Today I flagged people on Strava.

I need a geared bike so I can finally do a century faster than like 6.5 hours.

Today I did some CX practice and realized USA Cycling has me ranked at 1st in the state in Cat 5 and 8th in the country. Suppose I should quit sandbagging.

But I'll automatically cat up next race anyways.

Received my shipment of fresh kefir grains today, both the milk and water strains. I've made the powdered milk version before, but this is my first rodeo with fresh.

I sometimes want to flag riders for narcissistic sweaty post-ride selfies.

Fair. Mine were for car doping. Unless I'm supposed to believe that people are climbing double digit grade hills at 25mph on their bikes (coincidentally always at the end of the ride). Just turn off the Garmin before you put the bike in the car, people.

Oh, they do it all the time near me, MTB guys riding the MTB park and then don't shut their GPS off after riding the trail.

I flagged my neighbor for this - could tell it was him because his GPS trail went around the MTB park, out the parking lot, down the street and right to his driveway.

One guy won a road segment at 70 MPH in a 35 MPH zone.


-Tim-

Today I decided that this coming Saturday, if the weather holds, I will attempt to do the dumbest century ride I have ever thought of. Cannot decide if I will go fixed or geared. It will be relatively flat.

why is it dumb?

One year the UCSB intercollegiate kids decided to ride a century around a 1.2 km oval in an industrial park where they hold crit practice. That was pretty damn dumb.

That just sounds like a colossal waste of time

I mean, you get the bragging rights to say you did that, but you're also the idiot that rode 100mi in a 1.2km oval.

It is bordering on this. Saturday looks like rain, Sunday is now the optimal day to attempt this.

This reminds me of my friends brother who in HS stayed at Happy Doughnuts (on el camino) for 24 hours straight.

Well the biggest downside is that it was just mind numbingly boring. It did have advantages:

1) It was safe
2) Parked cars on course means no saddle bags or loaded pockets - can stop when you need anything
3) Friends hanging out on the course and cheering heckling

Granted I wasn't a participant as my (summer) internship there had ended and not sure if I would because despite all that it just seemed so... boring.

In SD they used to do the Adam's Ave 100 - an informal century ride up and down an iconic/scenic road in San Diego that is 2.7 mi long. It was like a big parade with lots of participation and riders of all levels - it was fun enough for me to last like 60 mi one year before I was tired of it.

On that note 1) is the biggest appeal to me; I've grown wary of road riding/riding on the street for the last couple years. I'm a rider who's confident and skilled enough to ride on the road with ease and even in tight traffic situations like many of you here, but I try to avoid it - it's just dangerous and I don't like cars. You can be completely in control but there is still that drunk ******* or raging idiot that will ruin your day.

For that reason I've been doing more and more of my (weekday) training on Fiesta Island - a closed 4 mi loop with no intersections. Plus it offers a controlled environment where I can experiment with precise power-based workouts which is fun for me. If I didn't have that, I might default to the trainer, and even then still I'm considering it...

This is why the majority of my riding happens on the fire roads in our nearby state park.

Not to mention it's way prettier and has actual elevation change.

no cars / no cops

today i...
well, where do i start? remember a month or so ago i mentioned hitting 5,000mi for the year that upcoming week? well, i still haven't hit it. i've been riding every day still, but mostly short rides around the neighborhood. i realized that i burned myself out big time the first 8 1/2 months of the year. it became a chore to ride and that's not the point. but, i made a commitment to ride every day and have stuck with it.
4 weeks ago, me and the girl decided to finally part ways after 7yrs of off and (mostly) on. hit me a little harder than i expected but that's usually how it is, right? it was a long time coming (and mutual) so i halfway expected it to be a little easier. that's ok though. i've got some good friends keeping me in check and have recently started spending some time with a girl that manages the bakery a couple of doors down. i'm not one to be alone, so i try to find company. so far, so good.
my bike shop started doing music shows (when you google us, it actually shows us as a legit venue with upcoming shows) and we've had some pretty good talent roll through....LA Witch, Crumb (whose next stop was third man records on their tour) and Sugar Candy Mountain to name a few. things are mostly going ok and i'm thankful to still be on my feet.

[MENTION=112127]johnnytheboy[/MENTION] Hang in there man! It's rarely – if ever – easy to part ways with someone. Time to treat yourself to some self love and nourish other relationships that may have been simmering. Bakery hook up would definitely would make things easier for me.

/end unsolicited advice from stranger.

And I've seen some clips of the shows on IG. Seems super rad.

Splitting with some is never easy regardless if its mutual or not. Sending hugs dude

tough stuff [MENTION=112127]johnnytheboy[/MENTION]. Hang in there!

Sorry man. Hope you can find some happiness in whatever you do. Keep pedaling and keep with the music.


ETA:

Keep pluggin away man.

Try riding different routes, even riding the same route in the opposite direction helps.

Those two problems can actually resolve themselves, you can use riding as a way to help take your mind off of or as a means of meditation in regards to recent happenings.

That sucks, [MENTION=112127]johnnytheboy[/MENTION]. You might think that being able to foresee the end of a relationship would help make it easier, but IME if it's a relationship that you'd rather continue, it just adds dread along the way. Here's hoping you find happiness again soon.

Kinda shopping for a new helmet and all I can think about is that $200 is a stupid amount of money for a foam hat. I plan on spending $100 or less.

Paging [MENTION=418438]TimothyH[/MENTION]