Before you read any further, please go back and read this earlier post "An Old Dog".
One day this past week, I was riding home from work, that same dog - a little older - a little wiser - chased me! He did not sit passively in his yard and lazily watch me pass as he had done on literally hundreds of occasions in the past. He chased me!! He didn't just leisurely perambulate in my general direction. He chased me with an abandonment!!!
I was traveling faster than his aged legs could carry him, plus there was a fence between us. He didn't catch me. There was no way he could. I think he knew that. Yet - he chased me all the same.
The question is why? Why would he chase me, when he knew it was but an exercise in futility?? Why would he chase me, when he knew he would but walk away panting heavily and empty pawed???
The answer is not as complicated or elusive as you might think. It's actually quite simple really.
We are dogs and that's what dogs do!
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Monday, January 25, 2010
When It Rains - It Pours
This morning, as I stood at the kitchen window grinding my coffee, I noticed the tell tale signs of rain. I was veritably giddy at the sight.
Several months back, I invested in some top notch rain gear from Shower Pass. Since that time I have been eagerly anticipating the opportunity to give it a whirl. Much to my chagrin, I have been continuously thwarted the chance and have blogged my frustration in Paul and His Magic Rain Suit. Today though, the stars aligned in my favor and so did the storm clouds. As I donned my gear, little did I know the adventure that awaited me. All I knew was, it was raining and that was good enough for me.
The precarious predicament into which I rode did not manifest itself until I reached Huntington Park. It was at this point in my commute that I emerged from the protective covering of trees and houses and was confronted with the full force of a southwest wind blowing across the James River and right into my face. At the time, I failed to realize that this was but a cheap imitation of what awaited me when I reached the North Yard parking lot of the shipyard and was confronted with the full, unabated force of mother nature. We are talking sustained winds of 40 mph with gusts as high as 60 mph.
I have ridden in weather conditions of all kinds. I'm talking really bad stuff. However, nothing could have prepared me for what confronted my senses on this day. I shifted to my easiest gear and it required every ounce of my immense strength and pedaling prowess to keep the cranks going in circles and maintain a mere pittance of forward motion. To exacerbate matters, the wind drove the rain at such a velocity, that I was certain the drops would penetrate my face and pierce my brain, causing irreversible damage at best or sudden death at worst. These mentally damaging or life threatening conditions caused me to hold my head down and essentially reduced my vision to a mere 2 feet in front of my wheel.
A lesser man than me would have bemoaned his fate. I on the other hand began to laugh loud and hard. Of course, no one could hear me over the howling of the wind, but I laughed all the same. I was having the time of my life.
Several months back, I invested in some top notch rain gear from Shower Pass. Since that time I have been eagerly anticipating the opportunity to give it a whirl. Much to my chagrin, I have been continuously thwarted the chance and have blogged my frustration in Paul and His Magic Rain Suit. Today though, the stars aligned in my favor and so did the storm clouds. As I donned my gear, little did I know the adventure that awaited me. All I knew was, it was raining and that was good enough for me.
The precarious predicament into which I rode did not manifest itself until I reached Huntington Park. It was at this point in my commute that I emerged from the protective covering of trees and houses and was confronted with the full force of a southwest wind blowing across the James River and right into my face. At the time, I failed to realize that this was but a cheap imitation of what awaited me when I reached the North Yard parking lot of the shipyard and was confronted with the full, unabated force of mother nature. We are talking sustained winds of 40 mph with gusts as high as 60 mph.
I have ridden in weather conditions of all kinds. I'm talking really bad stuff. However, nothing could have prepared me for what confronted my senses on this day. I shifted to my easiest gear and it required every ounce of my immense strength and pedaling prowess to keep the cranks going in circles and maintain a mere pittance of forward motion. To exacerbate matters, the wind drove the rain at such a velocity, that I was certain the drops would penetrate my face and pierce my brain, causing irreversible damage at best or sudden death at worst. These mentally damaging or life threatening conditions caused me to hold my head down and essentially reduced my vision to a mere 2 feet in front of my wheel.
A lesser man than me would have bemoaned his fate. I on the other hand began to laugh loud and hard. Of course, no one could hear me over the howling of the wind, but I laughed all the same. I was having the time of my life.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Grandma Bike??
"Hey! Get that Grandma bike out the way!!" Those were the words that pierced my ears as a co-worker and fellow commuter shot past me on my morning commute to work. I'm not sure which one was worse - he insulting my bike or me? Truth be told, I don't think it's possible to separate the two!
As he pedaled away in the distance, I reached down and gently patted the top tube and soothingly said, "don't listen to him, he's an idiot."
Then I got to thinking. OK, fair enough, she's not the fastest steed on the streets. The fact of the matter is, she's not built for speed. She's built for efficiency, comfort, functionality, flexibility, and practicality. In those realms, she reigns supreme. The fact that she's drop dead gorgeous, well that's just a bonus!!
For all you guys and kinky girls out there - you can look - heck, you can even lust - but don't touch - cause - she's all mine!!
As he pedaled away in the distance, I reached down and gently patted the top tube and soothingly said, "don't listen to him, he's an idiot."
Then I got to thinking. OK, fair enough, she's not the fastest steed on the streets. The fact of the matter is, she's not built for speed. She's built for efficiency, comfort, functionality, flexibility, and practicality. In those realms, she reigns supreme. The fact that she's drop dead gorgeous, well that's just a bonus!!
For all you guys and kinky girls out there - you can look - heck, you can even lust - but don't touch - cause - she's all mine!!
Monday, January 18, 2010
Car Light Index
One of my New Year resolutions is to "Expand the practical use of my bicycle". Living in the area that I do and given my current lifestyle, I've accepted the fact that going "car free" is not realistic. However, there is no reason that I can't reduce the amount that I use my car (truck). Therefore, I have decided to aim for "car light" instead of "car free".
The question is how light is "car light"? How do I measure it?
I have been racking my brain of late trying to answer those questions and as a result, have devised what I've dubbed the "Car Light Index (CLI)". The "CLI" is a measure of how many trips I take with my car with respect to how many trips I take overall. The simple formula is a follows:
Car Light Index (CLI) = # of Trips by Car / Total # of Trips
I have defined "Trips" as when I use a vehicle (car, bus, bike etc.) to get somewhere or accomplish an errand. In this definition, when I climb on my bike simply to take a ride for leisure or training, that does NOT count as a trip.
Also, a single trip constitutes going to and from a destination (round trip).
One further point of clarification in the use of the CLI is that I will only count solo trips. That's trips that I take by myself. I have purposely left off trips that include other family members, principally my wife. My wife ain't into all this bike stuff. Recently, I nonchalantly mentioned the possibility of the family going "car free" and seeing how this blog is rated "G", I will refrain from providing an exact quote of her response. Actually, my wife doesn't use foul language, but never-the-less, she was perfectly clear in communicating her opposition to such a ludicrous idea. Therefore, my measure of CLI will only reflect "MY" performance, not "OURS". The last thing I want is for my quest to achieve a low CLI to negatively impact the quality and quantity of time I spend with my wife.
The question is how light is "car light"? How do I measure it?
I have been racking my brain of late trying to answer those questions and as a result, have devised what I've dubbed the "Car Light Index (CLI)". The "CLI" is a measure of how many trips I take with my car with respect to how many trips I take overall. The simple formula is a follows:
Car Light Index (CLI) = # of Trips by Car / Total # of Trips
I have defined "Trips" as when I use a vehicle (car, bus, bike etc.) to get somewhere or accomplish an errand. In this definition, when I climb on my bike simply to take a ride for leisure or training, that does NOT count as a trip.
Also, a single trip constitutes going to and from a destination (round trip).
One further point of clarification in the use of the CLI is that I will only count solo trips. That's trips that I take by myself. I have purposely left off trips that include other family members, principally my wife. My wife ain't into all this bike stuff. Recently, I nonchalantly mentioned the possibility of the family going "car free" and seeing how this blog is rated "G", I will refrain from providing an exact quote of her response. Actually, my wife doesn't use foul language, but never-the-less, she was perfectly clear in communicating her opposition to such a ludicrous idea. Therefore, my measure of CLI will only reflect "MY" performance, not "OURS". The last thing I want is for my quest to achieve a low CLI to negatively impact the quality and quantity of time I spend with my wife.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
An Old Dog
On a ride home recently, I saw an old dog, a rottweiler to be exact. He was standing in his yard and looking the other way. He didn't even notice me. I dinged my bell to get his attention. He slowly turned his head and looked my way, but outside of that, he didn't move a muscle. That got me to thinking and drawing parallels between:
- Dogs and Doods
- Bikes and Babes
A young dog will chase a bike with every fiber of his being. It doesn't matter if he's chased a hundred bikes before and failed to catch any of them, when bike number one hundred and one passes, he will chase it with every fiber of his being. It's not logical. It doesn't make any sense. He looks absolutely ridiculous in the process. Everyone knows that he ain't gonna catch that bike. It's a futile waste of time and energy. Yet none of this logic matters to a young dog. In fact, none of these things even cross a young dog's mind. When a bike passes, a young dog thinks of only one thing - chasing it.
An old dog, on the other hand, barely even pays a passing bike any mind. There's no way he's gonna waste any energy chasing after it. I don't think that an old dog's failure to chase has anything to do with a lack of interest or desire. Nor would I attribute it to a lack of energy. I think an old dog has lived long enough to come to the simple realization that it just ain't worth it. That's not to say that if a bike ventured close enough, the old dog wouldn't chance a bite, but it would have to be within a step or two, cause he ain't likely to expend much more energy than that.
- Dogs and Doods
- Bikes and Babes
A young dog will chase a bike with every fiber of his being. It doesn't matter if he's chased a hundred bikes before and failed to catch any of them, when bike number one hundred and one passes, he will chase it with every fiber of his being. It's not logical. It doesn't make any sense. He looks absolutely ridiculous in the process. Everyone knows that he ain't gonna catch that bike. It's a futile waste of time and energy. Yet none of this logic matters to a young dog. In fact, none of these things even cross a young dog's mind. When a bike passes, a young dog thinks of only one thing - chasing it.
An old dog, on the other hand, barely even pays a passing bike any mind. There's no way he's gonna waste any energy chasing after it. I don't think that an old dog's failure to chase has anything to do with a lack of interest or desire. Nor would I attribute it to a lack of energy. I think an old dog has lived long enough to come to the simple realization that it just ain't worth it. That's not to say that if a bike ventured close enough, the old dog wouldn't chance a bite, but it would have to be within a step or two, cause he ain't likely to expend much more energy than that.
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