jethro56 

I live in rural Mattoon,Illinois about 50 miles south of Champaign.

I'm a 54 year old semi-retired computer programmer. I still do some contract work for my former employer M&M Mars.

I farm the family farm.

Got into Bicycling to add another fitness program as I was seeing diminishing returns on the machines at the local Y.
My plan was to eventually get into running however bicycling is much more challenging than I remember. I thought I was in pretty good shape as I think I could seriously destroy the elliptical machines at the Y. Compared to what I read in the Clydesdale forum I am sub-beginner. Saturday, I think I finally got my seat adjusted as I'm much less sore and can finally get my heartrate into the 140s. I've gotten 211 miles in as of today, keeping my increase to 15% a week. Last thur after a ride in 20mph winds with frightening gusts, I ordered a Kurt Road Machine so I can keep up a reasonable traing schedule.

CraigB

Mattoon, eh? So you too, are living on a billiard table. I swear, east central Illlinois is the flattest place I've ever seen.

jboyd

Mattoon huh? Don't let the Amish pass you on the back roads

Also, be careful not to get a nose bleed when you go over the I57 over pass

Interesting contrast of Illinois, I can be in Mattoon in a little over 2 hours and yet I can't see over a couple hundred feet anywhere around here. 600 foot hills are the norm.

You should train for a century, and then ride to Urbana for a fish sandwich and a beer at Legends and then ride back home

dbikingman

Did I drop into the Illinois regional thread? Welcome: jethro56

professorbob

I think every area has its challenges. If it's not hills, it's wind.

CraigB

Southern Illinois has some beautiful countryside (as does southern Indiana, and probably most of the Ohio Valley for that matter). One of my almas mater is SIU-C.

A fish sandwich and a beer at Legends is fine, but not quite as good as when it was Deluxe Lunch.

CraigB

Jethro had commented in another thread about living in "flat" central Illinois. Since I'm from Peoria originally, and lived in Chambana for a few years before coming to Indy, I had PM'd him to ask where he was from. I guess you have to have a minimum post count to be able to send PMs and he wasn't there yet, so he couldn't reply in kind. Hence our Illinois-philia on display for everyone to witness.

Neil_B

Ever been to Delmarva? Or southern New Jersey?

jethro56 

I've been to Hacketstown,NJ enough times to know to fly into Philly and avoid Newark. One thing I used to say to my fellow associates. "I read somewhere that New Jersey has the densest population of all the states."

slorollin

There's lots of people per square mile too!