Urban (Cycling) Cowboy

Before I left for training last Sunday, I had intended to get in an afternoon ride in Houston. I mapped it out using a Houston Bikeways map as a reference, and managed to find a route that originated from our temporary home and which traveled along bike lanes for 90% of the route. Due to weather and other commitments, I didn't get to ride the route that week. After an almost 2 week hiatus, I decided to ride it Sunday.

Unfortunately, I hadn't been feeling well. On Friday, I had a grilled chicken breast from a restaurant in the Tampa airport. I won't give the name, but let's call it "T.G.I. Stomach Cramps". My stomach was in lockdown Friday night, and this continued until late Saturday night. I got up Sunday morning to ride, put on my new Crocs Prepair slides (thanks cousin!) and kit, then prepped for the ride. Stomach cramps were gone, but as you can see, leg hair was not. Obviously, I've been lazy for the last 2 weeks.





I headed out on the route shown below. I knew that the route contained a wide mix of paths, including: heavily travelled, multi-lane streets, industrial routes without bike lanes, residential streets, and a few sections without bike lanes. Even though the mix seemed less than optimal due to the necessity of stop signs and signals, it was the best loop route I could find.





I headed out about 6:45a. It was light enough that I felt comfortable leaving the headlight at home, but I did use my taillight. The first mile or so of the ride did not have a bike lane. I travelled along Briar Forest, and hammered up to 21-23mph so that I could quickly reach the section that included a bike lane. From there, the next 8 miles or so all had a bike lane. Unfortunately, the bike lane was often muddy, wet, dirty, or filled with cracks and potholes. I frequently found myself using the lane, but did so safely. I eventually reached a park just north of I-10 on Kirkwood, with a bike path that followed Addicks Dam. The entry was blocked to car traffic, and the path was smooth and well marked. It was a great riding surface, although there was a little too much human and dog traffic for really fast cycling.




It didn't last long, and a few minutes later I was on the worst street of the loop: Britmoore Road. Britmoore is full of potholes, repaired potholes, debris, and has no bike lane. It travels through an industrial area, and I was passed a few times by service trucks that seemed to be in a big hurry for a Sunday. I'll have to find a way to get around Britmoore on the next ride.

The route continued on to Clay Road, and it was a pleasant surprise. The bike lane was smooth, the traffic was fairly light, and it was smooth sailing all the way to 290. When I saw 290, I realized I had missed my turn, which should have been Blalock. I turned around, and instead of riding back to Blalock, which has a bike lane, I turned on Bingle, and headed south.

Next time, I won't travel on Bingle. It had more traffic than I'm comfortable riding with, had no bike lane, and it was the only time during the ride where a car honked at me. I rode through nice neighborhoods into the Memorial area, then picked up Memorial heading west. Although Memorial doesn't have a bike lane, it is heavily used by cyclists, and I felt comfortable spinning along at 20+mph.

As I neared home, I stopped to take a photo of my bike and a street sign:



This was taken on Bunker Hill near Memorial. There is a very nice, wide sidewalk along the road, but it's just not feasible to ride a road bike on it. It has too many transitions, drainage grates, and foot traffic. My morning jog route uses this path, but I frequently see runners IN THE ROAD because they don't want to deal with the grade changes, cracks, etc. In fact, this morning I saw a dude running BACKWARDS in the street. I guess I should petition the local government to put up signs that say "Pedestrians on Roadway Prohibited".

Overall, it was a great ride. As usual, my Garmin puked, so I guess I'll finally send it in for warranty repair. Based on my frequent checks of speed and cadence, my guess is I was able to ride at 20+mph during periods of sustained effort. My stomach issues did not drag me down at all. I was nervous a few times during the urban ride, but overall, the loop route was a good one that I will probably tweak slightly and then ride again.

A Houstonian's Guide to Tampa

I'm not really qualified to write about this topic, other than I'm sort of from Houston, and have spent a grand total of about 2 weeks in Tampa, Florida. I think people write about things for which they have even less knowledge and experience, so I'm exercising my blogger's rights, and writing my own Houstonian's Guide to Tampa. Here's the outline, with a book to follow:


People

People in Tampa are very similar to people in Houston. There's a ton of folks from the Midwest and Northeast, and you're just as likely to hear a Jersey accent as you are a Southern accent. It's very similar to Houston in the oil boom years. Unlike Texas, though, I did not see any "I'm not a Native Floridian, but I Got Hear as Fast as I Could" bumper stickers or stickers from a similar genre.



Weather

Absolutely no difference. Hot and humid, with afternoon thunderstorms.


Landscape

If humankind left either Houston or Tampa, within a few years the plant life will reclaim the ground. The only difference is that the earth beneath the plants will be swampy in Florida, and a blend of swamp and mud in Houston.


Dining and Nightlife

Both Tampa and Houston have all the chain restaurants you want. The inside of the hotel rooms look the same. Did I mention that I was working while I was in Tampa, and I'm a boringly (but happily) married man?


That should cover 99% of the traveling population. For the rest of you, please buy my book...or pamphlet.

Would You Rub my Neck Please?

I woke up today, took a shower, and when I was drying my back I felt my neck meat tighten up into a snarl of barbed wire. This happens every few months, and is related to an old injury. About ten years ago I was following the Body for Life program, and was doing some seated dumbbell shoulder presses. I was using poor form, straining and pushing my head against the headrest (unlike Mr. Man in the below photo), when I felt something pull in my neck. Since then, I wake up with a stiff neck every few months or so.


Usually, I take an over-the-counter anti-inflammatory, and painfully muddle my way through the day(s) until my neck loosens. Today, the longer I sat in new employee training, the more my mind focused on the pain in my neck. During a break, I looked up the nearest location for Massage Envy, and made an appointment.

When I made the appointment, I thought the receptionist said "Marcella" was available for the massage, but when I arrived I realized it would be "Marcelo". He showed me to the room, and I explained that my neck was killing me. He asked me to describe the pain, and then acted like treating it wouldn't take the full hour. I mentioned that I was a cyclist, and he said he would also work on my calves, hamstrings, and quads.

He left the room, I disrobed down to my whitey-tighties, crawled under the sheet. I waited on him, secure in my manhood, and he came back into the room and started working on my neck and back. As usual, it was slightly painful. It felt like he was singulating each muscle, and as he found tight spots he would mention them to me. Each time, I knew he had hit one BEFORE he said anything. The relief was incredible. He worked for about 30 minutes, then moved down to my legs.

I've never had deep tissue massage on my legs, and it was intense. At one point, he worked my calf in a way that caused my foot to cramp, but then he worked on the pressure point in the foot until it released. It felt amazing. He talked about calcium deposits, drinking enough water, pressure points, constrictions, and other things I don't really understand or necessarily believe. But what I do know is that when he was finished, I felt great, and had much less pain in my neck.

If you've never had a massage, get one. It's not inexpensive, and I've paid anywhere from $40 to $60 per hour, but it's well worth the cost if you have the funds. It will treat what ails you.

Exercising but not Feeling Fit

I haven't ridden a single mile since August 15. That's a lifetime to me. Since then, I've been exercising almost daily, but it just doesn't feel the same. Here's the breakdown:

Sun Aug 16 -- Off
Mon Aug 17 -- Ran 3 miles, 6mph, ~325 calories burned
Tue Aug 18 -- Ran 3 miles, 6mph, ~325 calories burned
Wed Aug 19 -- Off
Thu Aug 20 -- Ran 3 miles, 6mph, ~325 calories burned
Fri Aug 21 -- Ran 3 miles, 6mph, ~325 calories burned
Sat Aug 22 -- Ran 3 miles, 6mph, ~325 calories burned
Sun Aug 23 -- Ran 3 miles, 6mph, ~325 calories burned
Mon Aug 24 -- 30 minutes on exercise bike ~200 calories burned
Tue Aug 25 -- 30 minutes on elliptical cross trainer ~200 calories burned
Wed Aug 26 -- 30 minutes on exercise bike ~225 calories burned

Sorry that I was too lazy to create a table for the data, but regardless, there is an obvious difference between this level of exercise and cycling. When I ride, I generally spend at least 2 hours on the bike. And in general, I burn 2000 or more calories. And for the last 5 months, I was doing that at least twice a week. These paltry 200 calorie days just don't match up. As a result, I don't feel as fit.

I'm going to make it a priority to get on the bike this weekend, even though Vic, the kids, and I are going to my parents' for a family gathering. Next week, I think I'm going to bite the bullet and try to commute by bike one day, even if it means riding in the rain. I must figure out a way to get on the bike more.

P.S. I don't enter a lot of contests, but I sure would love to win a new rig from MADSEN Cargo Bikes. Click through and help me win!

Trading Running for Riding

I love to ride my bike. But as long as I've been riding, I've supplemented my riding with running. I don't love running, nor do I hate it but I do view it as a necessity. I've learned over the past 39 years that if I don't exercise 4-5 days out of 7, I will gain weight. Since I can't ride 5 days out of 7, I run when I can't ride.

Since I've started a new job and am living in a new city, I haven't been able to ride as much, so I've been religiously waking up at 5:30a and running in the neighborhood. I run 3 miles at a little faster than a 6 minute pace 10 minute pace, so it's not really running...it's more like jogging. But I still burn about 300 calories, which is what's important. It also gets my metabolism cranked up for the day, and gives me a sense of accomplishment.

The below map shows the route I take every day. Join me! I'll be the guy sweating buckets, and pushing the strands of spiderweb that pop up every night out of my way.

Limbo

A little over two weeks ago I started my new job in Houston. Last week, my daughter registered at her new elementary school in Houston. Both vehicles are now EZTagged, which lets us zip through the Houston toll roads. I've finished my first group ride with Northwest Cycling Club. We're settling in, but not completely -- we don't have a home.

Fortunately, Victoria's cousin lives in Houston, has a large home, and a generous heart. She's allowing us to stay with her, so we've moved in to two of her upstairs bedrooms. Meanwhile, the house in McAllen was put on the market the week I started my new job. Speedo is providing some periodic housesitting services, which is much appreciated. My parents are temporarily keeping Eric (our outdoor cat), and Victoria's parents are keeping Riley (the indoor cat). Although I know we've covered the bases for now, until the house sells I'll feel like we're in limbo.

Limbo might be synonymous with unease, but in our case, it is assuaged by my finally being employed, but more importantly, by having family and friends that are so extremely helpful. Thanks, ya'll!

First Houston Group Ride

I apologize to my readers for not updating more frequently. Between the new job, temporary housing, and related details, I have not been able to squeeze in time for the blog. I'll figure it out, but in the meantime, the posts may not be as frequent as they have previously been.

This past weekend I completed my first Houston group ride. Based on advice from friends and online research, I chose the Northwest Cycling Club Saturday Ride. I had to drive 30 miles to get to the ride start, but on the way I noticed lots of other cyclists doing the same thing, which made me feel a bit better about polluting. I arrived at 7:00a, saw about 75 cars in the parking lot, and realized this was going to be a big ride.

As the 7:30a start time approached, I estimate that about 125 cyclists gathered around the ride starter to listen to announcements and prepare to ride. I've only ridden in groups this size on organized charity rides, so I was skeptical of organization. But promptly at 7:30a, the starter directed the first group to roll out, and I was encouraged by the punctuality. As I recall he categorized them as 20 mph +. Only about 8 riders rolled, so not wanting to bite off a ride with too much fast pulling, I hung back for the 2nd group. This group was more than 20 riders strong, and we quickly formed a double paceline and sped up to 20 mph. My skepticism regarding organization was gone, and I felt I was on a good ride with a good group.

A few miles passed, and the fast group merged with our slower group. And not too much later, the fast group split again; my guess is they were hoping that a few more riders would join. Another 6-8 of us granted their wish and went with them. From there on, it was a personal hammerfest. It was a strong, fast ride, with riders breaking away and forcing the pack to pick up speed and chase them. I loved it, but it wasn't without it's group nuances.

One of the riders had the physique of rugby player, and was sporting a black kit. A New Zealand All Black, perhaps? His upper legs were as big as my torso, and he was the kind of rider that would easily sprint up from the back of the group, grab a buddy, and break away for a few minutes. Midway through the ride, I noticed the speed increasing. Over a few minute span, we ramped up to nearly 30 mph. As the speed peaked, suddenly All Black was out of the saddle, and taking a few riders with him. Dang it. As I saw a wide gap open up, I realized that I had missed a city limits, county line, or some other sprint marker.

After we passed the stop-sign-warning-sign that marked the end of the sprint, I rode up next to All Black and asked if I had missed a sprint marker. He said that I had, and I congratulated him on a strong sprint. He said something like "I didn't give it my full effort, because I have a cracked crank". He then turned to a buddy and asked "hey was that my full sprint?" I smiled politely, and then as quickly as was safely possible I dropped back to ride next to someone that wasn't quite as full of themselves and had more reliable equipment.

Overall, it was a great group ride. I finished more than 44 miles, with an average of 23 mph, and a max speed of 33 mph. For me, that is a "wow" ride. I'll be back, and I'll even give All Black the benefit of the doubt...at least, I will if he replaces his crank before it catastrophically fails.

POSTSCRIPT: As seems to be the norm, my Garmin powered down midway through the ride. It captured some of the stats, but not all. The average MPH I quote above is based on data given to me by a fellow rider. I'm sending this thing in for repairs, but in the meantime, here's the link to the ride data that it DID capture.

Cycling Across the Trinity

Due to my starting a new job this week and my wife finishing hers, my kids were staying with my in-laws. Vic drove up from south Texas on Friday, we spent the night with cousins, then drove out on Saturday to both pick up the kids and spend the weekend with the in laws and extended family. Since I hadn't cycled all week, I made sure Vic was okay with me cycling on Sunday, and took the bike.

On Saturday afternoon, my father-in-law and I scouted the area for a good route. I had some ideas, but wanted to drive some of the potential routes to verify surface and safety. The routes were in rural east Texas, where I grew up, and even while riding in the truck with the windows up I swore I heard the faint notes of "Dueling Banjos". My father-in-law mentioned several times that some of these folks back in the woods might not look to kindly on a lycra-clad fancy lad riding through their area. Undeterred, I picked a route that combined some larger roads with a VERY backwoods segment that followed some winding, narrow country roads.

I woke up Sunday at 6:00a, and was on the road by 6:20a. I thought the banjo-pickers wouldn't be up that early. It was humid and warm, typical east Texas weather, and with virtually zero wind. A few miles from the start I ran into a little fog. Fog makes cycling dangerous, but it was beautiful. Thunderstorms were in the area, highlighted by the rising sun, and I stopped to snap a photo.

2 miles later, I connected with Highway 105, and had a nice wide shoulder. I paced up to about 20 mph, enjoying the smooth pavement and lack of traffic. It couldn't last, and eventually I found an area that had been drenched by the thunderstorms, and the roads were still wet enough that me and the bike got filthy. Even with the grit, I felt great. It's always nice to get back on the bike after a week of only being able to find time to jog.

On the way back, I stopped to take a photo of the Trinity River crossing. Trinity...I started modifying the religious concept to match my addiction to cycling. The first thing that entered my mind was an idea from my buddy Speedo. He says that cycling jerseys should be a combination of red, white, and black to symbolize the trinity of blood, bone, and bruises. Don't know if I agree with that, because I really like other colors. What about other cycling trinities? Gears, wheels, and a frame. The Tour, Giro, and Vuelta. Calves, quads, and glutes. Regardless of the trio, they symbolize the religious fervor that most of us cyclists put on the activity.

I didn't stay in my trinity-inspired reverie for long. I focused on completing the route and not falling on the slick road. I finished 37 miles in 1'57", with a moving average of 19 mph. I was pretty happy with that, considering it was my first time on the route, streets were slick, and I hadn't ridden in a week. If you want more ride data, including a map that you can use to find the Trinity, you can find it here.

P.S. Ultimately I didn't ride on the more rural, isolated roads due to some nasty chip-seal. I didn't realize how bad it was when driving on it, but once on the bike it was bad enough that I changed the route.

First Few Days in Houston

I think of myself as being an Austinite, as Vic and I moved there as newlyweds in 1994, and lived there (mostly) until 2006. Since the move to south Texas was always planned as a temporary move, we frequently talked about the move back to Austin. It almost happened, but instead we're relocating to Houston, and on Monday I started my new job.

I almost hate to admit it, but after two days here, Houston already feels like home. It should, because even though I think of myself as an Austinite, the city and I have history. I grew up 40 miles from Houston, and attended the University of Houston from 1988 through 1994. I'm an Astros fan, was an Oilers fan, and I've always liked the city. Vic and I were were married here at the University of Houston A.D. Bruce Religion Center Chapel. We both like Houston.

Unfortunately, it's not quite as cycling-friendly as Austin or even south Texas. The car-based sprawl is intimidating to someone that is used to starting rides from home. For my first few days here, I've replaced cycling with jogging. Today, I'm trying to find a Wednesday evening club ride. If I can locate a good ride that doesn't require 20 miles of driving, I'll count my first few days in Houston as extremely successful, and will have another reason to like the city.