April 30, 2011

10.54 mile ride with my nephew and Godson Andrew, the guy is a little trooper, he made the full loop around Kensington and wanted more so we went home and did the loop around Independance Lake. He tuckered out his auntie! Beautiful day and a nice ride on my NEW BIKE!

I thought my old bike was a sweet ride and is considered a "comfort bike." This new ride is a dream bike and a dream ride. They have come such a long way with bikes, the front suspension and the seat post suspension make this feel so very smooth, the shifting is like silk, the geometry of the bike is so friendly to my body and my spine. The components are great and makes pedaling seem effortless.

Not only is this the ultimate in comfort but it has a sporty and more aggressive feel to it. I made it up hills that I had previously walked up. I'm loving this bike - it's like nothing I could have imagined. I always thought I rode in an upright position but now I know what truly upright feels like and this is IT! The grips are ergonomic and have a place to rest the pad of your hand. I can see many many happy miles together. Once I get fenders and a rack on the back I'll post up proper photos of my new Specalized Expedition Sport.

Love the new wireless computer too.

April 29, 2011

Another short but intense ride where I kicked up the MPH again and it's not adding stress to my knees, just enough to build a little muscle without straining the joint. Tomorrow's Saturday and that means there'll be enough time for a long ride. 3.51 miles, couple of loops at Independance Lake trail.

Tuesday April 26, 2011

Short power ride where the focus was on upping the MPH without undue stress on the knees, I found a good balance and this made for a more intense ride considering the time constraints. 4.3 miles and it seemed like going and coming I was into the wind. How can that be?

Easter Sunday April 24, 2011

Christos Anesti! Christ has Risen! A great day for celebrating life. Nice day with my family. After the family dinner I took a spin with my Godson Andrew (we're wearing our Easter Bonnets), they have bike path in their subdivision with some fishing ponds, boardwalks and nature trails. I forgot how much fun it is to ride with a kid.

Yesterday Kensington Metro Park was all a'bloom with cyclists, walkers, joggers, in-line skaters, fishermen and folks out enjoying a l-o-n-g anticipated nice break in the weather. We had abundant sunshine and warm temps. Beautiful. 8.86 mile ride, for a map of it check here http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/32466264

Good Friday April 22, 2011

The long journey to Pascha (Easter) is nearly complete, for Orthodox Christians the world over this is the culmination of a journey that began with the first day of Lent over 40 days ago, but who's story is over 2,000 years old. It is a time of rebirth and renewal and the great awakening to new life, a new life awaits us.

One died that all may live and have life eternal. He loved us first so that we may love.

Tuesday April 19, 2011

Sister is much better, thank God prayers do work!

Snow and cold, biking is on hold.

Sunday April 17, 2011 Palm Sunday

My sister was taken on an emergency to the hospital on Thursday and I've spent the last few days with her. She is doing very much better and is at home, however we have all had a fright. My two sisters are my best friends and we are a very close family. I always enjoyed the privilege of being the youngest in the family, however sometime in my forties I realized that that pleasure has it's down side as well and that is that I will most likely be alone in my later years as one sister is 15 years older than me and the other is 16 years older than me. This means that most likely I will be left alone without them at some point. This realization has come as a blessing in the sense that I make more time here and now to spend with them. Rather than put off a casual dinner or vist because work has me bogged down, I reprioritize and make my schedule include even more visiting than usual. And overnight visits for a day or two together have become more common in the last few years. It's not like we live far, less than 30 miles, it's just that we all make a point to spend more time together. The bottom dropped out of the thermometer and we had snow flurries today and it's predicted to have a covering of snow overnight. Brrrrrr. Still, this is Michigan and I expect to get some rides in this week as we are supposed to have a couple of nice days later on in the week. The last several days have been cold, windy and rainy.

Wednesday April 13, 2011

Yesterday was a long work day and short bike ride 3.18 miles, didn't even break a sweat with the cooler weather. Short but sweet and since I was short on time I made the most of it by increasing the intensity level. Increased average MPH for the ride today by 15%. It's a fine line between pushing and overextending the stress on the knees. By focusing on making the most out of shifting gears at the right time keeps knees out of the danger zone.

Monday 4-11-11

More temperature swings, got in a short ride today, with 20 mph winds and gusts to 40 mph I called it quits with just three miles in the saddle. Even if difficult to ride in the wind, being out in it is exhilirating.

Sunday April 10, 2011

Ahhhhh! Michigan springtime. Yesterday I had a nice ride 7.52 miles, what a difference the trainer over the winter has made. Had I not been training my first ride probably would have been 3 miles or thereabouts. Had some stiffness in my knees, mostly due to having had my trainer tire off for the last few weeks and it was far too cold to ride outside, in that short period I lost a little flexibility. This reinforces the need for daily exercise and just how impactful that exercise is in alleviating the stiffness in my joints from arthritis.

Imagine, all this fun really does have a healthy side to it! Today I had a shorter ride as family is due over in a little bit, gorgeous day out and got in a 4.46 mile ride. Blooms are showing some signs of life this spring and a pleasant ride down a dirt road took be to a little park in Wildwood Lake.

Our weather swings are pretty wild. Yesterday I had on a tee and a long sleeve tee, a thermo fill vest and a chilly nose and toes. Today a short sleeve tee and shorts. Late this morning on the radio it was 37 degrees F in the Upper Penninsula and 76 degrees F in Holt. In Michigan you can sure have it all!

Saturday April 9, 2011 Quandry

Test riding today. New bikes that is, right now torn between Trek Navigator 2.0 WSD and Specalized Expedition Sport. Both bikes are a dream to ride and feel like they can roll forever effortlessly. I love the bike I have but it's a bit too big for me and I am certain that the size of it has been the cause of many of my falls.

http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCProduct.jsp?spid=52749&scid=1003&scname=Path%2FGravel

http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/bike_path/navigator/navigator20wsd/

Right now I am leaning toward the Specalized because of the geometry of the bike, the seat angle puts the cranks out front so the rider can be closer to the ground without sacraficing leg extension, plus this takes a lot of pressure off the knees. The Trek is a tad bit more aggressive and feels a bit sportier but the erognomic grips on the Specalized take a lot of the strain off my wrists. I also like the color scheme of the Specialized better too.

Hmmmmm.

Monday 4-4-11 Tragedy on the Lake

Sunday 4-3-11 Sad and tragic day at the lake. A father and 2 year old daughter take a spin in their small fishing boat and end up in the water. Neighbors, who had become friends within the last 6 months of the young couple with the little girl, were outside early and saw father and daughter shove off in their little craft and then went inside.

Shortly after they ventured out something went terribly wrong, amazingly no one has stepped forward that saw the duo go in the water, plenty of 911 calls went out in very short order as people who lived around the lake saw and empty boat spinning in circles, some heard screams of help. Rescue workers responded quickly from communities all around, some persons living on the lake rushed out in boats and plucked the girl from the water, she had been wearing a life jacket.

Rescue workers met the pontoon out on the lake and did what first responders do, the little one was unconscious but breathing lightly and was rushed to U of M Hospital. The search went on for the father who was found in 10-15 foot of water without a life jacket and was unconscious, he was taken to the hospital but died shortly thereafter. He had been in the water for 40 minutes.

This is such a sad story as the young couple had only moved into town in the last 6 months and father and daughter were so very excited for the summer season to get underway and spent many an hour at the lake shore or out in the water in their boat as soon as the ice went out. The father and his brother had just finished putting in the dock the day before. The mother is expecting a second child who will never know it's father. What a tragedy, our community is saddened and deeply touched.

It was a cold, cloudy and dreary day, I had left the house for church at 9 am and needed a winter coat. Authorities say the water temp was a chilly 41 degrees.

Articles are at links below http://www.annarbor.com/news/neighbor-of-whitmore-lake-drowning-victim-james-everard-recounts-rescue-effort-calls-neighbor-a-grea/

http://www.annarbor.com/news/rescuers-looking-for-man-after-boating-accident-on-whitmore-lake-witnesses-say-child-pulled-from-wat/

Day Eight April 2, 2011

The cold weather continues for the foreseable next several days. Sigh. However shopping for bikes, bike accessories, bike toys and trinkets remains a pastime to be enjoyed. From one of the bike forums I follow I wanted to share another story of inspiraton of older adults bike riding well into their later years. The link below carries a story of Octavio Orduño who at 103 continues to ride. What an amazing accomplishment! The link also has a video.

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/103-year-old-man-still-rides-bike.html