Sunday, June 13, 2010

Catching Up

So I know it's been a little while since my last entry, and I apologize for that. But I've had some living to do, and it's taken up a lot of time. I haven't been this busy since I was living in VA (the "real world" obligations were few and far between while living in Crested Butte), and it's pretty exciting. Don't get me wrong - I like my free time just as much as the next guy, but when I get it I tend to invent things to do (train, write, etc) anyway, so I'd just as soon be busy. I'm settling into the new job at Gold's and starting to build a client list. I'm teaching multiple group exercise classes at Gold's and at Rain, and hoping to get more on the calendar soon. The TYB site is making strides, and we're starting to get into the exciting processes of sponsor outreach and ride organization. The fun is starting to happen.

I'd like to think that my life has been eventful in the last few weeks (if I'm not blogging, let's hope that big things are happening in the real world, right?), so here's the highlights:

I started playing kickball again, and in the first game of the season I slid into home running from second, tore up the plate (and my leg), and it counted for: nothing. Some fielding technicality... I'm of the opinion that if I'm bleeding, the run should count. Just a thought.

I set a personal best time of 4:37 for a 100 mile road race at Flying Wheels. What a fun ride. Lots of hills, hammering with a good line of about 6 guys, and some new friends. The season is getting into shape.

I volunteered for the Cascade Bike Club, and had a blast. Hanging out with a bunch of other bike geeks drinking craft beer and talking about bikes is a good time.

I've started training hard at Gold's, which is getting fun again. I'm working with some fun people, and it's only getting better. It's all sure to make for a good summer there. I've adopted to slogan "live the brand", which is attributed to my GM (his reply when I told him I was going to bed and waking up early instead of going out drinking..... with him).

Best story of the last 2 weeks: So I'm pretty enthusiastic about commuting by bike (to a fault, maybe), and despite the fact that it was pouring rain and I was fresh off of 4 and half hours of sleep I decided to ride to work last week at 5 AM (I teach a 6 AM spin class). So I'm sucking it up and hammering to work in the pouring rain, my righteous indignation keeping me optimistic (at least I wasn't in a car....). Of course about half there I get a flat. I find this so funny that it doesn't even bother me. Of course I would get a flat in the rain at 5 AM. When else could it possibly happen? 7 PM in the sun when I don't have anywhere to be? So I change the tube on the streetcorner and resume my trek to work with a little extra pep since I'm now behind schedule. Still raining. I get to the base of Olive Way (the biggest and last hill on my commute to work), and wouldn't you know it - my second flat of the day. My righteous optimism has given way to profanity and acute frustration, because that's just ridiculous. There's nobody else in the world who double flats on the way to work in the rain at 5 AM after less than 5 hours of sleep. It just doesn't happen. But it did, and I'm out of tubes. Still about a mile from work, and still in the rain. And now without a bike. I'm so livid at this point that I'm resolved to beat this karmic kick while I'm down. So I did the only logical thing (not the most logical thing, though, given that I was 5 minutes away from the start of my class) I could think of at the time - tie up the crippled bike on the streetcorner and sprint to work. In the rain. Up Olive Way. With a 30 lb backpack on. At 5:53 AM. Why not? It was like my own private triathlon - bike/sprint/spin. I ran harder than I have in a long time, and didn't even break stride as a got to the gym. I dropped my backpack in the lobby, and started shedding my helmet and jacket as I ran toward the group exercise room. I don't even think I slowed down to plug my iPod in. I got the music going, hopped onto my bike, and started spinning. At 6:01, I'm already covered in sweat, out of breath, and almost crosseyed after my uphill sprint to work. But I made it, and we had a killer class. You should've seen the looks on their faces when I ran into class.

Live the brand.

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