Friday, December 18, 2009

TerraTrike








OK - my replacement seat frame came in Wednesday as did the long awaited 26" rear wheel conversion kit. Terratrike honnored the life time warranty on my trike even thought they know that I am now at the weight limit of the trike and when I first got it I was 50 pounds over the weight limit. They did tell me they were sending em a ChroMolly seat frame instead of the aluminum like the Tour comes with. I did not even know they had a ChroMolly frame but since it should be stornger it was fine with me. The aluminum frame weights 1.98 pounds and the ChroMolly frame weights 4.64 pounds so I have a net gain of 2.66 pounds. Other wise the frame look the same. It took me two nights to remove the seat frame remove the Bionx battery mount from the original frame put the Bionx battery mount on the new ChroMolly frame, put it back on the trike with the original seat cover and to install the 26" rear wheel modification kit with a 26" Bionx wheel and a new chain. Nothing was real diffuclt it just took a good bit of time. I have included 4 image of the process and here is a LINK to all of the images. The aluminum adapter for the 26" wheel modification fit so tightly that I had to use the screws that attach them to pull them into place - they took some paint off while doing this - one may remove them and convert the trike back to a 20" wheel but there will be some missing paint - it am sure they need to be this tight to work. Well Turtle and I are ready to Ride Againif we can just get the December weather to coorperate - Snow and rain predicted today and tomorrow. I asked Turtle how she liked her new 26" rear wheel and she said if it helps us go faster it is OK but she is worried that it makes her look like her but is fat - lol.

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Broken Seat Frame


Saturday it was very cold - but about 1:00 PM Bryan called me sugesting we go ride and it had warmed up some so his invite was enough to get me to get up - I was completely ready to ride to his home and when I sat on the trike the was a crack and this is what I found - see picture. Monday I called TerraTrike and the agreed to replace it free stating that it was covered under their warranty. It is already shipped and I should get it on the 16th. Also I was told that the rear wheel 26" mod kit is also being shipped and should be here on the 16th.

Monday, December 7, 2009

Riding a loop in Garner with Bryan

It rained all day Saturday but Sunday was not rainy just very cold - I did do a 22.2 miles ride from home with Bryan. I got cold - not sure why thought I was dressed OK guess not. We did a loop the Bryan does a good bit for training - I liked it. Peggy was planning to ride with me but she was not able to so so. I was still nice to get out and ride. No pictures - too cold I guess.

My GPS data is HERE.

Friday, December 4, 2009

First Friday Night Ride December 2009



We had a real good ride there were about 30 riders and we went to 5 different places the went to Raleigh Times for a bite to eat - the food was good but we got a little rained on but it was still fun. Peggy and I meet near Glenwood and North street and rode over to the tower where the ride starts. We meet Jon and Tim there. Execpt for the rain this was a fun ride.

My GPS data is HERE.

My pictures are HERE.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Turtle is ready to Ride Again






Got the parts in at 11:45 AM. I was home sick having problems with my blood sugar dropping. I worked on rebuilding the wheel but I had to take breaks and rest - I even took a couple of naps. The wheel is finished now but it is raining dark so I can not give it a test ride - maybe Thursday,

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Well this will ruin a ride.



When I went to get Turtle out of the van for the Sunday Garner ride I found the rear wheel rim was splitting. This was most anoying - how many 68 to 70 degrees day does one get in the late Fall. But as much as I wanted to I just did not think it was worth the chance to do the ride so I went to the ride start in my van instead of riding there on the trike like I had planned and met everyone and wished them a good ride. I have ordered the parts and paid for 2 day shipping in hope I can ride this Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Slow Spokes Saltbox Village 50 miles



From my forum post -

We had a real good ride today - did the 50 mile - the weather was real nice but it was cool at the start of the ride but ti did warm up nicely. There were about 12 of us on the ride and 10 of us did the 50. I had a close call with a Porcha(can't spell it) He really did not come real close to me but I thought he was going to hit me and went off the road - scared me a bit. I am very glad I am safe. Made for a strange ride for me. My GPS data is HERE. My pictures are HERE.

Well

Friday, November 27, 2009

Riding the American Tobacco Trail old and new sestions


I had a real nice ride. Meet several new folks and did a 22 .5 mlie ride on the American Tobacco Trail. We started out on one of the first parts of the trail I had ever ridden and down all the new sections we could ride on. The trail and the new trail were real nice.

My GPS data is HERE.

My pictures are HERE.

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Thanksgiving Day Ride

I had a nice little ride Thanksgiving day. When I went out to ride from my home I found my trike had a flat on my rear tire. The rear where is a bit of a problem to remove so replacing the tube took 40 minutes. I was able to get in a 20 mile ride and it was nice - cloudy, overcast and foggy when I started but then it cleared and was beautiful.

My GPS data is HERE.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Wendell 50 miles - Nice



From my forum post -

I had a real nice tide and felt it was a real good ride. The roads were good and we had good but cool weather. There were a few dogs but no real trouble. I liked the route and would call this route rolling to slightly hilly. I will do this ride again.

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE

!

Saturday, November 21, 2009

MS 50 Making Room for Turkey ride 11-21-09



From my forum posts -

I had a good ride, the roads were for the most part in good shape - there police directing traffic and lot of the intersection, the route was well marked and it was a lot of fun. I am sure they will get better at it but there were a few problems. There was nothing but port-a-potties at the first rest stop also the first rest stop was at 6.7 miles and the second was at 30.8 miles the third was at 40 miles a much better distance for a 50 miles ride is 12.5 miles. The route had more turns I have ever seem - try as much as I could not get my average speed to 16 mph because of all the turns. I did enjoy myself and would do the ride again.

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE

I

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Tango Foundations 2 first class


This was a pretty unusual class - I liked it but we did not really work on anything new. Jason took us thought a history of Tango and the music of the different era's of the dance. We danced to the different styles of music as he explained how and why they were different and he of course taught us while dancing and made corrections and suggestions but he did not show us anything new. I really enjoyed the class and found it interesting I also enjoyed the time to work on what we had learned earlier while learning and being exposed to the different styles of music.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Great weekend 11-14&15-09

From my forum post - Saltbox Village 50 mile ride.

Truly a great ride, Turtle and I had a good time. The weather started out with the roads wet but not raining and about mid ride it turned beautiful. I was so nice to see the Sun. We had eight cyclist six of us did the 50. I just really enjoyed this ride we had a great group of folk to ride with today.

My GPS data is HERE

My Pictures are HERE

I really enjoy riding. I seem to prefer riding with groups of other riders but I do ride alone some it is just fun to ride with other cyclist.

Sunday - Dad and I went to the Benson JARS Hamfest - it was a real nice Hamfest we both had a real good time - I really enjoyed being there with Dad.
At the Saturday I had stated that I was going to the Hamfest with Dad and so I was not going to the Sunday Team CBC ride. Bryan and Peggy were not riding Sunday morning and suggested we might get together for a ride from Garner. So the Garner chapter of Slow Spokes had its inaugural ride. We dicided to meet at the Lowes food store at the corner of Timmber Dr and Aversboro. I got there a few minutes late Peggy and Brayn were there. We talked about where to go and since Brtan had do some riding in the area he became ride leader. All of us rode to Lows from our homes so our milages will be different.. We rode to a store at route 50 on a route that Bryan knew. Took a break then turned around and rode the same route back. The wether was great and everyone said they had a great ride. When almost back we found the the new park in Garner White Oak was open so we took a short tour. The park looked nice. After we got back to the shopping center we had dinner together. It was just such a great ride. I rode Peggy home - she did not need me to but it was dark and she is new to the area and it helped me feel better know she was home safe.
BUT - there had to be a but - after I left Peggy when trying to get started after a stop I was on a incline and believe it or not bent my chain ring and possible damaged my High Speed Drive - I am really upset about this and real worried about how long my trike might be out of commission. I know my legs are very strong but to bend a steel 34 tooth chain ring - I guess i figured I would break the chain first but I have done that to.

My GPS data is here


My pictures are here

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Tango Tuesday

I had a real nice class Tuesday in spite of the weather - only Ellen, Katia and Don showed also Jason of course so we did have a nice group, I felt I made a little progress tonight. It always seems to me at least most of the time Jason works on things I need help with - I am sure he does not do that but it does happen a lot or maybe I just need help on so much it does not matter what he works on I need it - lol. Jason even told me what I was doing was very nice - I am not sure he has ever done that before and he said it several times - I did feel a bit more relaxed this week.
Next week Foundations 2 - we do things that are a bit more complex - cross step for one but I am getting a little better with this - also close embrace - this does not brother me but I worry about how the ladies feel about doing it with me. I made a comment about not having ever been to a social dance and got several comments from the ladies saying we were both good enough dancers to go to dances (Don and I are the students) Ellen and Katia are accomplished dancers - it is such a pleasure to dance with them and I feel blessed to have such as them to come to the beginner classes to help not that I mind dancing with the new dancers either some are better than others but they are learning just like me. Don even said something about this and I said I agreed with him about how nice it was to have them there and how boring it must be for them but they both said they enjoyed it Ellen told me she still learns something almost every class.
Ellen, Katia, Jae and Cecilia just started hosting the Practilonga - a 2 hour practica every Thursday night at Triangle Dance Studio. Ellen and Katia both said the helping in the Tuesday night classes help them when they teach - that is great.
I guess learning to Tango means I will have to get up the nerve to go to a social dance but when I started this I had a partner at least for dancing or I thought so but she does not dance any more so I am not sure what to do. I guess for right now I will just keep doing the classes until I get good enough.

Monday, November 9, 2009

What is that bright light was it sunshine on a Saturday


From my forum post -

What is that bright light was it sunshine on a Saturday - YES - had a great ride - beautiful weather, low traffic, lots of cyclist at least for the Fall and we had fun. Met one new cyclist - welcome to Slow Spokes Peggy. I felt good and had a good ride. Could not ride Sunday do to family conflict but I bet it was just as nice if not better. My GPS average speed is messed up - I had turned off auto-pause so it did not pause at the rest stop - the cycling computer had 16.8 mph as my average.

My GPS data is HERE

My Pictures are HERE


I still have some trouble staying with the group, I am not usually too far off the back mostly less than a minute behind but I really want to be able to hang with the group. My weight is stuck again between 348 and 351 this is also annoying - after I made some changes in my diet I expected to lose a bit more before it stopped again.
I was hopping to ride Wednesday as it is Veterans Day and we have a holiday but it looks like rain again.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Tango classes


I went to my second Tango class last night since I started taking them again - I had to stop for a while over a year ago due to a knee injury.
My first class was not so great - I had forgotten a lot and felt awkward. To my great satisfaction I had no trouble getting tired but really enjoyed the class I just was not dancing well at all but I still liked it.
There were two of the regulars there who I remember from before, they remember me and welcomed me back. There were five students and two regulars there - one couple was just there to see if they wanted to do the classes. Jason was just as good of an instructor as I remember - he really is so very good I wonder if he knows how good he is.
The second class I did better I was dancing a little better and was a bit more comfortable - I think being comfortable or relaxed is important. There were three students this week the couple from last week did not return. We also had three of the regulars this week. We seemed to work on things I really need to work on and it helped me a lot - I do not think he would setup his class just for me or anyone one student but he does seem to work on things I need - maybe I just need everything - lol. Class went well - I learned some but still have so much to learn and get comfortable with. Once again I was not tired or worn out by the end of class. It is interesting that the next morning my legs were a bit stiff mostly in the quads so I must be doing something with the muscles of my legs which is different then when I walk and cycle and it that it true it is great.
Looking forward to next week - final class for Foundations 1 - I plan on doing Foundations 2 and doing at least one private lesson - I really want to master cross step doing it, moving to it and back to parallel so that it is seamless.
If you are interested in social dancing you should try Tango and Jason. His website is HERE

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Habitat Hollween Ride



I had a good ride but the weather was poor - it was not really raining but there was a mist for most of the ride - I have never been wet for so long except for when I was SCUBA diving - I guess I am too old and fat to go SCUBA diving again - I plan to be thin enough to make it possible but I am not sure about the age/health problems and SCUBA diving. I still have all my SCUBA gear - just in case - I enjoyed the route and would love to do it again with good weather - The Habitat people did a really good job with the ride organization - the rest stops were excellent and everyone was real nice in spite of the weather - the last 14 miles I got better at least the weather was better - I would do this ride again.

I usually allow myself to have a cookie or two when doing rides like this otherwise I do not have them at all but today I had trouble. I will usually only eat one or two per rest stop but today I was eating four or five for the first three rest stops - I am not sure why may be because the weather was so poor and the ride was not real enjoyable - by the forth rest stop I got myself together and ate nothing but a piece of orange and some water and at the last stop I ate two. I would think after a year I would not have this sort of problem I guess it is something I will always have to be mindful of. I ate two barbecues after the ride - I should have only had one but I was very hungry and it was real good. The rest of the day I made an effort to eat a little less.

My GPS Data is HERE.

My pictures are HERE.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

New low weight today

It is not a big change but I will take all I can get - weighted 348.4 pounds this morning.

The personal trainer who I see from time to time while out walking drove past me today in an SUV - he stopped in the road and asked me how much I had lost so far - I do not know why but I like it when he does that.

Going to try Tango classes again tonight - hope I can still remember something and that my knees do well.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

ECG - East Coast Greenway RIde 10-24-09


Today I did a short ride on the Tabacco Train in Wake county. It was part of ECG program to promote the green-ways and their use. It was a nice little gathering there was a ride and a walk. I would estimate there were about 30 folks there for the event I believe we would of have more if the weather would have been better. I got the ride posted on BentNC.com and three other trike riders showed up. I meet and rode with Ron, Nance and Austin. Ron and Nance rode Greenspeeds, Ron's was a GTO not sure what Nance's was, Austin rode a Trice. It was the first ride for me with other trike riders. It was great.

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE

Saturday, October 24, 2009

My day at the State Fair.

I went to the state Fair on Saturday Oct. 24, 2009 with a dear friend of mine, Nicole. We did not have great weather but had a nice time looking at the gardens exhibits, a number of other exhibits we also spent several hours at the horse barn watching some of the competitions. In-spite of the rain we had a nice day and went to Red Lobster for dinner after the fair.

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Finally a new low weight

After almost two months of almost no weight lose I finally broke 350 pounds. This morning I weighed 348.6 pounds 61.4 lost.

I got a Flu shot this morning and fell real bad right now. - Two hours later well I guess it was just low blood sugar - I ate my lunch and am beginning to fell better now.

Monday, October 19, 2009

Sick all weekend

I hate being sick - I went in to work late Friday because I had trouble Thursday night and did not sleep much and was still not feeling well Friday morning. I did go into work for two hours but left early and went home. I did go out to dinner with my Dad, brother and youngest nephew, I had no fever but did not feel good mostly I wanted to see my brother and nephew who I do not see enough of and it is always nice to see Dad. After that I don't think I left the house. The weather was not great for riding but not so bad I would not have tried if I felt better. I got so depressed - not sure if it was the weather, not feeling well enough to ride and there for not riding or just being stuck inside - most likely a combination of all three. This depression thing is real annoying and even through I knew I was depressed I could not get myself to get up and do anything. I could have gone for a walk and through about it but could not get myself to do it. So was I depressed because I did not feel good or did I not feel good or anything really because I was depressed. I did eat correctly at least, I even ate a little less than I do when I am getting exercises that at least was good - Oh I wanted to eat there just did not seem like there was anything else to do but that at least I did not do. I have not had any problem with depression when I can go and ride. I was having a lot until I started riding and walking to the point where my Doctor want me to start taking something for it - I even bought the stuff but never too them. I do not really mind if I need to ride and walk to keep the blues away I have no plans on stopping either but if they are part of the cure what does one do when one cannot do them? I have heard that runner and other who exercise a lot and hard can get some sort of addiction to it, I am not sure if this is true but I find it hard to beleive I do enough of either to fall into the category of someone who exercises a lot. I do not expect to find an answer to this - I just needed to talk about it. We have something at work where employees can call a number and talk to a health professional most of them are nurses I believe about medical problems however even through they are encouraging us to exercise, lose weight and get fit the people at the other end of that phone line seem to have no expertise in exercise or fitness which I find hard to understand. I have called twice and asked if they had an exercise physiologist of physical trainer and they did not know what I was talking about. If they really want us to exercise, lose weight and get fitter one would think that they would have at least one such person.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Weekend of 10-10-09

My forum post form - 10-10-09

I had a good ride - there were about 6 of us on the 50 - we split into two groups at the rest stop - I am not sure why. We got sprinkled on a couple of time but did not get wet. THis must be a day for Garmin problems mine did not get the second part of the ride but it is below anyway. We saw a number of other cyclist out there including a number of ladies from the Tour de Femme - I heard they had about 300 hundred cyclist - was also nice to run into Rover Dave helping at one of their rest stops. I did not take many pictures today but do have a few also a couple of the Tour de Femme ladies. Thanks for the pump Dave the tire did not go down again I must have left the value open.
I ran out of gas at about mile 42 - I am eating less but still having trouble balancing eating little enough to lose weight, eating enough to ride and keep my blood sugar ok - at about mile 46 I got my legs back.


My GPS data such as it is is HERE


My pictures are HERE

My forum post from - 10-11-09

What a great ride - weather looked a little poor but except for being a bit cool it was nice. Sun even came out after I got back. I did get cold but that was my fault - I assumed it would warm up more than it did - guess I need at least some cold weather get with me all the time now. Rode the 43 mile - completely new route and roads for me - very nice very pretty a few less than great road surfaces but most were nice to very nice and the view was great - we evne had a little color in the trees. I had been told the riding North of Raleigh was very hilly but did not find the hills to be as tough as the 42 miles Team CBC ride - there were more hills but just not as hard. I started about 10 minutes behind the main group so did not get many pictures but I have a few and I accidentally restarted my Garmin before resetting it so the route looks funny but if you want to see it the loop is there to see. I did average 17 5 which is very good for me and I enjoyed the ride a lot. There was lots of food for after the ride and it was good. All in all a good event.

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE

My weight today is 352.0 pounds

Well I got the tires replaced Friday evening and that went well - I guess I have a slow leak in the left had one - need to replace that tube before this weekend.

I ordered and got Utah Trikes steering mod for my Tour - if is suppose to let one turn sharper with out making the trike harder to control. I hope to install it this week and see but the weather looks bad for that.

I also ordered and received a new jersey from Aero Tech Design's they make in the USA and sell a whole line of cycling clothing but also have large sizes - I could not get them to move the pocket to the front but I beleive I can get that done here in Raleigh. I will let you all know how that goes. It wil be nice to have some more and new jerseys. They have my size in White and Blue.

Monday, October 5, 2009

16 inches lost from somewhere.

Something interesting - when I went to Jenny Craig on 9-23 I had them measure me - I find it hard to do myself and it is one of the things they do to help track ones progress. According to theses last measurements I have lost 16 total inches compared to my first done one year ago - it must be going somewhere I wish I could see it. One thing interesting is my hips went down at first but are now .5 inches larger - I am assuming it is from all the riding and walking - we did not measure my quads or calves so except for the fact that they feel different to me I have nothing to compare them with. Jenny Craig measure chest, abdomen, waist and hips. I imagine they would have done quads and calves but I did not think about it at the time.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Team CBC Greenway Ride



From my forum post -

I had a really nice ride - there were 3 places on this route where I had to get off the trike - once to lift it over some rocks blocking the entrance - thanks Tim - the second was some stairs that everyone had to carry their bikes down - the third was a board walk that was very narrow and the 90 degrees left hand turn that was just too sharp for the trike to make - also there was a hill that I never saw but was advised would be impossible for me to carry my trike up like the bicyclist had to do - Bob showed me a way to ride around it - Thanks Bob - there were about 12 of us on the ride

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE

I have found out where the ticking sound from the front of the trike was coming from - it is the bottom bracket - it is apparently loose - I can tighten the bolt but if I tighten it a lot the bottom bracket get stiff - I can feel some resistance when I turn the cranks - when it is lose enough to make loud ticking sounds I can feel movement when I pull on the cranks with my hand - as I tighten it I can get it to a point where I can feel no movement and there is no ticking when I ride at least for a while but the ticking starts again after a while - I am not sure how to get it tight enough but not too tight.

My weight was 350.8 pounds this morning.

Saturday, October 3, 2009

No harm but I guess it is a foul



From my forum post -

I had a great ride so did turtle - I did not have the great legs today as the last couple of rides or most likely this ride was just faster - I averaged 17 mph - I did enjoy the ride and the being pushed.
The others on the ride were great and a lot of fun to ride with.
I did have one strange and slightly unpleasant event. After the store/rest-stop a number of car were passing the group - I was about 8 bike lengths behind the group and the cars were passing us in groups. Toward the end of one group a black SUV passed me and pulled close to the shoulders then half way up the hill he almost stopped - there was traffic in the other lane and a ditch to my right - all I could do was stop - thankfully Turtle has two disk brakes on the front wheels also it is almost impossible to do a header and she has a lot of braking power - no real problem except for losing all my momentum - trikes can also start pretty easily on hills - when the black SUV pulled away there was no other traffic in front of him - I can only guess he did it just to be a pain - well no harm but I guess it is a foul

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Year one - One year summary


Today is the last day of my first year of my fitness and weight lose program. One year ago tomorrow I signed up for Jenny Craig's program and started my fitness and weight lose. I started out at 410 pounds and today I weighted in at 351 pounds. I had wanted to make it to 350 but I am pleased with what I have done. So that is 59 pounds for the year or 4.92 pounds a month, or 1.13 pounds a week or 2.6 ounces a day.
My BMI has gone from 50.6 to 43.3 - I am not sure if that is good or poor - I am sure it is too high but I really do not know what a good BMI should be for me - what is important to me is it has gone down - If I understand it correctly the 50.6 means half my weight was fat - how bad was that. My present of body fat went from 50.2 to 40.7 I am not sure how this is different from the BMI but it is also down which is good.
Another thing that to me is notable with regard to my fitness is that I have decreased the amount of insulin I take each day by 256% and I am no longer having problems with swelling in my lower leg for which I was required to wear compression stockings.
My weight lose has really slowed down for the last six weeks in spite of my increased efforts for the last two weeks to kick it. I still look really fat to myself and even through others have told me they can see a change it is hard because I am not seeing changes. As I notes in an earlier blog I did find out where the fat was coming from and I was pleased to see that but it also means that when I look at myself with or with out a mirror I can not see much change.
I am walking between 6500 and 8700 steps a day most days but that is still short of the 10000 Jenny recommends - something for me to work on. I fell sure that as we go through winter my riding mileage will drop but I do plan to ride as much as I can at least on weekends when I can ride during the warmer part of the day also one can walk at almost any temperature as long as it is dry. I want to not only preserve the fitness I has achieved but to continue to improve it - I have heard this can be difficult but that is my goal.
One other thing I have just begun to notice in the last two weeks or so is that my weight lose or improved fitness or most likely both is have an effect on my cycling speed - I did the 75 miles routes both days at the MS Tour for Cure and was pleased and a little surprised I could do both days. The several rides I have done since then have been really different for my - it is almost like I have someone else's legs and stamina. My general pace has increased from about 17 mpg to 20 plus mph and there for my average speed has increase from 13 - 15 mph to 16 - 18 mph and these are on routes with some hills. I still depend on the Bionx to help me climb hills but at 19.5 mph it is not helping and the fact that I can pedal at or above 20 mph for long stretch of flat to slightly rolling terrain it just such a achievement for me. Ten months ago when I was trying to start riding 5 miles with the Bionx would put me in my recliner for a 2 hour nap.
I never compare myself with other cyclist - I my opinion any cyclist who rides is better than I am and I will feel that way until I can give up my dependence on the Bionx and ride more or less the way I do now or better with out it - may be in another 50 to 60 pounds. So when every I talk about what I have done I am just talking about compared to how I was - I do so enjoy riding and riding with other cyclist from any of the several group of cyclist I am associated with.
Looking forward to the next year and getting thinner and fitter.

My weight today was 351 pounds.

Sunday, September 27, 2009

My really nice weekend

My forum posts -

Saturday
I had a nice ride - did the 34 instead of the 50 - when we got to the turn where one can do the 50 or 34 it was raining and I was already cold so I did the 34 - nice ride - nice group.

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE


Sunday
Had a great 42 mile ride - Happy Birthday Dave - Rain had just about stopped by 10 AM and most of the 42 group left at 10:30 AM - the roads were still very wet but still dried pretty quickly - the weather turned beautiful by about 11:30 AM - the trike has developed a tick in the front end by the crank - I want to find out what it is a get it out.

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE


I also did a 4 mile ride with my brother - he has recently expressed an interest in cycling. It was raining a little and we got wet but he really want to ride and I remember the desire to ride when one first gets interested so I was very willing to ride with him in spite of the rain. We went to the American Tobacco Trail the northern part which was paved. He seemed to enjoy the ride but still has to get accustom to riding before he can enjoy it completely and that just takes time in the saddle - I am sure with his generally better health and fitness that he will very shortly surpass my level but that is fine me I just hope he enjoys it as much as I do.

Friday, September 25, 2009

So that is what's been going on.




I have been controlling what I eat - I do not like the concept of dieting - and getting a fair amount of exercise. The idea was to lose weight, get fit and healthy and be able to ride better and faster. As far as I can remember I have never not been fat and I really would like to not be and and that is part of what I am working on. For eleven and a half months I have been doing this and the scale has been telling me I am losing weight, I have lost almost 60 pounds, and my walking and cycling has been letting me see I am making progress with fitness, but even through some have told me I looked like I had lost weight I was having trouble seeing it. I would look at myself and still this a really fat guy because I am still a fat guy but I was not seeing changes. Wednesday I got a photo taken like the ones I had when I started and I found where the weight was going - as you can see I have lost a lot of fat from my back - I really did not know this and it was quite a surprise and also very nice to know what has been happening.

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Tim's Birthday Ride


From my forum post -

Turtle and I had a real great time on Tim's ride. There were about 12 of us. I got to see on some new roads for me. Also did over 100 miles one weekend this weekend.

My GPS data is HERE

My Pictures are HERE


Well I had a great ride and I think everyone else did also - Bob and I both broke spokes. I am getting tire of this. This is about the 5th one I have broken and I can not find any reason why. Oh well guess I will just have to get the wheel off and repair it Monday. There were new roads for me on this ride - we pulled up to stop one time and I did not know why we were stopping - turned out to be a store that they regularly stop at that was having work done on the front where they sell gas and we entered the store at the rear. We also went to see there progress on Betsy and Brian's new house - we were promised cake and ice cream but since the sheet-rock was not up yet I guess that will have to happen later - lol - the place looks like it will be real nice when finished through. After the ride a bunch of us went to the Tangerine Cafe for lunch - nice place - good food. I felt good on this ride and enjoyed it - I did get a good workout and felt a little tire after the ride - it was not as far as the week before at the Tour but we road the shorter distance at a higher pace and stopped less, I think it is time to make the 50 to 60 mile distance my normal weekend daily distance up fro the 35 to 45. I just hope the weather will let me ride enough to maintain my riding level and fitness. I do not mind riding in the cold at least it it is not too cold as long as it is not wet.

Saturday, September 19, 2009

My first Saltbox Village 50 mile ride,


From my forum post -

Turtle and I had a great ride - we had abou 12 on the ride and al did the 50 - I hoped we did not pressure those thinking about the 34 to do the 50 - everyone seemed to have a good ride.

My GPS data is HERE

My Pictures are HERE

This was such a great rid

Sunday, September 13, 2009

My MS Tour for Cure 2009



I was really looking forward to this ride/event for a long time. I had spent the spring and summer training for it. My training went well and I was able to ride both 75 miles ride and really enjoy myself. I was tire and am a bit sore but it is not too bad. I lost over a pound during the ride taking me to a new low weight of 351.4 pounds.
Team CBC, my team, was wonderful - everything was well organized, managed and fun. Sitting around our tent village or the gathering at the B&B talking and visiting with the members of the team was a lot of fun. I only know a few of the members but everyone was friendly and pleasant. We had great weather but some of the roads could have been in better shape.
I had never been on this ride before but I have done 12 MS Tours when I lived in Louisiana. I did two from Lake Charles Louisiana, one form Shreveport Louisiana and rest from New Orleans even through we started from the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain. These rides were different we would start at one place ride 75 miles spend the night there then ride back on a different route. I think I like the setup in New Bern better.

Friday
When I arrived they had a lot of the tents setup including mine. I help setup about five and the large team tent shelter, I was not much help but did what I could.
I went over to the convention center and picked up my packet - I was rider 1876 - sounded like a good year to me. I heard there were over 2400 riders - I saw a rider with number 2537 so there may have been more than 2500 of us. I saw about a dozed recumbents but I was the only trike.
At 6:00 PM Team CBC had a gathering at a Bed and Breakfast about two blocks from our campsite for beer of course and conversation, it was a lot of fun. I believe the B&B was called Harmony House but am not sure. I walked back to camp at about 9:00 PM and some of us gathered around and just talked and visited. I went to bed about 11:00 PM

Saturday - My GPS data is HERE
I slept well only problem was getting myself to go to bed - was enjoying sitting around talk with everyone so much.
I got up at 6:20 took my meds. and got dressed to ride then to retrieve my trike from the van. The morning was beautiful and it looked like a great day. I ate breakfast - PB&J on a bagel - I only allow my self PB&J at rides where it is provided - lol.
Then we gathered together for our team photo - what a crowd. I did not know how the start of the ride was set up so when I went to line up I could not get to the area where the 17 to 18 mph and got stuck by the 11 to 12 mph average group. It did not brother me much but I would liked to have been with some of the Team CBC riders. By the time we started there were a lot of riders on the course and a lot of the were going a bit slower than I wanted to go. I spent the next two hours passing a lot of other riders. I really enjoyed riding with so many people but I found some of the roads to be in pretty poor shape.
The rest stops were very well done. The voluntaries and MS Staff who maned them were great, the stops were well provided at least to me.
I had a bit of a problem with flats. I had four, yes four. I have only ever had one other flat while out riding. I believe the first and second were caused by the same piece of glass that cut through the tire. I could not find it when I got the first flat. I never did find what caused the third and forth - these were both slow leaks and the forth flat was fixed at the lunch rest stop by the bike shop folks, thankfully it held. Theses flats added about one hour and twenty minutes to my ride time.
I was riding well and did not have any problems until mile 62 - some parts of my legs just started to ache and even feel like a pull. I did well but was tired and once finished I worried that I might have to shorten or skip my Sunday ride. I really did enjoy my ride even with the four flats. Arriving at the finish line and having the MS folk cheer was really special and made me feel good. I am sure that for a lot of the cyclist and most of Team CBC riding 75 miles was not much of a challenge but for me to ride 25 miles farther than I have ridden since I started riding again was a real victory.
When I was riding in Louisiana I rode 5 centuries and 12 MS Tour as well as several Tour De Cure for the ADA. At that time I rode 100K often. But that was about 10 years ago and a lot of pounds.
After the ride I meet my Dad who was there volunteering with other Ham Radio operators providing communications and driving SAGs (Support And Gear vehicles) - Dad was SAG 13. Dad offered me the shower in his room and them took me to dinner. We then walked a round a bit and listened to the awards. When Dad went back to his room I drifted back to the Team CBC camp and a bunch of us sat around and talked about our experiences on this and other rides and about life in general. This was a real special time. There is something I like about spending time with cyclist. I was hard to make myself get up to leave and go to bed but I did so a little after 10:00 PM. Man oh man did I sleep.

Sunday - My GPS data is HERE

I woke up at about 5:40 AM but did not get up til 6:15 AM. I packed up some of my stuff. I should have packed up as much as I could and get more of it to the van in the morning - I only took one load in the morning. Next time I will do as must as possible because it was really hard doing it after the ride. I took my load of stuff to the van and picked up the trike - all tires holding pressure - nice.
Breakfast - PB&J on a bagel again - cool. I still was not able to get with the group for the start but was not as far back as Saturday.
There was a police car partly blocking the left hand turn right after the start line so the whole group went straight, the wrong way, with a few turns we got back on track.
It was a bit cooler and I took it a bit easier - I kept my speed between 17 and 19 mph - I ended up with the same average as Saturday but I did not get as tired. I had a real good ride - in spite of how I felt the night before I was feeling strong and was riding well. I spent some time drafting when ever I could find a group. I am too short for DF(diamond frame) cyclist to draft off of, other recumbents can but DF cannot - I feel a little guilty drafting when I can not pull but if I could find a group where just one person was doing all the pulling it did not hurt the group. I would just ride my 17 - 19 mph pace and wait to see if someone passed me then I would try to jump on the end. I spent a good deal of time drafting a group that including four other Team CBC riders - I am sorry I do not know their names but it was two DF cyclists and one tandem couple. I estimate that I estimate I was able to draft for about one third of the route compared to almost none on Saturday.
The rest stops I stopped at were great again - well done, well stocked and well staffed - my thanks to the rest stop people. I only used four of the seven stops I was just not use to stopping so often but it was nice to know one could if one needed to stop.
Six miles past rest stop four, the lunch stop, I came upon a accident, at the time I did not know who it was but I did know it was a Team CBC group of riders, They had already made a cell phone call but I knew from listing to my radio that the Tour staff was not real sure where they were - I called net control and reported the accident. I was able to provide net control with more location information, the riders number and a description of the accident and his current status. It was nice to be able to help, it is one of the reason I got into Ham Radio.
We had a pretty rough hear wind for part of the ride but toward the end of the ride we turned and it became a tail wind. Usually when I turn from a head wind the wind turns to so I still have a head wind or at least it seems that way.
The rest of the ride was quite and pleasant - I rode most of the time solo passing others from time to time and getting passed also. I tried to jump in and draft off some of those passing me and was able to a little but most were too fast or we would come to a rest stop and get separated.
I had a real good ride - my legs were kind of like on auto pilot. I would be just riding along not really thinking about riding and I would then check my speed and I would be doing 18 - 19 mph. Kind of like my legs were set to pedal that speed - now I just had to increase that setting. When I arrived at the finish line I enjoyed hearing the MS folks cheering us for having done and finished the ride. I felt well, I was tired but well.
I put the trike away in the van and walked back to the campsite. There I rested a bit, talk with others who had or were returning from their rides. Then I began the task of finishing up my packing and hauling my gear back to the van. Two things, next time I do something like this I will pack up as much as I can the night before or the morning of the ride and haul as much as I can back to the van before the ride because I would be not as tired and it would be a lot cooler in the morning and second I want to get some sort of cart or wagon to use instead of carrying everything.
Taking down the tent I had never setup was interesting and trying to pack it back into a bag that was way to small for it to have ever have come out of was interesting shall we say. Once again doing so when so tire was not fun but the tent was wet so had to wait until after the ride.
Need less to say I got everything packed up and drove home with no trouble and I am looking forward to doing this again as well as some similar events.

Team CBC raised the most money and won the largest team Big Wheel. I though we should have won the jersey contest also but we did not even place.

My pictures from Saturday are HERE.

My pictures From Sunday are HERE.

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Something interesting at least to me.

While I was out doing my morning walk/run across the street walking the other way was a lady and her trainer (there is a high-end personal ladies only fitness center near where I walk) walked pass - I said good day as I do to any I meet while walking and they said hello. The the trainer who I do not know said - you walk here a lot (I have seem him about 8 - 10 times walking with different ladies) - I said yes twice a day every day and once at home in the evening - he said something to the lady I could not hear then to me he siad you are doing good, how much have you reduced - I told him 57 pounds anf they both clapped for me - it was strange but nice.

My weight today was 352.4 pounds.

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Shelby Hamfest 2009, Dallas NC


Attending the Shelby 2009 Hamfest this year with Dad, having a real good time - weather has been fine a bit hot but not bad at least it is dry. I like the new location it is very large - almost too large. We got here at about 7AM and I walked around the place until 11AM when I took my first break. about 12:30 we went back to the hotel for a rest after lunch. We went back for a couple of hours at about 3:30PM.

My pictures are HERE

Friday, September 4, 2009

Slow Spoke Thru night ride 09-03-09


From my forum post -

I had a good ride - it was a bit annoying for me, myself and 3 others got stuck at the first traffic light and by the time we stop sign everyone was gone - I almost caught the group at the next light but then again they got through and Andrea and I got caught by the traffic light and even through I tried I could not catch the group - I was doing 21 - 24 mph on all the flats a good bit more on the down hills and 6 to 12 on the climbs and I still could not catch them. I assume they turned at the visitors center as last week and if so I did catch them just after they had turned - I turned then tried to catch them again - I did pass a couple of riders but did not catch the main group. I was not a bad ride I just wanted to ride with the group a little - I can ride alone in Garner, no need to drive to Cary.

MY GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE

I guess this seems a little silly but I do enjoy riding with the groups, I do not mind riding alone and I do do a good bit of it - it is just that the point of this ride is group riding and if I get dropped after we leave town because I can not keep up that's fine but to not even have a chance to hang with the group because of a traffic light or two is annoying. I guess it is just me I imagine most others could have caught up with out a problem - will I ever get to that point?

My weight was 355.4 pounds - still stuck :(

Monday, August 31, 2009

August ride totals

I was not able to ride until August 7th but here is what I did in August.

Rides 11
Time 22:41:59
Distance 284.00 miles
Elevation Gained 25145 feet
Elevation Lost 25090 feet
Avg Speed 12.16 mph
Max speed 31.81 mph
Burned 41600 calories
Pounds of fat if all the calories came from stored fat 11.89 lb.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Team CBC 42 mile ride




From my forum post -

I had a good ride - did the 42. I got started at 10:15 so I missed the group start. No problem but I rode most of the ride alone so I did not get many pictures. I did get a few and took a bunch at the really nice after ride gathering. It was a good time.

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE

Well the folks with Team CBC went out of their way to get me XXXXL team jerseys but they are still too small - I bought them and plan to keep them just does not seem right to ask them to take them back when they got them for me special - besides the part that does not fix it my belly and when I lose more weight they may be wearable. I am just so bummed that I will not have them to wear during the Tour - want to be a part of the Team, show my colors! I really do not understand how the manufacture can call those 4XL they are smaller, a lot smaller thant the 3XL shirts I wear every day. Sometimes it suck to be ME! I tried putting the faring on the trike and it is not tall enough - when peddeling my knees hit it. Will call TerraTrike and see what they say.

Saturday, August 29, 2009




From my forum posts -

Selma Cyclepaths - Great ride - both rest stops were great but the first one was so nice. I really like the route - good distance and a few nice climbs.

I took a lot of pictures - tried to get a shot of everyone that pasted me and that I passed.

Great ride - THANKS

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE


The trike preformed very well. I am planning to put the faring on the trke so I can see how I like it.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

A nice ride


From my forum post -

I real nice ride, I had a very good ride. It was quick but fun. I felt very good and enjoyed the evening. Some of us went out to eat and that was fun also.

My GPS data is HERE

My pictures are HERE

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Shearon Harris - 40 miles NCBC Summer Rally route




From my forum post -

What a great ride for me - 18.1 average a new personal best for rides over 12 miles. My GPS data says 14 something but the GPS was not auto pausing as it was suppose to - you can see the gaps where we stop and it keep running. I really did not feel like getting out of bed this morning either but I am glad I did. I rode 40 miles Saturday at Greenfield and was wondering how I would do - well for me I did amazing - I never completely lost the group but was off the back some - I caught the group on the flats several time after dropping off the back on climbs - the new gearing on the trike works - I kept trying to ride with the group thinking at some point I would fade but every-time I asked my legs to do something they just did - I was feeling well and riding fine.
My GPS Data HERE
My pictures are HERE

Well I figured out the problem with the GPS and have it set to Auto-Pause again so hopefully I will not have this problem with the GPS data being messed up by rest stops. I do not usually stop twice with this distance ride - maybe I should - I rode so well maybe the short stops and time off the trike helped more than I know - whatever the reason I was riding very well - if this keeps up the MS Tours should be a lot of fun - I am sure it will be fun but I was a little worried about the distance due to the time I missed training.
Man I took a lot of pictures on this ride - guess I was just enjoying being with or almost with the group for so much of the ride.
The trike was proforming well this weekend - I need to get the HT mount made and tested this week also need to find and check my tent so I can have it ready to give to Tim this Sunday.
Changing my food plan this week - I have not been losing weight lately - I am confortable with the amount of food I am eating now but my weight my have dropped to the point that I am eating too much to lose weight so I will make a small change a see if that helps.

My weight today 355.0 pounds

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Greenfield 40


I repaired the trike last night and did not want to make a long trip out of town until I fely it was OK. So I went to Greenfield and rode 40 miles. Trike preformed well. I hada good ride. I almost got dround - man did it rain. That is the good news.
The bad news is I found out the someone I have know for a long time and thought was a friend is not - ashamed. Guess it is better to know.

After the ride I decided I had to replace my two front tires - I only had one new tire but do have one used but useable tire it is better than what I took off - see picture - I have three new tires on order and should get them monday.

My GPS Data is HERE

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Greenfield trainning ride

From my forum post of my ride -

OK - had a nice little ride - finally did three loops - did over 18 miles - it is a really great place for this sort of ride it is even mostly lighted.

My GPS data is HERE

Well I really enjoyed my ride - it was real nice to have my Bionx working again - I guess I am addicted to it or at least I am addicted to speed or riding fast at least. It lets me ride a lot faster and farther than I am otherwise able - I hope some day when I am fitter or lighter to ride fast and far without it.

Monday, August 17, 2009

UPS finally delivered - only 48 hours late

My wheel was delivered at 11:47 this morning - I had to take off work to go home so it would not sit by my front door all day. Well at least it does seem to be working - took me about an hour to get a new tire on it, put the freewheel back on the get it mounted on the trike - used my Bionx tool for the first time - if I had not gotten it I would have been stuck because the tab was not in the right place for my trike. Rode just around the neighborhood - only rode 5 miles - got chased in by the rain. The wheel and the whole Bionx system seemed to be functioning correctly. I may try to ride it some more later and also want to try to ride the Brick Tuesday if they have one - I am not sure where it is now.

UPS called and their excuse was that in New Jersey the Saturday delivery sticker was missed and it got sorted into the packages for Monday delivery. They said it was human error and that they were sorry. I have problems with this for several reasons but I am sure that is all they will say. My problems are these: According to the scans on their website the package never went to New Jersey - it went from Canada to New York NY, Raieigh so how did it get miss sorted in New Jersey also from my limited knowedge or their system they bar code everything and the bar code has the package number on it and each time it is scanned a computer tracks where it is and knows where it is going and when it is due to be delivered - once again according to their website it was on time, in transit and due to be delivered on Saturday. Sounds funny to me.

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Greenfield Again


I went to Greenfield Pkw today to ride - there is nothing wrong with ridiing there in fact it is a real nice place to ride - it has almost no traffic at lease when I am there, it is close to home and it is a lot better workout than I thought it might be. Over the six mile route one climbs over 650 feet in elevation, there are 3 significant climbs one 5% , an other of 7% and the third which is mostly 8% but does briefly hit 9%. The only reasion I was a bit down on riding GF was that I was looking forward to riding with Team CBC but with out my Bionx I am just ont comfortable trying to ride that far. I did two loops and would have done one more maybe two but I noticed that my cycling sandal was getting caught on my crank shifter button occasionally and was tearing. So I stopped and went home I will try epoxying it Monday - my epoxy is at work.

GPS data from my ride here