Camporee Rained Out

Curtis and I began the weekend Friday night with a trip with the troop out to Louisburg, KS for Camporee. For those of you not familiar with it, Camporee is supposed to be a gathering of area Boy Scout troops with the goal of some friendly competition and sharing information -- it also seems to have become a recruiting tool as most troops invite Webelos out to camp with them to see what it will be like to join Boy Scouts.

Anyway, the night started out alright but turned ugly around 4 this morning. I knew we were in for it when I was awakened by the sides of my tent hitting me in the face. The winds got worse and our troops dining fly caught the wind, up-ended and would have hit a couple tents, including mine, had one of the adults not been out watching the lightning; he caught the fly and called for help. All of the adults and most of the boys scrambled out of their sleeping bags to get things set back up and roped down -- all in the middle of a pretty intense thunderstorm.

By the time our site was put back in order it was 6:30 and we fixed a lot of coffee and enjoyed some REALLY good biscuits and gravy. We put some other canvas tarps up on the sides of the dining fly and a few of us had to stand there with our backs to the tarps holding them out away from the cooking equipment. The rain didn't let up and the winds would come and go. This may not be a very clear shot -- but you'll get an idea of what we were dealing with looking at another troops dining fly up in the trees.


Shortly after I took this picture our dining fly was pulled up and went flying for the second, and last time. With lightning striking in the campgrounds, we called it quits. Be prepared -- but don't be foolish...

You Go Girl

Temperature at departure = 42° F (6° C)

Okay, I don't know why someone passing me on the bike path spurs on my competitive side, but it turned out pretty funny last night. I left Corporate Woods, crossed the bridge over I-435 and took the hook to go into the Antioch tunnel when I saw that two other riders were coming up behind me. Once in the tunnel I powered up a bit to get more of a lead and quickly settled down to my normal pace. I guess it's pride that makes me mention the problems I was having with my chain and derailures - for some reason (yesterday's cold temperatures?) my rear derailure stopped picking up the slack whenever I stopped pedalling so my chain would droop & if I shifted to the big ring in the front, the chain made a loud rattle -- yes, I'm taking it in for a tune up. Still, I was probably running around my normal, average MPH.

Anyway... a couple hundred yards later I was passed by the first rider - an attractive younger lady decked out in spandex riding a very nice road bike. The other gal passed me in about another 100 yards. They were pedalling at a pretty good clip at this point but I knew that a steep, curving, pedestrian-ridden stretch was coming up so I just took my time. Sure enough at the bottom of that hill the gap had closed to about 15 yards.

Now, here is where the competitive side of me kicked in; at this point the trail forks off two directions -- to the right takes you up to the street, to the left you stay on the trail and curve left, go over a bridge and loop left to go under the bridge and continue looping left to get back up on the path. I know that if I go to the right I can just cross the street, go over the bridge and save myself some time. So that is what I did, putting myself solidly back in the lead.

I stopped about a mile later at the bike path detour at Metcalf. Here we go again...


Can we please get a detour for this detour? You have to step out into the road to get around the barrier to the crosswalk signal.

As I was standing there waiting for the light to change the two young ladies pulled up. "You cheated." I guess I wasn't the only one with a competitive streak. I slowed down after crossing Metcalf, waited for them to pass again and wished them a pleasant ride. I caught up with them again when I took the short cut for the next loop under a bridge; we just laughed.

Now, Where Did I Put My Cape

Temperature at departure this morning = 50° F (10° C)

As I was pedalling along through the woods on a leaf covered path the end credits for Batman Begins started playing on the MP3 player. I thought of the sceene where Ra's al Ghul (Liam Neeson) says:

"You traveled the world... Now you must journey inwards... to what you really fear... it's inside you... there is no turning back."

So, in order to become Batman, Bruce Wayne had to become what he feared... Riding on the path, I asked myself what fear I must confront and in doing so, what superhero would I be destined to become?



Behold: Walnutman!

Crisp Morning

Temperature at departure this morning = 56° F (13° C)

I'd forgotten how much I enjoy this weather. Nice cool temperatures in the morning, warm in the afternoon -- and the leaves are starting to change colors. Today's high is supposed to hit ~80° and then a cold front moves in and forces me to start having to think about what to wear when I'm cycling.

Anyway, after leaving my visit to Dad I had the choice of either taking a route in traffic that would allow me to really bump up my average MPH - or - ride the bike path and dodge walnuts, squirrels and slow down on the wet leaves. Did I mention it was a beautiful morning? I took the path. The only negative on this morning's ride was the walnut at the beginning of the narrow bridge by the office.



In three years of riding across the thing, this was the first time that I nearly hit the railing. I survived though and am now going to hunt down some coffee and pop-tarts®.

DTV

Attention: the following post contains nothing about bicycles. I mean, other than the quick comment that some parent rode theirs to the football game and locked it up in the stands; but that's it -- no bike talk -- other than the previous, which I thought was pretty cool. That's really it though.

You may be familiar with the theory that 20% of the people in any organization do 80% of the work. My hunch is that some of my regular visitors are that 20% kind of person. If so, you know what it is like to be a Dad That Volunteers [or an MTV].

One of the advantages to having spent years as a coach, scout leader, Sunday school teacher, classroom dad, etc., etc. is that you get to know the kids that your kids hang around with. As a result, the kids get to know you as well. So it was last night, when I took Curtis and his buddy Darius to the game so we could watch Katie and Jonathan march. We sat down and within 5 minutes I had a pretty steady rotation of between 6 to 15 11-year-olds keeping me company. Two mothers of boys that were in both my soccer team and my Cub Scout den were sitting on the edge of the group as well.

Last night's game was perhaps the best I've seen in the 8 years I've had kids at the school. I was actually enjoying watching the guys play football. The moms had taken off in the middle of the first quarter and came back towards the end of the second quarter. That is when I got into hot water. "Where's my son?!?!" "Huh?," I replied. The mom points her finger at me and says "I thought you were watching my son. Where is he?" I gestured over my left shoulder towards the top of the stands down by the 20 yard line. Did I know that this is where he'd be? No -- but that is where 11 year-old boys tend to end up at some point. I told her, that I was actually watching the game, not the kids. I figured this would have elicited a bit of a glare at least -- but, no real response of any kind came from the mom. Turns out she thought I was kidding because her son was, indeed, right where I'd indicated (without looking).

Anyway... if you're an 80%er -- don't just assume that the 20%ers exist to keep track of your kids; they may just be there to watch the game.

My Appologies To The Birds

And now, another episode of Lessons Learned on the Bike Path:

If the branch is so low that you're concerned you're going to be cutting it real close if you duck your head as low as you can ... try to remember that you're wearing a backpack.

Nascar Bikes

Temperature at departure = 51° F (11° C)

Happy International Walk To School Day !! Curtis and I rode bikes (of course), but that still counts. I actually did see about twice as many people walking to school this morning as I usually see -- so our school got the word out.

I got an e-mail from my good buddy John L that I just had to share.

"I got free tickets to the Busch Nascar race last Saturday and took [my son].

"As we were leaving...even among 10's of thousands of cars...in "Car Nation" no less, I saw these two road bikes of some folks who chose the best parking decision. Makes you wonder if they parked a mile away like me, and didn't want to walk...but based on their gear, it looks like they opted to go car-less for a car-centric event.

"Thought you might enjoy..."

Yep, bikes get rock star parking.

Zero Per Gallon

I can't remember when I first saw the Zero Per Gallon site, but Fritz recently posted about it and his picture prompted me to get my own patch for my backpack. I ordered and my iron on patch arrived quicker than I expected. I finally got a chance to iron it on last night -- here it is.



One other note, if you read Jonny's blog you'll see it mentioned -- but I loved that he stamped his envelope with "Goat Free." I actually enjoyed pondering what the postal carrier must have thought... As I am fond of saying: you gotta make your own fun. The patches are only $5 dollars and I'm looking forward to the conversations that it will generate.

Should A Detour Need A Detour: Part II

Temperature at departure this morning = 53° F (12° C)

Here is another installment of "Should A Detour Need A Detour?"

Last month I mentioned that the Indian Creek Bike Trail detour at Metcalf could, at times, be dicey. So it was this morning.



The workers seem bound and determined to force pedestrians and cyclists out into traffic. Not a big issue, but I wish they'd keep it clear.

Workers Say Nuts To You

Following a dispute yesterday between the workers of Local Squirrel Union 913 and the Parks and Recreation Department of Overland Park - the squirrels cut off talks and walked off their job. The resulting increase in the number of walnuts on the Indian Creek Bike Trail has created several dangerous patches of unprocessed product from the plants located next to the trail.

Talks resumed today and it is hoped that negotiators will be able to find a solution favorable to all concerned.

KATY Trail Ride

Temperature at departure this morning = 73° F (23° C)

Curtis and I headed out on a Boy Scout bicycle campout Friday night. Got to KATY Roundhouse campground around 9 p.m. and got the tents up before the rain started (you can't have a Boy Scout campout without rain). Saturday morning was nice and sunny and perfect weather to ride the KATY Trail.



We got all the tires pumped up and off we went on the first of two 25 mile rides.



The KATY Trail is America's longest "rails-to-trail" project, formerly the MKT rail line, and runs 255 miles across most of Missouri.



We rode past Rocheport on part of the Lewis and Clark trail next to some impressive bluffs by the Missouri River.



Plenty of cool scenery like the MKT Tunnel seen above.

There were two of us adults and four of the boys (including Curtis) who elected to ride another 25 miles. A good time was had by all and I slept better on this campout than I have in two weeks. These pictures and a few more can be seen HERE.

Paparazzi

Temperature at departure this morning = 67° F (19° C)

Absence makes the heart grow fonder -- I hope. Haven't had time to post lately as I've been spending a lot of time at the hospital first and now at the rehabilitation hospital after my dad took a spill and broke some stuff. He has some work ahead of him to get healed up, but after a shaky couple of weeks I'm happy to say I think he is doing fine now. One of my favorite moments from the hospital was after the attractive young nurse asked him if he wanted a bath in bed; he turned to me and said "How can I say no..."

The rehab hospital is just 0.3 miles off the path I used to ride to work before they got the detour for the bike path in place. I've been stopping by before and after work -- locking my bike to a tree out front. Pretty much every day I'm asked by some of the staff if I rode my bike. I answer 'yes' as I stand directly in front of them with my backpack on one shoulder and holding my helmet in gloved hands...

So, this morning I'm on part of the path that runs next to my kid's high school when I notice the first hour photography class walking towards me taking pictures of the surrounding flora and fauna. They notice me and suddenly I've got twenty or so people on each side of the path snapping my picture as I ride by. 30 yards later I exit the path and ride into traffic on Lamar when it hits me: I was just mobbed by paparazzi while on my way to rehab!

Oh great! Now Paris is text messaging me. Like I've got time for that right now.

Harnessing My Inner Gordon Ramsay

Temperature at departure this morning = 73° F (23° C)

I enjoyed Hell's Kitchen, my wife did not. She didn't like the way he goaded the contestants. I had the feeling that a lot of it was just for show, but that Gordon Ramsay is, in fact, a tough motivator. In searching for listings featuring Ramsay, I noticed that Monday had a bit of a mini marathon of Kitchen Nightmares on BBC America. I set up a tape. (Remember VCR's? Yep, still using one.) I love this show and can't wait for the American version coming out on Fox sometime in the next week or two.

Why do I like Ramsay's approach? Sometimes I need a kick in the seat of the pants like Chef Ramsay dishes out on a regular basis. He gets in people's faces, doesn't take excuses and makes them shape up and get focused and passionate about what they're doing. He yells and curses and insults many -- but you'll notice that he is kind and encouraging to those who show that they're willing to make an effort.

I kept Ramsay in mind a few times over the last few days when my motivation to tackle some of the important things that needed to be done started to flag. So, whether you like him or not, if you start to get off course today -- harness your inner Gordon Ramsay.


Oops, he's telling me to get to work -- donkey!

Dog Days

Temperature at departure this morning = 73° F (23° C)

It was a truly beautiful morning today. I had to take a few minutes to sit on the back porch with my mocha latte and just enjoy the sunrise while the dogs stretched their legs (Maggie is pictured below). On the way in this morning I saw at least 6 other cyclists -- that may not seem like many but it is twice as many as I normally see.


Labor Day was spent laboring away at home; but we got so much done that it didn't feel like a chore. Saturday night CAT and I got to see a bunch of my family at a party thrown in honor of one of my cousin's son's recent wedding. Man, it was nice to see everyone, I only regret not getting to spend more time with each of them.

Two nice rides this weekend: Saturday, Peter and I rode the route we tried, and failed to ride back in July due to the construction mess mentioned a few posts ago. 23 miles including the ride to and from the route. Just as we were approaching the tunnel under Nall at 125th, a young mom crossed our path with two kids on little bikes with training wheels riding ahead of her and two dogs (one on leash and one off leash). The dog running free went after my front tire for some reason. I stopped just short of running the thing over. "Sorry." Yeah, me too. Weird, I can't remember another encounter like that since I was a kid. I told Peter later that I was getting ready to hop off the bike and get my rear wheel between me and the dog, but it didn't come to that.

Sunday, on the way home from my dad's, I'm riding along, minding my own business, when a rather large dog jumps up and comes barking my way. He was on a chain which stopped him short about 5 feet from the curb, but it did shake me out of my uphill, plodding trance. All in all, a wonderful weekend. Hope yours was too.

Stop

Temperature at departure this morning = 72° F (22° C)

How many times have you heard someone complain that cyclists never stop at stop signs?



Yep, that is a stop sign. This was 8:30 this morning at a point where the bike trail has to cross the road. My phone only records 20 seconds of video so you missed the next 4 vehicles (including a FedEx truck) that rolled right on through. 11 drivers and not one stopped. I stopped, and I had the right of way... I was ready for this today because the same thing happened yesterday. I also wanted to try out the new Blogger video option...

First!

Temperature at departure this morning = 78° F (26° C)
Temperature at departure yesterday evening = 98° F (37° C)


How can you tell that you're the first one to ride on the trail during the end of August, first of September?


Spider webs. I know it's not a great shot, but it was a quick one with the camera phone... I rode through so many spider webs strung across the path that I felt like I must have looked like that guy in Raiders of the Lost Ark...


I've just got to remember not to step out into that beam of light.

Ramming Speed

Temperature at departure this morning = 74° F (23° C)

My average MPH went up 1.5 MPH this morning without my thinking about it. I wrote about this back in April, but today I was listening to the end credits from Sky Captain and Kingdom of Heaven (one of my examples in April) and I must have automatically kicked into my body's high gear.

Ironic side note: on one of my weekend rides the Sky Captain soundtrack came up just as I was overflown by a Stealth Bomber that was making a run on the air show downtown. Words can't express how cool that moment was. I love seeing the Stealths fly.

Bike Path Follow-up

Here is a follow up to last weeks post about the Indian & Tomahawk Creek Trails. Since the note I got mentioned that they still needed to put up some fencing and do some seeding, I figured I'd check out the actual status of the path. Here you'll see one of the areas that I assume they'll seed.



There is a sign, going one direction, with this warning:



There are only a few spots where dirt and gravel cover the path; wasn't really a problem. I encountered a number of cyclists out for a ride on this section of the path.



They've got posts up for the fencing and for good reason as the side of the path drops abruptly.



Now, the Metcalf detour. Heading west you'll see the section of pavement that joins the path to the sidewalk on the left and the part of the path that is closed on the right.



Here is the challenging part.



The crosswalk signs are covered so you just cross with the green light. I encountered a couple problems here on a couple different rides this weekend:

1. The people that want to turn right are not going to be looking for you.
2. Sunday, a guy heading south pulled up about even with the bumper of the gray car pictured above, completely blocking the crosswalk and forcing me out around the cones and into traffic. I gave him my best passive-aggressive eye roll so he, hopefully, will be a little more careful next time...

Indian Creek & Tomahawk Creek Trails

Temperature at departure this morning = 76° F (24° C)
Temperature at departure yesterday evening = 94° F (34° C)

The recent construction project on Metcalf at 103rd street has made another Indian Creek bike/hike path detour necessary.

This one is a bit dicer than the one still in place at Antioch and I-435; you'll be routed up to the crosswalk on the North side of Metcalf. They have added some pavement just to the east of Metcalf to get you back off the sidewalk and onto the path. I would recommend taking the few extra seconds it takes to dismount and walk the bike across. As you can see, this is a busy intersection any way and they've funneled three lane into two, both directions. The detour is the crosswalk seen in the middle of this shot from the traffic cam.

Actually, I should say this is a HORRIBLE intersection to try to navigate as a pedestrian or cyclist. Most of the drivers here are going to be more apt to be looking for gaps in the traffic that they can shoot through and guess what? -- You are most likely to be in the gap, unseen by the motorist. It isn't a matter of who is right and who is wrong, cross with extreme caution!

Next, although the maps of Johnson county trails shows this stretch of the Tomahawk Creek trail open, I noticed on a ride a month or so ago that some work being done around Alt-69 between 135th and going north east to Metcalf. The path was just gravel in the section circled here:

I sent another note to the guy mentioned yesterday and got a quick response saying:

"We are close to completing that project and should have it officially open in the next couple of weeks. We still have some fencing and seeding to do there. This will complete the last major gap on the Tomahawk Creek Trail that runs from Leawood to Olathe (Pflumm Road). We still have a minor gap on 127th St. between Nall and the bridge near Deer Creek, but with the street and sidewalk, it is at least passable. That stretch will be completed with the road improvement in 2010."

He also gave me a heads up on some possible future work on the Indian Creek trail:

"While we are on the subject of closures and a heads up. In 2008, we may have a closure/detour of the Indian Creek trail in our Foxhill South & North park areas. This is the stretch between Mission and Roe. There is a major flood control and bridge construction project planned for this area. No timeline has been created but it will likely occur in mid 2008 and continue into 2009. The last time we had to close this stretch, we detoured users over I-435 via the pedestrian bridge that parallels the Roe street bridge."

I may ride the Tomahawk Creek trail this weekend to see how much work is left. Thought those of you who occasionally ride these paths might like the info as well.

Virtual Dinner?

...that's what the kids call the stuff I cook. [Bah dum bump]


Seriously, Virtual Dinner? I can't even get the people that live in my house all together at the same time...

Spouting Off Again

Temperature at departure this morning = 80° F (27° C)
Temperature at departure yesterday evening = 96° F (36° C)

Once again, the fine folk in the City of OP office come through in a flash. I have got to believe that this one guy rolls his eyes whenever he sees my name in his In Box. Granted, I don't e-mail him that often -- last time was 3 or 4 months ago. I had to send a note this morning though as the new Ed Eilert Fountain seemed to be the source of a new tributary for Indian Creek. You can see part of the fountain in the upper left corner and the photo doesn't really give you a true picture of just how much water is flowing down the sidewalk and path...


This shot is looking down towards the bridge for 109th. The water picks up again just past the tree in the upper, center of the shot and covers 3/5ths of the path with an inch or two of running water.


I sent the above mentioned contact an e-mail with these shots and got a reply back within an hour saying that they'd had a problem a week earlier with a stuck solenoid and he'd have someone check it out right away. Service with a smile... By the way, if you're riding the path and need a quick cool down, the sidewalk meets up with the path in two places and allows you to get right up next to the fountain. I took advantage of the spray this morning.

Birdman or Birds?

Temperature at departure this morning = 81° F (27° C)
Temperature at departure yesterday evening = 100° F (38° C)

So I was going to go with this one...


I'd just turned right off 103rd when I noticed a robin on the curb to my right, eating a bug. The thing must be part squirrel as it started to fly away from me, changed its mind and flew under me somehow shooting the gap between my pedals and back wheel. Nothing like a little shot of adrenalin to start the morning.

Flash forward 5 minutes and 1 mile. I rode through the tunnel under Antioch at my normal 12 MPH preparing for the sharp right turn at the end of the tunnel. As I exit the tunnel I enter a flock of what must have been close to 100 sparrows. They scattered and I rode in the middle of the frightened flock for a few seconds. I said that there was nothing like a LITTLE shot of adrenalin... So, I've decided the picture of the day should be:


...although I prefer the "Birds" sceen from Mel Brooks' High Anxiety...

Once Around the Campfire, James

Temperature at departure = 75° F (24° C)

On one hand, this is just wrong. On the other hand, if I had the money to burn...

Behold, Glamping! (glamorous camping)

$595 a night -- plus an additional $110 per person per day for food.

"The perks include a camp butler to build their fire, a maid to crank up the heated down comforter at nightfall and a cook to whip up bison rib-eye for dinner and French toast topped with huckleberries for breakfast."

I wonder if they have someone to walk around and round up all the chiggers... Hmmm, that would be SO worth it.

Baiku

It has been a while since I've seen a baiku on Fritz's site. Fritz, here you go...


This heat's oppressive.
Where'd my water bottle go?
Found it, now I'll ride.

Just Do It

Temperature at departure this morning= 76° F (24° C)
Temperature at departure last night = 98° F (37° C)

Pardon the interruption, but if you are someone who commutes by bike, please go read Fritz's post over at CommuteByBike and take a minute or two to send an e-mail to Ms. Peters via the link provided. Thanks.

We now return you to our regular programming.


When I initially saw this, after arriving at work yesterday morning, I was going to say that my kids must have come to the office for ice because they always seem to empty the trays at home without taking the 15 seconds it takes to fill them and put them back in the freezer. That's right, I've timed it. My kids roll their eyes every time I mention the 15 seconds to them -- you'd think that they'd fill them up just to avoid the schpeel they know will ensue as a result; but, no, they do it anyway... But here I was at work and someone had emptied trays and put them back without filling them.

I filled the trays and decided not to comment because standing in front of the freezer I realized that I've been doing something similar for months. There have been several receipts which I've been carrying around in my backpack, transferred to my laptop bag, back to my backpack, to the top of a pile on my desk at home and back into the backpack. I simply needed to fill out a form, attach a copy and mail them to get a check back from my medical reimbursement plan. It would be interesting to know how much time I've blown moving the stack, carrying forward the task in my planner, etc. So, the empty ice cube trays chidded me into sitting down and getting this task (originally put on my list in February) done. 29 minutes and, yes, I timed it.

Generation Gap

Temperature at departure = 81° F (27° C)

Ahhhhhhh. The first day of school. Apologizes to The Old Bag, but it will be nice to get back into the routine and away from all the phone calls regarding what people can have for breakfast, lunch, snack -- all the calls of people wanting to "tell on" their siblings.

So, I rode along with Curtis to his school and turned to head off to work when I caught up and passed another cyclist. I got stopped at the signal I love so well and he caught back up with me. "Man, what happened to your ankles?" I had a few seconds to explain the chiggers at the last campout and he was amazed that the bites would still be as prevalent as they are. Our light turned green and we headed out into traffic and chatted a little bit before I took a right turn and got back up to speed.

And now, from our "You know you're getting old when..." department:

Me: "I don't want to sound like a broken record, but..."
14 year-old: "What?!?!?"

Thus began a 5 minute explanation of the ancient technology of phonograph records. [Sigh]

Happy YMTYTSDFW Day

Temperature at departure = 78° F (26° C)

Some of the weather folk are saying that this will be our hottest day of the year with the temperature probably topping out ~ 103°. Still, it could be worse -- I could be back down in Texas where playgrounds are spontaneously combusting.

I can't find it on any calendars, but today must be Young Mothers Take Your Toddler and Small Dog For a Walk Day. I decided to stretch out my morning ride and met 4 of the above combinations within a 1.5 mile area. I must say, we all behaved very well with me slowing way down and dinging my bell and the moms moving to the side a bit making sure neither of their charges were in danger. "Good morning" shouts were shared all around and it was a very pleasant ride.

Here is a shot from the path just before I met up with the first group.

This Time Last Year

Temperature at departure = 77° F (25° C)

It was nice getting back on the bike yesterday. When I got into the office I did my normal hot weather routine of filling my water bottle most of the way and putting it in the freezer. Last year, when the temperatures for my afternoon departure were in the low 100's for several weeks, I'd stop for a drink around half way home and the water would be cool but the ice would have already melted. When I left the office yesterday the temperature was 93° F (34° C) and the bottle was still mostly filled with ice when I got home.

There are a few differences that might explain why I'm only filling the water bottle half way before freezing today:

• A 10 degree difference in temperatures.
• Last year my route was mostly in traffic -- this year it is primarily on the bike path which runs next to a creek and provides lots of shade.
• My route home is only 2/3 what it was last year.

Don't misinterpret what I'm saying, it was still oppressively hot and breathing seemed a bit labored at times. So, for now, I'm not going to worry about my average MPH. I'll slow down a bit and stay on the lookout for misaimed sprinklers that are misting over into the road.

Back From Dallas

Temperature at departure = 75° F (24° C)

I honestly thought I'd get more done on-line last week than I normally do. Really, I was going to be in another city with only my normal work hours to deal with; my nights were mine to do with as I saw fit. No kitchen to clean up, no running people to lessons, etc. All I had to do was find dinner at some restaurant and the rest of my evening would be free.

I can't figure out where that time went. I didn't watch that much TV. I didn't really go anywhere because my feet and legs were killing me (see previous). It just goes to show that I get into a routine at home and even though there are a ton of things on my calendar, I'll still have time to do some of the things I want to do -- and some of the things I don't. So if you'll excuse me, I've got to go clean off the spider webs I rode through on the trail this morning. Ah yes, back in the groove.

Chiggers

This last weekend we had the rare opportunity to camp out at Shawnee Mission Park. The park doesn't allow camping -- unless your group is the Boy Scouts (or another similar youth organization). There is a special Boy Scout Camping Area just off the mountain bike trail and the fire road. This is, literally, primitive camping with no water, latrines, etc. The spots available for tents are far from level, you just find the best spot and set up your tent. Here's mine:

I had thought about taking a shot of Curtis' ankles -- or mine for that matter. We have so many chigger bites that we're both miserable. Antihistamines and hydrocortisone cream mute the itching a bit for an hour or two before the horrible itching comes back.

I used to get chigger bites in the summer due to all the running around in bare feet that we did. I never had it as bad as I do now and Curtis' bites are twice as bad. Poor kid. I don’t remember how long it takes for this to run its course; hopefully not much longer. Now, excuse me, I have to go do my best not to scratch.

Sage Advice

Words to live by: "Don't ring that bell to get girls."

Pretenses

Temperature at departure = 76° F (24° C)
Days until school starts = 14


We have yet to have had a 100° day this summer. Don’t get me wrong, that is NOT a problem. Last year, July and August gave us afternoon temperatures around 102° to 105° on a regular basis. What I’ve noticed is that the necessity of having a water bottle for my commute is negated; I still freeze a bottle over night and then freeze it again when I get to the office – I just don’t really need to drink during the 20 minutes I’m on the road when the temperature is in the 80’s.

Still, I was reminded this morning how the water bottle serves other purposes as well. Some people keep them handy to use as a projectile in the event they are threatened by drivers or dogs. On the opposite side of the spectrum, I use mine as a psychological prompt for over-courteous people.

I pulled up to an intersection early in my ride and a driver who had no stop sign and clearly had the right of way stopped to wave me out into my left-hand turn onto a busy street. What these types of drivers don’t understand is that they may, in fact, be waving cyclists into some other on-coming traffic. Perhaps you’ve gotten into an exchange of waves that goes something like:

“You go.”
“Thanks, but you go.”
“No, I insist, you go.”
“I really appreciate your looking out for me but, please, you go.”
“I just won’t take ‘no’ for an answer, you go”

That just gets the driver (and all the cars piling up behind them) miffed at you. The answer to this dilemma is as close as your bottle cage. I now just stop, put a foot on the ground and grab my water bottle to take a drink; off the drivers go and everyone is safe and happy. I use that a lot when I come to parts of the bike/hike path that cross over driveways in the office park. I also use the technique when I get to the door of my building. I appreciate that people want to hold the door open for me as I carry my bike in, but it really is much easier if they go ahead and let me open the door by myself.

So, the bottle is back in the freezer prepping for the ride home so I can get a swig of bottle water when I get home – unless…

Hold Your Breath I Guess

Temperature at departure = 73° F (23° C)

So, today is our second Orange Ozone Alert day of the summer. The media is encouraging us to limit our emissions. Great, and we're having fajitas today... The news reports today suggested the following steps:

• Cut back on strenuous outside activities. They suggest staying indoors in the air conditioning.
• Drive less. My favorite part of the report I heard was when they said to ride a bike or take a leisurely walk -- right after they said to hide indoors.

Oh well, at least we won't have to worry about giant bugs.

Busy, Busy

Temperature at departure = 72° F (22° C)

The last few days have been hectic and, at times, stressful; but then, that's life. I had a very nice ride with some guys from church on Saturday which I will talk about next time. The end of last week we had some front end work done on the van. Sunday afternoon I was headed to my Dad's house and the tie rod popped off one side and I lost steering. The van was doing it's best to change lanes or plow into the curb, but I got it stopped without hitting anyone. When I showed the problem to the tow truck driver he pointed out that the nut for the other side of the tie rod was barely on. So, looks like they set the tie rod in place, stuck the nuts on and then promptly forgot to tighten them up. I was not amused. Had it been 10 minutes or so earlier I would have been driving 70 MPH down the highway with three of my children in the van. I still get a little shaky every time I think about that. All better though, they said they were sorry. Yeah. If the owner of the shop wasn't a long time acquaintance I'd pursue the matter further. As it is, I believe I will now look elsewhere for future repairs.

I found out Friday that our office might be moving down the road a bit to College and Metcalf. That would make the drive shorter but my bike commute will be a couple miles longer as there is no way on earth I would try to ride a bike down Metcalf. I did a recon ride this morning to see what kind of bike parking facilities they have for the three towers on that site: Two pipes bent in a U, next to a bush at the corner of one of the buildings. The battle is joined.

"Dad, I’m bored"

You need to understand how rare it is that one of my children would admit to being bored. It has been several years since any of them have dared to utter the phrase “There’s nothing to do.” I cured that long ago by handing the person who said it a small shovel and a plastic bag to do something we like to call “Poop Patrol.” We have two large dogs…

So my youngest must have been VERY bored when he came to me today. This time I had something different in mind. We’d recently had a dinner conversation about Carbon Credits and Carbon Neutrality. I explained that companies that put out a bunch of carbon can buy credits from a company that doesn’t put out as much carbon in order to avoid governmental fines. I took it a step further and asked why couldn’t people sell Personal Carbon Credits where they would do something green in exchange for someone else who didn’t want to make the effort but still wanted to feel good about themselves (see my post from Monday for an example…).

So, rather than just sit around watching TV -- and in an effort to avoid Poop Patrol, Curtis set up shop selling Kool-Aid and Carbon Credits.

There were three, one-dollar options today:

1) Curtis will ride his bike to school and his dad will ride his bike to work for a day so you can drive and not feel bad about it.

2) We will raise our thermostat two degrees so you can lower yours two degrees for one day.

3) Curtis will play outside for the day and not use any electricity to watch TV, play video games or use the computer.

He made three bucks today; all of it in Kool-Aid sales. He did have one person ask about the carbon credits and he explained that, like big business, they could pay him to do something environmentally friendly so they didn’t have to -- but could still feel good about themselves. They thought that was kind of dumb. Why should they pay him to do something that they should be doing themselves? Yeah. Exactly.

Wimp

In the three weeks of the Tour de France, they say that the riders will burn around 124,000 calories. I added up my calories burned cycling so far this year and I'm only up to 70,000. That is for the entire year. Still, that is equal to 20 pounds of body fat, so I can't complain too much. I get to have the occasional bowl of ice cream or can of Classic Coca-Cola without guilt.


Yesterday Peter and I tried out what was supposed to be a 20 mile route that was all bike path (except for a couple blocks on 127th). http://veloroutes.org/bikemaps/?route=2799


We got lost a few times and were thrown a curve ball when the path at 135th and Alt-69 ended suddenly, turning into gravel. We tried riding the gravel path for a bit until we were forced to turn around due to construction equipment. Rather than face the nightmarish traffic on 135th at that point, we took the sidewalk on 135th to Metcalf then headed down Metcalf to meet back up with the path by a golf course. The map showed a path all the way around that course, but it actually ends about half way. We decided to cut the ride short and take Lamar down to L.A. Juice and grab a smoothie. Once we made it home we'd put in 22 miles. We'll probably try that route again and just head down 127th once we get to Lamar. All in all a great ride.

TdF Games

I'm taking a few vacation days this week and riding the bike more than I normally do. Peter and I took a ride on the trail to try out his new (new for him at least) Diamond Back hybrid. There are a few parts that need to be replaced, but he loves fixing up older bikes.

Curtis and I actually watched the end of stage 15 live yesterday. Last night he decided to go spend the night with a buddy, so we hopped on the bikes and headed over. I've never seen him peddal that fast before; I actually had to try to keep up with him a couple times. As we're headed up 99th he yells back to me "Dad, I'll be Contador and you be Rasmussen." Zip, off he went.

We met up with his buddy (also on his bike) about a mile later. As we headed to the friend's house, Curtis said to his friend "You be Rasmussen and I'll be Contador." "Hey," I shouted, "I thought I was Rasmussen." The reply made me chuckle a bit: "I guess you can be Leipheimer." I guess you can tell who his favorite is...

Argument Deflected

Friend: "I don't understand how you can still be a conservative."

Me: "What I don't understand is why I'm the one riding my bike to work while you drive an SUV."

Friend: "How was your weekend?"

Me: "Great, got a couple of really fun rides in..."

What Did I Do?

Temperature at departure = 74° F (23° C)
Humidity = 84% (drippy)

I would like to believe that I am a reasonably approachable guy. Even when I’m riding on the bike/hike path, I try to be courteous and considerate of the pedestrians and other riders. I make sure that people that I’m approaching from behind know I’m there; I ding my bell and say good morning and pull as far to their left as possible. When I’m meeting someone head on I make sure I hug the right side of the path and I keep the pace nice and slow around the walkers.

So, what was the deal this morning? The first pedestrian I encountered turned around to look at me when I dinged and said good morning and promptly hurried three feet into the grass at the right of the path. I shrugged it off and continued. Pedestrians two and three were enjoying a morning stroll together and even though we were heading towards each other, I dinged again, slowed down and said good morning. They scurried off the path about 4 feet into the grass. Weird.

Now I’ve got several thoughts running through my mind: Do I resemble a photo of some criminal that they’re showing on the morning news? Did I cut myself shaving and miss stopping the flow of blood? What?

A little further down the path I see that I’m going to overtake a young woman out for a leisurely ride; great, what do I do to NOT scare her? I ding my little bell and say “Good morning, coming up on your left.” She rides off the path into the grass. I just don’t get it. I take the loop around the park to head back towards my building and as I’m getting back to where the loop rejoins the path where I got on and I notice there is another cyclist coming towards me from the other side of the loop; it looks like we’ll meet at the junction. Nope, the guy stops and turns around to pedal back the other way. Further on the gang out trimming trees along side the path hustle out of my way and I just want to get to my office and let the world get back to their own business.

I still don’t get it. Now, WHERE’S MY COFFEE!?!?!

One Year

Temperature at departure = 76° F (24° C)

Today marks the one year anniversary of this blog. To those of you who check in occasionally, thanks. To those of you who comment, I appreciate your taking the time; it means a lot to me.

I actually had been blogging for about a year before I started this one, but that blog was on a corporate site and after an acquisition the server that held all those posts went away, never to return. I know I should have backed my work up, but as we say in Kansas -- "Sailor Vee." It's a shame, really; those posts were so much more witty and entertaining. I mean "Dave Barry watch out" kind of funny ... but, sadly, the world will never know.

Anyway, I will endeavor to persevere, so please keep checking back.

WT

Lenexa Midnight Bike Ride, part 2

Temperature at departure = 76° F (24° C)

I've been trying to find a news story to link to regarding either the Lenexa Midnight Bike Ride, or the activity that occurred during the ride. No news to be found. So, apparently 4 people can get together on a corner to protest something/anything and get coverage, but > 1,000 cyclists just isn't news worthy. Not that I'm bitter...

Around 4 miles into the ride I noticed a helicopter overhead. Cool, I thought, I'll have to watch the news later in the morning to see if they show some shots of the ride. Time and miles went by; around 2 miles from the finish one of the volunteers stationed at an intersection yelled to us that the next major intersection might be closed off due to a high speed chase the police were involved in. Up above we still see the helicopter, but now I notice it is shining a spotlight on the ground. Close by. Where we are riding.

We made it through the next intersection without event. A few more blocks go by and we noticed some officers walking between a couple industrial buildings -- the helicopter is now shining its light on and around the officers. We picked up the pace just a hair...

So, I can't find any news about the Lenexa Midnight Bike Ride or anything about the police searching for a fugitive in the area. All I know is it added just that much more excitement to the ride.

French Lessons

Temperature at departure = 76° F (24° C)

Curtis, our youngest (11 years old), and I have been spending quite a bit of time together the last few weeks. CAT has been working late the last two weeks or so, moving her office and storage down to the Arts District (warning: the preceding link has audio - you have to put your cursor on the video and hunt down the mute button - I hate sites that do that) and the other kids are either working or out with friends. Curtis' friends have been away on vacation or busy with baseball, so he has been hanging out with dad. A lot.

Last week I started watching the Tour de France for the first time in my life -- and I'm hooked. I avoid checking the news in the morning (which isn't difficult) and catch the re-broadcast on VS later in the evening. Curtis decided to watch with me. It is interesting (to me) to watch people's reactions when he tries to discuss the peloton, breakaways and the four special jerseys.

A quick note about the news coverage: you really have to dig for it this year. I checked several of the big news sites, like Google News and there is nothing to be found on the front page. Fritz is doing a wonderful job keeping up and there is always Versus but, again, I watch at night so I've been trying to skip checking in until after 10 p.m...

Anyway, when Curtis and I watched Stage 8 the other night we noticed some things that looked like awnings covering parts of the alpine roads. The odd thing, in my mind was that they have grass growing on them.

"That's cool." said Curtis...

"That's weird." I said, to which he replied:

"Well, it's France."

I got a good chuckle out of it...

Here is a fuzzy screen capture of a YouTube video of one of these overhangs. From what I gather, they are designed to keep the water from the melting snow in the Alps off the roads at critical places; and you know, they are cool.


By the way, CAT, Curtis and I decided to head out to see Ratatouille last night -- FANTASTIC!

Lenexa Midnight Bike Ride, part 1

Temperature at departure = 75° F (24° C)

Sunday morning's Lenexa Midnight Bike Ride was an absolute blast! I am so glad my buddy John talked Peter and I into giving it a try. John has ridden a bunch of organized rides throughout the country and he says this one was organized and run better than any in the Midwest, and as well as the good ones he has ridden in California. The volunteers and the police were fantastic.

Peter and I met up with John at 10 p.m. and waited for the registration table to open up -- they'd closed it down and moved all their stuff under some awnings since a thunderstorm was threatening. They opened the tables, briefly and we got our selves checked it and went back to get our bikes and kit pulled together.

A half hour before launch I saw Noah; it was wonderful getting to meet him and ride along with him. We took pictures of each other taking pictures of each other...

Dude, sorry this one came out so blurry; cell phone camera...

There was a photographer that the city of Lenexa uses to take pictures of all their events. Cool idea.
From left to right, a shot of Noah, my buddy John, my son Peter and myself, waiting for the ride to begin.

Having maneuvered up towards the start of the pack, past most of the families with small children and the guy with the big dog in the kiddie trailer, we were in a good starting position and since the thunderstorm warning had been lifted we actually got to start at Midnight.

We rode for about a mile when John asked if we wanted to move past some of the people we were behind. Off we went! We never made it up to the breakaway, but we were in the front part of the peloton (I've been watching a lot of the TdF). I can't tell you how much fun I had riding straight through left turn lanes while running the red light with an officer standing there watching. The ride was fairly level until we got close to the turn-around point. There is a rather steep hill -- a half mile down and a half mile up -- we flew down the first time and John and Peter made it to the top well before I did. I was huffing and puffing a bit, but recovered by the time we had to do it again. This time I let everyone hammer away on the downhill part and I took it easy. This time I passed the others on the uphill side.

Lesson: always keep a little in reserve.

The ride through the industrial limestone caves was worth the whole entry fee and more. Very cool ... in more than one way; it was fascinating riding past all the limestone pillars and the temperature cooled down so that it felt like we were riding through a refrigerator. The cool temp.s were very welcome after the hills we'd just ridden. I'm borrowing one of Noah's pictures of the caves.


The photographer they had on hand got the following pictures of Peter, myself and John close to the end of the ~2 miles we spent underground.

Peter

Me

John

Chris Cakes pancakes at the end were a nice touch. Great ride and I'm looking forward to doing it again next year. Sorry for the length of this post. I've got a few other things I want to mention, but will wait until tomorrow.

That Was Much Better

Temperature at departure = 69° F (21° C)

This morning more than made up for the previous day. With no one else stirring yet I got up, made my mocha latte, headed out to the back yard with the dogs and just sat on the porch and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Then I packed my backpack and headed out on the Trek hoping that I fixed the flat and got the rear wheel back on correctly. I've got some adjusting to do since to shift up a gear it is two steps forward and one back at the moment. But, I made it.

I saw another bicycle commuter in my neighborhood this morning. He pulled in front of me ~20 yards from a side street and I thought I was going to be able to catch up and say good morning at the traffic signal of doom, but he swung to the left and hopped on a sidewalk that goes through a group of duplexes. I continued on and lucked out with the light; a driver had pulled up earlier and the light turned green just as I got to the intersection. I turned left and headed down 103rd and right where I pull off to the right to join up with the trail, and I see this guy pull up to a stop on the far side of the road. Now, if I'd been stuck at the light for a bit, as is the norm, he would have had the advantage. So now the dilemma, the sidewalk has a sign that says "Private Drive" -- but it would cut out the majority of the only real traffic I face daily. I could try it and take the "It is better to ask forgiveness than permission" approach, but I'm a rule follower by nature. We'll see; once school starts and the traffic turns ugly again, I may give it a try.

I'll leave you with a shot of yet another cyclist on the Indian Creed Trail. Didn't catch up with him though...

Grumpy

Temperature at departure = 73° F (23° C)
Days until school starts = 37

I love that book -- and it pretty much sums up my ride home last night and the ride in this morning. I left work a little late hopeful that the 3.5 inches of rain we got in the late afternoon would be mostly dried up, and that I’d beat the next batch of storms headed my way. Eh, kinda. Here is what I faced in the first .8 miles home:

1. Snakes. Apparently, snakes seek high ground during flash floods along the creek -- and the bike/hike path is the high ground.
2. Washed out sections of the little bridge that I’m so fond of. The water got so high that it popped up a couple of the boards.
3. Mud. Lots and lots of thin patches of mud.
4. Flat tire. I’ve been reading a bunch of blogs that have been discussing all the problems people have with flat tires. I didn’t understand because flats have never really been a problem for me. I went 28 years on my ten speed without a flat; I ended up replacing the tires once or twice and got a new tube in the process, but no blowouts. Now, after close to 2,000 miles on the Trek, I’ve had my first blowout.

So, I called my wife - she has the van and is at a job site. I called my eldest – he’s out with buddies and is more than a half hour away. Tried calling my daughter but found out that she and the next oldest boy were both at work. So, I walked home. As I was walking across the bridge over 435, I got to the far end and found it was blocked off. Figures.

Storms threaten again this morning, but I decided to hop on the Mendota and head in. The tires are LOW. I decided I’d still ride in but skip the extra loop and fill the tires in my office. I make it half way down the part of the path that runs adjacent to 435 and am met by this guy.

Keep all the rain we’ve had in mind and you’ll understand what a soggy mess it was maneuvering around the guy. He wasn’t happy I took the picture (which will soon be e-mailed to the construction company working on the project) but, tough! I’m having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad continuation of yesterday.

I made it to the little bridge and stopped to take a picture of a wild turkey that was standing five yards away from me when a woman walked up and scared it away. We chatted for a minute about all the wildlife on the trail and I headed to the far side of the bridge to take a picture of the popped up boards to share with you. She followed and, just as I was about to snap, stomped the boards back into place. Oh, well. Perhaps the rest of today will be better once I’ve found my coffee cup. I know it has to be here somewhere…

Back To Work

Temperature at departure = 77° F (25° C)
Days until school starts = 38

It was a great weekend! I got a bunch of yard work done that needed attention, meals for the next two weeks planned, got to spend some time relaxing on the newly cleaned off back porch and got some extra miles in on the bike. I even spent some time watching the Tour de France.

I'm running a bit behind on my cycling goals for this year and just passed the 1000 miles mark for 2007 yesterday. I'm going to quickly place the blame on some business trips and all the rain we've had this year (excuses, excuses). I'll pick up some more extra miles this weekend as Peter, my buddy John and I are riding in the Lenexa Midnight Bike Ride. Should be cool and I'm looking forward to some Chris Cakes at the end of the ride. I believe Noah said he'd be there too ... hope to see you dude.

Drafting

Temperature at departure = 76° F (24° C)


Although I recommend against it, I enjoyed watching one of the mythbusters drafting behind a semi. The video on the link is around 4 minutes long and did not appear on their show. Now, before you get any ideas I'll remind you of what they always say on their show: do not try this yourself, they are professionals. Still, how cool would it be to have their job?

Nice Day Off

Temperature at departure = 75° F (24° C)

Not much traffic out there on the bike/hike path this morning. My office building is ground zero for the big Corporate Woods Fireworks Display so there was plenty of debris to avoid on the way in. The other, minor, inconvenience was the Caution tape that had been strung on the far side of the little bridge I have to cross. I hit the 4' wide bridge at ~16 MPH and didn't see this tape until I was just about on it.



I stopped with my front wheel having bowed the tape out 6". Easy enough to hop over; and I hope no one minds that I pushed the tape down to the ground. No further need to keep people from going to that side of the creek.

Sorry about the quality of the picture; taken with my camera phone...

Buzz

Temperature at departure = 71° F (20° C)

This morning I was riding through the woods when, suddenly, a bee hit me in the neck. No biggie, I thought; at least it didn't sting me. I continued on my way and after another half mile I started thinking how fortunate I was not to end up like RickyD.

A few moments later I felt a frantic buzz inside my shirt, just above one of my backpack's straps.



I was in the woods with no place to really pull over so I had to wait a half minute until I found a clear spot (shown above) at the side of the trail. Off came my back pack and I started fluffing my shirt with all my might. Finally the bee fell out the bottom and flew away. I can't remember if I'm allergic to bee stings or not. I know my 14 year old son has very nasty allergic reactions to bee stings, so I've decided I need to start carrying some benadryl in my back-pack along with some aspirin, wipes, bandages, etc. What else would you suggest?

Hee-uuuuu-mid

Temperature at a.m. departure = 68° F (20° C)

You know, 68° sounds like a nice temperature to get out and have a leisurley ride to the office. Problem 1 - although I wouldn't mind a leisurely ride to the office, once I start looking down at the bike computer I start pushing myself to get my average MPH up. Problem 2 - the relative humidity this morning was a muggy 81%, so by the time I got to the office I was soaked. Oh well, it IS July and our normal temperature for this time of year is ~10 - 15 degrees warmer...

We spent a good part of the weekend out looking for cars for TWT. His gave up the ghost this last week and although he intends to give commuting by bike a try, he still wants a social life. I hate shopping for cars. 'Nuf said.