Day 135: Changing Plans, and a Happy Halloween to All

I woke up late today after sleeping really well for once in a long while. I'd planned on returning to the Saturday Morning Ride this morning, but I woke up after they'd already left. I felt a little bit better today, but I’m nowhere near being 100% over my illness. I made coffee and planned a ride that would get me back here in time to leave for a hike to the German Tourist Club with my friend “C.”

 I was really dragging this morning, and the coffee wasn’t helping very much at all. If Peets can’t get me going, then I don’t know what else will. There’s probably some meth dealer out there yelling that he has the “stuff.” That's not my ticket to ride. I made it onto my bike at 9:16 am and had planned a reasonable ride up Mount Tam to the West Point Inn, and then over to Pantoll, and back via Gravity Car and Railroad Grade. It was a good ride for me while still being sick.

There were a lot of people out this morning. I guess that the combination of the good weather, and it being Halloween, got everybody out early in the day. I passed dozens of people on the way up Railroad Grade. At the junction of RR Grade and Summit Road (that's the pavement for about a mile), I heard someone coming up from behind me, and by his breathing I could tell that he was making a real effort to catch me. He caught me and then said a friendly “hello” as he came up beside me. He was rolling on a carbon Gary Fisher 29er. I saluted him and then asked him how he likes 29ers. Well that led to another two miles of talking about 29ers, including sharing some of my long history with them. “Long” sounds so old, but the fact is that I’ve been riding them for nine years now, and since the time when most of the good riders thought that I was absolutely nuts to be riding anything but a 26er. Today most of those riders are riding 29ers. That’s somewhat satisfying…

So “E. B.” and I had a nice talk, and I eventually gave him a Riding to Recovery card so that we can stay in touch. He says that he has a collection of early Klunkers, so I want to see if he and I can share our stables sometime. My bikes are from the 70's-2000’s, while his go much further back. He thanked me for slowing down, and I didn’t mention that I’m really sick, and slow by extension. He then turned right and went down the Hoo Koo E Koo fire road, which is where I had no idea that I’d end up less than an hour later with good friends!

I pedaled on towards the West Point Inn, and I was now waking up and feeling some strength, so I dropped down a gear and hit the gas a bit. Once that I was at the Inn I met up with a couple of the DFL cycling team that were talking about record times for riding up to the W. P. Inn. They said that the known record is 43 minutes. As some of you know, I made it up there in 49 minutes on the day that I started getting sick some ten days ago. So now I have a new mini goal, and that’s to try to break the 43 minute record, although I need to make sure that I know the precise starting point and route. My 49 minute ascent was from my home which is halfway down Miller Avenue, so I may be really close to the record as it stands. Anyway, it’s not like a pro couldn’t kick the poop out of the record, but it would be cool to beat the local record. I think that I can do it if I drop one more gear, and use my lightest 29er bike. Wish me luck with that.

As I was leaving W.P.I., and dropping down Old Stage Coach, I was greeted by the crew of riders that I had wanted to ride with this morning. They were on their return trip from unknown points on the backside of Tam. They immediately called out to me, “Hey John, turn around, you’re going the wrong way!” I spun around as fast as I could, and was happy as I could be that I'd bumped into my friends and was now riding back home with them. I integrated with the group as though I had ridden with them all morning long. That’s riding with buddies for ya.

Someone decided that we should race down to MV without pedaling, so of course we all got into a tuck position and headed down without touching the brakes, nor pedaling a stroke. Along the way we had a little crash, and I luckily I avoided “L” just before she crashed. We all stopped, checked on “L,” and then collected ourselves. We left soon afterwards and made our way back to MV. These people have been riding together for somewhere in the range of 20 years! I’m very lucky to have been invited into their group, and even luckier to have bumped into them this morning.

Upon returning home my plans for hiking changed after my friend “C” realized that weeks of working like crazy had finally caught up with her, so we cancelled our hike. With plans changing, I decided to go onto doing the gardening that I'd been postponing for months. I used to love gardening, and after today’s foray into cleaning up the yard, and reacquainting myself with plants that I had literally planted 14 years ago, I realized that I’ll be returning to gardening regularly. The photo of the Peace rose (Rosa Peace) is of one that I planted at 49 Chamberlain Drive, Novato CA, AKA, The 49, some fourteen years ago. Back then I was trying to impress “N” with my gardening prowess. Now I’ll garden for my own wellbeing and unfortunately using pots.

While on gardening duty, I also cleaned up some remnants of “N.” There are many that still linger here at my home months after her departure. As I tossed out the backyard’s ashtray that was filled with half-smoked Bali Shag cigarettes, I was reminded of “N” sitting out there every morning with her coffee or tea, while smoking her hand-rolled cigarettes. I will say this; I don’t mind being smoke free here. Secondhand smoke is a killer.

It's taken me some time to return to one of Tugboat's favorite spots, and one of mine too. There are many, many memories for me at Stolte Grove. For months I've avoided going there. All of my dogs Mick, Lune, and also Fifi, all played there. Fetch was the main game, but after Lune went blind she would just walk around and pretend to be interested in things. This is also where Fifi ruined her knee while "N" was just one week into to her stay in rehab. It's hard to imagine now that I slept with her on my office floor for 6 weeks while she recovered from her surgery.

At Stolte Grove today, I sat with Tugboat where I'd sat so many times with Mick, Lune, "N," and Fifi, and reflected on the past. It's a beautiful place that's punctuated by tall redwoods and the sound of the creek flowing by. It's a dog's playground, and a person's mini paradise. As I sat there I wondered what it must have been like like back in the day for Virginia Stolte Spalding.

A cough attack is on the way, so I need to go… Not to mention that I've been long-winded tonight as I've sat here listening to Pearl Jam. ;-)

Distance: 19.88 miles
Calories burned: 1,746
Time: 2:02:03 hours
Elevation gain: 2,267
Garmin Connect ride details:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/17618794 ; http://connect.garmen.com/activity/17646121

Day 134: Rolling Along Slowly

A friend of mine told me to “chill” today after hearing that I’m still sick. I took the advice and didn’t do very much today. I just want to get over what has felt like an endless cold. I did feel a bit better this morning, and I thankfully I didn’t have a long lasting cough attack like I’ve had during previous mornings. As with the previous days since getting sick, I waited until the afternoon to ride. The temperatures reached the low 70’s today, and the skies were a deep blue. I’ve been lucky that the weather has been so great.

I pedaled over to Tiburon about as slowly as I could bear. It didn’t really feel like I was riding, but I stuck to the idea that I should get over my cold, so I continued to take it easy. As I rode over Highway 101 today the traffic was basically grid locked. With the Bay Bridge being out of commission we’re seeing double the normal amount of traffic in Marin as people try to get back to the East Bay.

I stopped by “Infamous P’s” to say a quick hello. He stayed away from like I have the Plague. That’s probably a good idea even though I’m pretty certain that I’m not contagious anymore. I had a quick cup of coffee and then rode around the rest of the Paradise Drive.

I’m going to keep it short today, and take it easy instead. ;-)

Distance: 20.37 miles Calories burned: 1,195 Time: 1:30:07 hours Elevation gain: 604 Garmin Connect ride details: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/17546171

Day 133: Can My Cold Please Go Away?

Each night for the last week I've thought that by tomorrow my cold would be gone. Not so! I thought that I was on the mend, but I seem to have instead entered into a steady state of illness. I really need to kick this cold so that I can move on and continue to do my rides.

Today I got up early so that I could finish up, and deliver, some work to my clients. Afterwards, I continued to take care of a myriad of work tasks while I waited for the temperatures to heat up a bit. I don’t want to ride in the cold if I don’t have to, especially while being sick. Right around noon time the sun was pouring into my office and Tugboat was at my feet. I basically melted in a pool of goo right next to him on the floor. I slept there with him for over an hour and a half before sputtering back to life. I’m really burnt right now. I hope that I can make it through this without giving up on Riding to Recovery.

I gathered myself as best I could. I then made an iced coffee for myself. That gave me the extra energy that I needed to get my gear on, my bike out of the rack, and my old body onto the bike. It was an absolutely beautiful day today, so it couldn’t have been a better time for a sick person to be riding outside. Once again I wore extra clothing so that I could make sure to stay warm. On days like today its cold in the shade, so I tried to plan my ride around staying in the sun. I basically did just that. Given that I’m still under the weather, I did another really basic ride up to the West Point Inn via Railroad Grade. From there I rode across Old Stage Coach to Pantoll and down the Panoramic Highway to the Gravity Car Trail. I rode back up to Railroad Grade and from there I descended back to Mill Valley. I stayed warm during the ride and that’s what mattered to me the most.

Today I was invited to go out on a group ride with some of my riding buddies, but I just didn’t want to get into a situation where I was feeling like pushing things. Hopefully in a day or two I’ll be back to health, and up to snuff.

Bye for now.

Distance: 18.03 miles Calories burned: 1,561 Time: 1:47:50 hours Elevation gain: 2,152 Garmin Connect ride details: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/17465137

Day 132: Day 2 Revisited

I’ve started retracing rides that I did before I entered into the age of Garmin GPS systems. I’ve been really happy with my Edge 605. I’m immersed in technology all of the time, so I don’t get excited about these types of things very often. The Garmin GPS system, and the Garmin Connect Web site, are extremely fun, and useful technologies. I'm excited! I did 50 rides while Riding to Recovery before getting my Garmin GPS unit, so I’m attempting to map all of the previous rides so that I have an accurate record of things like mileage, elevation gain, etc. I’ll need to consolidate all of the information into a spreadsheet at the end of my year-long journey, and by then I’ll be more than happy to take a break in order to putz around with statistics. I’ve already mapped many of the first 50 rides, especially those that are my regular rides like the Paradise Loop, and several of my routine Mount Tamalpais rides. So I shouldn’t need to do all 50 rides again….I hope.

Today I rode the same ride that I’d done on Day 2 of Riding to Recovery. It’s funny to me, as I rode away from the house today I remembered that 130 days ago this ride was a “big ride” for me. A ride that required a lot of thought and incentive. Today I saw it as a regular old ride, and nothing to think about in terms of effort. That’s just amazing to me.

I took it easy today on the ride up Mount Tam. so that I could give my body a bit of a rest. I’m still fighting a bad cold, so I’m trying to take it easy in order to get well soon. Even going at a mellow pace today I reached the West Point Inn in well under an hour. I didn’t hang out there for very long so that I could stay warm. The recent cold front has created high winds that are chilling to one's bone. Being sick, I need to stay warm, so hanging out wasn't an option today. I rode down the new Coastal Trail to Highway One, and from there I headed down to Muir Beach. As I passed the Pelican Inn I was reminded of all of the fun times that I’ve had there with friends. It’s been the site of many celebrations, and many of which were surrounding birthday rides. There's nothing like having a pint and then realizing that you have 1000 ft. of climbing ahead of you. ;-) I pedaled over to Green Gulch where I entered their farm on the west end. I passed an artist that was painting, and a farmer that was pruning the winter’s harvest. As I turned the corner to head over to the gate that leads to the Middle Green Gulch Trail, I heard mountain bikers ahead on the trail. The last time that I was on this trail I literally had to walk my bike up the steep middle section. I think that I was with my friend “El” that day. Today I very quickly caught the two cyclists on the third switchback, and then rode on vigorously. I rode up the same steep middle section while remaining in the saddle, but this time I rode up the trail in my middle chain ring. Wow! I’m finding that I’m forgetting just how far I’ve come in my own recovery. Day to day things can seem the same, even though they’ve changed significantly. It's important for me to look backwards sometimes in order to see just how far I've come. So change happens, and I believe that it’s important to figure out ways to see it, and then to acknowledge it. I've never been very good at giving myself credit. Instead I've always pushed forward and tried to be better at whatever I was doing previously, or in the moment. I’m now seeing that it’s very important to reflect on where I’ve been, as well as where I’m going. I did today’s ride about 30 minutes faster than when I did the same ride 130 days ago... That's progress.

Distance: 22.56 miles Calories burned: 1,778 Time: 2:24:56 hours Elevation gain: 2,905 Garmin Connect ride details: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/17387679

Day 131: Sleeping the Day Away

I woke up at around 3:30 am this morning. I was hacking and coughing, and I just couldn’t stop. This went on for hours and hours. I finally got back to sleep around 7:30 am. I slept really well while curled up on my couch with Tugboat acting as my blanket. It was what I’d describe as a heavy sleep. I woke up thinking that I had only slept for a couple of hours. I literally thought that it was 10:00 am at the most. Wrong! It was 1:35 pm. I had slept all the way through to the afternoon. I guess that my body needed it. As of right now, my stomach is sore, my throat is raw, and I have a massive headache. This is turning out to be a nastier cold than I’d originally thought. Riding my way through the cold is probably not helping, although riding has made me feel better during and just after the rides. I know, I shouldn’t be out riding while I'm sick, but I’m determined to do 365 consecutive rides. Given that I’d basically slept the day away, I was rushed to get work done, and also to get on my bike before dark. I decided to ride to my regular appointment with Yoda in San Rafael so that I could get my work done, and also squeeze in my ride. Just before heading out on my bike I realized that there was a problem our Email server, or the connection to it, or?? The long story short, it was offline. I scrambled to get a call into our hosting facility which has recently changed hands, and of course, I received the voice mail treatment. I left them very detailed instructions, including to call me on my cell phone, which they never did. Uugh. Service these days is pretty deplorable. I rode over to San Rafael via Camino Alto, and then I rode over Wolfe Grade. I took the Meyers Road route at the summit, which is a nicer ride, and then there’s that cool old one-lane bridge. I’m kicking myself for not having taken a photo of it. I guess that I was feeling rushed and thinking about the Email situation. After another in depth conversation with Yoda, I climbed back on my bike and headed for home. It was the evening now, and the winds had increased, while the temperatures had dropped significantly. It was the first ride while being sick wherein I felt like I was harming my recovery. It wasn't good to be out there in the cold winds. Once at home, I was able to resolve the Email problem quickly, while warming up over some tea. I’m hoping that I can joke about today, but tomorrow I’ll probably be working hard to catch up.

The bull photo was taken quickly since I was in a rush to get home to my Email problem. That said, it's a pretty cool bronze sculpture. I'll need to take a closer and longer look at it the next time that I'm in San Rafael.

Distance: 19.22 miles Calories burned: 1,245 Time: 1:30:18 hours Elevation gain: 1,188 Garmin Connect ride details: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/17301906

Day 130: Another Beautiful Day on the Mountain

I felt a little bit better this morning. I spent over an hour coughing and hacking up goo, but afterwards I was feeling pretty good. I think that I’m on the mend now, and that’s making me feel good in other ways. I just want to get past this cold so that I can get back to doing some longer rides that include some more elevation than what I’ve been able to do while being sick. I waited until the temperatures hit the 70’s before leaving for my ride. I just can’t believe how nice the weather has been this year. Is my higher power (my brother Rick) looking after me? Today I did another one of my routine rides up to the east peak of Mount Tamalpais.

Along the way I passed numerous cyclists on the same path as me. I don’t get passed by cyclist very often anymore. It’s a weird transition for me after being such a slug less than a year ago. Today I didn’t feel as though I was riding very hard, and yet I still rode to the top of Mount Tamalpais in 1:08. I *think* that the first time that I was able to reach the top of Tam, which was sometime in January of this year, it took me around two hours to get there. Wow! I’m not boasting, but I do need to acknowledge where I started compared to where I am today. It’s tough to fathom.

At the top I went to the Coke machine for another sub-adult beverage. While there I noticed that someone had left a cross on the rock wall that’s right next to the machine. I’m wondering where the makeshift cross came from, and why it was left there? I took a photo of it since it had a purposeful look to its placement. I overheard a lovely exchange between a local contractor and four French tourists. The contractor had picked them up somewhere way down on the mountain. He had loaded their bicycles into the back of his truck, and then driven them to the top of Mount Tamalpais, which was their planned destination. They were so grateful, and he was so attentive to their being tourists on a journey. It was really cool to see this multi-cultural exchange. They exchanged Email addresses, phone numbers, and by the end the French family invited him to visit them in Paris! You see, good deeds still have value, and in many, many ways. I had a good ride back down the mountain. It was warm and there were very few people on the mountain. I also figured out a mechanical problem that had me stumped, so that was good too. Now I just need to do the work to fix it. I’m the Chief Cook and Bottle Washer around these days… Maybe I can teach Tugboat how to do bicycle maintenance. I’m certain that if he had thumbs, he’d be able to get the job done in minutes. ;-)

Distance: 21.47 miles Calories burned: 1,792 Time: 2:00:26 hours Elevation gain: 2,671 Garmin Connect ride details: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/17184476

Day 129: I was Even Sicker Today so it was Time for a Cruise

I woke up feeling even worse than yesterday. I actually woke up in the middle of the night from coughing and hacking. I finally got back to sleep only to wake up a couple of hours later feeling awful. I brewed some tea with honey, but it had little to no impact on my coughing. I basically coughed for the first couple of hours that I was awake. Uugh. My stomach and back are sore from all of the coughing. That’s a sign. Since December I’ve been attending a special meeting at Serenity Knolls that’s designed to help those of us that are the partners, or parents, of alcoholics. I’ve attended every single meeting thus far, except for one that was basically cancelled. Today I opted to stay home due to being sick. I really struggled with this, but in the end it wouldn’t have been good for me to ride out there, nor would it have been considerate of me to show up in a crowded meeting room and sick as one can be. That said, I really missed seeing my friends, and attending the meeting. It's one of the commitments that I made last December when I dropped off "N." The reason for the commitment is different now, but the commitment itself remains tha same. Midway through the morning I started to feel a little better. I was able to breathe freely and I had stopped coughing as much. I finally got onto my bike in the mid afternoon after doing more puttzing around the house. I did get a lot of my old “stuff” organized, so the day wasn’t a total loss.

Heeding the advice of two of my friends, I took it easy today and rode around Paradise Drive, and then into Sausalito via the bike path. It wasn’t a short ride, but it was basically pretty easy compared a few of the other rides that I had planned as options for today. I need to get well, period, and that’s what “P” and “M” advised me to do. They were right. I have no business doing long rides while I’m sick.

I owe my ride into Sausalito to my friend “C.” She recently drew some sketches of the houseboats that she published online, and that made me think that I hadn’t poked around the houseboats and slips in ages, so today it was an excuse to extend my ride a bit, and to “cruise” around while taking it easy. It was a beautiful day for riding around Sausalito. There were little or no winds, and with temperatures in the upper 70’s. Wow! I pedaled slowly from pier to pier, and in and out of the houseboats taking in the scene as if it were the first time. There are some characters living in and around the area, but that’s part of the coolness of Sausalito. Once at home, and beginning to write, my friend “D” stopped by on his new Jake the Snake. He and his son came over on Friday night to build it up on my porch. Another smiling cyclist, and that makes me happy. He's been patiently waiting for a new ride....some dozen years, so I'm happy for him.

Distance: 31.11 miles Calories burned: 1,919 Time: 2:07:21 hours Elevation gain: 965 Garmin Connect ride details: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/17109336