New Auto

On Saturday Kat and I ordered a 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid. This vehicle is much more roomy than either Kat and I thought it would be. Because of the timing of our order we will be able to take delivery of the car in time to take advantage of the $2,600 tax credit that becomes $1,300 beginning in October. Funny thing about Toyota is that they have one of the highest resale values of cars on the road and the demand is such that MSRP is the price you have to pay. Used hybrids do not make any sense to buy unless you need the car immediately. The tax credit makes a new purchase more attractive than a used vehicle purchase. The best part is that the rated mileage is 40city/38hwy. That is fantastic for a mid-size sedan. The average midside sedan mileage rating is 21city/28hwy.

There is really no way to identify the car as a hybrid from the outside of the vehicle (except for a few badges that indicate it is a hybrid). We opted to go with a sedan for the time being and we will likely upgrade to a crossover or SUV once the family grows a little.

New Dinghy

Yesterday was the second time I was able to use my proper dinghy to get to and from my boat. One of the dock dwellers "the Mayor" was hosting a party and a friend of Katherine's joined us. When we were getting ready to return to shore, Kat and I boarded the dinghy (with Cosmo the dog and Bailel the dog) and I told Kat's friend to step in the middle of the dinghy. She misinterpreted these instruction to step on the side of the dinghy and sit on the side of the dinghy. We all became very wet imediately after the boarding mishap. Kat and I swam out from under the boat while her friend came up underneath the dinghy. Both dogs were trapped under the boat and Kat was able to reach under and grab Bailey. Kat couldn't find Cosmo and became very upset. Also, because Kat is pregnant everyone on the dock was most concerned about getting her out of the water. Cosmo is deathly afraid of water and being trapped under the dinghy had to be the most traumatic experience of his life. When I looked under the dinghy to see if he was okay, he had climbed to the underside of one of the seats and he had a white-knuckled death grip on the seat. I figured that I had better not try to remove him from his perch because he was so terrified...the added fear of going into the water would have probably cost me skin underneath his nails. We righted the dingy and everyone came away okay. We did lose the use of our cell phones and Kat may have lost the use of her iPod.

Lessons Leared: The least experienced boater enters the dinghy first. Step in the middle of the dinghy. Put small electronics in a watertight container.

update: The iPod was the only piece that surived. It was out of power when it went in, so that is probably why it made it. Both phones have been officially deep-sixed.

Not just a puppy daddy...

I recently discovered that my little puppy will have a new human playmate soon...

To visualize what is on the screen... imagine a "teddy bear" lying sideways inside a jelly bean and you get an idea of the anatomical layout of the baby. It was really neat to hear the heartbeat while this ultrasound was performed.

This little one has already turned out to be a trooper. This image was taken the day after my lovely wife deployed the airbags in the car. The car in front of her slowed her down much faster than the brakes. Now we are in the market for a new car for the fam.

Boring note from author: As much as I despise the big 3 automakers, I find myself looking at Ford products. Specifically the Escape Hybrid. 0% financing and $5k less than the Toyota Highland Hybrid financed at 4.9%.

Trip Recap

The trip started out great. I covered over 150 miles on Saturday. The weather was beautiful albeit rather hot, but I didn't get too sweaty. My nutrition level was good and I finished the day with several hours to wander around Whitewater State Park in Altura, MN. On my approach to the park, there was a VERY steep hill. I accelerated to over 40 mph while carrying my load of gear...a little unnerving. At the base of a hill there was a convenience store that had all of the necessities a weekend camper may need. I picked up some pasta, sauce, peanut butter, jelly and a loaf of bread. I asked the 15-year old clerk if there was a hill similar to the one I descended if I continued east. His comment was there are no hills in the area like the one I came in on. He may have been correct about the grade of the hill, but certainly not with respect to elevation. When I embarked on Day 2, I was absolutely frustrated with how slowly I was travelling. After about 45-minutes of slogging along at about 12 mph, I checked the altimeter log of my GPS. Sure enough, I have been climbing for over 600 feet and a distance of over 10 miles, and there was more climbing to go. The issue with this was that it was really humid, the air was still and I was soaking wet after the first 10 minutes of riding. After about 35 more miles of riding, the effects of a saturated cyclist began to take their toll. I'll put it this way, I didn't crash, but I am missing skin...from areas in contact with the bike. The agony of continuing was too much and I aborted the trip with approximately 210 miles under my belt. A little dissappointing, but I covered more distance in the first day of riding that I have ever done in my life.

Some Thoughts Looking Forward...

I plan on doing a long distance ride every year, and I haven't conceived of the next one yet. I will let you know some thoughts after I finish the MN-IL trip. I am always looking for company on long distance ride. There is too much potential for something to go wrong...

My goal for my 4th of July trip is Day 1 (160 miles), Day 2 (160 miles), Day 3 (180 miles). I figure day 1 and 2 will be hilly, and I should be able to average a minimum of 15-16 mph with 10 hours of saddle time. This schedule is extremely aggressive, and much more aggressive than I would hope to do in the future (I like 100 miles/day). Because I am going solo, there will be just myself and my thoughts for three days. Nothing is more trying on you psyche than the relentless howl of a head wind in your ears and the effort it takes to push through a headwind. I am hoping for a tail wind and cool, clear weather. (keep your fingers crossed, keep me in your prayers, or do a crazy dance...whatever it takes, I need all the help imaginable)

For the next trip, I am thinking of maybe a Great Lakes focused trip. Starting from Duluth, MN going east along the south shore of Lake Superior and continuing south along the west shore of Lake Michigan to Chicago. I am open to any number of ideas, and my ability to do another trip will be based on my ability to get time off of work. I like the idea of piggy-backing over a holiday weekend to minimize time off of work. Just some thoughts...

4th of July Weekend Ride and August Challenge

On July 1st, I am going to proceed on a loaded tour from New Ulm, MN to Oak Park, IL. I have established a rigorous agenda including approximately 15o-miles the first day from New, Ulm, MN to Whitewater State Park, Altura, MN. From there I will proceed another 150-miles to Governor Dodge State Park, Dodgeville, WI. I will continue from there to Oak Park, IL, another 160-miles. This trip should be do-able in the three days set aside. My lovely wife will be meeting me on the third day to see what type of condition I am in and relieve me of my load.

I have modified my bike for this trip to include an 11-32 tooth cassette (rear set of gears) and a long-cage mountain derailleur. I am going to be pulling my gear in a B.O.B. Trailer. I weighed my trailer last night and the total gear-weight was about 40-lbs. Not too bad, considering my training ride earlier in the year included two 15-pound dumbbells and a cooler full of water/ice. I added some nifty items to my bike to make this aggressive trip easier. I have a GPS mounted on the handlebars, a map-pouch on the handlebars, and a "Bento Box" food container (located near the stem of the bike.

I will keep this bike configured with the modified gearing, GPS, and Bento Box until I complete the Dairyland Dare 266k ride (162.5 miles!!!).

New Job and New Commute

I started a new position doing the same type of work that I was doing before. The big difference is in the office culture. The new office is much more relaxed and there is a focus on work life balance. I was hussled out of the office before 5:00pm on one day. That would be unheard of at my former employer. Anyway, I am really getting into the grove and enjoying the new position.

The best part about the job is that I have really nice commuting route. It is about 12.5 miles each way and I have been able to complete the commute ranging from 36 to 45 minutes. The 45 minute days were both this week. On Monday, because I was reeling from the HHH and today because it was raining and I had wind in my face so I had to be a little more cautious.

The suburban drivers are much more courteous than the Chicago drivers with the exception of Oak Park. Something was in the air yesterday because I had several near misses and one rub against a car taking a right turn. I think it was because I left work at about 5:15pm, putting me in Oak Park at about 6:00pm. Chicagoland traffic is horrible and it is clear by driver behavior that their patience has eroded by 6:00pm. I guess it provides an incentive for me to get to work earlier so that I can leaver earlier and not end up underneath a car.

Since I have started using my new cycling computer in May, I have logged over 1,000 miles. I would have to guess that I am at about 2,500 miles for the year.

Horribly Hilly Hundreds 200K - Follow-up

Here is the photo of me finishing the Horribly Hilly Hundreds and my results. These results are not final and have some errors that are presently being corrected (Big deal though, it is not as if I am in the top 10) my place and the average finishing time keep changing...

I guess my expression is one of agony and relief. It is always more clear when looking at yourself though a lens other than your own eyes (like this photo) how evident it is that I need to keep on my weight loss program.

The hardest thing I have ever done in my life! Period.

The Horribly Hilly Hundreds is not a ride that I will soon forget. The final climb of the route is 2.9 miles at about 12% grade followed by antoher 0.6 miles at a 10% grade. (To define grade, a road that rises 1 foot in eleveation over 10 feet of linear distance, is called 10% grade). That final climb literally tested my will like no other.

Although the ride desciption states "We recommend a minimum of a 27 tooth rear cassette. Many successful completers of the HHH have used a rear MTB derailleur with a 32 or 34 tooth, or a triple crank.", I decided to ride a 25 tooth rear cassette. Let's call this REALLY POOR JUDGEMENT.

To complete many of the climbs, I had to swith-back (or zig-zag) up the hill to minimize the grade of the hill, turning a 3.5 mile hill into a much longer hill, all the while my legs, heart, and lungs were simply screaming for relief. This climb was difficult/demoralizing because of the simple fact that while you look forward, the only thing that you see is pavement reaching toward the sky. I have only summaryized the final climb, and I will let the profile (linked here) describe the rest of the course.

I travelled faster on this course than I ever have before, hitting a maximum speed of 50.8 mph. There is one thing that I noticed as I continued to pass riders throughout the course. People do not use gravity to climb hills. This may sound demented, but while descending, many people would not pedal, shift into a lower gear near the base of the hill and begin slogging up the hill in their "granny gear". Instead, while descending, I pedal my butt off in my hardest gear, so that my legs are spinning at a minimum of 90 rpm, and I shift to an easier gear one at-a-time so that my cadence (rate of leg spinning) doesn't fall below 80 rpm. This is what I consider using gravity to climb. It is just a matter of simply carrying your momentum as far a possible. While I did pass a ton of riders during most of the course, I was smoted on the ultra-steep climbs, for which I did not have appropriate gearing.

Once the final results are posted, I will link them to my blog. I am estatic that I finished the ride, and I am planning on doing it again next year. I am debating entering the Dairyland Dare. This will be a simple matter of knowing my condition at the end of July. If I have dropped about 10 pounds, and modified my bike as suggested above, I think it will be a go.

Finishing the HHH was one of the best accomplishments for me physically. I can't wait to do it again next year and do better.

Horribly Hilly Hundreds (200K)

I am really disappointed to report that I was unable to ride in the Ozark's Hellbender. My better judgement got in the way of travelling to the race. That is, riding like a maniac for 70 miles and hopping into the car for a 6-8 hour drive sounded like a recipe for disaster. This wouldn't have been a problem if I would have had another racer to join me.

Well onto the next adventure...I am riding in the Horribly Hilly Hundreds which is supposed to be the "toughest one dat challenge ride in the midwest". My favorite part of the ride is the slogan "Biking Like a Viking". I am registered to complete the 200k ride (approximately 120 miles). The key to this ride is nutrition and water intake. The temperature is supposed to be in the 90s this weekend. It is good that I rode 105 miles carrying about 45 lbs. of gear about two weeks ago in 95+ heat. I did pass out about two hours after that ride because I did not hydrate enough or eat enough afterwards. The key for me to finish well in this ride is to really focus on energy management. Typically, I have been a hammer head on hills while I ride; that is, when I ride I bolt up hills with all I have until I react the crest. If I use that strategy on this ride I will certainly bonk.

Wish me luck! I will be hauling my heavy rear end of 220 lbs through this course while the typical cyclist weighs in at about 140-180 lbs.

First Road Race - Ozarks Hellbender

I have registered for my first race and I am a little nervous about the whole deal. The race is the Ozark's Hellbender and it is a 70 mile race consisting of two laps of 35-miles each. I think that this type of race is well suited to my riding style...A lot of hills and the opportunity to power pedal up those hills.

The nerve-racking part is that I will probably be going to the race solo. Most of the people in the racing group I joined like to do local races vs. travel for 6 hours.

I plan on riding the C-dale Lampre Caffita. The one pictured below almost identical to the one I'll be riding.Wish me luck!

Last Evening's Weather

While I was looking out my window at work (from the 42nd floor) downtown, a violent stormfront was bearing down on my route home for work. I quickly donned my cycling gear and tried to out ride the storm. As soon as I exited my office building, very large and very cold raindrops collided with my head. I figured I had better get to riding before the conditions got worse...hmmm, that was a BAD idea.

As I began west on Madison Street (the start of my ride), small pea-sized hail began to fall. As I approached LaSalle Avenue (about two blocks west) dime sized hail began to fall. The bugger of the situation is that the hail was just the right size to pass through the vents in my helmet and explode against my skull. I endured the wicked weather for about four miles before it abated. The weather for the remaining four miles consisted of heavy rain. When I arrived home, I was covered in welts from the hail and was in desperate need of a hot shower.

Would I do it again? Maybe, it was quite a rush! I can imagine all of the drivers at the time thought I was an imbecile and I am sure readers of this post will consider the same.

Polar Cycling Computer

I just downloaded this data from my cycling computer/heart rate monitor for my ride home from work today.

This is a pretty neat way to measure performance.

Validation at Visionquest

Last night I went to an indoor training session hosted by Robbie Ventura, a former USPS rider from 2001-2004. The training session involved about 15 riders connecting their bikes to Computrainers. The Computrainer is calibrated to similate real riding conditions and a visual display indicates the terrain to be covered and a provides a summary of power output, speed, and heart rate. Before the ride, we were told that the fastest ride time EVER was 33min 30sec with an average of 330 watts. The person that put out those numbers is a professional racer who rode in the Tour de France with USPS.

Drum roll please...

I finished first in the group of 15 with a ride time of 37min 45sec and an average of 308 watts. I was about 10% slower than the fastest rider EVER. Robbie indicated that I definately have the power and skill set to ride competitively. He said that I need to work on my "X-factor", which is developing racing skills. To begin with developing my "X-factor", he invited my to ride on one of their upcoming outdoor training rides.

I am really bragging here, but I think that I earned it. I started 4 months ago at about 270lbs and have stuck to a rigorous training regimen during that time. I have transformed my slovenly body to a race ready machine.

I will be meeting with xXx Racing on Monday May 1, 2006. This will be the kickoff-day for my racing goals.

Mad Speed!

I had some big plans to ride about 80 miles over Easter weekend; however, I muched my rear wheel on a big hole while riding in a 25 person peloton. The rider in front of me floated over the hole without calling out the hazard, and I nailed it with all of my weight earning myself two flats. I finished 58 miles, the typical ride but I am in need of a new rear wheel. The highlight of the ride was that I was able to ride with the "A" riders of the cycling group. Before my flats, I hung onto a speed of 28 mph for about 15 miles. MAD SPEED! I weighed in today at 226 lbs, 41 pounds until my goal. I can't wait to ride with the A-group at my target weight (after unloading my sack of butter).

I took out the C-Dale Lampre for about 15 miles on Easter and it is such a beautiful ride. The bike is impressively tight laterally, providing an absolute minimum of energy loss. I am so thrilled to ride that bike. I have been treating the Lampre as a carrot, but after my latest riding speeds, I think I should take the Lampre on the next group ride.

Super Training Day

Today was the first day that I rode my bike to spin class instead of driving. It is about 9 miles from my home to the gym, which I covered in 23 minutes. At 5:15am there are very few cars on the road and it is really easy to go a long distance without stopping. I had about 20 minutes to cool down before spin class started. Strangely, I was able to continue solidly through spin class without any lingering effects from the ride in. It was a different story when I rode from the gym to work after spin class. My legs were tired and my heart rate remained elevated. After getting a protein shake and an energy drink in me, I feel like a million bucks. I hopped on the scale last night and I am under 230lbs. I am going to take my weekly measurement tomorrow and update the fit day website. I am hoping to weigh in at 227.5 lbs. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

58 mile ride

I went on a ride with a local cycling group on Saturday that turned out to be really great and really disastrous. First with the disaster. Because it was my first ride, I took it easy to get a feel for the pace and rider ability. After about 10 miles we encountered our first hill. I was feeling really strong and noticed that most of the riders began to take it easy up the hill. That is not my typical riding style. Typically when I see a hill, I sprint up the hill and give it everything I have because there are so few hills in the area. I checked my corners to check the vicinity of other riders, seeing none, I made a quick maneuver. What I did not see was that somebody made a similar decision and was already gunning up the hill. When I made my move, I essentially cut the other rider off. His front wheel glanced off of my rear wheel, and he hit the pavement at about 20mph. He came down hard and did not slide much. Luckily he was able to get up and he was no bones were broken. He ultimately had to quit the ride because his bike got munched up a little bit. He had a classic lugged Colnago frame (very sweet) and much of the tragedy is in the damage to the bike.

Now the really great part. My training has definitely paid dividends. I hung with the strong riders of the group and was able to out sprint and out climb all but one rider whose wheel was never more that a few feet in front of me. That guy is actually a competitive racer. I finished a few minutes behind the group due to a flat. The group ride stats are: 54.3 miles, 19.9 mph average, 39 mph max, 2 hrs 43 minutes. The remaining four miles were from the ride to/from my condo to the start/end point.

Some of my favorite compliments from the ride were:
"You are going to be scary-fast once you lose the weight you want."
"You are in some kind of shape!"
"You have fantastic thighs!" <- A little creepy, but a strict comment on the size of my legs (over developed from carrying my fat rear end around for so long.)

Decisions...Decisions...Decisions...

I believe that energy will be the biggest growth sector over the next twenty years. In that time there are going to be many innovations in the types of fuels that we use and the fundamental design of electronic equipment. The environment will grow as a sector that is related to sustainable business practices and the incorporation of alternative energies. This is part of the paradigm shift away from carbon based fuels.

As I currently work in the environmental sector, it is interesting to see the drift away from conventional engineering consulting services and the movement toward renewables. Most of the solid waste engineering is to capture methane from decomposing waste, scrub impurities and sell that gas as a commodity. Most of the air permitting work is for ethanol plants. Alternative wastewater treatment is done through natural treatment systems. Decomposing solids from wastewater generate methane which is captured and fired to lessen the energy demand for operation.

That being said, the growth of environmental business is transforming and the boom-growth area is alternative energy. As I was updating my resume for my employer I could not help but think of the changes in this industry. Now the question is: What is more lucrative: The tranformation of a mature industry like Environmental Consulting; or the emerging alternative energy sector?

Decisions...Decisions...Decisions...

www.FitDay.com

I can not stop raving about FitDay.com. It is so easy to use and very useful to estimate calories taken in and calories expended in a day.

If anyone is seriously interested in losing weight, this is a critical tool. My friend John mentioned that he was able to love seven pounds in three weeks by using it! I have shed 40lbs by using for the past 3 months.

It is free and easy to use.

Commuting and Brisk Air

I took the new CDale cyclocross disc on its maiden voyage today, and how sweet it is. The frame is 54cm vs. 56cm of a typcial road bike which makes handling really nice. The disc brakes are a huge improvement over dual-pivot calipers for commuting. I only had two emergency braking moments today that would have been controlled swerves without discs to avoid objects (e.g. cars). The cyclocross also has shorter cranks which can make accelerating from a stop quicker. The only drawback to cyclocross is the somewhat knobby tires that are 700x32 vs. 700x23 of a typical road bike.

I held onto mad speed coming into work. I averaged approximately 23mph (with stops) over the first five miles and much less over the remining three miles due to stop lights. Spinning has really been great for getting in shape. The reserve power in my legs is great for pushing hills and sprints. I am so excited to continue with my weight loss and get even faster and stronger as the year progresses.

Current weight is 233lbs. I anticpate a weight of under 230 and the end of next week...let us see how that goes