Strange Resurgence In BMX Stuff

Around Christmas time I bought a new BMX bike for myself, a Redline Proline Pro XL.  I had been threatening to do so for a while and finally did it.  Comparatively speaking, BMX bikes are cheap so it wasn't a stretch at all.  I have only been able to ride it sparingly, and it has been tough.  But I'm starting to get the hang of it.

Strangely, I have been selling some BMX bikes at work, too.  Mostly to old guys like me, as it turns out.  I guess people relive the days of their youth in different ways.  Some middle age guys buy Corvettes.  Other middle guys by little bikes.  Corvettes are slightly more expensive.

Although thoroughly modern under the skin, the very convincing SE Retro bikes really have hit a chord.  The mag wheels put them over the top.  I take one look at a PK Ripper and I instantly think of Feldon Wicks, the guy responsible for introducing me to BMX racing way back in 1979.  Funny, but his PK's and even his Quad Angle's were even more trick than these modern bikes.  I wish I could find a photo of his all blacked-out PK with Skyway Graphite Tuff Wheels.  Me and my friend Bob worshiped Feldon and the fact that he had bikes clean enough to eat off of made us crazy with envy.

Memory lane.  Sometimes it really is good, wholesome fun.

Funny dog

It will always make me laugh when I walk into a room and see this big dogs hind end sticking out from under the bed.  It makes me wonder if he knows he's not all of the way under, or if he just got tired half way through and stopped?

Powell Hall for some Culture

Grandma and Grandpa took Hanna and I to Powell Hall today for a little bit of culture.  It was a packed house, featuring a show that highlighted each of the instrumental groups.  Wood Wind, Brass, Percussion, and Strings.  Pretty cool.

Sickness, Wires, Rain, and Apologies

 I have been battling yet another sinus infection.  Indeed, I have fought a valiant fight.  But I again needed relief that just wasn't coming any other way and started taking antibiotics.  I slept about 4 hours in 4 nights, kept awake by coughing....that's enough tough-guy act....just give me the pills.

 I was fully prepared Friday to have the Giant TCR SL completely outfitted with the new Ultegra Di2 stuff.  But, alas, I flubbed the order and I'm missing a wiring harness.  It will be here on Wednesday and I can be electronically shifting up and down the cogs.  (A side note here:  it's funny that bicycle purists ask me why I would want to have electronic shifting...those same people who's lives are inundated with I-Pads, I-Phones, Blue Tooth, ANT+, GPS, etc.)  Try it for yourself, it's the finest damn shifting I have ever seen.

 I was volunteered by my beautiful wife to help with the Run for the Chocolate that Big Shark put on this past Sunday.  I was a bit wary, since there was a chance for rain and I'm suffering from this sinus thing (see sob story at top of this post), but I agreed.  Curiously, she placed me at a water station, handing out water to the runners, in the pouring rain for a solid hour.  I was soaked and pissed.  I gave her the stink eye the rest of the day, until.....

She surprised me by getting my favorite junk food at the grocery store.  This and other treats were her penance.  I love her again.

Snow? Seriously? At least the kids like it.

 Hanna flies down on the blow-up tube

I don't think anyone knew it was going to snow any more than an inch or so Saturday night.  I wasn't happy with the results when I got around on Sunday, but the kids were very pleased.  We went to a small hill close to the house and they had a blast. 

 Hanna and Tyson together on the tube

 Eli taking the belly-slide down the hill

Hanna on a collision course with Tyson

Birthday Kids

 Hanna just turned 13.  We had a get together at the Bucks house last night as we usually do for the January birthday kids.

 Max just turned 15.  He's almost too cool for these little parties.

 It's easy to get Hanna to laugh about something.  I'm not sure if Eli is dumbfounded by something or he has a corn chip caught in his throat.

 She's smiling because she just got a gift card.  Hanna likes gift cards.  And sparkly stuff.

 Must be another gift card.

 Tyson is inside that cardboard box.  Tyson likes cardboard.

The birthday kids.  Almost not kids anymore. 

A little lunch with the little ones

They're not so little anymore.  Hanna and Eli joined me pizza today at lunch.  Although I really wanted to spend time outside with the kids today, the weather was just too nasty.  Tyson was not with us this weekend, so we were short one of the Muskateers.  I think next weekend we will all be able to hang out together, and maybe, just maybe, the weather will be nice enough for us to get outside, breathe some fresh air and have some fun.

The Mohawk may be coming back into Style

Still being sub-seven years old, bath time for Eli is still quite an adventure.  His hair is way too long right now and he doesn't want to get it cut.  So I took advantage of his sloppy long hair and gave him a Mohawk, which he really seemed to enjoy.

Taking the Warm Day in January by the Horns

53 miles and 4300 feet of climbing on a Jefferson County extravaganza.  Me and my longtime partner in crime, Big Dad, took advantage of the 60+ degree weather.  We're both huge fans of the riding in Jefferson County...or maybe we just wax nostalgic for days of old when we ruled the roads.  Now we plod along in middle-aged agony pretending we're Miguel Indurain.

We had been doing similar (although slightly shorter) rides through the fall, but we stopped during December for various reasons.  I'm hoping this latest stretch of bad weather does not shut us down again.

Riding our bikes to 7-11

Friday afternoon Eli and I usually get snacks together.  When the weather is nice, we try to ride our bikes.  Today certainly qualifies as nice, so we rode our BMX bikes up to 7-11.  Of course some guy my age walks by while we eating Twizzlers and asked about the Redline.  Us old guys all know about cool BMX bikes.

The Stars Align Now and Again

It's January.  The forecast calls for a bit of sun and 66 degrees.  And I'm off work.  How did that happen?

2012, Goodbye or Good Riddance?

Ten things, not in order of importance.

ONE:  I lost my friend and companion, Rosco.  Hard, hard, hard to come to grips with that.  What has helped is having so many people to give me a word of encouragement or a pat on the back.  My family loved him, too, and they have reminded me of the wonderful life Rosco shared with us.  Sometimes my insanity causes me to think he's still around, and I'm not kidding when I think he's just in the other room, snoring or tearing something up.  That's what 14 years of love will do to a guy.

TWO:  My beautiful wife came to work with us at Big Shark.  There are so many things that have to be done in a growing small business like Big Shark, and to be able to do what we do best (servicing the cycling community) we have to have our time freed up from some of those other things.  That's what she does and I'm grateful for that.

THREE:  My three lovely children grew another year older.  I can't explain it, but before my eyes they change and morph into more and more complete people. I don't remember being so interesting when I was six.  Or ten.  Or twenty five.

FOUR:  It costs a lot to be sick or need medical care in America.  Insurance is insanely expensive..but you know what?  That's because health care itself is insanely expensive.  And we have had no hospital stays this year.  My advice?  Don't get sick in America...it's a killer.

FIVE:  Once again, I raced my bike this year.  That makes 34 straight years.  I did Tuesday night criterium races, a few mountain bike races, and a bunch of cyclocross races.  It was not a bad year.  Next year will be better.  I bought a BMX bike, although I'm not sure why.  I may race it if I don't hurt myself riding it around the neighborhood.

SIX:  I met up with an old friend of mine from 20 years ago.  We used to do a lot of things together, a lot of riding included.  We started riding some old familiar routes this Fall and it's really got me thinking about how much fun it can be to hang with friends.  That's something I have forgotten and rediscovered over and over again.  And, grumble about Facebook as we may, it has kept me connected with some great longtime friends from the BMX racing days.  Those were some awesome people, and now I get to see how their lives have changed, which is fitting since many of them changed mine.

SEVEN:  We had an amazing family vacation this year, visiting with friends in Colorado.  It was nothing like Chevy Chase's adventures, which is absolutely fine with me.  We did get better gas mileage than he did.  And we had much better accommodations.

EIGHT:  We have a new dog.  His name is Rex.  He is a large, galloping, floppy, stinky (the gas, my God, the gas!!) puppy.  Rosco didn't like him very much.  Lucky for Rex, I like him.  I lot.

NINE:  I traded my convertible for a boring family sedan.  With a four cylinder.  Yes, I groaned like that, too.  And I rolled my eyes.  And fell to my knees and cried out "WHY ME? WHY ME??" several times.  When I arose, I realized that gas mileage and lower ownership costs were just what I needed.  15 years (or longer) ago, I called my friend Todd's Cavalier "SS", short for Sensible Shoes.  It was half joke, half serious.  Turns out that he was years ahead in his thinking, and I just now caught on.

TEN:  I have a great family, both inside my own home and beyond.  No, I don't do much to keep in touch with most of them.  But I never have to wonder if I am loved.  I am.  For whatever reason.

Happy New year.  Onward and upward.

Christmas and other stuff

 Hanna opening one of her many gifts.  She appears to like this one.

 I'm wondering if I actually made her laugh for this photo, or if she is goofing for the camera.  Either way, she looks like she's having fun.

 Grandma and Grandpa always have an amazing spread for all of us.  There is no better place to be on Christmas.

 Eli was doing a little differential work on the car at the Magic House.  I'm so proud.

 His hair wasn't standing up so much in this photo.  I don't think it works as well as it did when I was a kid.

The boys got matching coats.  It looks as if Tyson is quite unhappy about this.  Or, he is starting his brooding teenager act a couple of years early.

A little bike stuff

 The old Fastback has been resurrected as the trainer bike.  And why not?  It fits me perfectly!  A little black spray paint makes all of the faded, blemished anodizing go away.

 This is the new love of my life.  The new Giant TCR SL.  Yes, it's aluminum and it's fabulous.  Yes, there is a seat bag on there, and yes, I have nicer wheels than those pictured.  With my "race-day" wheels and minus the seat bag, it's 16 pounds, 4 ounces.

My lovely wife's Christmas present.  It's a Raleigh Capri Carbon 4.0.  Yes, it has Ultegra Di2 electronic shifting.  What a gorgeous machine.  I'm jealous the the Di2, for sure.

A few things for me

 A laptop.  It's just increasingly necessary to have my own computer.  I hate touch pads, so I even have a wireless mouse to go with it.

 My favorite movie this year. 

 Not for me, but I am very excited for Rex and his special knit stocking.

After all of the excitement, he still chews on his favorite shoe.  Typical.