Ipods while cycling

I’ve started doing long solo rides in preparation for some cyclocross races in the Autumn. When I was racing on the road in the 80s and 90s, I often did huge solo rides with a walkman, so ipods are a nice change from their bulkiness. There are some safety precautions that one can take, however:

#1. Only use these devises when riding solo. They are a tremendous distraction during group rides, even with just a few people, and group rides are for chatting and socializing with friends, right? The only time you should wear an ipod on a group ride is if you are riding with people you don't like and/or trigeeks. You may want to drown out their ridiculous banter. Also, if they do deign to ask you a question, every answer will be a bizarre non-sequiter since you won’t know what the heck they are talking about.

#2. Wear just one earpiece, preferably in the right ear, and keep the volume at levels that aren’t distracting. Use the smaller “ear plug” type earphones. The bulky disc earphones will negate the use of a helmet and are guaranteed to make you look profoundly retarded.

#3. Refrain from listening to anything by Joanna Newsome or Devandra Bernhardt (or any of these other new neo-folk artists) as all of these can cause various levels of dangerous distraction and confusion to the listener that can leave you dry-heaving in a ditch.

#4. Remember—you will look even more Pro and Euro if you have an earpiece dangling from your ear.

Back to the old stomping grounds

There are some hidden gems of rides tucked away in an obscure corner of Northeast Missouri. I spent the better part of my childhood and teens in this somewhat bizarre place, but there is a peacefulness that I have ended up missing so the family goes up there (to Thousand Hills State Park cabins) for some R and R once a year.

The best ride? Take highway six West to Novinger and then north on route O (this is where the fantastic riding starts). You then hit route D and this takes you to State Highway 149. You will maybe see 2 cars on this 25 mile loop. Back to Hwy. 6 (you have your choice of the old outer road or the much busier main highway). Here are some pics from a recent sojourn. It is a Midwestern Idyll, there in the Chariton River Valley. To think--I used to do interval after interval on Route O and my Dad motorpaced my out there. Now I'm just a cycle-tourist with a camera, in many ways, and I like that just fine . . .

To insure that I drop my brother this summer

I’ve started to go out and ride at least once a week before work in the morning. This means an extremely early waking time—I was up by 4 this morning because I was worried that the alarm wouldn’t go off. Reverend and I did the Gibbs Rd. loop out NW of town and I suffered like a dog because I’m not a morning person and my legs beg for mercy before 9am, generally.

But….if I want to train during the week, this is the only time to ride. And, there are so many benefits—it was just beautiful out this morning. There are very few cars. It is usually in the 70s, before the heat of the day hits. And, you know, I don’t feel so bad this morning--I'm actually less tired than I am when I sleep until 7. Go figure . . .