Currently Out of Commission

This bike season just might be cut very short for me.  Far too many thngs going on in my right leg at the moment.  Knee pain, muscle weakness, strong cramping in my calf muscle and hamstring, sciatica pain and more that is enough to keep me off the bike and considering getting total knee replacement on my right side.  I suffered through much of this several years ago on the left side and the Dr. always says that only you will know when it's time to get it done.  I think it might be time.

Well, it's off to see the surgeon.

Brandemer Park Last Friday

This is the view of downtown Ann Arbor as you come into town from it's northern entrance in Brandemere Park via the bike pathway.  It's a whole lot nicer view than what you get by automobile.  From the road it is a bit run down, shabby and very industrial, the saving grace is that as you first exit the freeway you get a view from the hilltop of the downtown skyline plus a good view of the University of Michigan Hospital complex, Huron River and Argo Dam.  The photo comes from an article about the lack of an attractive northern entry into town.  The section of blight is short but it's one of the first things you see after the great hilltop view.  It's an incongrous, from beauty to blight and on to big and bustling downtown.  It's like it doesn't make sense, it doesn't flow.  You can read the story by clicking here.  I was on this path on Friday as part of my 9 mile ride, I had started just to the north of this spot by about a mile from the parking lot of Brandemere Park at US23 and Whitmore Lake Road.  I was headed in the opposite direction of the cyclist pictured and right after you come off this section you travel over Argo Dam which is pictured in the distance just beyond the RR bridge, where you see it crossing the river.  As soon as you come off the dam you enter the new renovated Argo Cascades where a quiet and murky spillway lined one side of a small isthmus.  Before the 1.17 million dollar project that created the cascading falls and series of drops the water was stagnated and mostly covered with algae.  As that section of the path was the only one not paved, it was pretty rustic and not much more of a rut in a very narrow strip of land that dropped sharply off into the scum filled water on one side or the tree tangled fast current river on the other side.  Falling down either bank was not what I wanted to do at all and I generally held my breath through that section and would be happy every time I made it through unscathed.  

There were a couple of sections where the rut was eroded and the sand got deep enough to make the hind end of the bike shimmy a bit and fishtail toward the water on either side.  That was always good for a little nerve racking jolt.  However from last fall onward with earth movers and bull dozers at work the top of that isthmus was flattened out, a nice 8 or 10 foot asphalt brand new path with cascading kayaking falls along side it is now open for riding.  The last time I was on this path was the day that a kayaker nearly drowned (you can read that blog post here)on the river side and it hadn't been paved yet so I was unsure what to expect on Friday.  Smooth new asphalt was what I was treated to, looks like it may have just opened a week or two before.  There is a video clip of the cascades available here and a still shot below.  The video and still were taken in the early spring as you can see by the outfits on the kayakers.  When I rode alongside the cascades on Friday I was treated to watching two kayakers a guy and a gal shoot through the drops just a few feet away from me.  It looked like a blast.  After the 4th drop I saw the girl kayaker get turned backwards and shoot through the drop backwards.  I'm still unsure if it was intentional or not but the guy behind her made it clear that he was going through backwards intentionally.  That was wickedly fun to watch.

Ouch - Dial it Back

It's sad to know that a ride less than 10 miles is overdoing it but true it is.  Yesterday was a bit too ambitious and I'm feeling it today.

Health.  What a curious word that most people don't give a second thought to for days, months or even years on end, until something replaces it.  Suddenly, it becomes the center of the universe.

Humans are curious beings.

Little by Little

Making a slow comeback 1 mile, 1 mile, 2.2 miles, 4.2 miles, day off, 6.16 miles, 2 days of rest and 9.09 miles.

Little by little I'll get back into the swing of this but careful attention to how I'm feeling and listening to pain is the key.

I did the upper section of the Border to Border trail tonight from Brandemere Park to Gallup Park.  Hurting a bit tonight so I need to knock it back a notch or two. 

I see a series of 4-6 mile rides on the horizion to build the strength back up.

Stats

Well they're not where I'd like them to be but here they are;

March 59.5 miles and 7.25 hours of outdoor riding.  For March that's actually not bad considering we generally have snow cover still in most winters.  Considering what a spectacular March we had it is pitiful however March is a busy month with Board of Review and my evenings were all taken up with this for half the month.

April 53.39 miles and 7.70 hours.  I was slower, the weather was dismally rainy and toward the end of the month when the weather improved I was out of commission and laid up. 

Mid winter while I was in the off season training mode this is not what I would have predicted for this spring.  However the adage goes...man proposes and God disposes. 

Staying busy with getting better, resting for my health and it's helping.  YAY!

On the Injured List

The weather has finally turned in the last couple of weeks and I have not had the ability to get out anywhere near as much as I want to.  Sadly, I've had a flare up of my RA and my right leg just does not want to bend to go round and round.  Sad face over here.  I do have stats from March and April and will post them later, but for now suffice to say my mileage is pitiful but the desire is very strong.  It's sad to want to go and have the longing coupled with perfect riding weather and have to sit on the sidelines.  Sigh.

With virtually no winter season to speak of I was able to get outdoor riding in during all the months of last year and the early months of this year, even if mid winter it was only one or two outdoor rides.  I kept it up with the indoor trainer and was very excited about the 2012 season getting off to a good start and raring to go.  Sometimes we just have to go with the flow and not fight the things we can do nothing about. 

Right now I'm focusing on getting extra medical attention and remedies, good nutrition and getting enough sleep and rest.  Combined, those factors will have me on the mend, sooner rather than later or so I hope.

For now, I'll take what little rides I can get in.  There's always shopping!

My First Bike

Or more aptly titled my first bike ride and my first bike.  While on a bike outing with a group of bike writers last night one of the writers challenged anyone riding to do a short story with the writing prompt being "My First Bike."  So this post will be a brief story or longish blog post and here goes...

This is about my first two wheeled adventure more so than my first bike which was a tricycle and I was too young to remember much about that.  I recall the first spin on a two wheeler for real, I had made several attempts with my big brother and big sisters helping me out and trying without success.  My next door friend Nellie was a year or two older and she knew I was trying and offered her bike and her help one sunny summer afternoon.  The bike was a little big for me and she helped me up onto it and steadied the wobbling bike with me on it but I'm not sure how because it sure felt wobbly to me. 

Nellie ran alongside me holding onto one of the grips on the handlebar and the back of the seat I pedaled valiantly along, pretty soon Nellie was holding onto the seat only as I got up a little steam and the wobbles lessened.  By now I was grinning and picking up more speed and just delighted with myself.  A bit faster and now I was proud as punch and chatting along with Nellie who had been left behind and out of breath. 

By the time I noticed that she was no longer by my side, helping to hold me and here I was all by myself, I snuck a quick peek back and saw her all bent over holding her side from the sure side ache we all got as kids from running to fast too hard.  I was almost a block ahead of her and promptly realizing that no one was holding on, I tipped over.  That coupled with the quick look over my shoulder was enough to bring the wobbles back and down I went. 

But the main thing was that "I did it!"  I was a bike rider at last, one of the "big guys" who rode a two wheeler.  I recall a couple of summers of scabbed up knees when I got my very own two wheeler but the skinned knees were nothing in comparison of the freedom that bike riding brought.  I was no longer bound by where my little legs could take me walking.  I had the heady freedom of wind in my hair and breeze on my face as I cruised along on my bright and shiny blue Schwinn.  The birds of the air or the little creatures that scampered along had nothing on me. I was as free as they were to go as I pleased.  The seat had a big S on it and there was a chain guard that matched the bike, I had streamers on the hand grips for coolness sake and a big shiny basket for my moms sake.  I was now the runner of errands to the store for a loaf of bread or gallon of milk or whatever would fit in my basket. 

Now as an adult who has fallen in love all over again with a two wheeler, I can put aside the cares of the world when I hop on my bike for a cruise and sometimes I feel like that little girl, that summer with the breeze on my face and watching the birds of the air and the little creatures and the feeling of freedom and the joy of all outdoors warms me up and comforts my soul.  It's heaven on earth and a chance to steal away from the cares of the day for just a little bit.  It refreshes, renews and rejuvenates.

I love my bike.


What's your story?

Mixed up Seasons!

Our beautiful spring gave way to a return to wintery conditions.  We have been lucky in Michigna to have escaped the big snow storm that hit the eastern and middle atlantic states, yikes Pennsylvania got over a foot of snow.  We got the big winds on the back side of that storm and it blew strong and steady for days on end with very chilly temps.

Today the wind finally quit blowing and it's gorgeous out there.  Plans tonight are for a nice back roads ride with a few fellow riders.  Can hardly wait.

Biking Candidate

What a great combination bicycling and campagning.  I get to enjoy my favorite outdoor activity while making door to door contact with voters and citizens.  From the feedback I'm getting there are a couple of things that put a smile to my face.  One is that I have very good support within the community and the second very interesting things is how many people seem to think that campaigning by bike is a very cool and novel idea.  I love it!

Yesterday I had a young couple remark that they would vote for me based on the fact that I was biking my way around the township.  Now I'm pretty certain that this was at least half in jest but it's an indication that people are warmed up to the idea that their public officials are quite approachable and everyday folk just like them.  Of course we are!  Besides these folks I have had a lot of very positive comments about campaigning by bike.

I had a friend kindly photo shop a picture of my bike, now I just gotta find one of these signs for my wheel in real life.  Way cool!



I've just gotta get one of these signs for real



Long Catch Up Post Fobiles and Frights

Dear Readers,  sorry for the lack of news.  Much has transpired and I'll try to catch up here, and I'll try to keep some order;

Campaign for election
Weather
Work
Bike Riding of course
Frights, Calimity and near disasters


Campaign news, I had a new photo shoot done for my 2012 Campaign material and here are my two choices from the sitting;

 

 

Weather - What an unsual and amazing spring we have had!  It is every bit as strange as our extremely mild winter.  We had not only mild early spring days but downright hot days.  Temps soaring into the upper 70's and 80's F in early March?  Never in all my days! And all things green have sprouted and leafed out.  Spring flowers that normally spend a few weeks opening and peeking out to make their shy appearence have sprouted, flowered and are near done.  With the advanced weather and season we are having all things are flowering and coloring all at once.  Usually we have the vibrant yellow forysthia in March followed by the beautiful white buds on the Bradford Pear in April and the array of colorful Azalea's in May.  With our accelerated spring this year all of the above are blooming at the same time and mother nature is showing off all of her beauty at once.  It's a sight for sore eyes with splendor everywhere you look.

Every time I get behind the wheel of my car or the handlebars of my bike, I feel like I am an accident waiting to happen because I am oggling everything in sight and my head spins like a top, where to look first?  Best bet is to stop and take a long look to drink it all in and do a bit of reveling in the glory of a spring that is bursting at the seams!

Work - whew!  Of course luck would have it that my busiest time of year which is the March Board of Review which is an appeals session for property tax assessment had me working day and night during some of the best of the weather.  I still managed to get in some riding and some riding in downright hot temps, the rides were few and far between but lucky girl that I am some of that long scheduling came during rain and some of the off days in between sessions came with sunny days.  All tolled, there were about 10 days where I simply looked out the window and longed for the ability to get out and ride.  However, when I did have the chance it made it all the sweeter! 

Bike Riding - well despite the volume of work I managed a tad bit over 70 miles in the month of March and it would have been upwards of 100 or more without the board of review.  I can't complain at all for riding this early in the season is iffy at best.  Today I had a 14.37 mile ride in Dexter and it's been the longest of the season.  I managed three trips to Kensington for a loop around the lake, a trip to the Lakeland's trail, several around my neighborhood and a harrowing trip to the Border to Border tail in Ann Arbor. 

The B2B trail saw a newley renovated section that contained a small and narrow isthmus of land just below the Argo Dam that connected to a park along the Huron River that leads to the U of M medical center and onward to Gallup Park.  The newly renovated section along the Huron River previously had rapid running water on one side and a quiet backwater spillway that ran along the other side.  The Huron side would often have rapid water especially in the early spring.  The isthmus was a tiny and narrow strip of land that was peaked and had a small little dirt rut for a path.  It was the only section of the trail that was not paved.  It would often get heavy use as the running teams from the U of M would use it along with bicyclists and people out for a stroll as well.  Passage was done carefully as the banks on both sides dropped off steeply into the waters on each side.  In places the rutted path was deep with sand and more than once I fishtailed through it and could almost see myself sliding down into the rapid river one one side or the languid backwaters that looked awful mucky on the other side.   After the renovation a cascade series of spillways was constructed on the quite side that will make for a kayakers delight.  The renovation was about 1.7 million dollars and it included flattening out the peaked isthmus and adding a paved trail over the previous rut that existed.  There are some photos below that just don't do justice because the green plantings are not completed yet and the water has not been diverted back into the cascade so it looks like puddle/pools of water instead of a cascading series of small waterfalls. 

Frights, Calamity and Near Disasters

Well it so happens that the day that I wandered the B2B trail this spring was a gorgeous day and one of the warmest we had so far.  It was a Sunday and a bit late in the afternoon but people were out in droves enjoying the unusual early warm weather.  I pedaled along the new hard pack gravel ithmus as the paving is scheduled for spring and who knew it would be this nice in Feb/March.  There were several people out and I spied up ahead a grouping of bikes lying on their sides and foks milling about the bank and wondered what was going on until I got close enough to hear someone crying out for help.  It was the most chilling scene I had ever come upon.  There was a man in the water that I couldn't even see who was yelling "help me, I'm going under and can't hang on anymore."  There were two individuals in the rushing water up against a fallen limb up to their chest in water.  The person who was seeking help was just beyond their reach in deeper water.  He was stuck in the underwater branches of the tree and being swept downstream in the rushing water.  Since he was tangled if he lost his grip on the limb he would be swept underwater with no chance to keep his head out.  This was frightening to the nth magnitude.  I was near certain that I was about to witness someone drowning.  The urge to rush into the water was strong but there were already two strong men with a log trying to unlodge him and help him out and with the rushing water I did not believe I could offer more assistance or be of any help.  It was awful and I felt helpless and afraid for him. Someone was on the phone with 911 when I arrived and within 3-4 minutes the Fire Department and Police and Medical Rescue were on the scene.  The two helpers had managed to get the man disloged and onto a log but he was still trapped out in the river with no way to get to shore.  His kayak had capsized and a fellow kayaker and a Good Samaritan passerby were helping him. The fire men arranged a ladder for a bridge and he crawled to safety.  Although the weather was mild and sunny the water was frigid and the man was shivvering with chattering teeth when they wheeled him out.  There is a link to a news story here with some of the same photos as below.

The fellow in the white shirt with his little girl was the Good Samaritan passerby who had been chest deep in the water and helped to free the fallen man.  The Kayaker was lucky this fellow happened by.

On another disaster note the town of Dexter which is our neighbor to the south and west was struck by an EF-3 tornado during our wild and wacky warm early weather.  There was a great deal of devestation, over 120 homes were damaged or destroyed and literally 100's if not 1000's of trees were uprooted.  Today friends and I took a ride through portions of the town to a metropark and were able to witness the damage that occured two weeks ago.  It's one thing to read about it and see it on the news and another thing altogether to see it first hand.  The road leading into that town from Pinckney was a several mile long tree canopied beautiful country drive.  Trees no more.  I could not believe how many were uprooted and blown down.  Hundreds and hundreds of them.  It was nothing short of miraculous that no one was killed or injured.  The landscape in that town has forever changed and so many families are devestated with loss and change.  We pedaled along down that road of devastation with sad and heavy hearts.  It will be a long time before those folks get over this calamity. We had a long ride today and stopped in a pub on our return to downtown Dexter.  Spirits were very high among those effected and it was heartwarming to see and hear.  The news has been full of stories of neighboring communities coming to their aide.  We sent a fire chief, deputy chief, several firefighters and rescue personnel and two rigs to the community for the duration of the event.  Our building offical was on hand for several days to help out as well.  Hundreds of people came to their aide, neighbor helping neighbor.

What an incredible spring.