smart to have them delivered to work, but the joke was on me as they showed up on the day I didn’t have a car. So when we got home I jumped in the Miata and drove right back where we came from to pick up my two boxes that weighed 30lbs and were too heavy and to large to fit in our panniers.

Started down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/07: 306

Breakfast Place Too Good For It’s Own Britches

Be Careful or Your Face May Freeze Like ThatDonna and I went for a bike ride this morning with the intention of ending up at the New Moon for muffins and/or bagels. We missed timed our arrival so that we had twenty minutes to wait before we opened. Donna almost convinced the guy putting tables on the sidewalk to let us buy our two items to go and leave. Almost. We settled down to wait. People started to arrive. And more people. Then some more. Pretty soon there were over a dozen people waiting by the door for 9:00AM. I felt like I was waiting to buy the latest Harry Pooter Book.

I checked the time on my cyclecomputer and we still had 10 minutes to go. Impatient with the crowd, the annoying gnats circling me and the time left, I told Donna to forget it. We wanted to get home to see today’s mountain stage of the Tour, so we mounted back up on the tandem and started on our way. At the end of the first block towards home I noticed that the time was now just a couple minutes shy of nine. The siren’s call of a Cranberry Pecan Muffin was too great. We circled a couple more blocks and went back. I went inside to get our stuff while Donna waited outside. I was 6 or 7 in line. I crept forward at a glacial pace (probably seemed longer for Donna standing outside in a gnat cloud) and finally got to order. An Everything Bagel for her, the aforementioned Cranberry Pecan Muffin for me and to fortify ourselves for the 3 mile ride home I bought a cookie to share.

Meal Cost: $4.55
Tip Jar: 45¢
Spent Today: $5.00
Year to Date: $1554.16
Meals out, 89 of a possible 603.

Speaking of cookies, we made a double batch of Donna’s Famous Chocolate Chip Cookies this afternoon and I lost count after eating six…

Started down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/07: 286

I Can See Still See In The Dark

I Can See Clearly NowToday was Donna and my annual eye exams. Good news is that neither of us have any issues nor have our eyes changed enough to warrant getting new glasses.

We went mid afternoon and some six hours later the drops they put in your eyes to dilate them has not not entirely worn off. I think I could take a book into a closet and read it with the light off. You know your pupils are open wide when the little WinXP screensaver (bouncing logo on black background) has a bright rainbow hued halo around it.

I remember a couple of years ago we went late afternoon and by the time we left the Eye Guy’s place it was dusk. The sun was down but the sky was still light. Most cars were driving with their lights on and both headlights and taillights were giving off these awesome starburst patterns. Even the traffic signals looked like they were being viewed through a starburst filter. Very cool effect, but it was difficult to concentrate on actually driving and not running into anything while looking at all the pretty lights.

We rode the tandem into work again today. I think we are going to try and make it a once a week event from now on. Because we are working our nine hour days this week, this morning’s ride start was way early and it was still dark out. We have a nice powerful light so that was not a real problem. As a matter of fact it was actually nice that time of day, there was almost zero traffic on the road and it was nice and cool (I wore a light jacket and Donna was in long sleeves.)

Right now I’m not sure what is worse, the FRS losing 6-0 to the Yanks in the sixth or having to listen to Chris Berman call the game and Bonnie Bernstein with the sideline commentary.

Started down, went up, still up.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/07: 171

There Is Never A Dull Moment…

Watching Baseball…when the FRS are playing baseball. The Sox had a 6 run lead through almost the entire game, somehow the Braves managed to get the tying run to the plate in the top of the 9th (must not have got the memo about Jonathan Papelbon being the most feared closer in the American League.) But he got Andruw Jones to strike out swinging (for the fifth time in the game) to end it. Season series so far: Boston 2 – Atlanta 1. There are three more games to be played in Atlanta in June to settle it for this season.

We started the morning with a nice tandem ride. I had finally measured the wheel circumference and set both cyclecomputers to the same figure, so Donna wouldn’t be riding further than me on these trips. Worked out pretty good, as mine read 14.0 miles at the end of the ride and hers said 13.98.

Lunch out with friends at Zaxby’s where we split a large Wings ‘n’ Things and an order of Carrots & Celery Sticks. One large Coke and one water to drink.

Meal Cost: $11.72
Tip: None
Spent Today: $11.72
Year to Date: $1147.30
Meals out 62 of a possible 420.

I uploaded five new photos to the Enchanted Ceiling site, something I hadn’t done in a while. It started yesterday when I thought I might sort out my sky photos. I had 14 posted EC and I had 34 posted in a gallery here. I have 37 in the directory on my hard drive and about more 40 in a staging directory. I uploaded the 14 to my other Flickr! account and then to make matters somewhat worse I picked the 5 from the staging directory and added them to the Enchanted Ceiling site ( 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 ), then the Flickr account, but not the gallery here. So did I help the organization or hurt it? Who knows.

Started up, went down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/07: 168

Fra Diavolo Friday

The BusSomethin’ always happens whenever we’re together…

We did ride the tandem to work today. It is always nice to take an early ride while its still cool and traffic is very light. The best thing about riding to work is when you get there, you are wide awake and raring to go while the rest of your co-workers are slug-like and trying to get their brains kick started with a cup of joe. It is almost as if they are moving in slo-mo.

Tonight we went out to dinner with two other couples. The company was great and the food was good, but we spent more than we wanted and it wasn’t just because we bought a round of lasagna sticks for a communal appetizer. It seemed like the value just wasn’t there compared to some of the other places we have eaten at. Caesar Salad, 1/2 rack of Ribs with broccoli & sweet potato fries, iced tea for him, while Donna had a Garden Salad, the Seafood Fra Diavolo (discovering that she really doesn’t like mussels) over linguine with water to drink.

Meal Cost: $43.68
Tip: $6.32
Spent Today: $50.00
Year to Date: $1,034.17

GnormAfter dinner, we jumped in our three Miatas and did a 60 mile loop drive around Clark’s Hill Lake. We ended up at the dam’s South Carolina side parking lot to catch the sunset. A big ol’ thunderhead off in the distance spoiled the “sun setting over the water” image we hoped to see, but did make for an interesting show anyway.

Started down, went up, back down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/07: 156