Foiled Again

I started the day today at our Oconee office in Greensboro (GA), which meant leaving the house at 5:45 AM, at which time I'm usually in my birthday suit sleepily rummaging through my underwear drawer wondering what color drawers complement khakis and the clean-shirt-of-the-day. Oooh, sorry for that image.
Anyway, I had to meet a tech guy there to finish up the hardware install for the network in the new office. He was an hour late, so I sat like a lump for a while, then I sat for a while longer while he set up the equipment. I dashed back to Macon and picked up my road bike from the shop. I had to have a spoke replaced on the rear wheel that let go on the ride Saturday. I also had them face the bottom bracket shell. When I installed the bottom bracket and torqued it to the recommended spec, it developed a bind in the rotation. The included instructions (where English was the fourth language down the line) told me that if a bind developed from an out of true shell the proper procedure was to back the piece out, add some lock tite and tighten to 30 Nm. I did that. Well, all except the LockTite part. Hmmm..that detail might have kept the bottom bracket from unscrewing...which it had. It was unscrewed about an eighth of an inch. EEK.
Anyhoo, I picked the bike up and hauled back to work, only to run into some network issues that jumped on my ass like angry beavers on the last sugar maple. I really wanted to ride tonight, for no other reason than to test the terry saddle on the road, but the angry beavers got the best of me. I had to bail on my ride buddy and work late. It sucked, but I did manage to trap the angry beavers and back them into a corner. At least if I had to work late, I came home wearing a nice beaver pelt cap.

But I still didn't get to ride. Bummer.

Going the Distance

Yesterday we rode from Perry to Montezuma for ice cream. On our road bikes, I mean.



No, really, we rode from Perry to Marshallville and then to Montezuma so we could get some ice cream at William Brown's Farm market. We left at 8 AM so we would hopefully be back before the real heat of the day. The mileage totaled a little over 50 miles of *fairly* flat roads with *fairly* light traffic. We put together the ride as a social ride, keeping a slow pace so we could ride together and talk. This also made the ride more approachable to newer riders like Carrie.
I think everyone had a good time. I drifted around in the pack and could hear conversations on all kinds of topics throughout the ride. It's nice to have rides like this because it gives us the chance to really build friendships and a sense of community. Fast rides are great for training, but when the pack is running 20+ mph, no one has much of a chance to talk about the movie they saw last night or the great car they just test drove. Hell, most of us are too busy trying to suck in more oxygen than a human should need to bother talking. Social interaction isn't the point of a training ride. A training pace ride is meant to make you a faster rider, and talking doesn't write that check. Talking is necessary, however, to make a stronger community. People who are only concerned with being faster are missing out on half the reason to ride. Some people join gangs, pledge fraternities, or pay country club dues just to find some sense of belonging. It's human nature to go to almost any length to be part of.....something. Locally and all around the world, there's a huge clan of people who pedal, and all it takes to be a part of it is to show up. It's a damn shame that some people miss out.

Okay, enough soap-boxing. The ride went well. I've managed to convert the road bike to an all-Campy drive train with a shimano rear wheel and cassette, and thanks to the Jtek Shiftmate, it's working pretty well. It hangs between gears once in a while, but no more than the all-cheap-shimano drive train I was running. The shorter crank arms feel worlds better, and the aero drop bars are really comfortable. In general, I'm feeling better than ever on the bike. I did find that after about 30 miles my saddle is near insufferable. Now, at some point, even the best saddle starts to feel like glued down shards of glass, but I think mine could be better. I swapped the Terry Fly onto the road bike today, so we'll see if it's any better. Several of the guys have offered the use of their box-of-rejected-saddles so I can try a few and find what works. Looks like more product testing.

Diana and I had said at one time that we would do our first Century ride this fall at Albany's nut roll, but after riding 52 miles, I must say that 100 seems like a stretch.

Of course, I would have said that about 50 miles not long ago.

Better find that saddle.....

Locals Only #2

Emilio's Cuban cafe, 402 Hwy 247, Bonaire

Emilo's has been open several months and we've eaten there several times. It manages to pull of a surprising combination of good food and good atmosphere in a standard strip mall, which is pretty impressive. I drove by it in the new shopping center at the corner of Sandy Run Dr and Hwy 247 every day for quite some time before stopping in. I was definitely missing out.

The cuisine is traditional Cuban, with lots of starches, spiced meats, and (of course) black beans. When I say the meats are spiced, I don't mean they're habanero hot or jalapeno driven. I mean there are a lot of spice flavors involved, with lots of emphasis on garlic and onions. It bears some taste relation to Mexican fare, but also has a lot of ties to traditional American comfort food. Don't expect to attack the main courses with vegetarian glee or low-carb fervor.

The appetizer selection is a little limited, but you won't find anything they serve on another menu in town. The Yuca Fries ($4.25) are akin to firm, dry french fries, and are well worth the time just for the Mojo sauce they include. They come nice and crispy and the sauce is a wollop of garlic goodness that's cooled with a cream base and maybe cilantro and lime. Whatever is in there, it's an Emilio's secret, and it's damn good. The Ham Croquettes ($3.00) were kind of like salmon patties made with ham. Wait, it's not what you're thinking, they were good! A little on the greasy side, but how can you dislike fried ham?

They do of course offer a Cuban Sandwich ($6.25) and it's tasty. It could have a little more meat for the price, especially since it's sans sides. You can get a 1/2 Cubano on the lunch specials menu with sides of rice and beans for $6.75, which I think is a better deal. They do have several other sandwiches and combos as lunch specials, and also serve breakfast.

All the dinner entrees include choice of white or yellow rice (get the yellow), Black or red beans (black, of course) fried sweet or green plantains (sweet, definitely) and mojo marinated boiled yuca or yuca fries. I really like the boiled yucas - lots of onions with a tang of lime or maybe vinegar and plenty of garlic. The staff calls them "an acquired taste" but I acquired it the first time I tasted it. With all of those side, you better come hungry.

My favorite entree is the Lechon Asado ($10.95) which is marinated pork served shredded. It looks dry, but is actually slow cooked to juicy, spicy perfection. The Arroz con Pollo ($10.95) is the cuban version of chicken with yellow rice, and it's 100% comfort food. Good and filling, and packed with subtle flavors. The Carne con Papas (meat and potato stew) also hits a comfort food home run, so thick and chunky that it's served on a plate and doesn't run around. They also offer a sampler platter that lets you pick out a new favorite.

If you have a sweet tooth or a chocolate obsession, don't miss the Mid-Night Havana Cake ($4.50.) It's a chocolate mousse cake that absolutely defies description. Unless you're a chocolate professional, it may be too much for you. If you are there with your spouse, order two if you want to stay married. Trust me.

The last item to cover is the coffee. If you go, you have to order the Cafe con Leche, a beautiful concoction of steamed milk and Cuban espresso. The coffee is strong, the cup is large, it has about 3 cups of sugar in it, and it may be the best coffee I've had in town. There's a reason some of the staff wear t-shirts that read "Powered By Cuban Coffee."

As with other local dining, the service has been good every time we've been there. The wait staff is happy to explain any of the dishes and make good recommendations. The management even happily stayed open late the last time we stumbled in five minutes before closing. And they even have killer live music once a week! So, go try some thing new, maybe you'll find the comfort food you've always dreamed of.

This is your town. Eat here!

Ridin' the Broom

Well, I went out on the Tuesday road ride as usual, despite the near-record heat. It was actually a pretty nice night for a ride, once we got rolling. I was feeling pretty good for not riding in a week. I've been concentrating on pushing harder on the climbs, and they were seemed easier tonight. I don't know if they really are, or if I was just having a good night. By the time we reached the silos and turned right on Mosely, I had finished one bottle of water and the second was as warm as bathwater. Since One of our good friends and fellow cyclists lives on Mosely, I planned a stop for fresh ice water.

Everything was great until we started back out of her driveway. When my back tire hit the street, it didn't feel right. It was everything but flat. We rode back down the driveway and borrowed a floor pump, only to watch the guage fall from 100 to 90psi in less than a minute. Sigh. I think I might have pinched the tube coming over the construction on highway 49.

Now, being a fairly prepared kind of guy, I do carry a spare tube and tire levers and stuff. But frankly it was too damn hot to bother changing the tube when Kat offered a ride back to the store in a nice, air-conditioned truck. I'll get to it before the next ride.

Hey, everybody rides the broom once in a while......

Using My Marbles

Well, another weekend done and gone. I read an account once of a late-middle aged man who suddenly realized that he had a limited number of weekends left in his life. He bought a bunch of marbles and counted them out into a big glass jar, and every Sunday night, he'd take one out. I guess it's a bit morbid, but on Sunday night, I like to look at the marble I'm holding in my hand and ponder if I've spent it well. It's a process that will make you reevaluate what you do between work days. I'm still relatively young, still not half way through the average life expectancy of the American male, so I don't mind dropping a marble in the work bucket occaisionally, but I'm pretty stingy with them. In an effort to make the most of this marble, I worked late Friday night to set up the new server at work and get it on our network. That way I could bring the laptop home and work on the data entry stuff without spending gas money and time to drive back to Macon Saturday.

It worked out well. I cut the front and back yard early to try and beat the heat, then spent the next six hours sorting and entering info on all our materials for work until my brain ran out my ears like thin tapioca pudding. With raisins. I had a nice np and met the usual suspects for a friendly dinner of grilled beast. Today carrie and I ushered at church and went to my Mom's house for lunch and helped install a new window AC unit at their house. We did the usual grocery shopping and finished the night up with a very nice Oriental chicken salad for dinner. Now we're vegitating on the sofa and watching Pulp Fiction on VH1. A nice quiet end to the day.

So, all things considered, the marble was pretty good this weekend. Not the shiniest marble I've had, but reasonably respectable. I didn't even get on the bike. Heck, I only saw my bikes taking the road bikes out of the truck and hanging them up. Hopefully I'll get to ride a little more this week. I've got a vaction coming up that's built around riding the bejeezes out of a bicycle in the north georgia mountains, so I'd better start turning over a pedal more than once a week.

See, I figure a week's vacation is like a great big, swirled glass shooter, and I'm damn sure not wasting THAT marble.


Marble image from roscoeartglass.com - get your own marbles

Ugh...Work

Work has been picking up lately. a lot. We're implementing a new Management Information System, a big-brother-esque program that will handle everything from estimating and invoicing to logging employee time on jobs. I'm the point man on the implementation, as well as an expanding role as IT guy and sys-admin. I'm kind of enjoying the tech side of the job, but we're hitting crunch time on the data processing which is translating into more working hours. I got a new laptop that's real flash, so at least I can work from home some, but it's still cutting into my riding. This weekend I may have to come up to the shop and install the new server system which has finally arrived.

It seems like every time I get on track with more riding, life steps in and puts the brakes on. I know this is something we all fight as cyclists, but it's so frustrating. Tonight will be three times this week I brought my bike to work with plans of riding and now won't be able to. Yuck. It really sucks when it's work related. I can complain about all the things I have to do, all the jobs I have to cover, but in the end, that's my job. I'm here to handle all the shit no one else will take on. It pays all right, but it sure is a frustrating way to work some days. Of course, other days go by and it's pretty easy, so maybe I shouldn't complain too loudly.

So, anyway, it looks like I'll be riding the trainer tonight for a half hour while dinner cooks so I can work into the night on my laptop. I'd rather be out on my bike even if it is 98 degrees today and so damn dry the grass smolders in the afternoon. I'll also have to get up at the crack of dawn Saturday and mow my yard so I can come to work and get the server installed, which means I won't be working on the truck like I need to before vacation, which means I'll have to skip riding sometime next week so I can fix the truck. We won't even talk about the bike washing and repair and cleaning the camper that has to happen before then, too. And Sunday's shot because I'll have to usher at church, take mom out for lunch since I missed doing it on Mothers day (hey, there were tornadoes, man) go grocery shopping and clean up the house.

No rest for the weary. Boy, am I weary.

Flat Rockin'

My good friend Jesse was in town last week and he decided we should go to Flat Rock park over in Columbus and ride Saturday. Actually, the original plan was to go to Tsali because another friend of a friend needed a lift that direction and it was a good excuse to ride. But, the f-o-a-f found another ride and gas is expensive, so we opted to sleep in and drive less. Flat rock has been recommended by several people, but I hadn't ridden it yet, so off we go.

The trail starts in a state forestry run park on the edge of Columbus. The slick rock and creek at the front entrance are reminiscent of Indian Springs State park near Jackson, and it seems pretty well maintained, if a little aged. We found the trail head and I followed Jesse out on the trail. Which is to say, we rode around the pic-nic tables for a while. When you're used to riding deep in the woods, it's a little strange to be hauling ass through an open, well groomed area passed tables and parking lots and not getting yelled at. the trail cuts back and forth for a good while offering some steady though not steep climbs and some long woo-who downhills. Some of the ruts offer a fun chance to catch air. The trail then cuts through a couple miles of wooded area similar to the Children's home trails and emerges back into the open. Ride a little further and you come to a little slick rock and a lovely short downhill to a two foot rock step-up going up a climb. You have to commit to speed and loft the front wheel to get up it. At the last second, you think "What the hell??!! I'll never make that!!!" If you're going fast enough to make it, by that point there's no way to bail. Interesting catch 22. I made it up with no drama, but still had to stop and let my adrenal gland crawl back into it's normal spot. The final 2 miles or so are screaming fun flat and REALLY tight twisties. It's santos FL meets Sarah's Slalom at Thomson. It was so fun we did it twice! There are also some nice deep woops and one long culvert that you can play BMX on if you feel skippy. They're fun, but we somehow couldn't find the legendary Big Woop, so I can't verify it's size or woopiness. We did get in a little over 14 miles of rippin' fun, averaging almost 9mph, which ain't bad on a fat tire bike.

I'd definitely suggest making the drive to do flat rock. There's enough trail to get soundly lost, which always exciting. And if you don't have a good enough time, you can always stop at Lane Packing for peach ice cream on the way back.