Category Archives: Cycling

It’s Here

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Yesterday I did my part to stimulate the DFW economy.

After a ton of research and nearly three weeks of waiting for it to arrive after I ordered it, I finally picked up my bike on Saturday. I took it out for a few miles last night, and it rode great – very smooth, fast, and just…fun. It weighs around 24 lbs, 7-8 lbs less than my old bike. With the same effort, I can go 25-35 percent faster. Riding in the park, I have to slow down for curves, dogs, and pedestrians who feel the need to walk slowly next to three of their friends and completely block the trail. Speed is addictive, so those kinds of problems are more irritating now that I’m riding a rocket. So this morning I plan to try a longer ride on the road, taking advantage of the minimal traffic.

The bike shop manager suggested riding out to the Grapevine Krispy Kreme and back. I’m actually going to plot that route and see how far it is. Don’t judge – it takes energy to exercise.

A Week Off = Awesome

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As of this morning, I’m off for seven days and plan not to dispatch a single aircraft until next Sunday night. (Or maybe Saturday night if they offer overtime) This should be a great week because…

  • I plan to go get my new bike on Monday or Wednesday. I’ve decided on the Specialized Sirrus Elite hybrid and just need to figure out which size frame would fit me best. Richardson Bike Mart has both the large and extra-large frame in stock, so I hope to try both and bring home the winner.

  • Tuesday is Daddy Day, which means I watch the boys all day while Jenny gets some time off. We might play in the park in the morning before it gets too hot. Then our home group meets that night. We’re currently halfway through Donald Miller’s Searching for God Knows What, which has prompted several interesting discussions.
  • On Thursday Jenny and I will cheer on the Rangers thanks to a BOGO coupon that Carter Bloodcare gave me. This will be our first and probably only baseball game of the season. Earlier that day, we’ll have lunch with my family.
  • On Friday we’ll drop the boys off with Jenny’s mom and drive down to Waco for the Baylor-TCU football game. Our friends the Seastrunks are going with us. Mr. Seastrunk went to TCU for grad school. Last year we all attended the Baylor-TCU game in Fort Worth, sitting in in a sea of purple. (We don’t need to discuss the outcome of that game) This year we’re making them sit in the Baylor section. We booked a cool B&B called The Cotton Palace for that night. We might visit the Baylor Bookstore or run the Bear Trail while we’re there. Sic ‘Em, Bears!!!
  • On Saturday we’ll enjoy a quick breakfast at the inn, rush to the Mid-lo to pick up the boys and put on their pirate costumes, and continue to Grand Prairie for my niece Reagan’s third birthday party. She has decreed that her party shall be a princess party, but apparently pirate costumes are acceptable substitutes for the boys on the guest list.

At some point during all this fun, there will also be at least one or two naps.

New Wheels?

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In June I told you about my new fitness adventure, a weekly bicycle ride. I kept it up for a few weeks and had a great time. A couple of weeks ago, I borrowed my brother-in-law’s newer mountain bike and was pleasantly surprised at how much lighter and smoother it was compared to mine. After that, I knew it was only a matter of time before I went bike shopping. I just wasn’t sure when, or where, or for what.

Unfortunately, during last week’s ride my old, long-neglected mountain bike forced my hand by kicking the bucket. Well, that’s not entirely true, but its rear brakes suddenly sound like metal fingernails on a chalkboard, both tires are dryrotting, and the rear tire went flat a mile from my house, which made for a long walk home in the August heat. As with an old car you plan to replace, I don’t want to spend any more money on this one.

So now I have the intimidating but pleasant task of shopping for a new bike. I want something that’s fairly light but suitable for both roads and semi-smooth trails. Neither racing nor off-road riding really appeals to me. Someday I hope to ride with Jenny and the boys in the many parks near our house. So my best bet seems to be a hybrid bike, which attempts to combine the sturdiness, comfort, and flat handlebars of a mountain bike with the lighter weight and speed of a road bike. Possibilities include models from Trek, Specialized, and Giant. Apparently, each bike shop only sells certain models, so sometime soon I plan to visit two local bike shops for test rides.

According to my recent exercise poll, exercise isn’t really popular among my readers. =) But if any of you ride, I’d love to hear any thoughts you have.

First Ride

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Now that my bike is back in working order (thanks to Mad Duck Cyclery in Grapevine), I went for my first real ride Thursday night. It was the first time in my life that I had consciously gone riding for exercise rather than simply for fun or for transportation. So I approached it differently. My goal was not to get somewhere or just see the sights, but to burn up my quads.

Mission accomplished.

I put in about 5.5 miles at our local park, which has a really nice trail. In the process I became one of those cyclists that used to annoy me and make me nervous as a runner or walker on the same trail. Now I understand why some cyclists go so fast. Since I’m new to cycling and riding a 31-32 lb mountain bike, I only averaged 10mph or so. But I had a blast. You can see so much more of the world on a bike than you can while running.

Despite the heat (probably low 90s), the ride wasn’t too difficult, for two main reasons:

  1. Since I’m going faster, the extra wind helped keep me cool.
  2. My quads, not my cardiovascular system, were the limiting factor, the opposite of my running limitation. Before I could really push my heart and lungs, my quads screamed until I slowed down. That works out great, since my primary goal for cycling is to strengthen my legs.

So right now, my plan is to run three times a week (12 miles this week, 13 next week, and so on) and ride once, building up to maybe an hour. I have this crazy idea that my quads are the final piece of the puzzle – that once they are strong enough, I’ll be able to tackle a half-marathon. Or maybe even a triathlon, if I could ever learn how to swim more than a couple minutes at a time. I think Jenny will beat me to the tri, though. She’s planning her first indoor tri for September.