Going up.
It was still February yesterday, but I “marched” (har de har har) up from Trail 365 to the foot of the final climb to the Candelaria Bench Trail.
I considered finishing the ascent to the bench, but the wind was coming up, I hadn’t brought any water, and I didn’t feel like finding out what the descent was like these days; it’s been a while since I rock-hopped down the other side to the Hidden Valley Road trailhead.
Going down.
Today I had to get on two wheels, wind be damned. This morning I checked my mileage for this year and holy hell.
No, I won’t tell you the actual numbers. I will say that I had logged twice as many miles by this time last year. I haven’t screwed the pooch this badly since I broke my right ankle in 2020. People on spin bikes are covering more ground than I am.
So far I’ve managed to avoid the ER this year (knock on wood). Little victories, hey? Very little.
Can I call January-February the “off-season?” ’Cause I’m, like, way off.
Tags: Candelaria Bench Trail, Foothills Trail 365, March, The off-season
Mad Blog Media 
March 1, 2023 at 1:39 pm |
I hope it was the off season, as I was pretty much a lazy sack of shit.
March 1, 2023 at 1:45 pm |
If you’re not careful Khal, they’ll snag you and toss you on the treadmill.
March 1, 2023 at 8:22 pm |
The treadmill was one of those ancient nightmares come back to haunt. Made me recall Ken Russell’s movie “The Devils”, (1971). U of R Campus Flicks brought the unexpurgated version to campus. I found it fascinating, if unnerving. Two students blew chow watching it and one had to be carried out of Strong Auditorium after collapsing. Was not for the faint of heart.
March 2, 2023 at 6:10 am |
Looks like some light family entertainment. Or not. Sounds like it made “The Exorcist” look like an episode of “Leave It to Beaver.”
March 1, 2023 at 3:41 pm |
My one consolation is that I’ve been running and hiking more than usual. I got slightly bored with the bike for some reason last fall, possibly because (a) I overdid the weekly mileage a bit, and (2) I kept riding the same courses over and over and over again like a hamster in a wheel.
March 1, 2023 at 1:42 pm |
I always compare my early year “getting older” mileage now, with that which I compiled in Fairbanks when I lived there. Of course the mileage I put on there was on snow, typically on trails, and at temps that were normally below freezing. A good weekend ride was 20 miles.
It’s nice to hear you got out for a real outdoor spin in that gorgeous blue sky weather. Yeah, I know it’s windy and cold but hey, it looks nice.
March 1, 2023 at 3:32 pm |
I used to ride right through winter, but Back in the Day® I had a small cadre of the insane to prod me out of doors, or me them, depending.
Dr. Schenkenstein was particularly insistent. He lived a few blocks east and would pop up on my stoop in all manner of weather, arms out and palms up, urging me to grow a pair: “Hey, what could I tell you? A little frostbite will do you a world of good.”
Here come “winter” it’s just me and the chilly north wind, which at present is scattering dust and pollen around and about. I guess I’d better get used to that sort of thing. Does Muad’Dib have an Amazon store? I’m gonna need an Assos stillsuit.
March 1, 2023 at 4:28 pm |
We had a very cold winter so far. And, chances are summer will be hotter than hell. So, blame the lower mileage on climate change. Done and dusted!
March 1, 2023 at 5:06 pm |
More cold and wind en route, or so they say. I-40 is apparently shut down at Winslow and Gallup.
I bleeve my birthday ride this year will be measured in millimeters.