Bring It!

First off , cuz I gots a p-u-s-s-y you have to disregard all this. It clearly means that I am having a meltdown, and not that I'm a bad boy. Even if I got a pair of tits to prove it, ain't enough-- they gotta be on someone else. There's loads of precedent for this. Lindsay Lohan: meltdown. Britney Spears: meltdown. Mariah Carey: meltdown. Men don't break down. They just be playaz. Don't hate on that.

So, if you wanna ride like Charlie, if you wanna win like Charlie, you gotta have tiger blood. If you weren't born with that, ain't a thing. Substitute vodka on an empty stomach. Stop the transfusion after your face is numb.

Next what you want to do is equip your bike with lights. The idea of this is to get everyone to see who is coming at them. When they see that someone so great and winning is hurtling in their direction, they have no choice but to step aside and kneel out of respect. See the light on the bike in the picture? Ain't no way people can't see that. So, when I hear that my buddy got smacked by a van, and knowing that he shines brighter with truth than this light, all I can think is the opposition be hurling fastballs that we are going to hafta hit right out of the park.

That's right. Bicycle thug gang action. You gotta strap on the biggest fenders you got, exercise that middle finger, and get prepared mentally to cut off transit buses, GTL frat boys, and nervous suburbanites who accidentally stayed inside of city limits past sunset. You gotta be willing to ride through puddles in Bushnell Park that soak through your jeans up to your knees even with those fenders. Riding and winning like Charlie means rolling on ahead no matter how the opposition is creating barriers.

Defeat is not an option, and that's what they are trying to do when they ram into you or come inches away. They're trying to get you to throw up your hands and cry surrender. They trying to put you back behind the wheel or next to the car at the gas pump at six in the morning so that they have company, so that they can look around and still say "Hey, everyone is doing this. There's nothing wrong with my lifestyle." They want proof that the American lifestyle of overindulgence exists and that everyone is happily floating along with it. And they'll keep it up and keep it up until the law enforcement agencies or the vigilantes get to them first.

After you've slapped on some fenders, lights, and guzzled down some vodka, what you need to do is make sure your bike is a total piece of shit. This helps, especially if you are sentimental. You need to be ready to pick up your bicycle and launch it at the opposition. Let's face it. We need something stronger than the tiptoeing around, begging for scraps type of advocacy we've been getting. We need the craziest most balls-out, tits-out kind of show that we can put on because they answering to nothing else.

Asshole drivers-- consider yourselves on notice.


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Won't Somebody Please Think of the Children?

While automobile accidents remain the #1 killer of les enfants, I am unaware of any progressive legislation that would ban minors from riding in motor vehicles. Back in my day, kids had to fend for ourselves. We could sit in the front seat or back seat. We were not restrained in special seats. Hell, I remember sitting on my parents' laps, both as a passenger and as a co-pilot.

Now, the bratties have to sit in car seats facing back until hitting puberty and stay out of the front seats until they cut their wisdom teeth. They are not forced to wear helmets yet, though it's doubtful that any of these measures are significant if, say, mom had some whiskey in her coffee and has to drive 85 mph in her SUV to get her spawn to soccer practice on time, and damn, there's a tree!

On average, four children die every day as a result of motor vehicle accidents and many others are injured. The scenario created above is not just snark. One in four child fatalities resulting from motor vehicle accidents involved the driver drinking. And, as we know, speed kills.

What can be done about that? Try to ban children under six from riding on bicycles that are controlled by adults.


"But wait," you say,"if only 1.7% of traffic fatalities involve cyclists, shouldn't the focus be on the bulk of the crash victims and causes? To that, I'd answer "Stop using logic. It's unamerican!"

Oregon State Representative Mitch Greenlick, sponsor of House Bill 2228 explained his own logic:

We've just done a study showing that 30 percent of riders biking to work at least three days a week have some sort of crash that leads to an injury... When that's going on out there, what happens when you have a four year old on the back of a bike?

The research looks at riders biking to work, but not necessarily at riders with child cargo. It makes total sense to introduce a bill before conducting relevant research. Totally.

I'm more interested in answering Greenlick's question though. Admittedly, I can be a less than responsible driver at times. I'm the same way on a bicycle. But, when I have had to drive other people's children, my driving habits changed completely. The radio volume is turned down low, I'm constantly checking all mirrors, there's more appropriate distance between my vehicle and others, and my speed is exactly where it should be. I come to a full and complete stop. I do this not out of maternal instincts, but out of utter fear of what the parents would do to me should my negligence result in injury or death of their children. I have not had the opportunity to tow children around via bicycle yet, but I know that my riding skills would be improved in the same way.

If we rarely hear about bicycle-vs-bicycle or bicycle-vs-tree fatalities, then what is really the issue here? Since we're talking about El Prez, some busybody got all up in his face about his decision to schlep some of his spawn via bicycle. Her concern was not that he would slide off the road into a ditch or that he would flip the bike by doing wheelies. It was that a car might slide into the bike. So, instead of doing something more useful, like holding up a gigantic sign telling motorists to slow down so they don't skid into El Prez and Lil Prez, she went after him. You know what that's like? It's like telling a female not to walk (or ride) alone at night because somebody else might rape her. And trust, having heard that sentiment more than enough, such comments are not welcome.

A Fact Sheet of death, mutilation, chaos, and destruction explains that motor vehicles were involved in 90% of deaths of children under 14 who were in a bicycle-related crash. But here's the catch: nothing on this fact sheet mentioned children as passengers on bicycles or riding in bike trailers-- these were all children commanding their own bikes. Look, kids are pretty stupid. Even if your kid is an Honor Roll Student, she's still stupid. That's the nature of children. Their brains have not matured. Their fine and gross motor skills kind of suck. They have no real grasp on mortality. There's a reason we do not let thirteen year old kids drive cars (anymore). Behind the wheel, they'd put too many others in danger; behind the handlebars, its basically only their own lives they are endangering. Adults are better prepared to handle both motor and pedal vehicles, so our "accidents" have less to do with physical development and more to do with laziness and irresponsibility.

Others have made comments on this proposed law already. Dave of Portlandize jokingly predicts, "And next it will be to make it illegal to cross the road with a stroller, because people pushing babies in strollers get hit at crosswalks by people driving." Later, he urges lawmakers to help give cyclists better access to roads if they are really serious about our safety. After the post on Bike Portland, someone asked whether people drive differently around cyclists with children than they do around adult cyclists. Another comment on that same post was particularly on the mark:

I still don't understand what Representative Greenlick expects me to do with my child, if I can't put him on my bike. Leave him at home? Never leave the house? Purchase a car? If this bill isn't anti-family, then it's anti-woman. It's certainly anti-bike and pro-car.

In the articles on this matter, it was stated over and over that the introduction of this bill was a way to start a conversation-- though many have been wondering if the way to begin discussions is in the most extreme way possible. Would it make more sense to begin it in a way that acknowledges that child bike passengers may be vulnerable and that there are several approaches one might take to address this, such as mandating reflectors or flags on trailers, or ticketing motor vehicle operators for traveling too closely to bicycles carrying children?

Since this bill pertains to progressive Oregon and not to our Land of Steady Habits, we don't have to all panic at once. What's more, we can rejoice (just a little) that there is now a warrant for the arrest of a driver who not only hit and killed a cyclist last month, but then sped off with his tail between his legs. There's no bringing back the victim, but this is beginning to sound a little bit more like the justice we have come to expect. Read more!

Soda review

About a month ago, I got an email from someone named Victoria asking me if I wanted to review soda for the blog. Snow soda to be exact. Since this is a bike blog, I explained that I generally prefer drinking beer. None the less, it's hard to refuse a free case of anything, so I consented to review and a few days later a case of soda (12 pack?) arrived. It would seem by googling "snow soda", this type of free-case-of-soda-for-review model is major part of their advertising plan. Other companies have tried this with us and to date, I think I reviewed some kind of training dvd and I was sent some knock-off camelbaks. They weren't very good, so I decided that maybe reviewing them would be a disservice for the knock-off camelbaks. The training dvds were ok, though I still think I prefer riding outside in the winter to watching a dvd involving riding while I'm on rollers.

Anyway, snow makes three kinds of soda, Cola, Cranberry Pomraz and Lemon Lime, that they put in a tall can. The can is 12oz., but it's tall like a red bull can. The Cranberry Pomraz, despite having a weird name, is quite good. Not too sweet and it tastes like cranberry, pomegranate and raspberry. The cola isn't too good. It tastes slightly off and a little flat (kinda like Tab?). I understand they purposefully don't carbonate their sodas too much, but I think this cola needed more bubbles. The addition of rum didn't really help either. The lemon lime is ok, but could probably be just slightly more sour (or bitter)- maybe in the direction of that San Pellegrino Limonata stuff or Ting.

In the grand pantheon of sodas, I'd say the Snow ranks better than Jones. The Pomraz is better than all of the Boylan sodas, except for grape. It's not as good as Hosmer. It's not as good as the old recipe for Fresca. And, nothing is as good as Northern Neck Ginger Ale. So, if it's Sunday and you're out of Miller Lite, maybe you should grab a Pomrazz. Although, they do have more calories than a Miller Lite, so only grab one.

Ed. Note: Johanna also drank some of the soda, but she doesn't have a blog, so we'll never know what she thought.

Another soda related thing to which I would lend my seal approval are these Portland Design Works sodapop fenders. I put them on my Diamond Back and rode it around in the rains of last week. They work 90% as good as complicated fenders, but are 90% easier to install. They're supposed to be removable, but the way that the fender mounts to the rear "brake" bridge abridged that, so I can only easily take off the front one.

It rained so much I became blurry.

In other news, I found a new and steep way to get over Talcott Mountain. It's especially helpful if you need to get from Tapas in Bloomfield to the Pickin Patch in Avon.

don't fall in this well on the Avon Land Trust's Hazen Park trail.

On Sunday, I went for a hike.

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Ladies drink free!

I got an email (press release?) from this bike shop in Avon. I complained once about bike shops and woman, maybe these guys are trying to redeem themselves. Here it is:

Hello,

My name is Edgardo Rossetti, I’m contacting you on behalf of Sun & Ski Sports in Avon, CT. We are hosting Outdoor Divas, a women-only event, in partnership with the MS Society and HealthTrax, on August 19, 2010 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

We are reaching out to local businesses, clubs and groups in the area and are pleased to extend an offer to you and your female athletes.

The various clinics will focus on:

• Nutrition
• Health assessments
• Bicycle maintenance and repair
• Bike fittings
• Cycling shoe fittings and cleat placements
  

Additionally, Hor'dourves and wine will be provided.

Please let your female athletes know that they should RSVP at sunandski.com/events.

For more information please contact us at 860.676.2300 x133 or at meghan@adamsknight.com.

Thank you!

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Ur Doin it Wrong

I was doing an internet search to find out some boring facts about bicycle usage, and the top website results all had something in common -- they either mentioned fatalities or included some sort of baloney like "you can ride in CT if you don't mind feeling like you are taking your life into your own hands." It's like some unwritten rule exists that every conversation about riding has to allude to danger, helmets, and hellish drivers. I swear it's all to keep the masses complicit in the destruction of the environment by coercing them back inside their cars via stories of bicyclist fatalities.

Whatever. Sometimes bike crashes are hilarious.

For instance, Snooki, some creation out of Jersey that I do not understand entirely since I lack cable tv, but whose existence I know of thanks to Perez Hilton and TMZ, tested the boardwalk with her face today. And of course, you can watch it, over and over.

No, you're not a bad person for mocking someone who is famous for being an obnoxious partygirl. Read more!

Riding the East Coast Dirtway: Let's Go Ride a Bike Summer Games

Is it right to say that I missed the boat? Maybe if it's a hybrid boat-bicycle the idiom would make more sense.

Really, I do not know how it happened. I read Let's Go Ride a Bike religiously, which for me is more often than sporadic, sometimes with vodka involved, and no dread of hellfire. Then again, I'm not getting younger and certain pieces of information go in one eye and out the other. What makes my neglect in this instance particularly odd is that prizes (that I would want) are involved.

I noticed that the LGRAB Summer Games existed sometime in mid-June, yet did not figure out until a few days ago -- conveniently during a heat wave -- that I could still participate. Just in time for the third part (new territory), I was able to go on a little adventure that incorporated three of the challenges, and provided for a possible new one that they might include in future competitions. I promise that I'm doing this for all the right reasons, but the possibility of winning a Queen Bee pannier sweetens the deal.


On Sunday, I met the following challenges:
1. Explore new part of town by bike
2. Ride a greenway
3. Have a bicycle picnic

That's the short version.


The recent heatwave kept me inside for days on end and before that the Jenny was making some unhappy sounds (still bitter about being strapped to the front of a bus I think) as well as automatically shifting through several gears, so I had not ridden in awhile. I took the LGRAB Summer Games as the incentive to make time on Sunday to go for a picnic just off the East Coast Greenway, and to get to the ECG, Interstatement and I would travel through a section of Hartford that I'm not too familiar with. This loop would take us through Hartford, Windsor, South Windsor, Manchester, East Hartford, and then back into Hartford.

Before fun and games, I agreed to accompany Interstatement to his church in the North End of the city, as it was on the way. To be more precise, it's in the North East neighborhood, which is terribly stricken with violence. This is where Hartford gets its reputation from. I was not thrilled to be going through here, but it was early on a Sunday morning, which meant that most of the troublemakers were probably still sleeping after causing problems all night. I had not biked in this area before, so this fulfilled one challenge.

I have also never evaded a cop before.

I did not mean to, exactly. As we were traveling past the site where a police officer was shot a few nights before, a cruiser rolled up. The cop rolled down his window and began talking. I had just gotten into a good rhythm and did not feel like breaking it. About a block ahead it occurred to me that maybe I ought to stop. By the time I did and turned around, I saw that Interstatement had satisfied the officer with some answer that caused him to go on his way. In my own neighborhood, I'm not exactly among the racial/ethnic majority, but I spend a bit of time outdoors and must look like I fit in more. The experience yesterday annoyed me, but I guess it is not horribly offensive. White people, traveling in that neighborhood, are most likely there to buy drugs. (Side note: the data is a few years old now, but only 1.1% of people living in the North East neighborhood are white.) And yesterday, before my day of riding, I was definitely white. Now, I'm more of a red hue.

We did the church thing and then fielded questions from churchgoers who were surprised to see bicycles (instead of cars) being used as going-to-church-transportation. (Hey, if you want to show respect for God, stop crapping all over the planet with your SUV.) From here, we traveled through more sections of Hartford that I am not too familiar with, but which felt far less blighted and dangerous than those we passed through to arrive at the church. We went through a section of Keney Park, which I had not been through before. Keney Park is one of the largest parks in New England and I had previously only seen about one-third of it.

Eventually we landed on Windsor Avenue and started searching for the side streets that would get us to the Bissell Bridge, which would take us over the Connecticut River and along I-291.



While I have traveled over I-291 numerous times by car, I have never done this on a bicycle, nor have I seen the part of South Windsor that is still farmland. This is exactly where the bike path took us. South Windsor, a town I grew up near, is a place I associate with the worst ills of suburban culture -- strip malls and cheaply-built McMansions. Despite what the graffiti on the bridge might want us to believe, it's not threatening enough to "run this shit."



After a pleasant ride through corn fields, we cycled through an industrial section, finally winding up at where I-291 begins/ends in Manchester.

We arrived at Wickham Park dripping sweat and more than ready for our picnic lunch of wine and cheese.


A lot of parks in Connecticut do not permit alcohol, a fact I had forgotten until we arrived. Not sure on Wickham Park's policy, we planned to do a quick photo shoot, pour the wine, and then put the bottle back in one of Interstatement's cargo bike panniers.





I took photos, poured wine, set out the crackers, and was just about the open the cheese when a ranger came over. I had already evaded a cop that morning, but I have the utmost respect for park rangers, so I took a deep breath and waited for it. We learned the area we were using was actually reserved, but that there were other non-reserved areas in the park we could go to. He suggested we "chug" the wine and find another table. What? No trouble?

Since the church group of 150 or so people were supposed to show up for their tables any moment, we quickly packed the crackers and smartly chugged the wine. Just following orders.


The new picnic area actually worked out well, if not better. There was a lot of shade from trees and it was closer to the side we would be exiting from anyway. After lunch we visited the park's Aviary (or "birdiary" if, like me, you can't ever remember the word "aviary"). My photos are not as awesome as they could be since the fence was in the way.













The last stretch of the adventure would involve riding on a greenway. The East Coast Greenway is described by its website:

The East Coast Greenway is the nation's most ambitious long-distance urban trail project. By connecting existing and planned shared-use trails, a continuous, traffic-free route is being formed, serving self-powered users of all abilities and ages. 3,000 miles long, the Greenway links Calais, Maine at the Canadian border with Key West, Florida. Alternate routes will add another 2,000 miles to the ECG trail system.

This green city-to-city travel corridor was launched in 1991 when the East Coast Greenway Alliance formed to make this vision a reality. The East Coast Greenway will be entirely on public right-of-way, incorporating waterfront esplanades, park paths, abandoned railroad corridors, canal towpaths, and pathways along highway corridors.

I had previously ridden on most of the section planned for that day, but it was when I rode less frequently; thus, I was looking forward to conquering the hills that used to be awful for me. No such luck. I rode it, but due to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act the pavement was all dug up! Almost the entire section was dirt. Not hardpacked dirt, or even gravel, but loose dirt which made riding even on flat surfaces a challenge I was not expecting. We had to keep stopping because my thighs were burning. Little did I know, I was also getting wicked sunburn in spite of having diligently applied SPF45 sunblock that morning.



By the time we hit the street section of the ECG, I was happy to ride in traffic because it meant a hard surface. Next time, I am bringing more water and the bottle of sunblock.
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Stank Locker

In case you're asked to check your bags at the front desk of the oldest art museum in Hartford, you can use this photo as proof that your junk'll probably fit just nicely in one of their complimentary lockers. One locker holds: massive cargo bike pannier, two helmets, and a medium-sized purse. Sure, we could have taken two lockers and not gotten everything wrinkled, but I think the point needed to be made.

Before we reached the museum, we had to do some rush hour traffic riding. Before that, I practically got marriage offers from some dudes in my neighborhood. It went something like this:
DUDE ONE: We need us a simple girl like that.
DUDE TWO: Yeah, all these girls 'round here all they want's for us to get expensive cars and drive them around.

DUDE ONE: (to me) Hey, can I ride wit you? I'll behave.

This was one of the better random street pickup attempts I've been victim to, mostly because I agreed with them. Too many females see males as chauffeurs and ATMs. Relying on a man to supply one with these things is just setting oneself up for disappointment. Thus, I quote Destiny's Child: "I depend on me if I want it."




At the museum, we saw that someone thought himself too good for both wheels.

This is not the first time I spotted a unicycle downtown. Last year, someone sped around Main Street on one, doing tricks and hopping off the curb.

Before hitting the after party, we wanted to ride home to make some wardrobe adjustments. Interstatement picked up a passenger for the back of his bike -- a friend in the neighborhood who was too lazy to walk his self home -- and I once again dazzled onlookers by being able to pedal in heels. Here's a secret: it's really not that hard. In fact, it's way easier to ride a bike in heels than it is to stand still in them. What sucked about the ride had nothing to do with my footwear. The seat on Starry Starry Bike was still at this high, strange angle, and I've been spoiled riding the Jenny, which allows me to sit upright. I have a cranky back and any hunched over posture, if not immediately uncomfortable, at least promises to cause me discomfort the next day.

We rode home and then back downtown, locked the bikes on a random railing because there are no visible bike racks outside on Columbus Boulevard, and proceeded to check out the after party before running into a friend stumbling down from a mere few blocks away. Sure, he left later than we did, but I think this makes a sound case for why he needs a bicycle yesterday.

Also, if you need more information to pull out if the subject ever comes up, bike helmets and panniers were allowed into a swank restaurant in the Convention Center/Science Center vicinity.

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Do office chairs belong in bicycle racks?

Sometimes you don’t want to walk to the bar. Obviously (i hope) driving isn’t an option. I suppose for some reason you may choose not to ride. And, every once in a while, i am sure we all will ask a friend to push us to the bar in an office chair. It happens. Where should the chair be left? This and other hardhitting deep issues of Key West bicycle culture are being discussed and debated. Well, maybe not, but they sure make funny photos. I'm going to continue to post random postcards from this crazy little tropical island as well from roadtrips on the BBB every now and then, but mostly I will be writing and photographing for my new blog, Key West Velo.


Expect more of my same blurry photos and long winded stories but without any snow or ice...ever. Although, I must admit, the cooler weather down here lately has been great for riding. Mid 50's at night are chilly if you're sitting around, but feels great if speeding around on a bike. And we got lots of bicycles here of every type and rustitude. Here's a typical sight outside El Alamo when Scott, Dave and I are cruising around. There's thousands and thousands of bikes everywhere, I love it. Its truly the best way to get around.


Here's an unusual sight inside on Christmas night...IT SNOWED!!! Even though it was plasticky and not cold, people went nuts! BTW, this spot has $1 PBR's and $2 Yuenglings all day every day! mmmmm!

I will also be contributing to the Fixed Gears Bicycle Shop Blog and writing and photographing all the assorted road, time trial, cruiser, choppers and various crazy looking bikes that come through the shop. Its my new fulltime job; managing, organizing, learning and having a great time at Fixed Gears Bicycle Shop. The links between the two are hard to find, so here they both are. That was an awkward paragraph, my bad! But life is good, i encourage everyone to follow their hearts and manifest their dreams.

Fight the winter blues and live vicariously someplace warm through the blog, or plan a trip and come on down and visit! Hope to see y'all down here smiling and pedaling.

Ride on,

chillwill
Key West Velo

click read more for a naughty elf picture





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late night bicycle beer delivery

It was wonderful being back in da 'beat for a week; especially all the late night bike rides with friends i miss dearly. I forgot what kissing the river with Krash and Joel was like and on Tuesday night mistakenly brought out the island fixie. whoops! Fatter tires, gears and brakes were far more useful than a basket...especially on the Myrtle Street Tuck'n'Bomb! We picked up Rick enroute to PHH and enlisted him for the ride and had a great time. Playing chase at the EH ghetto velodrome with four bikes was crazy fun! Congrats to Joel for winning and taking home with him...bragging rights til next time! My biggest surprise was forgetting how shitty and potholed the roads are in da 'beat. wow! Later, on rides with my road bike, i was super happy to have 35's between my bike and I, and the roads. Props and 'nuff respect to everyone battling the crappy roads and crazy drivers in the city. Stay safe y'all.


Wednesday night Krash and I decided to ride out to Joel's spot with a sixer and give him some company. I have no idea how far we rode, but it was cool to ride Joel's commute from Windsor, though we did take an extra credit night route through Keney Park. Ha! Just as we entered at Tower Avenue a passing car yelled at us not to go in there at night. I wasn't worried about riding though as much as flatting out. But we survived and exited onto 159 and rode North.


We stopped on the bridge over the Farmington River. My biggest regret being back in CT was not taking a swim in this beautiful river's cold water. There are no rivers in Key West and right now the ocean temp is freakin' 90 degrees. Even a CT heatwave was relief for me...especially the wonderfully cool nights. Loved them!


Eventually we made it to Joel's and promptly got a tour of his camper and cracked open the beers. mmmm...beer. The ride back was fun. Joel accompanied us to Windsor Center before u-turning home. Krash certainly exploited my legs which were used to flat island riding, but i mos def beat him up a few hills; which by the way, I really miss hills. Up, down, whatever. Its all good. Hills are a much, much more fun challenge than a headwind!






And here is the rest of it.

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bicycles and sailboats and jugs of wine

I get to write about a blog appropiate afternoon of sailing that actually involves a few bicycles. Sweeeet! My unexpected day on the water began when I shouted “hoo-dee-hoo” from my yard as my neighbor Maya rode by on her bicycle. She swung a u-turn and came back into my driveway and asked if I wanted to go sailing on a 19 foot sailboat for the afternoon. Five minutes later I had a drybag packed with a few sailing sundries and was pedaling with her and her roommate Redbeard towards Garrison Bight. We arrived at the Key West Sailing Club and locked up our bicycles on the half-full rack. Maya checked out a sailboat and soon we were on our way; powered by the wind and totally enjoying the ride.


We cruised past Rat Key and through the Seaplane Basin towards open water and just wandered aimlessly for a few hours as Redbeard and I shared a jug of wine he had brought along. On our way back, we spotted the cruiser on the side of the sailboat and circled around for a good shot of the bicycle. Thanks Captain Maya! I love seeing bikes on boats. Another person doing the dingy/bicycle commute and avoiding paying rent on land!


Yep, another hard day in paradise. I really wish I knew some Viking songs. We were really wanting to sing Viking songs as we passed several different Navy SEAL boats on training missions that kept messing up our tacking. I hope I spelled that right. There was talk of outlaw canoes taking over the Navy and controlling the oceans. I am not sure I still think that’s a great idea. Anyways, we made it back to the dock and pedaled home, quite content and sunkissed.

Click READ MORE for an inappropriate photo for the blog!







A few weeks ago Mary Beth and I were returning from a kayak trip around No Name Key. We spotted a waterspout about a mile away and watched it slowly grow and drop down from the clouds to the water. We threw on our life vests and watched as we pretty much just continued paddling towards it to get to the take out. We were far more worried about the lightening suddenly coming at us from two different storm cells. It began to dissipate in 10 minutes as we continued hugging the mangroves on the coastline under the flashing sky. Its official…summer in the keys!


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What happened?

Dear reader, it's been some time since that nonsensical post about fish and parties last week, so you're probably assuming that one of those things claimed my life or caused me to quit this blog. Nope. In fact, I was doing lots of cool things and now I'm going to tell you about them.

Thursday was this:

People were drinking & dancing at City Hall!

On Friday, nothing really happened besides eating some Vietnamese food at the Vietnam Restaurant. Best bún around!

I also walked home from work in the rain on Friday and considered the necessity of Green Infrastructure in Hartford.

On Saturday, I went to Penwood with my newly rigid Stumpjumper and I found this (which I did not drink, because Mike's Hard Lemonade is nasty, not because I found it in the woods):


And, it caused my rear tire to go flat shortly after I took this picture.


The evening led to some more dancing courtesy of that Bacchanalian HartBeat Ensemble.

On Sunday, I went to Cockaponset and it wasn't all I hope it would be. Most of the trails were kind of overgrown. This description was a little hyperbolic if you ask me.


This above trail was kickass, but I'm not altogether sure if I was allowed to ride on it. There were bike tire tracks, but that's often a meaningless measure of the rules. I apologize if I screwed up and rode on a "no bike" trail. I know you aren't allowed on the blue blaze here, but this was blue & red and I know you were allowed on the red. There weren't any of those CT Forest & Park Association "NO BIKES" diamonds on it, though.


There was also this weird moonscpaed fireroad where it looked like they had done some logging.

I ate this bowl of soup, too:

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