Willie Nelson

Last night, Mike and I joined Minnesota Mom & Dad, Aunt Mary, Uncle Jim and Sandy & Bob Fenske for dinner and entertainment in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Mike and I started the day doing all our overdue jobs around the house though, and since we finished in record time, Mike treated me to breakfast at "Mike's Diner" before we headed out for 3 hour bike rides in the lovely, sunny Prairie light winds!

There were parades and other "going's on" all over town for the grand finale of the Marshall Sounds of Summer, and so by the time I hit Lynd, there was absolutely nobody on the already traffic free roads for the rest of the ride.

We car-pooled to Sioux Falls for dinner at Johnny Carino's (I was glad I remembered how to get there!), and we ate alot of food (how unusual!) and left in a nick of time to make it to the auditorium (that I think used to be a high-school?) before the sold out (5K people or so) show. We were greeted by folks wearing tuxedo's and directed to our reserved seats up the four flights of stairs in the balcony seats. (I never went to a high-school with this fancy of an auditorium, so they must have done some remodeling!)

For a 72 year old guy (born April 30, 1933 in Abbott, TX), Willie can still rip-it up on stage. He had his sons with him...the elder of which must have been a protege of Stevie Ray Vahnn (Texas Flood!), along with a band comprised of guys who have been playing together for 39 years! It was a hoot! No opening act, just Willie and Family & Friends, being enjoyed by the Taylor's and Family & Friends!

Happy Monday!

a McGuire win in Marshall, Minnesota

Saturday, August 28th, 2005 - The Camden Classic!

A lovely, sunny Saturday out here on the Prairie. I met a bunch of roadie rider's at the Lyon County Fairgrounds at the reasonable hour of 8am (none of those California oh-dark-thirty wake up calls, as the fairgrounds are a 5 minute bike ride away from home!) to help at registration for the "ride" part of the event. On offer was a 10 mile, 20 mile or 40 mile ride. Nothing too staggering---but a social gathering (Charlie Moore would have enjoyed this one!) of like-minded individuals, gathering with friends and family to enjoy a morning ride together on the local roads in the community. We even provided SAG for folks ...just in case. I was going the distance for 40 miles, with a stop in the park to watch Mike do the mountain bike race. My RAGBRAI friends, Rachel & Mike, Mary & Phyllis showed up to make my day! I love these folks. I met them when I first moved to town and they have brightened my days in more ways than I can put into words.

By the time our ride finished they were just getting ready to do the expert race. Mike was the only rider on a cross bike, everyone else was on fat tire mountain bikes for the single track event. It was a mass start, with a fun group of folks. I forgot how much fun mountain bike races were, especially for spectators. There are booths and food and "kid events", and everything is casual and friendly. No "road-bike" snobbery (of which on my fancy-bike I am as guilty as the next guy!).

As they sounded off and the crowd cheered on the racer's, Mike was leading the pack quickly into the first turn onto the single track. Cody Van Overbeke, a co-worker of mine in the bike shop, was hot on his wheel. Cody could race this course with his eye's closed probably, and his mountin bike handling skills are top-notch.

"Rider #136 is at the bridge!" I heard on the loud speaker. That's Mike! Woo hoo! The laps were 6 miles...with some steep, twisty climbs and descents and Mike's first lap was done in 21 minutes. The next rider to come through the start/finish, was Cody...3 minutes or so later. Mike was crushing! He still had two laps to go though. The next lap was 22 minutes, but he was so far in front you couldn't believe it.

There was a pretty stiff headwind section on top of the ridge. Mike said he looked back and didn't see anybody behind him. The course is definitely a mountain biking course and so some of the steeper sections required some extra juice since he has a double chain-ring, but true to form, he powered over the climbs and finessed his way down the descents---making it look easy to the random bystander. This is deceptive indeed. The final lap was done in just over 22 minutes...with a total time of 1:05:20...a new course record!

He won a medal and a prize of $150 bones! Now that's better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick! And..now our Labor Day weekend in the Black Hills for the 50 mile Dakota 5-0 race is paid for!! Woo Hoo!

Honeymoon wrap-up...

...we had a very wonderful time out in the Northlands of Minnesota. After the mountain bike ride day, we did the ride to the Canadian border again...only this time we had about 40 miles of tailwinds on the return trip! It was awesome! I didn't see anymore bears, but I did see a HUGE garter snake, out working on her suntan directly in the bike lane. We walked along the rocky shores of Lake Superior and drank Anchor Steam while we looked out upon the surprisingly calm waters around the harbor. The air is so darn clean...

Mike doctored up Sydney's broken du claw, and she felt better right away. On the return trip, we had hoped to see the Bennett's again in Duluth, but the rain started falling and we had too much time to kill while waiting for Joe to get off of work, so we made a beeline for Marshall.

And as soon as we got out of the rain and the woodsy areas, it warmed up. The wind was coming from the North and East, and as we rounded out of Granite Falls to head West on highway 23, I said, "drop me off! I will ride my bike into town!" I mean it is rare indeed when you have a tailwind home from Granite Falls. So, Mike pulled over and dropped me off and I rode back home, with the wind at my back!! How cool is that?

We've been busy non-stop since we got home. This weekend is the bike race (which Mike is doing) and a bike ride (which I am working/riding); The Camden Classic. When I volunteered for helping out with the ride, I didn't know they wanted me to drive and follow the group. I weaseled my way out of the car and onto my bike though, so I will be a "riding SAG-wagon"...with a cell phone and lots of spare tubes!! Then on Sunday, we are off to Sioux Falls to see Willie Nelson. The venue is a small one, I think it seats like 5K or something so it'll be getting cosy with the "on the road again" man!

Thanks for reading and have a wonderful Friday!

P.S. And for the coolest news...I just got my new driver's license in the mail yesterday...with my new name!!!

Pin Cushion Mountain

We woke up to cloudy and cool overcast weather. Still feeling the miles in our legs from yesterday, we slept in a bit. Even though it had rained all night, the morning was dry, albeit chilly. "Sweetie, wanna go do that ride I did the other day around Pin Cushion Mountain?" I thought for a moment. "Yeah, but it's pink..for more difficult...not the easy yellow stuff", I replied. Mike promised not to get annoyed with my lack of mountain biking skills and so we ate some breakfast and headed out on our bikes to the wooded hills by way of a snowmobile trail just outside of town.

True to his word, Mike was patient with me. "Mountain biking is more cat-like", he told me. I just grunted up the rocky incline, annoyed at my lack of balance. "If you can't be like a cat, then you've got to power over the rocks like I do". I concentrated all 115 lbs of my body to power over the rocks. All my confidence at having had such a great ride yesterday on the road flew out the door. Sigh.

When we arrived at the trailhead, this 10-12-ish year old skinny girl came ripping it up past me on the trail. Now I really was put in my place! Stubborn, I said to myself, "You can do this!" So I followed Mike up and down the trails, trying to pick a good line and not crash or un-click. Boy do I suck at mountain-biking. When we got to the slickrock top of Pin-cushion (which is like this tacky-sticky like rock formation) I walked (sorry guys) my bike to the top, while Mike rode up and down trying to show me how easy it was. The views from the top were indeed beautiful, and I was happy to be there since Mike really wanted to show me this beautiful place on earth.

We rode around the trails for awhile and then I headed back down to the cabin while Mike continued on the GunFlint Trails. I went back and grabbed the small hound and headed back up GunFlint to check out some of the many Lakes. On the way back, it started to rain. Glad to have gotten a ride in, Mike and I headed to town to check out some of the local artisan shops. There's even a Ben Franklin store---remember those?

We walked in the rain, then stopped by the grocery for some dinner to cook, as well as a local fish store to buy some salmon. And of course the liquor store which had some very expensive Anchor Steam beer!!! Woo hoo!! The evening was calm and clear until we went to sleep and then it rained ---the pitter patter of rain drops on the roof!

The Ride that SHAGGED Me!

All right. So we were on our honeymoon...I guess shagging is a part of the package, right? Sigh...Don't even go there Joni! Ha!

Mike and I woke up to a lovely sunny morning and after eating a nice (but in hindsight, not enough) breakfast, I got a head-start on my way to the Canadian Border. I had a full size car-lane for my bike lane. Beautiful, smooth pavement. Wow! As soon as I got out of town (one stoplight and one mile later), I started passing many cool bed and breakfasts along the shore. One very cool one was called Skara Brae (a Scottish B&B), but most had a Norwegian, Swedish, Danish or Finnish flavor with a Dutch one thrown in here and there.(There's even a Lindskog road...I thought of you Candy!) Once I passed 5-Mile Rock (about 5 miles out of town), there was nothing but me and the trees and the lake, with an occasional passing car.

The air is clean. Very Alpine-like. (like Lake Tahoe without people) Soon I came upon a State Park (Judge M-something or other). Most of the roads that lead off Highway 61 are gravel...so I just stayed on the road, but by bicycle, you go slow enough (or I do) to see all the sights. I stopped in to see the Naniboujou Lodge and Trail. I could tell I was getting close to Indian territory.

I felt good. I was just humming along...taking in all the spectacular views of the Lake and woods. About 25 miles into the ride, the inevitable happens. Big Mig...my handsome husband rides up beside me. We chatted a bit, and then he said, "the only thing that kinda sucks is we have a tailwind". Gulp!? And I just thought I was riding well because I had so many miles in these legs. Even with help from the wind, I can not keep up with Mike's "tempo", so I bid him farewell and slowed down to my touring speed, keeping an eye out for potential water-refill opportunities for the ride back. (Mike should have done the same!)

All along the road are entrances to Lake Superior hiking trails. Soon I was in the Grand Portage National Forest. I'd roll up and down the road and see not much of anything but trees and water and rocks and blue sky. 6 miles from the Canadian Border, much to my delight and surprise I began to climb Mount Josephine. It's a two mile climb! (There is a mountain in Minnesota afterall!!) The sights from the top look out upon little rock islands, and the descent into Canada is fast with smooth pavement and a huge lane all to myself!

While Mike had "problems entering Canada, (not problems, but they stopped him and asked him all kinds of questions), the guys just waved me through. I rode about 5 miles into the new country, but the road quality declined and it ventured inland...plus that tailwind thing was in the back of my mind. So at about mile 6, I turned around and headed back to Grand Marais.

While I was climbing Mount Josephine on the return, these guys on motorcycles passed me and waited for me at the top. "Woman! You are an animal!!" I smiled. Then on the descent, I felt the wind. Can I do this for 46 miles back? Yikes. I stopped for a box of fig newtons at the Grand Portage casino. Topped off with water and snacks, I got back on the road---I looked out on the Lake and saw a black bear!! Wow! (Mike saw a mama bear and her baby right in his path when he was in Canada).

I was really feeling the wind now. A year ago it would have stopped me. But all this riding in the prairie winds has toughened me up a bit. In Hoveland (spl?) I see this blond, tan beautiful and half naked amazon type woman running towards me in my lane. She was a big norwegian/swedish looking gal...those motorcycle guys must have enjoyed that.

I kept expecting Mike to pass me again...but he was gonna try and make it to Thunder Bay (that would have been 140 miles for the day). The cool air felt cold. I didn't know if I was going to make it home. I was hungry and near bonking when I saw the sign for 18 miles to Grand Marais. More fig newtons and I put my nose down and hammered home. At Croftville I knew I'd make it.

96 miles for me and about 115 for Mike who showed up looking more flogged than I. We ate a bunch of peanut butter, took showers and recovered a bit. We had hoped to go to the Angry Trout for dinner. But we were too hungry. We needed huge volumes and so we opted instead for Sven & Ollie's infamous pizza place. Mike ordered their largest "Havaiian" (not a typo) a large plate of fettacini pesto with butterey garlic bread and we drank alot of beer! Awesome. All the guys that worked there were from some far-away Scandinavian land and there sing-song english was lovely.

After we stuffed ourselves we went home and slept like rocks to the sound of the rain that the wind blew in, thoroughly shagged from our fabulous day on our bikes!

Grand Marais, Minnesota

Grand Marais, located on Minnesota's North Shore, 40 miles from the Canadian border, is a lovely and quaint little beach town with Lake Superior coastline to the East and the boundary waters and woods to the West. A small Martha's Vineyard/Nantucket/Cape Cod kind of place, with lots of artisians and Scandinavians.

We arrived about an hour early to our cabin site, which was also home to a lodge which specialized in quilt-making. They had quilt-making parties, similar to the new scrap-booking craze, and the end results were amazing and beautiful quilts, and quilt-art. While we waited for our cabin to be available, we ventured down to the local bike shop and met the owner's and found out about the local roads/trails to ride.

Our cabin had a full kitchen with an oven, fridge, microwave, coffee, plus a shower/bathroom and even HBO(!), etc and was located just off the shoreline of the lake, with a walking path right outside our cabin...and even a honeymoon-trail! I was feeling kinda too tired for a ride and so Mike suited up and headed out into the woods for some mountain bike exploration while I un-packed and hiked to the shore with Sydney to check out the lighthouse. Mike was still not back when I returned and so I shopped for dinner and then went and rode a short 25 mile loop on the road that the shop-guy mentioned. My first "climb" in months out in the woods. Nice!

When Mike got home we BBq'd dinner out in the picnic area of our lodge, then hiked once again out to the Lake to watch the sunset while we walked along the rocky shores...

Duluth, Minnesota

We left Marshall at around 10:30am and headed North and East towards Duluth. We didn't believe our luck with the weather and it was very nice to have found Mike's wedding ring the night before. Once we were passed St. John's in Collegeville, it was new territory for us both. Things get more wooded and tree-lined and less everywhere-you-look-the-land-is-plowed-up-and-farmed.

Needing a break from the road, we stopped in Hinkley for a bicycle ride along the Munger bike trail. This was a fire-escape for the people of Hinkley in the late 1800's and is a paved railroad for cycling on. It is complete with street signs, letting you know where you are and how many miles to the next town. It runs to Duluth (over 60 miles away), but we just rode for an out and back couple of hours.

When we got to Duluth, Joe, his sister Tammy, and her son Zack met us at the bottom of the San Francisco type hill to escort us to the new "Casa de la Bennett's" Wow! They're on top of the Duluthian Hills which overlook Lake Superior. I felt like I was at home in San Francisco, looking out on the Bay, only Lake Superior is bigger---you can't see land when you gaze across it's expanse.

We unloaded our bikes and visited and hugged and caught up with each other for a bit. Put this house in Pacific Heights in San Francisco, and you've got a good picture of the Victorian-like neighborhood. Their home was built in 1914 (the same year my Grandma was born). It's got an interesting past too. Joe said that a prior owner murdered his wife in the front yard and the murder weapon was discovered later inside the house....whew!

At around 6:00pm we headed to the Marina where Joe and Chantal's lovely Yacht lives. Mike learned a little about yachting-verbage and once all 9 1/2 of us (Joe, Chantal, and their two daughters, Sadie and Maggie, Joe's sister Tammy and her two kids, Zack & Alex, Mike and I and of course Sydney)were aboard, we set sail out onto Lake Superior. Calm Waters. Lovely, clear views. You can see the bottom...very clean water. Also very cold (40 degrees) and very deep (400-500 feet) water. We toasted with some California Red Wines and marveled at the lovely sunset and gentle breezes. Our friendship with the Bennett's has grown over the years. Mike and Chantal were in the same graduating class in high-school. I think Joe and I are the same age...I might be older than Joe by a year.

We then stopped for a bite to eat at the "castle" and then headed back to Joe & Chantal's for a grown-up slumber party. All 9 1/2 of us! Their home is three stories, plus a basement and so we all fit in very comfortably and we slept like rock's. The next morning, we said good-bye to the Bennett's and headed even further North...stopping along the way at some of the beautiful, Northern, Minnesota state parks. Minnesota really is a beautiful state....and Northern Minnesota, along the Lake Superior coastline is absolutely fabulous.

lost and found

Our fridge is rarely empty---(we cyclists' eat more than our fair share of food!), but given that we'll be gone next week, it's pretty clean inside the "ice-box" right now...especially the fresh vegetable bins. We shopped for just enough to eat tonight and as I was putting the broccoli away, something silver (make that white gold!) caught my eye in the bottom of the drawer. I could hardly contain my happiness. Last week when my tummy was bad, Mike was on his own cooking one night and he put the broccoli away in the spinach bin (don't ask...).

The wedding ring is back on his finger just in time for our honeymoon trip!

So four bikes, two riders with (wedding rings on their fingers) and one small hound are heading North towards Canada tomorrow. (One of the rides will in fact be to the Canadian Border...). Boundary Waters, and a very different part of Minnesota, here we come!

on vacation...

...a honeymoon vacation. When Mike and I were sending each other little private "sweetie" emails yesterday (we're very much looking forward to being on vacation), he sent me an email about getting stuff ready to go. After my reply to him, indicating that we could pack on Saturday, he said..."yeah....we just need bike stuff and the Scrapper" I replied to him that all we ever need is bike-stuff and the Scrapper. Which is true. Even when we crossed the pond and went to Belgium last time....we just brought a "bunch" of bike stuff and the Scrapper!

I managed a short ride yesterday morning before work...and avoided being caught in any of the local showers which was nice. I also ended up working an extra 3 hours! We had this HUGE (22 pallet) delivery of indoor exercise equipment and all the guys at the shop needed to unload so I minded the fort and sold bikes while they labored away. The indoor exercise stuff (and volumes of it) were a sign of the winter. I need to figure out a way to heat my house this winter while I (sob!) pedal away on the rollers/trainer (sob again!) in my basement.

After work, I rode over to the local "watering hole", The Wooden Nickel" to meet Mike at a USBancorp/Manifest gathering for snacks and libations. It was their current fearless leader's last day, (he's a super nice guy) and it was nice meeting him as well as the new guy (who has been with the company for years and years and already is well liked and respected). We got home pretty late and now I've got to get going to work this morning. So I will ride later.

It is absolutely beautiful this morning...Have a wonderful weekend! HAPPY FRIDAY!

(and to all of you who asked...still no ring---we're gonna replace it if it doesn't turn up soon though)

(and JD...you won the $5. Minnesota State Parks and Wildlife thanks you!!)

Dakota Five-O

(Hawaii Five-O drum roll....dah dah dah) I'm still researching the details, but it looks like the Taylor's are heading for the Black Hills for the Labor Day weekend...for some dirt Laboring. The Dakota Five-O is a 50 mile Mountain Bike race(ride) which takes place in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Sounds like hard working fun, huh?

50 miles in the dirt! When I said, "cool, I'll just bring my road bike and wait for you at the finish line", Mike said, "No sweetie, it's a ride, not a race...you can do it too!" Pleased with his confidence in his wimpy wife, I went and checked out the website. ( http://www.blackhills.com/ridgeriders/ ) Last year there was only one woman in the over 40 category and it took her 6:27 to finish the event. The fastest guy in Mike's category did it in 4:11. Sigh.

Oh well...Mike is used to waiting for me on the bike. (And yes, he's waited even longer than 2 hours before when we were touring once!)

But I am faster now. The truckers, who are the only motorized vehicles I see on my daily jaunts out in the country ( and who give me a whole lane to myself and wait patiently for me before they pass....never even getting close to me---it's amazing really), know me by name now. They think I'm a real nut---or else some kind of crazy athlete as they see me every day, several times a day, within a 50 mile radius of Lyon County. Yesterday, one of the guys stopped on the rollers around Russell and smiled at me with his toothless grin and asked me if I was a racer "like them Tour de France riders"? I told him that I was just dressed like one (I've got fancy bike riding clothes and my beloved Seven Alta road bike)---He didn't believe that I was just out riding everyday because I wanted to. So now they know I'm a nut. When I mentioned that I moved here from California, he said "Ohhh..." (as if it all made sense suddenly).

Mike rode his cross bike and did the mountain bike race course after work. He smoked his old time...and he also was faster than the times the guys at the bike shop are imagining he'll do. 3 minutes faster in fact!! So now he doesn't know if he'll ride his cross bike or his mountain bike in the Camden Classic. He's certainly going to be getting a new 29er (yes another bike to add to our collection) as the bigger wheel is what he needs.

It's raining off and on and so I will try and sneak in a ride before work. I just replaced my chain though---and even though I have a plethora of other bike-options...I always opt for my Seven.

Have a great day---I'm looking forward to a week up North!!

80 degrees, light winds from the East

Five bucks to the first person who can accurately guess *my* plans for my day off today!!! Ha! Anyway, after my day (yesterday) of suffering (riding) in the North wind, and battling with a bad tummy for the past few days, along with my "in the back of my mind sadness" about Mike losing his wedding ring, I am happy about the "riding prospects" today.

I needed to return a book that I borrowed from Minnesota Mom yesterday at the public library. What a treat!! I (sadly) have not had a library card since I was a kid. For such a voracious reader, this is almost a crime. It also equals a "buzz-kill" if you ever have to move because it has meant that I have enough books to open my own library. And books weigh a ton! (Ask Mike and Minnesota Dad as they lugged all of my books out of the moving truck and into my "library-basement-room" last April!)

The library here in Marshall is nice and clean and modern and full of books I haven't read yet---and now I can read for free and not have a collection of stuff in my basement. I'm thinking come winter, this new library card will be a BIG plus! Speaking of winter, I kind of feel like a bear these days. What? A bear?

Yup! Bears gather food and eat as much as they can all spring and summer to get ready to hibernate for the winter. I am riding my bike as much as I can to get ready for my hibernation as well. I know I know. There's other stuff to do besides ride...and while I will love the snowy days, I will sorely miss not exploring the day outside, rolling around on two wheels. Like I said, I am not an exerciser...My riding time is my meditation time.

It's *my* time. I am not a daughter, wife, friend, etc...I'm just an insignificant spec in the wind (literally!), able to appreciate the gifts of the great "All-Mighty" above at a very personal level. I become one with whatever is dished out for the day. It's sometimes very hard work too. I don't listen to music, or talk (although, sometimes I do sing!)...but rather I just observe and give thanks for the lovely day (even when it's not technically lovely), and my "ring-less" but wonderful husband, and my family and friends and life.

Have you ever noticed how cyclists' always use words like "awesome", and usually have a stupid smile perpetually on their face?

crop-dusting

We've been enjoying a nice heat-wave out here on the Plains. Even a few days without the gale-force winds...(though they are few and far between). Last week on one of my rides, our friend Pete was flying overhead, finally able to perform his "crop-dusting" jobs, as the wind wasn't too bad. It's cool to watch him do his acrobatic-air-ballets....but not so cool are the smell and other after effects of dusting the crops with whatever he dusts them with.

I think some of the dust landed on top of my water-bottle or something, as I have had a bad stomach since that day. Mike says no---but I am not so sure he's right. It reminds me of the California Med-fly junk. Remember that? Anyway, my tummy is finally feeling better....

We are leaving for the North this weekend and I am very excited. On Sunday we are meeting up with Joe and Chantal Bennett for a nice dinner in Duluth. They've invited us to stay on their sailboat...located in the new yacht harbor there, and if the weather permits we will go sailing Sunday evening. Maybe Joe can find us a place for sushi? In San Francisco, when Joe and Chantal came to visit us, we ate so much sushi that the sushi-waiter wouldn't bring us anymore...deciding we'd had enough. Then on Monday we will travel even further North to Grand Marais...for some unknown territory exploration by bicycle. Perhaps even some kayaking...weather permitting.

My Mom called last night. (She's doing fabulous, by the way, thanks to all of you who always remember to ask!) In fact, she and Layne went riding around Shoreline on their bicycles yesterday. She said they rode into 10MPH winds and thought of me. 10MPH winds = calm out here. I rode in 20-25 MPH hot wind yesterday....having had a bad tummy all week, I had to watch my re-hydration levels....I had a light dinner and took it easy afterwards.

Mike lost his wedding ring....it is somewhere either in the house or outside. We don't know. The thing is, we keep a pretty clean house and we've pretty much turned the place upside down....and so maybe it is in the lawn? We're borrowing a metal detector to see if we can find it. It would have been nice to make it to the honeymoon with our wedding rings....I think it is depressing me---not that I am depressed...it's just in the back of mind.

OK. Have a wonderful week. I sure do love the summer.

wind and time

So yesterday, we had an unusual but welcome fairly wind-free day. Light ESE breezes for the most part. The day before we had 20-25 MPH gusty winds. Just for fun (and since my odometer has been not-working) I've been riding for time. I know the distance of my various routes already. Now I am timing how fast I can ride the distances. (I could do this before---the odometer tracks distance and time---but I only checked out the mileage before).

Anyway, I was more than 15 minutes faster riding the same distance yesterday, minus the wind. That time also included a stop to visit with a friend (Kathy Eveslage) who I rode passed on my way out of town...so it's probably closer to 20 minutes. That is huge. Think about it. Lance won the Tour with a 4 minute, 40 second advantage.

I've decided that riding in these conditions is good for building my "mental" strength---perhaps more than my "mettle" strength. In cycling both attributes are desired. I've never really had to test my "mental" strength much---how hard is it to go ride on a lovely day, along the lovely terrain and roads in Northern California---specifically the SF Bay Area? All right, the climbs might be tough...but that's more mettle, no? Mentally, it's not very challenging.

Riding in the wind is all mental. It's hard work. But I'm not in my smallest gear and struggling up a climb or anything. It's different. In all honesty, if you're fairly fit, mental toughness is way harder. I've always known that that is what I lacked to be competitive. Not that I'm fit for racing now. But I have a greater appreciation for the "sufferfests" that racing a bike entails. And perhaps I'm a bit more mentally fit than I have ever been.

We're in for another heat wave today. And I think the wind is back. Hot and windy. I'm off to go workout my mental and mettle, and then I'm off to work. Have a great day!

Here's what my small hound is doing today...I took her swimming yesterday and so she's kinda beat today!
(Photo's missing)

A happily married woman

Something "clicked" this weekend. I don't know what it was really, or if it was anything at all. We spent the weekend riding and eating and sleeping and hanging out with our small hound---just like we always do. I have no "big thing" to write about. And nothing changed. But I woke up a very happily married girl today.

(Complete change of subject) Anyway...there is a mountain bike race coming up at the end of August. The start is like 100 meters from where we had our wedding ceremony. Yes, it's the Camden Classic! Mike has only participated in two mountain bike races in his whole life. This will be number 3. Woo hoo! He'll be riding his "Classic" Voo Doo and the Scrapper and I will hopefully be situated atop one of the steeper climbs for some good "look of suffering" photo opportunities.

It's funny. Just having something to train for has changed things. Mike loves a physical challenge. The whole preparation process, which some might find tedious and certainly strenuous is almost what he loves best. There is also a road ride before the race and since our bike shop is sponsoring the event, I'll be doing that. Fun fun fun!

Later on (the same day as the race) in the late afternoon/evening, the city of Marshall is putting on it's annual "Sounds of Summer". Kansas (the band) is providing the musical entertainment. "Dust in the Wind" Appropriate for around here. Every day on my bike rides, I get blown all over the road like a fleck of dust in the gale force winds of the Prairie.

It's supposed to heat up nicely today, and I don't have to work, so I am off to ride. Happy Monday!