One week ago I’m in sunny Tombstone, Arizona, getting set to enjoy the final leg of the Adventure Cycling Association‘s Southern Arizona Road Adventure, an easy 23-mile spin into Benson. The high will be 64 degrees, and there will be a light tailwind for most of the ride.
Today I’m marking my 56th birthday in gray, frigid Bibleburg. There is snow on the ground and more on the way. The high is expected to approach 42, with a north-northwest wind of 30-35 mph augmented by the occasional 45-mph gust.
Some years back I began mimicking the practice of John Wilcockson of VeloNews, who rides his age on his birthday. But not even Jack London would tackle a 56-mile ride in this crap, unless he were Belgian, in which case we’d have had to read “The Call of the Wild” in Flemish (“Argle bargle Buck schmecka lecka John Thornton.”). No, thank you.
So instead I’ll do 56 minutes on the trainer. That’s almost the same, right? Riiiight.
Mad Blog Media 
An hour plus another 360 long seconds of trainer time versus 42 degrees, snow on the ground and 35 mph sustained headwinds. Tough choice. Let me get back to you.
There used to be a quirky country song about Benson, Arizona. It was featured in a very odd, and very low budget science fiction movie called “Dark Star”. I think it was John Carpenter’s first full length movie attempt. Every time I hear the name “Benson, Arizona” I think about that movie.
Meanwhile, thar be bicycle racing here abouts this weekend. The “Mad Cow Classic”. Leave it to Mesa State College to name a bicycle race after a terrible disease. I guess “Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy Classic” didn’t have the same ring to it. Rather appropriate, actually, given that college’s quality of education. I should know, my degree has “Mesa State College” plastered across the top of it.
Wow, Pat . You are looking thinner and more like a bike rider now! Happy birthday. I hope it’s a good one. ( other than the weather )
Happy Birthday, Patrick!
71F tomorrow with 0% chance of rain here in the PetroMetro. We call this Chamber of Commerce weather. There are about 15 days a year like this when companies get new recruits to interview in Houston and sign on the line. Of course, the newbies figure out by about the third week in May that they’ve relocated to Hell. By September, they’re properly poached and good for nothing but working and dining in the comfort of the Galleria mall or in the tunnels under Downtown–just the way Satan would want it.
BTW, y’all take good birthday pictures!
45-48 here yesterday slightly warmer today (maybe), but cloudier. Had a good ride yesterday -first outside- until a friend crashed out right in front of me. No blood, no compound fractures, then she started to complain about head pain in an area covered by her helmet. That and growing facial scrape and bruise tipped the assessment in favor of calling the EMTs.
Post ER, no serious problems, just big bumps and some RR.
Lesson-If you crash, crash with friends with working cell phones. Oh and don’t put yourself in the middle of even a slowish group the first couple of rides of the season.
Patrick, the then and now photos don’t look all that different. Herself’s powers must extend to keeping you relatively fresh looking.
Hey, get with the civilized world and ride your age in KILOMETERS! I was a bit less than that today here on a gorgeous, sunny day in Italy but I made up for the 12 or so kms less than my age by including some STEEP climbs. Used my 34-29 more than I’d like to admit but there was nobody looking on to impress so “perche no?” (why not) By my birthday I’ll (sadly) be back in hotter’n hell Iowa where 55 kms will at least seem like a long distance,
You could always drink your age in ounces of beer and think about riding. It might be slightly less painful the next day. Happy Birthday!
Your are handsome in the photo, and your bearing is powerful, strangely alluring. Are you wearing “Old Spice”?
So sunny and over 70 degrees today, but with 40 mile gusts. Rode 52 miles in anticipation of a multi-day ride coming up from Houston to Austin. Riding in the wind always makes me feel like I’m 93 years old. But good training ride.
For someone claiming to be a fat bastard, you look pretty buff in that picture, O’G.
Modified Dog–Happy Birthday–you’re so thin–I’ll blow myself up for you
Sheesh,
Thanks, y’all, for the kind words. The Arizona tour helped me shed a few pounds — I rode 1,200 miles leading up to it and then a couple hundred more during the actual tour, so I have an unusual amount of two-wheeled training under my slightly loosened belt going into April.
The trick now will be to keep it up. I came home to a few deadlines, some moderately heavy digital lifting and evil weather, so I haven’t exactly been cranking out the mileage lately.
But I got out for 90 minutes today, and tomorrow I plan to chew on the wind for at least a couple of hours. Here’s hoping that you can do likewise.
Patrick,
Apologies for the belated B-day wishes, but Happy Happy nonetheless. You definitely are not looking “old”, “fat” or, well, two out three ain’t so bad now is it? Keep up the pedalin’ and you’ll make the rest of us look like slobs. Thanks for that.
Definitely not Fat. More sunscreen though – to protect your dewy complexion.
I love the Maddog jersey. Can we post pics on this blog? Sheesh, old dogs die hard. “some” of us (Dogs) are doing IHBC this year. Patrick brought his cappiciono(sp) maker and assured us , “If you drink, you will win!” We went to the line shaking with caffiene and hopeful. Our performance was relived in the Pasta place and was soo much more than our pedals.. Watch for Maddog jerseys on the climb 😎