Asleep at the Wheel

 

There really isn't an easy way to put this. I really did it this time. 

Sorry that you have to view my ugly mug, but I think it's a necessary evil, given the nature of this post. Speaking of posts. I ran straight into a sign post on Thursday. Straight into it. Didn't clip it. Didn't graze it. I whammed that thing. I was 1 minute and 27 seconds away from finishing an hour and a half workout and I suppose I had gotten a bit light-headed. I had spent too much time looking down at my computer, looked up, and smoked a 30mph speed limit sign. 

Now mind you, this is nothing to be proud of. Running into things, especially very hard and immovable objects, is normally not on my to-do list. I normally avoid crashing or falling at all costs. At the particular moment that sign and bike met, I was going about 20mph. My computer says that I was going 27.5mph, and a rapid deceleration occurred. First I hit both brakes just inches before the sign, then the strongest brakes that I know of (the sign post) did their thing. A couple of nice guys were kind enough to stop their car, urging me to seek medical attention. While writhing in pain, I attempted to play it off as though it was a common thing. My broken bike, broken helmet with grass in it, my smashed face, and a bit of blood running down my arm betrayed me. I did ride the bike back to the shop from Jefferson Barracks, though. On the way, I remembered that someone at the scene had said something about Wile E Coyote. And I did manage to laugh. 

Here is an artists rendering of the event. The black dot being the sign post. 

Because he felt sorry for me, Tyson brough me a bag full of my favorite things. Most are already gone.

And Hanna made a Zebra Cake in a Mason Jar spectacle. I ate that, too. 

If there's a moral to this story (I don't think so), it would have something to do with keeping your eyes on the road. Or don't push yourself until you hallucinate. Or getting hurt is the best way to get snacks for free. 

So much Winning!

I'm sure by now you all know how proud I am of my kids. I didn't even like kids, but having my own just flipped a switch and now I have to say they're my favorite people. Well, today the Queen of Fitness in the Fast Lane ran her first marathon (or mary, for those who are hip). Two weeks ago she ran the GO Marathon half, and then decided she should just go ahead and do a full. Sound logic if you're as fit as she is. This one? In Orange County, California.

These days with so much technology at our fingertips, you can follow your athlete every step of the way. I watched the app all morning and was quite relieved to see that she banged out sub-8.5 minute miles without any problems. The Beautiful Mrs. K and I both called her (yes, she runs quite well talking on the cell phone) and gave her some encouragement.

She asked if I was surprised, and I really wasn't. I mean, a mary is nothing to sneeze at, but Killer Jr. keeps proving that she can do the hard things. Yes, she has inherited good old Dad's nickname. She was the first born, you know. And nepotism aside, she deserves it. 

Speaking of winning, we were present at the Tuesday Night Worlds to watch Eli take his first criterium win. He is a good sprinter! He had to fight it out with my life-long friend Doug, who has taken his love of two wheels to another level over the last few years. Congrats, boys!

And if you need more feel-good vibes, as Hanna was blasting out her mary in Orange County, Eli was the sighted rider for another athlete in the Chain of Rocks Duathlon (run, bike, run). They had the fastest bike split, as you would imagine, and Nick had two great run legs with his sighted running partner. The result? Nick was 5th overall and 2nd in his age group.

A final bit of winning: Zebra cakes. Yep. The Queen of Fitness in the Fast Lane is also the Queen of Clean Plates Project. What that really means is that she whips up some incredible food, and otherworldly treats. These Zebra cakes are not from Little Debbie. Trust me!