Highs and Lows, Yin and Yang, 99 Problems

Eli broke his leg a week ago.  Sort of ankle, I guess.  The hefty little bulge at the ankle is a broken fibula.  A lot like my broken leg/ankle a few years ago.  He's being a lot better sport about it, though.

You know how kids really want to ride in those electric carts at the store that are reserved for people that have trouble walking?  Bonus!  Breaking a leg gets you a first class ticket on the Walmart Express.

And then it rained.  The night before cyclocross races in St. Louis is a good time to play amateur meteorologist and predict rain.  Because.  This time, the race was at Queeny park.  Much grass.  Much, much wet grass.  Surprisingly, no mud.  Pretty awesome, really.  And the temps were good for just a jersey and bare legs.

Things went well.  I didn't catch the leaders of the 40+ or Single Speed, but I managed another 1st in 50+ which was good for 3rd overall.  All in all, it ended up being more fun than I thought. (photo credit to Katie Van Hook!!!)

Another weird moment on the scale today.  I was shocked to see 165lbs Friday.  This afternoon it was 162.something.  What the hell?  Part of me is curious to see the 150's. Part of me is curious to not be dying.  That's a joke.  Seriously.

Sunday! Sunday! Sunday! Cyclocross and Funday!

 I started the day with Mo' Money, Mo Money, Mo Money!

Not true.  I started the day by looking out at the dreary day wondering if I should actually go race the cross race at Pierre Marquette.  I mustered the courage and drove all the way the hell up the River Road.  The course wasn't a sloppy mess, so that was good, though there were plenty of mud holes by the time we finished our race. But the wind was whipping at 20+ and the course was flat as a pancake.  Bad for this dude.  I managed another win in the 50+ and tried my best to take the overall but I lost contact with two younger dudes and that was that.

Naturally, the sun came out and the sky turned blue and it was a brilliant drive home.  Ah, it was glorious.

Glorious enough to stop at the only fast food joint on the main drag in Alton.  Love those Chicken Littles.

While I was grubbing down the KFC, I noticed there were some old codgers gathering with their first generation Thunderbirds.

 There were two red, one white, and one black.  They looked quite good.

I hate these things.  I'm trying to figure out one that keeps 'forgetting' it's programmed openers. Hopefully I have it solved this time but history says that I do not.

What I'm not doing tonight is cleaning my muddy bike. That will have to come another day, when energy is in greater supply.

Stair Club is not all Fun and Games

You may think that running in Stairclub is just a laugh a minute.  Alas, it is not.  There is a LOT that goes into just GETTING there.  I usually ride my BMX bike over there.  It's a great warmup and results in about a 10 mile round trip.  The biggest snag in riding to Stairclub?  Water.  I hate bringing water on the little bike.  So I plan my route accordingly.  In the warmer months, the drinking fountains are on.  First stop: drinking fountain in one of the little parks alongside River Des Peres.  I usually have two hardcore sprints in the bag by the time I hit this one and I really need this.

Fully watered down, I climb a couple hills to reach Wehner Park.  It's the old standby being so close to Stairclub.  Sometimes there are games going on here, but today it was completely vacant.  This water fountain has been a life saver over the years.

 A couple more hills and I reach the destination.  Stairclub.  Today the temps are low and the trash has been more or less cleared.

 But not the walnuts.  They abound.  They're everywhere!  I took a stroll up and down the steps to sweep them away.  I bet I cleared 50 of them.

 

Quivering quads and all, I conquered the stairs and head home.  But not before hitting the fountain at Wehner again.  And of course there were a few more sprints on the way home. It's all fun and games until they turn off the water for the winter!

The Best Laid Plans - Or What I've Done the Last Three Days

I really had Friday planned out well.  Or I thought I did.  Car problem(s) changed those plans very early. My hooptie had the original battery from the factory.  Yep, 7 years old and 152,000.  I should have given this battery a 21 gun salute.  Thank you for your service, dude!

As luck would have it, I was a mere 100 yards from the place where a good friend works.  He brought his car over to mine and jumped started it.  About a 1/4 mile down the road was an Autozone, and they sell batteries there.  I have noticed that the negative terminal was gathering a lot of corrosion, so this large crack in the battery shell was no surprise.  You mess with the bull, you get the horns.  Or in this case, a dead battery.

 Fully charged, I went on to work on the days big project.  More security cameras.  Crawl spaces are devilish places, full of insulation and exposed nails.  I managed to NOT get a nail to the head and found the spot in the hardest place possible.  I yelled "kick ass", not knowing there were others in the house.  A little embarrassed but proud anyway, the others were time consuming but not difficult.  Pro tip:  insulation is still itchy.

 Needy dog, needy owner.  When you're down, you need a good dog.

L.L. Cool J famously rapped "Don't Call it a Comeback, I've Been Here for Years".  So yeah, I raced the Sylvan Springs cyclocross race yesterday.  I opted for a new kit instead of the aging team stuff, dubbed "Volt".  It helped my aging body win the 50+ field.  It was awesome!

Perfect Fall Day

I took this shot from behind home plate at Eli's baseball game in Ballwin on Sunday.  It was a very un-St. Louis kind of day: perfect temperature, low humidity, light breeze, bright sun with patchy clouds.  The icing on the cake: our team chose the shady dugout.