new hatch

yesterday I drove down to denver in the afternoon to get a new hatch put on my topper. the adventure began when I went to 5875 W. Colfax, and not 5875 E. Colfax. So that was an 11mi detour. Luckily I made it down in time to get it replaced. A couple blocks away was a Popeyes, so I had some fried chicken for dinner. First time for that in about 2 years. and i felt fine after! Got to see Ken's rental house as I left town. Ken & Kim have rented that house for almost a year, and the first time I got to see it was the last day he was there, cleaning it out! kinda weird, but his new house up near Central City will be much more convenient, esp. on the way to the Hills house.

5 months

I should have put these up on 3/24, but this'll do. we are so lucky!

 
 
  

what kind of look is this?

  

the good & bad side of computers

 
  

the season is here! #1 on the books

well, getting lapped by an 18 year old with 2 laps to go wasn't the most fun for the first crit of the season. but all in all it was good to be doing some race pace for a while. it was a super windy day in Boulder (no surprise there), so that had me a little nervous prior to the start. For about 40min I was feeling okay, and even took some pulls near the front of our group. the handling was fine, and the bike felt solid. With 10min and 2 laps left, Walker and someone else lapped me and about half of the field. nice to get my first shock to the system before the next one, Koppenburg on Sunday.
Helen & Alina came down too, and they went for a little jog around the Stazio complex. not as warm as we were hoping for, as the 30-60mph winds made the mid 50s feel like mid 30s. that's okay though, as it was Alina's first road race to watch! She has seen a couple of late season cross races in the fall, though at that early age (4-6 wks), she didn't do much but hang out in the car or in the sling with Helen. Helen is still battling whatever bug she has from the rec center, but was able to get out for a quick run.

 
 

playing with the big kid(s)

alina hung out with ethan for a bit last night. i think he already thinks she's cute. i better keep tabs on this boy, if he's anything like his dad!

  

tired...

now that spring is here (at least this week), I've been taking advantage of the dry roads and the 75min of light after work. pretty inspiring to actually get to ride outside, after riding the rollers the last month or so.
did 2 short rides today. as i ride straight from the office, and then drive back home after in my cycling socks and work clothes, it reminds me of summer. although I wasn't as tired as I normally am after an after-work ride. not yet that time of year. hopefully tomorrow I will get some good high-intensity work in the crit. regardless, it will not be snowing in Boulder for the 3rd straight weekend, and it should be in the low 50s.


 

spring is here....

even at almost 10,000' up in the mountains, I was able to pull off a 3hr ride outside on the cross bike yesterday. and today I went snowboarding and enjoyed 6-8" of fresh stuff. kinda weird that this upslope storm brought us more snow than denver. and yesterday it was almost 50 and sunny here, with dry roads.
the first day of spring treated me very well. soon enough I will be in Boulder getting in some serious miles.

pain is on the horizon...

it won't be long and i'll be suffering on multiple laps at the Koppenberg circuit race. i really need to get out and ride some long hours, but mother nature hasn't coopertated on Sundays lately.

the madness is here.....

both with the ncaa hoops tourney and with all of the spring break crowds here in town. after this weekend things subside for the rest of the month. which is just fine by me. I am looking forward to some offseason projects here at work, and of course getting many hours in the saddle would be nice too. first race of the year is on 4/2. if weather permits, I am going to hop in one of the Stazio crits this sunday or the next. the Koppenburg circuit race will kick my ass, but all early season road races do. it is due diligence if I expect any good results in June.

winter in Boulder

the weekend jaunt to Boulder was still a lot of fun, except for the snow and ice that covered most everything by Sunday afternoon. We went out to a good Ethiopian place for Mary's b-day. Alina loved it too. my much anticipated 4 hour road ride turned into an hour on the rollers in the Hill house, looking outside over the recently-transformed winter wonderland. i was still determined to ride outside, as the roads in Boulder weren't holding any snow on Sun morning. so Helen & Mary dropped me off at the justice center so I could hop on the Boulder Creek path for a while. well the path at the time was just wet, but what I didn't realize was that it was at or below freezing, and getting colder. so the cold wet spray that found its way through my shorts and up me arse, it also froze to my bike after a while. soon i gained about 2-3lb of ice, and my cassette and derailleurs were soon clogged with ice and the chain was skipping all over. just when my bike was getting more frozen and more unhappy, I pulled up to Illegal Pete's on the mall for a big fat fish burrito and coffee. that made my miserable ride really nice. too bad the weather wasn't cooperative, as I was looking forward to the crit. oh well, next wknd will work.

one of our first dinners together...

 

homestretch

we are getting closer to the the busy week for Spring Break in March. after next week, the remaining month of the season will seem like a walk in the park.
Alina is doing great. It is great to be home with her a lot. She likes her table-side chair a lot. Helen is still doing well balancing full-time work, training and being a mom.

spring thaw was nice...

but it looks like winter is on the way back. that's fine, and expected. as much as I prefer to ride, we could really use the snow for business. It has been almost 2 weeks since we've had any substantial snow. All roads are dry, and yesterday I did a 4hr road ride up in the county. pretty cool deal since it is barely March. today I rode for about 90min outside. enjoying the warmth for one last day.
may drop in the training crit this weekend, we'll see.

more from New Orleans

this girl just flashed her boobs...

just kidding! this is me waving for some beads, looking pathetic.

  

a good stab at Katrina...

where are the looters?

  

Zeus

  

with Granny at Thoth

ALINA'S FIRST PARADE!

  

this swing is gettin' old...

  

i can tell these people have no pets...

  

pathetic...

pathetic that I haven't been able to update this more often. I have so much to be thankful for, and so many good experiences lately. We took Alina's first plane ride last wknd down to NO. She did well on the plane. Didn't scream, just a little fidgety. It was great to see everyone in NO. My parents loved every minute with Alina, and she seemed to do well with the other relatives that came to see her on Friday night. Saturday we drove through Lakeview and the upper 9th ward. The destruction is incredible. Street after street of blue tarped-rooves and white FEMA trailers in the front yard. It will be a while, but things will come back.

I'll get some pics of our trip up here tonight.

sitting up, kind of.

tiiiimmmmmmmbbbbbbeeeerrrrr.......