I'm Sore

I didn't turn the pedals one time Thanksgiving week.  Instead, I did the following:

Sun -- 3 mile run

Mon -- 30 minute / 6 mph run on treadmill

Tue -- 30 minutes on elliptical trainer

Wed -- Nothing

Thu -- Nothing

Fri -- Nothing

Sat -- Something (see below)

So what was the "something"?  Since I was out in the East Texas woods, I didn't feel like running and getting chased by dogs.  So I concocted a blend of a few exercises that would focus on cardio, legs and core, with a little upper body thrown in to make it fun.  Here's the circuit:

• 100 jumps with a jump rope
  
• 10 reps of duck walk lunges
  
• 10 squat thrusts with push up; i.e. 6 points
  

I repeated this 4 times.  It wasn't that difficult when I was doing the workout, although jump rope work is like sprinting, and I never feel conditioned for it.  Regardless, it is one day later, and my quads are screaming.  My neck and back are stiff, but I'm not sure if that's from sleeping in an unfamiliar bed or from the workout.

If you're traveling and are able to take a jump rope or buy one locally, this is a good indoor workout.  To make it more fun, ask your two brothers to come along, and have them make fun of you while you do your workout.  They can start by calling you "Chicken Legs", and finish by asking you if you learned your workout from "Sweating to the Oldies".  It worked for me.

Smorgasbord

I don't feel good about a not having one solid idea to write about and post, but that's my situation.  Instead, I'm writing a little bit about a lot.  Here's the smorgasbord:

• I've started using The Daily Plate within LIVESTRONG.com to track my calorie consumption and exercise.   If you join up, add me as a friend.  My username is 331miles.  The Daily Plate is a very convenient and comprehensive utility, and it links up to my...
  
• New iPhone.  I had to return my Blackberry due to the job change, and I bought an iPhone.  I absolutely love it, and recommend it to anyone that needs a smart phone.  It is intuitive, simple, powerful, and a pleasure to hold in your hand.
  
• This site cracks me up.  Especially this article.  If you clicked the link, you'll understand why my new site, called www.whatimfixingtodo.com, will eventually replace status updates on Facebook.
  
• Along with hundreds of thousands (millions?) of others, I have really enjoyed watching the premiere season of True Blood.  It's not perfect, but it's entertaining.
  
• I'm going to the Texas - Texas A&M game on Thanksgiving day.  I've never been, and I'm excited to go even though it means 7 hours of driving between Houston and Austin during a time in my life that doesn't really need more driving.
  
• I don't eat too many burgers.  Maybe 2-3 per month.  Wait - is that too many?  Regardless, Mighty Fine makes a heckuva burger.
  
• When I was in college, I broke my upper right, rear most molar.  It split from one of the points up to the gumline, but didn't expose root.  The dentist covered it with 'something', and that something broke off on Sunday when I bit into 'something' that shouldn't have been inside a Peanut M&M.  I went to the dentist today, and it will cost me $400 to have a custom made porcelain piece made and adhered to the tooth.  I'm not happy about that, but the process is interesting because they model the replacement piece using digital imaging, then machine the piece IN THE OFFICE.
  

I'll try to turn my brain on this week, and find a good topic for a more cohesive post.  In the meantime, I hope this did it for you.  If not, well, that's just too bad for you.

Sunday Lunch in the RGV

On Sunday morning, we got the call we've been waiting on all week. Somebody wanted to see the house between 3:15-4:15p. Vic's been keeping everything extremely clean, organized, and straightened, so it didn't take much for us to do the last little bit of polishing and get out of the house.

We made plans for the afternoon, left the house at 1:30p, and went to B.J.'s for lunch. Except when we arrived, we were greeted by all the worst that the Rio Grande Valley has to offer. As we walked to the front door, parents were letting their kids play in the landscaping. Another set of parents was letting another set of kids play in the revolving door. Just for spite I used the revolving door anyway, and slowed them down. I'm a killjoy.

We walked to the host stand, except there wasn't anyone there, except for some dude waiting in line. We waited a couple of minutes, and a staff member came to the host stand, and said he would be right back to help everyone. We waited a couple more minutes. In the meantime, 2 or 3 more groups came in, and crowded around the stand, intent on playing survival of the fittest instead of observing the rules of polite society and waiting in line. I looked at Victoria, and we both said 'let's leave'. So we did. Shame on you, B.J.'s. Your service sucks. Shame on you, residents of the RGV. Get your kids in control, and learn some manners.

We walked over to Macaroni Grill, and had great service and good food (for a chain). And we really and a good time. There were no maniacal kids running around like lunatics, and we only waited maybe 5 minutes of a quoted 15 minute wait. After we ate, we just sat and visited as a family. Everyone was happy, as you can see in the below photos. Having good Sundays like this almost makes up for being away from home during the week.

Transition in Cycling and Training

TIME CRUNCH

This week, both travel and the holiday week schedule are depleting my cycling time.  I drove back to Mission on Friday evening, and will drive back to Austin on Sunday evening.  On Tuesday, I'll drive back to Mission.  On Wednesday, the family will drive to Houston, which is a 7 hour trip.  On Sunday, we'll drive back to Mission.  It won't make sense to take my bike on any of these trips.

Also, I won't do a ride this weekend.  Today (Saturday) was a scheduled off day, and since I'm barely going to be home for 48 hours this weekend, I can't borrow time from my family this weekend.  It's too tough on Vic and the kids.

So tomorrow I plan on doing 30-40 minutes of running, with maybe some core strength training as well.  And Monday and Tuesday will be gym days, with running, elliptical, or equivalent.  None of this will keep me primed for cycling.  To attempt to stay in cycling shape, I plan on doing two things:  continuing to take my bike to Austin for weekday rides similar to what I describe in the next section, and start attending spin classes at the gym.  I've observed enough of the classes to know that it will help me.  I just need to get a new pair of shoes and cleats, and I'll be ready to go.  

I'm staying focused on fitness and diet, but as the mileage starts to slip, I feel like I'm losing something that will be hard to get back.  Maybe if I can manage at least one weekday ride plus a spin class or two I'll feel better about the offseason.

ANOTHER RIDE IN AUSTIN

On Wednesday, Curly (same guy that rode the LIVESTRONG Challenge with me) and I squeezed in a lunch time ride.  We planned on doing a 30 minute out, 30 minute back route from Braker & 183 out Parmer Lane.  The biggest challenge is getting to Parmer Lane.  One route is to take the 183 service road, which is busy and looks like this:

Photo from Google Maps Streetview

Another option is to ride a block over to Jollyville Road, which runs parallel to 183, and has a bike lane.  Either way, we would cross over to Parmer via Riata Trace.  Since our objective was to get to Parmer as quickly as possible, we decided on the service road.

We turned on to the service road, and cranked it up to 20+.  It wasn't focused effort, but just stress-induced speed caused by cars blowing by at 40-50 MPH.  With no bike lane, we rode single file, staying very conscious of approaching vehicles and merges.  We continued to push after we turned on to Riata Trace, but once we hit Parmer we started riding side-by-side, chatting about work but also riding with good intensity.  We made it almost to 1431 before we had to turn around and head back to the office.

Other than a little traffic-induced stress, it was a great ride, and the kind I'll need to be completing once or twice a week when I'm in Austin.  The summary image is below, and you can find details here.  In summary, we averaged 19 MPH over 19 miles, and with very little drafting.  You can see from my heart rate that it was a good steady training ride.   I'll keep riding with Curly, but also want to try some hillier routes with Mike.  Again, if I can do one or two of these a week PLUS spin class AND the occasional Saturday or Sunday longer ride, I feel VERY GOOD about the offseason.

Stories of Hotel Living Part I

Breaking the Routine

When you travel, it is hard to create a routine.  My 2nd post-college job was consulting, and it was 100% travel.  I was young, and enjoyed life on the road, including going out to dinner, seeing new sights, and spending lots of time in airports.  Many fellow consultants knew better than I did --they did everything they possibly could to make life on the road similar to life at home.  That included trying to create a daily routine, eating in the hotel instead of a different restaurant each night, and calling home at the same time every day.  I think it kept them sane.

10 years later, and I still can't manage to create a good routine when I'm on the road.  When I'm home, I run in the morning.  In Austin, I work out at the gym or I ride my bike at lunch, which is at least twice as complicated as my home routine.  This morning was a gym morning.  I woke up, brushed my teeth, dressed in my running kit, and packed my gym bag with my work clothes and toiletries.  As I left the hotel room, I did a mental inventory, from head to toe:  shirt, pants, belt, shoes.  I lingered on belt, as I often forget the stupid belt.  Check.  Check.  Check.  It's all there...at least in my mind.

At the gym, I realized my first mistake.  I didn't have my combination lock, as it was still in my cycling bag.  $5, please, for a new lock, and a new set of 3 numbers to pollute your brain.  I locked up my stuff, ran for 30 minutes on the treadmill at 6 MPH and at varying inclines, then hit the showers.  Afterwards, I prepared to put on my clothes, and realized I had forgotten two other things:

Luckily, I had time to get back to the hotel.  So I put on the clothes that I actually did have, and drove commando-style back to the hotel to put on my socks and my man panties.

Loud Talking Neighbor

As I walked up to my room, commando-style, I heard noise from the adjoining room.  It was loud enough that I thought it was arguing, so I slowed a little and eavesdropped.  I didn't need to be quiet, lean towards the door, or anything.  It was loud.  The voice I heard was female, and seemed to me to have a thick Puerto Rican accent, maybe from New York or New Jersey.  Sort of like that squeaky actress...what's her name...Rosie Perez.  It was quickly obvious that the voice was on the phone, as I only heard one half of a conversation.  And here's what that voice said:

"You're going to a stripper after-party, Eric?  Again with this bullsh**?  I swear to God!"

Poor Eric -- he's an honest man, and is open with his wife.  Even when she's out of town, he tells her his plans, even though he has bad history with previous occurences of similar plans.  Regardless of honesty, she cuts him no slack.  Eric will go to the party at his own risk. 

2 seconds later, I quickly carded my way into my room, wrote down what I had heard, put on my skivvies and socks, said a prayer for Eric, and went to work.

This Week's Drive to Austin

This is my third week of commuting to Austin.  It's still new to me, and when I leave early in the morning it makes the trip feel very transformational.  It's probably because the new day, the new week, and the sunrise all point my thoughts toward the new and the different, and what is to come.

Tuesday morning, I snapped this photo somewhere near Falfurrias.  I liked the image that I was seeing as the sun rose:  the orange hues behind me contrasted with the blue hues in front, a necklace my daughter made that is special to me, the image of my bike in my rearview mirror, and the massive windshield crack.  All of it together linked up with my feeling of transition and transformation.

Hotwire, Homestead Suites, and Horribleness

I've used the travel site Hotwire at least a dozen times in the last ten years, mostly to book hotel rooms, but occasionally for rental cars too.  If you're not familiar with using Hotwire for hotel reservations, here's how it works:

• You search for a room in the city you're visiting, and for the dates required.
  
• Hotwire returns a list of available rooms, but with ONLY the following information:  price, star rating, and general location.  You also get some other minor pieces of info, such as whether the hotel has a restaurant, laundry, and other generic amenities.
  
• If you decide to reserve one of the rooms, you pay.  THEN AND ONLY THEN do you find out exactly where you are staying, including hotel name and address.  According to Hotwire, they do this so that "you get travel deals that are significantly below published prices".
  
• You absolutely cannot get a refund if you don't like the hotel you book.  Yes,  I read the fine, fine print.

Over the last few months, I've booked 4 star hotels for less than $100 per night, and have been in hotels such as The Driskill.  2 weeks ago, I booked a 2.5 star hotel, it was about $55 a night, and the hotel was an Extended Stay America.  It wasn't The Driskill, but it wasn't bad.  I've been lucky to land some great bargains.

Last week, I booked a 2 star hotel for about $50 a night.  I was pushing the envelope, but there wasn't anything else available in the Arboretum area of Austin that was at all reasonable.  For this price, I was in the Homestead Suites, located just west of Burnet on the 183 North service road.  The location seemed okay, but I wasn't sure about the amenities of this chain until I arrived.

This was the 2nd worst hotel I've ever reserved.  The worst was a hotel at Cavalcade and I-45 in Houston known as the Astro Inn.  It's a long, long story, but I was visiting my mother in the hospital, locked myself out of my grandfather's house, and went to the closest hotel I could find.  I paid through a plexiglass window, and wasn't surprised that there was free porn on the TV.  It seemed like a drug and prostitution front.  I vowed I would NEVER do that again.  I was scared the whole night.  I'll promised myself that I would pay for a room at the Waldorf-Astoria before I stayed in another hotel as bad as the Astro Inn.

I almost had to invoke that vow last week.  So what kind of badness existed at the Homestead Suites?  Here's what:

• It was a motel-style property.  I'm okay with this for personal travel, but I don't like these kinds of property for business travel, as they're usually less secure.  Perfect example:  when I parked near my room, some joker was watching me park, and CAME OUT OF HIS ROOM to personally ask me to move my vehicle a little bit away from his truck.
  
• Carpet was old and nasty.  You know -- dank, worn, stained, and generally needing replacement.  At the transition from carpet to tile, I apparently stepped on the carpet tack strip, and the carpet was so worn that it poked through to my foot.  No blood, but not a good feeling.
• The television was maybe a 20" set.  With a terrible picture.  There's no excuse for that in this age of digital cable, high defintion, and 1000 channels.  When I'm in a hotel, I'm basically working or watching TV, so this is a biggie.
  
• There were cigarette burns in the polyester comforter.  The room was smoke free, and smelled that way, but still -- burns are tacky and nasty.
  
• There was no shampoo.  I'll usually use the soap as shampoo (I'm a man, after all), but it was that stuff with oatmeal in it.  I didn't want oatmeal to get stuck in my hair.
  
• Closet had 3 coat hangers.  For a hotel designed for extended stays, wouldn't you think most people would need more than 3 hangers?
  
• And I saved the worst for last:  the toilet wasn't properly bolted to the floor.  It was okay until the last day, but then it finally leaked.  Ugggghh.  It was 'gray water', but ugggggh.
  

As I read and re-read this, it seems like I'm being a primadonna.  I can't figure out how to hone and edit this so that I get the point across, but regardless -- you don't want to stay in the Homestead Suites, and be careful using Hotwire.  I know I will.

Our First Family Event

Earlier this week, I received an e-mail reminding me of the inaugural Awareness Ride for Breast Cancer.  It was sponsored by my team, but since I've been in Austin for the past 2 weeks, I hadn't really been paying attention and so was a bit surprised to hear about the ride.  The event included options for a 20 mile ride, 40 mile ride, and a 3 mile walk.

Of course, my gut said to ride the 40 mile route, but with me travelling every week, Vic and I have been trying to find ways to stay focused on family activities on the weekends.  So I e-mailed the flyer to Vic, and suggested that Betsy and I ride the 20 mile ride on the trailer bike rig, and that she and Lola do the 3 mile walk.  Vic said she was up for it, Betsy is game for anything, and Lola can't talk, so since we had 100% agreement, Vic pre-registered us on Friday.  Additionally, the forecast predicted a cool front, so Vic bought a wind jacket and pants for Betsy, since Betsy didn't really have any suitable clothes for riding in cooler weather.  Other than the bikes, we were ready.

I got home Friday night at 7pm, and after putting the kids to bed I prepped my Marin Hawk Hill mountain bike for the ride.  I had to change a flat, plus the front disc brake was dragging.  I used my last tube, adjusted the fixed brake pad, and somehow got the bike in rideable condition.  Plus, I laid out all of our equipment on the garage floor so that it would be easy to load and go on Saturday morning.  I made sure my cycling bag had my knee and arm warmers as well as my vest, and by 9:30p all was ready for Saturday morning.

Of course, Saturday morning was crazy.  Vic and I argued all morning due to the stress of getting the kids ready, plus the truck loaded.  We were probably stressed even more because we had never done an organized ride, run or walk as a family.  But we got all the gear and the kids in the truck, and drove to the Texas Oncology Center for the start of the ride.  We made it by 7:20a, and the ride didn't start until 8:00a.

After I got everything unloaded and the trailer bike connected to my Marin, I realized that I had left Betsy's helmet on the garage floor.  So much for being totally ready.  We jumped in the truck, drove home, got the helmet, and made it back around 8:02a.  Of course, in true RGV style, the ride hadn't started, which for once worked in my favor!  Betsy and I got on the bike, Vic strapped Lola into the jog stroller, and we staged at the start.  Vic snapped this photo of Betsy, Lola and me:

As you can see, we were dressed for cool temps, yet it was 60F at the start.  But within the first 5 miles, a front blew through the area.  The skies cleared, temps dropped a few degrees, and the wind was blowing straight out of the north at 15-20MPH, gusting to 30MPH.  It wasn't cold, but it was windy.  A friend of mine compared the northbound section of the ride to riding in the Alps -- and he has ridden the Alp d'Huez several times.  Seriously.  And I was on a mountain bike pulling a trailer bike.

The good news about wind is that you sometimes have it at your back.  We had that benefit for the first 8 miles or so.    Betsy and I did great, spinning up to probably 14-16 MPH (I don't have a computer on the bike).  Betsy was loving it, and I was too.  She helped me push hard on the few uphills, and enjoyed the downhill speed increases.  We reached the first stop, and we both had smiles on our faces.  After a cookie and electrolyte drink, we jumped back on to the route.

A few miles later, we turned right and suddenly started getting buffeted by a crosswind.  I told Betsy that this would be tough, and I would need her help with balancing.  She did her best, although we did a little weaving every now and again.  Luckily, the Hawk Hill has a triple on the front, so I had plenty of gears to use when the wind slowed us.  We made it to the next stop, had another cookie and 1/2 PB&J sandwich, and then turned north for the hardest part of the ride.

The 6-8 miles of northbound riding was as tough as any riding I've ever done.  I almost ran out of gears, and saw several novice cyclists get picked up by SAG wagons because they just couldn't ride into the wind.  I knew we would make it, because with the gearing I could pull us for 10 miles if I had too.  But that wasn't necessary.  Betsy did more than her share, and never complained.  When I asked her to concentrate on pedaling, I could feel the surge.  I was so proud of her.  She had never ridden more than 10 miles, and today we did 20 in some very tough conditions.  

We turned east, happy to be out of the wind and able rest a little.  We approached ride headquarters, and saw Vic and Lola cheering us on.  They had finished the 3 mile walk more than an hour earlier, and were very ready for us to be there.  We rolled up to the finish line, and almost immediately I heard my name get called as a winner of a door prize -- a DVD copy of "All Dogs Go to Heaven".  As far as Betsy was concerned, give her cookies at every rest stop and a free DVD, and she'll do this every day.

I was very proud of my family today.  It might not seem like it, but it took a lot to get everyone out there, much less to actually physically complete the courses.  I hope we have lots more of these.

A Lunchtime Ride in Austin

Before I moved from Austin to South Texas, I went on a few lunchtime rides with coworkers.  They were mostly slow city rides, with plenty of turns, stops, and very little pace or intensity.  I'm not that interested in these types of rides anymore, so today I did a new type of lunchtime ride.

I left the office just before noon, drove 1/2 block to Pure Austin fitness on Braker Lane, changed clothes, unloaded the bike, and headed towards Capital of Texas highway (Loop 360).  My goal was to ride for an hour, but at a moderate to intense level.  I also wanted to get the feel of riding in Austin again -- the rolling hills, riding alone instead of with a large group, and enjoying the scenery.

I turned south on 360, and started spinning.  I pushed my speed on the downhills, moving into the 25-30 MPH range.  On the uphills, I kept up my cadence, and tried to keep my speed in the low teens.  I crossed Pennybacker Bridge, feeling great to be back in Austin, and on one of my old favorite routes.

Pennybacker Bridge

Photo by Sarah Bear, from About.com

I climbed out of the Colorado River bottom, using up all of my gears as I rode the long climb toward Bee Cave Road.  I reached the last hill peak before Bee Caves, looked at the GPS unit, and realized I had ridden for 30 minutes.  I turned around, and as I rode the downhill towards Pennybacker Bridge, I spun as fast as I could and hit 42 mph.  Wow.  I can't do that in the RGV!

I pushed on, and made it back to the gym in 58 minutes.  My moving speed averaged 18 mph, with 1155' of ascent and descent.  Goal achieved.  If you want the technical data, check out this link, or the below image.

CatEye Creates a Loyal Customer

A few weeks ago, while on a ride to McCook, the mounting bracket for my CatEye EL500 OptiCube lost a screw.  I hoped to find a replacement, but after some casual searching, I couldn't find the right screw.  So I gave up.  

Yesterday, I decided to try again.  I went online to CatEye's website, and found a link to their Small Parts Store.  It's organized by parent product, so I found my headlamp, and saw that CatEye sells three different brackets that would work with my headlamp.  The most expensive, which matched what I already had, was only $5.  Two cheaper ones were only $2.75 each.  I added the $5 model to the shopping cart so that I could check shipping costs.  For USPS 1st Class Mail, the shipping was only $0.76.  It's not a typo -- $0.76.

I contrast this with the price I paid for my Specialized footbed replacements.  I paid more for the footbeds than I would for a new pair of cheap shoes.  And who offers shipping that's less than a dollar without some kind of very special deal?  Definitely not Performance Bike, who manages to make a discount store approach seem expensive.

CatEye does it right.  Keep the customer happy by designing and selling repairable lights, then offering common replacement parts for very low cost.  The next time I want to upgrade my headlamp or tail light, they'll get my business.

Getting Gas for the Northbound Trip to Austin

Since I've been waking up early to run or ride 5-6 times per week, I've become habitually accustomed to getting an early start to the day.  Monday morning, I woke up at 5:15a, and was on the road to Austin by 5:45a.  I stopped at the first gas station I saw, and in the morning darkness I filled up the truck.  As I mentioned last week, I was amazed by the price:

That's right -- $1.79 per gallon.  I remember when I was in high school around 1987, and gas was $0.99 per gallon.  Some 20 years later, the price hasn't even doubled.  I bought a pair of Levi 501 jeans on Sunday, and I'm pretty sure they've more than doubled in price since 1987.  And since cotton, dye, and human labor are not scarce resources or technologically difficult to procure and manage, I'm guessing it's purely inflationary growth in price.  Oil, on the other hand, is getting harder to find and get out of the ground, even though our technology for doing so has improved, thus possibly suppressing prices TO SOME EXTENT.

How can gas be so cheap?  How can it fluctuate so drastically over just a few months?  Have our driving habits and vehicle choices already changed so much that demand has decreased, thus driving down prices?  Or is it black helicopters?  The Trilateral Commission?  The Rockefellers, the Rothschilds, and the Kennedys?  I can't figure it out.

Another Reason I'm Glad to be Moving to Austin

Here's an article from the McAllen Monitor that absolutely stuns me, and makes me glad I'm no longer commuting daily into Reynosa.  If you're not the type to clickety-click on the links, here's what happened:

• The Mexican police raided a stash house, and uncovered the LARGEST ILLEGAL CACHE of weapons ever found in Mexico.  It included 288 assault rifles, 500K rounds of ammunition, grenades, and 0.50 caliber rifles.
  
• They captured the supposed head of cartel operations in Reynosa, and per their standard operating procedure, immediately began operations to transport him by plane to Mexico City.
  
• Cartel members blockaded the airport, and there was a gun battle at the airport.  Ultimately, he was transported to Mexico City.  No reports of casualties yet.
  

Can you imagine if there was this type of criminal activity in the United States, or your country?  It makes Al Capone look like a hot check writer.

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The Right Ride

Last week, I rode the wrong ride.  This week, after some teeth gnashing and serious thought, I dediced to try to ride, even though it meant time away from family.  So I did this ride:

And why was this the right ride?  Here's why:

• I rode on Sunday, instead of Saturday.  This gave me all day Saturday to prove to my loving spouse that I could check off every box on the chore list.  We spent the day together as a family, working in the yard and completing minor home repairs in preparation for the sale.  And Saturday night, Victoria arranged for a babysitter, so we went on a date.  It was important to put all of this stuff ahead of cycling, both to me and to the rest of the family.
  
• Since I rode on Sunday, I knew EXACTLY what the route would be.  Team McAllen does the same route every Sunday, regardless of wind, weather, or whatever.  On Saturday, it's a free-for-all.  By locking in the route, I was able to...
  
• Leave from my house, instead of driving to the ride start.  Since the Sunday ride route travels within a mile of my house, by leaving from my house I got an earlier start, and just finished at my house instead of the normal Team McAllen start location.  This saved almost an hour.
  
• The Sunday ride breaks into 3 controlled groups:  Elite, Intermediate, and Beginner.  I chose Intermediate, knowing that we would ride between 17-20.  I finished with an average of almost 19 MPH.  Last week's ride was closer to 15 MPH.  I saved about 30 minutes by riding the faster pace.  This isn't always controllable, as detailed in last week's post, but today it worked out for me.
  

I've been home for over an hour, and I'm not divorced yet.  Vic even smiled at me and gave me a kiss.  Life is better this week.

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How to Drive 5 Hours in South Texas

It takes me around 5 hours to drive from Mission to Austin.  Here's my 'how to' guide:

• Have satellite radio.  Between Edinburg and San Antonio, there are about 3 hours of dead air.    True, there are a few Tejano stations, but that doesn't count.  An iPod doesn't count either.  My experience with my iPod is that it's a backup to satellite radio.  Even though I have thousands of songs on the iPod, I find myself constantly skipping songs because I'm tired of them.  That doesn't happen with satellite radio.
  
• Get a radar detector.  I don't drive crazy fast, but I like to go 5-10 MPH over the limit.  If you do that on US 281, you will get a citation.  There are just too many troopers out looking for drug runners and illegals.  The radar detector evens things out a little bit.
  
• Fill up with gas in Mission.  Can you believe gas was $1.86 per gallon in Mission, and $2.21 in Austin?  I would rather we face the music and pay more for gas, including even a sin tax, but cheaper is cheaper.
  
• Keep your phone charged.  First -- you're driving isolated roads.  You may need help.  Second -- talking to people for a couple of hours really passes the time.
  
• This one is not really a tip; it's just a 'thing I like'.  When I stop for gas, I usually buy some sort of sparkling water, such as Perrier, Pellegrino, or TopoChico.  You stay good and hydrated, reduce the caffeine highs and lows from soda, but you get to keep the fizz.  And about once per trip I buy a dark chocolate bar.  I prefer the darkest they have, e.g. 85% cacao, but usually end up with a plain ol' Hershey's Special Dark.  It's good for you in moderation, and is mmmmmmm tasty.
  

I hope this helps all of you travelers!

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Lunch Hour Run

In Reynosa, I was afraid to walk on the streets.  I wasn't afraid of crime; instead, I was afraid of getting hit by a car.  Exercising during the work day was not an option.

In Austin, I work next door to a gym.  My company subsidizes membership, and today I jogged around their track during my lunch hour.  It's not just any track, it's a 2/3 mile loop around a quarry lake.  It's an absolutely beautiful place, nestled into the businesses and homes that comprise the near-north side locale.

Photo by Bruce Lemons, from Panoramio

I ran about 3 miles, accompanied by a friend and co-worker.  We had a great run, then I showered, bought a smoothie, and walked 100 yards back to the office.  I love Austin.

First Day in the Office

TRAVEL ON SUNDAY

On Sunday, I left home at 3:30p and drove north to Austin.  As the sun was setting, I snapped this photo with my crackberry pointed out my truck window:

Since I'm traveling alone, I thought it would be a good idea to bring my bike.  Maybe I can ride at lunch since the office is centrally located to routes near 360 as well as Parmer Lane.  Since I won't be doing any true long rides on the weekends, I need to keep some base miles on my legs during the week.

WORK ON MONDAY

I went for a 4 mile run Monday morning, ate a bagel, then arrived at the office at 8:00a.  My new boss, who was my old boss at one time 'back in the day' at my previous employer, met me and showed me my cube.  I had to clean it up with some wet paper towels...disinfectant wipes would have been better.  He had warned me, so it wasn't a surprise.  The office seems like a great place -- free snacks, centrally located in near north Austin, good people (5-6 I've worked with before), and lots of energy.

It's great that there was lots of energy, because my boss and I stayed until 11:30p working on a major cost analysis.  If I'm traveling and the hours don't impact my family, I'm okay with that as long as I get food, water, and exercise.  I guess I'm like a hamster, except without the penchant to eat my young.

It was a long, exciting first day!

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The Wrong Ride

If you're getting ready to leave your family for the next 4 days, and your spouse will be the only person caring for your 6 year old and 1 1/2 year old, and you're trying to get your house ready to sell, you would be ill-advised to do this ride the day before you leave:

If it's not obvious, I spent over 5 hours of my Saturday on a Team McAllen group ride.  That's 5 hours I wasn't with my family.

And it wasn't that great of a ride.  I visited some new places, such as the backroads of Penitas and Havana, and rode up Jarachinas Road, which is one of my favorites, and was joined by some great company, but that was stacked up against riding at an atypically slow pace for a Saturday, stopping for a team photo, stopping to wait for a few riders, and riding through north McAllen and catching every light and stop sign we could find.

I'll need to be smarter about riding until the family is together in Austin.