One Less than Originally Intended

Last night, I forwent a ride with some of the guys from the team at Wissahickon and opted instead to ride with the lovely K-town at Marsh Creek.  I was tired from my lunchtime ride but conditions were almost perfect and K-town was excited.  I just got my 29er back from the shop and was feeling pretty good.  K-town was killing me as she was fresh and has been bouncing around lately with excitement due to her recent return to activity from 7-10 days of being on the DL list (Dr.'s orders).  The ride was fun and basically uneventful until I tried to ride the only log ride Marsh Creek has to offer.  Not to be boastful, but let me preface this by saying I've ridden this log without incident several times before.  Obviously, that was not the case this time.  I approached the log thinking, "This should be fun, I haven't ridden this log in a while, it looks clean, the approach is smooth, should be no problem."  On the log I was thinking, "Nice work Ronaldo, this log is in the bag, you've kept your momentum up, no slips, first try, nice job."  These positive thoughts were immediately interrupted by my face and chest meeting the log with enough force to knock the wind out of me.  I haven't had the wind knocked out of me since I was a kid, I don't remember it being such an unpleasant sensation, but it sure was unpleasant.  

I wasn't hurt but my bike did suffer a casualty.  I broke the rear brake lever.  So, I finished the ride with only a front brake.  Riding a single-speed with only a front brake is an unusual sensation.  You need to keep your momentum up (because you only have one gear), but not too much (because you have one less brake than originally intended and you don't want to become a permanent fixture of that tree).  Overall the ride was great and riding with 50% less braking power wasn't too weird.  By the end of the ride I didn't even notice except for the downhills, flats, corners, rollies, jumps or anywhere where there were roots, rocks, mud, or dirt.

Ronaldo

Its Been a Long Time...by the way I Hate March

To all of my endearing fans, my humblest and most sincere apologies for not posting for more than a month.  And since I am the only one that follows this blog regularly my apology is hereby accepted, and further I plan to buy myself an ice cream later today just to show there's no hard feelings.  

I also apologize that this blog post concerns something that pisses me off (again I hereby forgive me).  Those of you who know me won't be surprised and will read this post without so much as a second thought because you know that most things, if not all things, tend to piss me off, or at the very least ruffle my feathers.  What, you may be wondering, is this thing that is so infuriating that I should call it out specifically from the underlying background of irritation that is the world around me?  In a word...March.  

That's right March.  I hate March.  If the day of your birth happens to fall within this cursed month I feel for you I really do, but I can't help the fact that your parents were bored in June.

What is the deal with March anyway?  Its a winter month.  No, no wait its really a spring month.  But wait no its really a winter month, but with sun that's not really warm, and the nagging possibility for below freezing nocturnal temperatures.  The flowers are starting to come up and the trees are budding, but there's still the outside chance that it could freak snow like a foot, and then melt the next day.  March is by its very nature frenetic at best.  

For a Pennsylvania mountain biker who is trying to sharpen his fitness for the commencement of the racing season in April, it sucks.  We just got over ~six months of dreary winter weather.  I'm suffering from cabin fever, tired of riding the trainer, and looking to shed some layers.  I want to ride my bike in shorts and short sleeves and not have to worry about being blown off my bike, off the road, or into oncoming traffic, but I can't because March can't make up its mind about whether its the commencement of spring or the last hurrah for winter.  The wind alone is enough to make me put my road bike down until May.  It may just be me but I don't enjoy pedaling as hard as I can to go downhill.  Aren't downhills for coasting?

Beware the ides of March,

Ronaldo