My new (to me) bike!

One of the things I've been wanting to do since moving to Baltimore is buy a bike. I want to be able to ride to work. I want to be able to ride on the nearby trails. I want to be able to dodge through crazy Baltimore traffic. (Okay, maybe not that one.)

My friend Rachel visited me last week on her way to Florida. She's an avid biker, and so we had a conversation about bikes. She asked me, "What's your budget?" I said, "I don't really know. $200?" I'm glad she didn't laugh, because it was obvious I've never bought (or seriously shopped for) a bike before. While she was here, we went to a nearby bike shop and started the bike shopping process. (That's when I learned that, no, actually $200 won't get you very far in the new bike market.) We also started looking at Craigslist.

I emailed about a couple of the bikes we found on Craigslist. They had all been sold. I kept looking. I'd check about once a day for new bike postings, email whenever I found one that looked decent, and I always got the reply, "Sorry, I just sold it." Turns out if you post a decent bike on Craigslist for a reasonable price, it will sell FAST. Seriously, I'd sometimes email people within 24 hours of their posting of the ad, and the bike was already gone.

So I started checking more frequently. And I broadened my horizons. Instead of just the Baltimore Craiglist, I included a search in the Washington, D.C. Craigslist too. Today I found a listing for a nice bike on the DC list, for a REALLY great price. I emailed her within about 2 or 3 hours of the ad posting, and set up an appointment to check out the bike tonight.

She was in Gaithersburg, MD, which is about an hour from Baltimore. Fortunately traffic was relatively light, for a Friday evening. (And I got to drive by the beautiful Washington, D.C. temple, which makes a spectacular appearance as you're driving on the beltway.) And success! The bike seems like it'll be a great fit for me. It's a hybrid bike, which is a cross between a road bike and a mountain bike, able to be ridden on paved roads and unpaved trails. It's blue. Both wheels are quick release. (Which is especially good since I don't have a bike rack; I can take the front wheel off easily and fit it in my back seat.) The seat is easy to adjust, and it is well padded and in great condition. No rust on the chains, and only a few scratches on the body. She mentioned that she'd gotten two more emails about the bike this afternoon. Good thing I jumped on it! I bought the bike. I'm really excited about it!

AND! I came in way below my original, though ignorant, $200 budget. Woo!

I'll take it out for a spin this weekend so we can get to know each other a bit better.

Now I just need a name for it. I'm open to suggestions.

I am my own trainer

This afternoon I was going to go to a cycling class at the gym. You'd think I'd have gotten enough last week...but apparently not. I was running late, so I ended up not making it in time for class. (I have this problem with always running late....I considered giving that up for Lent, maybe I should have.)

So I missed my cycling class, but still planned on going to a weight lifting class in an hour, so I would just do cardio on my own until the class. I'd just do the elliptical and read tonight's Institute lesson until weight lifting time. But they were all taken. So I decided to do the bike until one freed up, then go snag one.

After 5 minutes, no one using the ellipticals gave any indication they were going anywhere anytime soon. A good song came on my iPod, and I decided, "Hey, why can't I just choreograph my OWN cycling workout? Sure the bikes in class are a lot cooler, but this is sufficient." My favorite cycling teacher in Austin, Flor, is my inspiration. Her workouts are perfectly choreographed to really awesome music. I have some good workout songs on my iPod, and on the spot came up with the following workout for myself.

* Paralyzer (Finger 11): Sprint on the chorus (3:29)
* Low (Flo Rida): Sprint on chorus: seated first half of chorus, standing second half (3:51)
* Zombie (Cranberries): Gradual hill, ending in a standing climb (5:07)
* When You Were Young (The Killers): Jumps in counts of 8 (i.e., 8 up, 8 down) on the chorus (3:40)
* Somebody Told Me (The Killers): Standing sprints on the chorus, with one final seated sprint at the end (3:18)
* I'm Yours (Jason Mraz): Active recovery, pedal with the pace of the song (keeping it, as Flor says, "just above uncomfortable") (4:19)
* Repeat When You Were Young (The Killers) because I can't get enough of that song. But this time with sprints on the chorus instead of jumps. (3:40)
* Sounds of Pulling Heaven Down (Blue October): Another hill, ending in a standing climb (4:43)
* Viva La Vida (Coldplay): Keep quick pace during verses, accelerate during chorus (4:01)
* Repeat When You Were Young (The Killers) with jumps again. Did I mention I love that song? (3:40)
* Round Here (Counting Crows): Cool down

Total: 38:48 + cool down

Wow. Outside of cycling class, I've never really had a good workout on a stationary bike. But seriously...this was awesome.

Have I ever mentioned that in my next life I want to be a fitness instructor?

My week in Austin

Last week was winter break at Siena College. So I took the opportunity to escape snowy Albany and return to sunny Austin. Ahhh.....

It was a great week, though busy. I flew in Thursday late. In fact because of delays, my originally scheduled flight on Continental via Newark became a flight on United via Chicago. I arrived after midnight, so had to pick my rental car up the next day. But it's red, so it's okay. :)

I spent Friday catching up with people and got a tiny bit of work done. Friday night I went to the Pink Dance (an annual February tradition with my church group) with my friend Austin. We had a blast. Beforehand, we went to dinner with some other friends, also heading to the dance. Michelle invited Cameron, and I was able to steal him for a couple great Lindy hop dances. :) Here we all are. (Sorry this picture is a little blurry...)

Oh, and I should mention that Austin and I became an award winning couple that night. Um, we're not really sure for what, since we weren't really paying attention when they were giving out awards. Something about the shades of pink we were wearing.

Saturday I returned to my beloved Gregory Gym. Oh, how I've missed it. I wanted to go to cycling classes, so I had to buy a pass...and I wanted to make sure I got my money's worth, so I went every day! (I'm not exaggerating. Sometimes I went TWICE in one day.) But it was awesome.

I saw lots of people I love, and had so much fun catching up. I've missed everyone. Tuesday I was out late, and because I finished a chapter of my thesis, I treated myself to some fried ice cream at the Hulu Hut.

I buckled down and got work done too, lest you think this was a vacation. (It actually wasn't.) I got to work... Wednesday and Thursday nights I was in my office working late, into the wee hours of the morning. By Friday night I was so exhausted I could barely see straight.

Saturday Michelle and I went BIKING around Town Lake, which totally, totally rocked my socks. We had so much fun. It was pretty windy that day, but it was so great. It was SUCH a beautiful day.

We tried taking pictures while we were riding. It worked pretty well, actually.


Except when we accidentally started recording, instead of taking a picture. But hey, it was funny!

I finished another chapter that week and got Amy's ice cream to celebrate that one. (Mexican vanilla with oreos...mmmm!) I had no shame and licked the bowl clean. (Hey, it may be another month before I get something sweet.)

I'm supposed to fly back to Albany tomorrow (Monday). But I got a message from the airline tonight and learned that my flight to Newark was canceled! (Due to the forecasted 12-inches of snow there.) I called them and after about 40 minutes total of trying and being on hold, talked to a real person. They couldn't do anything for me and other flights on other airlines were sold out or canceled. So I'm not going to make it back to teach my class tomorrow, and will be here until Tuesday afternoon. Well...what can you do? I guess I'll just have to soak up some more Austin sun before returning to the snowy northeast.

Biking in Amish Country

As I mentioned, I wrapped up my time in Baltimore Friday late afternoon. Friday evening my friend Sarah (who just moved to D.C.) picked me up at my hotel and we continued north to Lancaster, PA. (Which, by the way, I learned is pronounced LANK-uster, not LAN-caster. I learned a post doc in my department who is originally from that area.)

What was in Lancaster? Sarah's roommate was organizing an event they call "Dutch Bike Dutch." Basically the YSAs (Young Single Adults from the Mormon community) all meet up there and bike. So fun! It's not a church sponsored activity, just a bunch of people getting together to have fun. They've been doing this for a couple years, but from what I hear, this is the best turn out they've ever had. People came from not only D.C. but also NYC and Philadephia. Several people stayed in a hotel up there, and then everyone met up the next morning in the hotel parking lot. I don't have a bike here (obviously), so I rented one from a local bike shop.

The countryside was beautiful! We got to bike through miles of this:

Here is Sarah and I before the ride started.

Everyone enjoying the scenery.

Here I am.

There were a couple covered bridges on the route. Fun!

Me and the covered bridge.

Sarah and I waiting to take a picture with the covered bridge, but waited for theses two Amish boys to pass through.

But we got the picture.

Everyone afterward, back at the hotel parking lot. We made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Another of Sarah's roommate's parents own a peanut butter factory and they sponsored us. That is, they got us these matching bright orange T-shirts and provided all the peanut butter for the sandwiches. The peanut butter is really good; the only ingredient, literally, is peanuts. Yum! Check out their website. It's called Crazy Richards Peanut Butter. Check it out. (Though unless you live on the east coast, you'll have to order it online.)

Biker Girl

I don't own a bicycle. To train for the biking portion of the triathlon, I've been going to cycling (aka, spinning) classes at the gym. Although on a stationary bike, this is a good workout.

However, for the actual race, I'll be riding a real bike. Confession time: I haven't been on a bike in at least 15 years. Maybe more. I really don't know. The only time I remember owning a bike was in early elementary school, and even then it was likely one of my sister's. Fortunately, my roommate, Michelle, owns a bike; and fortunately, she's nice enough to extend me an open invitation to it, telling me I can use it whenever I want.

Saturday was my big, final brick workout, in preparation for the race. (Which is THIS Monday -- September 1, Labor Day.) I'll write more about this workout in a separate post. Michelle helped me get her bike rack fitted onto my car, as you can see. There was something about having a bike and a bike rack on my car that made me feel like the outdoorsy type. :)

Anyway, I told Michelle I was a bit nervous about riding a real bike since it's been so long, and she said, "Don't worry, the only tough part is changing gears." Uh oh, changing gears? That sounded hard. The last bike I rode back in elementary school didn't have gears -- I don't think. She showed me how to do it, and I rode around the parking lot for just a few minutes to see if I could get the hang of it again. It was...okay.

So down I went to Town Lake for my long workout. After swimming and transitioning to the bike portion, I hopped on the bike and took off on the Town Lake Trail. It's true what they say, that you don't forget how to ride a bike. Thank goodness this is true, otherwise I'd be in real trouble. Although it did take me a few minutes to remember a few things, like how to turn corners. In the beginning I'd get nervous when I had to pass someone -- especially if it was another biker. And I had to continually remind myself that if I needed to slow down, stop, or change directions, I did not need to take my feet off the pedals and onto the ground.

I only almost biffed it once, as I was turning a tight corner onto a narrow-ish bridge, with another biker, dismounted and standing to the side. I believe it was in this instance that I got my only battle wound from the bike ride. I'm pretty sure this bruise is from the pedal.

However, by the end of the ride, I found myself saying, "Where has biking been all my life??" Simply stated, I'm now infatuated with bike riding. There's nothing cooler than riding fast on the trail, the wind in your face, covering a lot of ground in not a lot of time. It's so fun! After the triathlon, I plan to buy myself a bike, and more importantly I plan to use it!