Why Ride Right Now?

Sometimes I take myself too seriously.... Today was one of them. Then I realized something mid-ride today. How can I be outside riding my bike in early February, 23 degrees with 15 mph wind, and an hour from home and be thinking this is the rational thing to do on a day like today.
Q: Why am I doing this? A: I do this because I enjoy it.



I enjoy the suffering
I enjoy the speed
I enjoy the races
I enjoy the adventure
I enjoy the bikes
I enjoy the gear
I enjoy the lifestyle
I enjoy the commute
I enjoy the friends
I enjoy the dirt and mud
I enjoy the outdoors
I enjoy the fitness
I enjoy the hills
I enjoy the trainer (sometimes)
I enjoy the strange looks I get at the car dealership when I drop the car off, wearing lycra and leaving the garage on a bicycle.

Mostly a cross country mountain biker at heart. Certainly not a hucker. And yes, even a roadie, although I may not shave my legs, occasionally sport baggies, sometimes don a camelbak instead of multiple water bottles, wear goggles in the extreme cold, and numerous other things counter-roadie culture.










Here's to another snowy, winter ride everyone. Cheers!

Joe

Alter Ego Jerseys back in stock

Hey Team ,

Alter Ego Jerseys are back in stock.

New Year, New Training Plan, Same Goals

New year, new training plan ideas, same goals:


Last Year

Last year was the first year with a bike coach and a very singletrack, all bike training focus, which enabled me to ride more miles in a 6 month period than ever before. Although also caused a mid year severe knee tendonitis issue, which really made me realize how much I missed my daily riding fix.


This Year
The focus this year has been and will continue to be overall fitness, health, and nutrition, including lots of focused weight lifting training, core strength, and plyometrics. And of course time on the bike. So far so good...

I am still using a daily training plan, thanks to Cycling Form and Fitness, to ensure my training stays on track and is measurable. The plan is very detailed and having last year's information has been very interesting to compare against. I have also made an effort to not hibernate and sit on the trainer all winter long. I have been riding or snowshoeing outside every opportunity I can.


Thanks to Evan, 53x11 Coffee, and my family support I am sure this will be a great year of fitness, health, and good times!

Some new amazing coffees

From the beginning we've been working on bringing you the best coffees in the world. Our latest additions are the new House Espresso, The Easy Rider Espresso, and a great tasting Ethiopian Amaro Gayo. Both espressos are guaranteed to blow you out of the water.

Click here to check them out.

SKINS Recovery Tights

Hello Team,

I'm always on the search to bring in more info and new products that will help us train better, train harder, and train smarter.

I believe recovery is such an important part of training and is often so overlooked. Recovery is in the form of nutrition, stretching, and resting. How many of you train hard and then spend the rest of the day on your feet? I do more than I'd like, but it's just because I have so many other things going on that there's nothing I can do about it. I've come across a product that some of you may or may not be familiar with. The Skins recovery tights are a very helpful tool that I've been using and testing for the past couple months. Slip these on after your done training and feel the difference. They help keep you legs from swelling and getting that heavy feeling. I'll wear mine for a few hours after training or on long flights. I've only brought in a limited supply so first come first serve.

Check them out here.

Carbon race bike w/campy record $7000.00 Trip to Tucson $3000.00 Remembering you're 47 years old, priceless!

Yes its the off season and we're riding easy getting in some base miles just as the script says. Except those of us that haven't finished the year properly, perhaps put on a few little winter pounds. Maybe spent too much time at work, maybe too much time doing everything but what we should have been doing, again! If I ever let myself get a little lax on riding time I swear I'm not coming back. I wasn't feeling all that great before madera, but still I should have done better. If you're letting some time lapse between rides or whatever, don't do it man. My heart didn't explode yet so I'm giving myself another chance. At this stage of the game its more about quality of life. When I sit on the start line of a race I'm just happy to be there, things I never used to think about. I don't care how old you are, where you're at in life, anytime is a good time to start getting into better shape. We pass this way once, Let us find peace and balance, ride man, ride.

On The Road Again

Happy New Year to Evan, Owen and all my 53x11 Coffee teammates. It is the start of another season and I am giddy with anticipation (to parahrase Dr. Frankenfurter).
I have been riding my trainer almost every day since October but finally had my first real road ride of 2010 today. I did do one yesterday but that was what I consider "getting my feet" kind of ride. I did a 2 hr jaunt today around Mercer Island and had a great ride, seeing many other riders and teams out and about. It was nice to recoginize and to be recognized. I feel like part of a very large family and it was just a good feeling today. I did have one rider ask if I wanted to pace with him but I declined as I could feel my legs and I wanted just a nice training day. It was good to discover though that my 75% effort equaled his 100% as he did not get too far ahead and I often caught him. My legs are a bit heavy right now but I know I am on the road back.
Hope everyone had a great New Years.
Ty (aka Saddledancer).