Ride #2, 25/12/09: the death grip through GG Park

I recovered pretty good from Ride #1, and since it's Christmas long weekend (and a Merry Christmas to you!) I had the opportunity to go for another ride today... this time through Golden Gate Park, from Haight to Ocean Beach.

Its a ride I have done a number of times before on the MTB, and I distinctly remember that my hands hurt more than my arse... and why? There is a stretch of road that's very cut up and it's bump-bump-bump for about 1/4 mile. Through the bumps I tend to stand on the paddles so the bottom gets a little relief. But through this stretch I literally death grip the handle bars. Right now I can say my hands and arms are more sore than the lower half of bod.

I worked on changing gears today... and I did improve. For starters I now know to soften the gears for a hill climb, I need to push the metal and the black plastic shifters. I know, in 5 months, I will look at what I wrote and ask myself WTF (re description of shifting gears)... I mean, at this point in time I get confused with what's up/ down. I get by via remembering what I need to do dependent on the road situation.

Well today's ride is a bit smoother than yesterday... oh except the bit about getting chains crossed... that's the next lesson.

Ride #2: 7mi... i.e. 4% of the goal

Ride #1, 24/12/09 - to the shops, Panhandle, Laurel Heights, Presidio + GG Park

I decided to go pick up some coffee beans from Peet's after the bike shop - which we were out of and no caffeine makes J1 and J2 very grumpy. The nearest Peet's is just at the end of the Panhandle, conveniently the bike shop is just on the other side of the 'handle, and there's a bike path pretty much the whole way.

I know riding to the shop is kinda like blah but you know what... it's the first solo ride I've done on a SF roadway. It wasn't too bad, other than that you have to weave pass transients pushing trolleys and some more aggressive riders (for heaven's sake, I was ONLY going to the shops).

By the time I locked my bike up, J1 called to see where I was since it's been 20 mins since I left the bike shop (we live 5 mins from American Cyclery, and hopefully he was calling to check that I wasn't a crumbled heap on the side of the road vs. seeing how the bike was). He met me at Peet's, couple of mins later, on his zoomie wheels.

He suggested we go for a little spin, sure I said. Got to remember... J1's idea of a 'little spin' is not that little. I should also get used to this idea of little since it's still very little vs. 175mi. And ALWAYS have water on me.

From Peet's (Broderick @ Oak), we headed up to Laurel Heights, then cut across the Richmond into Presidio. I had no idea where on earth was he planning to go (maybe to Marina?) but I had to protest after we reached the Presidio Gates. Legs were giving way. EEK. We came back via GG Park and practiced gear changing on some smaller hills nearby. Home pretty shortly after.

Distance travelled today: 4mi... OMG it's only 2% of the ride distance.

the challenge is ON...

I hate bikes. As in bicycles.

Prior to the last year, my 'biking' experience involved a BMX when I was 10, and then a bike tour around Amsterdam in 2004... I probably didn't have the best 'concentration' at that point in time, and you get the idea. I almost fell into a canal.

Oh after the canal incident, I tried getting on a bike one more time... as a tourist in 05, with Blazing Saddles bike rental at San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf. I rode to Sausalito, with great difficulty especially since I have NO IDEA what the gear shifters do. I think I took the entire 3 hour they said I'd need.

So what on earth am I doing... thinking I can do the MS Society's Waves to Wine charity ride? All 175mi (282km) of it. But here are the top 5 reasons I'm doing it...

1) I could really lose 20kgs/ 40'ish lbs.

2) Over past 2 yrs my main sport has been dragon boating, which is a very anaerobic exercise. Since I hate running more than I hate bikes, I thought it might be good to cross train via setting a distance riding goal.
Oh and the ride is in September... so lots of time to train (though I'd hope to be able to do some 'Centuries' i.e. 100mi/ 161km races by May).

3) Biking seems to be the kind of thing I should be able to fit into the schedule... I mean, it's a mode of transport, and it's actually shorter for me to bike to work from new house vs. public transport

4) I can do with more tone, body wise

5) Other friends have done this ride and all agree it's by far one of the prettiest ride around, also I already have a friend, C, signed up to do this with me

J1 was supportive. He hasn't decided whether he's doing W-to-W with C and I, but J and I have started heading out and practicing hill climbs - in my case, it's called learning to change gears properly.

Through a series of events - I bought a new bike. It's a 2010 Specialized Dolce Elite Triple, in silver with white trim (it is the only colour it came in). It's a pretty darn fancy bike - by my standards - and Mark from American Cyclery at first didn't put this bike in the lineup of bikes I was test riding... but by my 3rd test ride (3rd bike), he thought it was good for education reasons to try a bike with Tiagra shifters. Unbeknown to him, I knew a little about 'em before heading into the shops... it helps with J1 has those on his bike, and that I have done quite a bit of reading.

I did check with Mark and asked whether it was too good of a bike for me... but he consider it as an entry level bike, and I know he was reluctant to get me to test ride it. But I also knew... those shifters were going to feel pretty darn good vs. the click and flick thing the Sora offered.

So 2.5 hrs and 5 bikes later... the challenge is on.

stuggling to make sense of... everything

Right now I'm having a really hard time making sense of things. What I thought would be simple - like being dependable for someone, and expecting the same vice versa - is now a lot more grey then I expect it to be. Was I wrong in expecting the unconditional? Was I wrong to expect respect and support? Was I wrong to expect compassion and understanding - especially when it was a fuckin (small) mistake? Why do I get the feeling that they're looking/ listening and then thinking what I'm saying is all BS?

Unhealthy all round and I need resolution. I can't go to work crying anymore.

Damn, didn't someone tell me the grey areas will become bigger and more confusing as you get older?

ignorance and tripe?

Tripe... is something only a serious foodie, or an Ethnic person, would readily eat.

Me? I grew up with it. I still don't like it for textual reasons, but have a healthy respect for those who eat it.

Now Michael Bauer and tripe? I don't know what to make of him. Or his relationship with tripe either (article here).

For starters - it's fookin hard to cook tripe. The washing/ boiling/ flavouring needed to make this piece of stomach tasty is too labour intensive for many.

So for Michael to say San Franciscans will eat tripe - you know, I'll take that as a compliment. We're experimental folks and will at least give a chef the benefit of doubt to try it. If you fool us once? Shame on you. We just blog about it and make sure the entire city know your restaurant suck.

For him to say that New Yorkers won't if offered the same? Well... I think that's a backhanded criticism for a New Yorker's humanity, don't you think?

holy c*&p... my back:(

I was a ver flexible kid... touching my toes while standing means my whole hand is on the ground - I could do that right till about age 25, and then it started to get difficult but always, my hands will get to my feet with legs straight.

Today - I knew something was up when at dragon boat warm up I had problems reaching beyond my knee. That was AWFUL. Right now I have the worst lower back pain I've had in quite awhile. What could that be attributed to? Well, the bike fall 2 wks ago... then bounching on rapids on a raft (I definitely had a bung knee after the trip), and finally today when we did strength work it just gave way.

I have a deep tissue massage booked tomorrow, and hopefully that helps.

Hopefully I'll be OK at friend's welcome dinner/ the bar tonight!!!

self esteem issues (possibly temporary)

I don't think I get PMS (famous last words right? ha) - but I know I do get more critical of things around that time of month. Or this time of month.

Last weekend... huge camping/ rafting trip with 15 others. About 50/50 with folks I kinda know vs. those I'm meeting for the first time. No one on this trip I can say I know well (besides maybe 1 or 2 people. In general it's hard to claim to know anyone 'well' when your existance in this country only started 2 years ago).

I usually don't have a problem with being in a crowd but I got very insecure over the weekend. At some points in time I was downright feeling I was left right out. Not saying either groups were alientating - they were absolutely not - but I felt like i was in no man's land because it is human nature to gravitate towards those they know best, and I didn't have that option.

As a firm believer of doing something for yourself - the solution of course was to make some new friends. Once again I counted on others too much and I really ought to have helped myself out of this ditch.

Don't get me wrong... had some awesome times on the weekend but would have done some things differently.

illness sucks

Not meaning to crate any vicious cycles of blogging about other bloggers - this is one blog I recently discovered and it has really moved me;
http://www.fatcyclist.com/

Just shows cancer can affect anyone regardless of how active you are.

alpacas... a learning session

We met this little alpaca on the streets of Melbourne AUS. She is a 6 mth old female i.e. still a juvenile. Her owner (an eccentric older fella) keeps her in the backyard and parades her round St Kilda once a month or so - complete with a donation collar. We met them Ackland St, and from a distance I honestly thought "gee that looked like a bigggg dog!" and how wrong was I!

Anyhow, after meeting Miss Alpaca, I did some reading;
- She could grow up to 5 ft tall, approx 110-170 lbs and live for 20 years

- Alpacas have straight ears and were bred for their fur. Ilamas are about 1-2 ft taller, have bent ears and were bred for strength.

- They have 3 stomaches!

- They do get wet and shaggy like a dog because their fur is not oily like sheep's

- According to Peru, home of alpacas, there are 52 colour classifications. The same colour range is considered as 12 in AUS, and 16 in the US

- Recommended 4,356sq ft per alpaca. Therefore our apartment can hold 23% of one

- They are house trainable since, in the wild, alpacas do their 'business' at the same dung heap. However, as cited from Wikipedia, females tend to all 'go' at the same time therefore create a bigger mess in a pack situation

- Not all alpacas spit. The little one we saw, for example, doesn't (she is also trained/ encouraged not to)

- You can buy one for around USD 100 (a gelded male)


It would be kinda cool to have one in the backyard... if I had a yard...

defining moment

I just had a defining moment... one that has been creeping up on me for awhile, as I prepare for my annual visit home.

See, I've been getting a bit of anxiety when people ask about my travel plans. The answer is something like "We'll be in Sydney, then head up to the reef then back to SF on 7th July". It's the bit where I say 'back to SF' I get stuck with... I almost write "back HOME on 7th July" just about every time.

Just then I needed to fill out some passenger information for the airline - one question asks what is your current address, and what is your destination address. On my last visit home, I put both as my parents' address in Sydney.

This year... my current address is SF.

I guess this is home for me right now.

politically incorrect observations

Lately my journey home has taken a dangerous turn - the N-Judah has a pervert on board, and I've seen him 'in action' so to speak. So yesterday I was extra careful, keeping my extremities to myself and trying to stay discreet - which proves to be pretty difficult since the train was so crowded.

But last night I faced another kind of frusteration... see, I was squished up next to a guy who suffers from uncontrollable twitching. Not just a small twitch, but his head jolts, shoulders, legs. Everything at once.

There is no politically correct way to address this so here it goes - I am very sorry that you have this condition, but it was really freaking me out.

After looking this up... it seems there are a lot of misdiagnosis for the condition so I do really wish him well.

can it really happen?

Forgive me Diary for you have been neglected. It's been 6 months since I last blogged, in which time much has happened.

For starters, I now live with JS and have tolerated his almost-obsessive love for nuts and electrical wires. In exchange I torment him with positioning of the dishwasher hose. Smelly Cat is becoming more adorable everyday so that's a blessing - she is incredibly trainable, and has even learnt to be a living alarm clock (she taps me on the arm, with her paw, 3 times. No really, she taps you like nudging you with a finger).

With the new apartment, there is a change is commuter route - which is, of course, one of my favourite topics of discussion. I now take the N-Judah (or the bus, on the morning I want to breath) and when packed like sardines, some seemingly innocent behaviours become really, REALLY annoying.

Like this morning, a couple (not so young, maybe late 20s/ early 30s) was necking for the entire journey to Downtown. There were at least 4 people standing within millimeters of them. I kid you not... it was all out, tongue and everything.

I had the vantage spot right behind the girl (who was 5'2 so I could see EVERYTHING over her head). I am fairly sure it made my fellow work commuters equally uncomfortable, and I weren't prepared to say out loud that they should have gotten 'relieved' before they left the house...

Moral of this story: PDAs are only appropriate when there is 1 ft or more between you/ your PDA buddy and the next person.