First Post...

Hey everyone! So here I sit looking out the window into the 106 degrees of hell, wishing I would have gotten up early this morning to ride. The truth is that I'm tired! I've been training for the Best Buddies Challenge coming up on September 12th in California. You can click on the picture to donate if you feel compelled to do so. I've been working hard and I'm tired. So this morning as I sipped my coffee and made lunches for the kids, I thought what the hell, I'm not riding today. I protested and my legs loved me for it!

Normally I ride between 3 to 5 days a week. Last week I burnt almost 5000 calories riding. I've been climbing, doing intervals, sprinting, and just plain riding. So, as you can image, my legs and the rest of my body feel like they've been worked over by a Louisville Slugger! The killer is that I've been doing all of this in the middle of the hottest time of the year here in the Phoenix area. Yes, I get up early and ride my longer rides on the weekends, and I usually leave the house right after the wife leaves with the kids for school for my shorter rides. It's not so bad early in the morning, but the reality is that it sucks this time of year. I'm getting tired of going to bed at 8:30 in the evening! I feel like I don't have a life at times. Heck, good luck getting any alone time with the wife, considering I fall asleep before the kids!

So, the good news is that the ride is in less than 2 weeks. The great news is that it's in a part of the country that cries "Heatwave" when the temps reach 80 degrees! I can't wait to see the coastal fog of my old stomping grounds! Night time lows in the 50's and daytime highs in the 70's! Carmel, California! I'm going to look really cool in my winter riding gear, riding down the California coast all the way to San Simeon, home of the Hearst Castle. And when I reach my destination, I'm going to eat everything in site! Oh, the food! You gotta love a sport that allows you to pretty much eat most anything you want, all in the name of recovery!

Anyway, the day after, I will be in my car, headed back to hell. I'll probably swear not to ride for several days, get my life back to normal, and stay up later than the kids. But, we cyclists know that wont last too long. The cycling demons will haunt me after a few days, and the hot melting asphalt will beckon me to come out to play, and before long, I will be getting out if bed before sunrise wondering what the hell I was thinking that day, swinging my leg over the bike and setting out on a new adventure. After all, it's what we cyclists do...