Batting Practice

Eight riders converged from Georgia and South Carolina Thursday afternoon, Feb 20, in Clermont, FL. We checked into our hotel and quickly set off for a tune up ride on the Van Fleet Trail (http://www.floridastateparks.org/vanfleet/). We began at the northern terminus in the tiny community of Mabel and rode 15 miles south. The trail runs through the Green Swamp and a Wildlife Preserve. We saw very little in the way of wildlife on the way south but on the return the sun was setting. We began seeing large turtles, one of which appeared to have nested in the sandy soil next to the trail, white tail deer, white herons and at least one large black and white stork. We returned to the hotel and a hearty dinner at a local Italian restaurant.

The highlight of the day, however, has to be the comeback of the UNC men's basketball team to beat the hated Dookies. Go Heels.

Spring Training

Baseball players have already begun to gather in Arizona and Florida to prepare for the upcoming season. So, it seems appropriate for Vern and the Chain Gang to organize four days of riding later this week in Central Florida between Orlando and Tampa. A group of 10 riders will converge on little Clermont on Thursday where we will end the day with a 33 mile warmup loop. The next day we plan to ride 62 miles (or a 73 mile option) to Lake Wales with 10 of it on the Van  Fleet Trail. Saturday we will ride 73 miles to Lakeland and Sunday back 58 miles to Clermont. We will stay in hotels and support the ride by alternating drivers of one vehicle. Most of us will drive home to Atlanta on Sunday but a few riders will drive to Cape Canaveral for some additional riding on Monday. The three days from Clermont and back will be following the Orange Blossom tour developed by Bike Florida. A link to their route maps can be found at the following: http://bikeflorida.org/bf2013/RouteMaps.php

Acknowledgements

There will, no doubt, be many fellow riders, members of Bubba's support staff and others yet unknown to thank for their support along the upcoming rides. The regular email messages containing the many details of the ride from Bubba and other riders, aka Coasters, have fueled my desire to get going. In the meantime I would like to acknowledge a few of the many folks who have helped and encouraged me as I prepared for the ride.

In my last post I reported on the many tasks undertaken by Mike and Rita to overhaul and tune my bike. It is amazing how good it feels to ride a smooth running machine. Wow! And they have suggested one final tune up before I depart for California at the end of the month.

My biking buddies, Sam, David and Phill, have regularly commented that they think that I am ready and capable of doing this ride. It's OK if they are not being entirely honest, I appreciate the positive reinforcement. Bill and Charlie, the leaders of the King Biking Group, and Vern and his Chain Gang have consistently helped me with suggestions learned from their cross country rides. The other riders from these two groups have also been encouraging and have made many useful suggestions.

The medical support (primary care, surgeon, dermatology and orthopedic) has been outstanding in getting my body ready to be outdoors everyday for two months.

My family, daughters Catherine and Emily, sisters Anne, Alison and Kate, and most importantly wife Nan, have been telling me all along that I can do this. I would not have signed up for this ride without Nan's insistence that I undertake this once in a lifetime adventure.

And there is my distant cousin Shelley who has agreed to host a visit in Southern California prior to the departure from San Diego.

Many thanks! I could not have gotten this far without each of you.

Bike Prep

My convalescence from surgery and the continued cold weather provided an ideal interlude to have my bike inspected and tuned-up. I took it to my long time favorite shop, Intown Bikes (http://www.intownbicycles.com), designated by Bicycling magazine as one of the top 50 bike shops in the United States.  Mike, the owner, and Rita, the chief mechanic, recommended a long list of repairs including replacing the rear wheel, re-tapeing the handlebars with an extra layer of gel, installing new rear cassette and chain, brake and gear cables, replacing a cracked front derailleur clamp and last, but unexpected, a full replacement of the front crank. So, along with the spare parts (spokes, tubes, tires and a chain) recommended by Chandler, the C2C mechanic, the bill came close to the cost of a new bike.

The time remaining before the tour begins did not leave enough time in my opinion to break-in and get used to a new bicycle. So, after asking to be assured that the frame remained sound I opted to have all the repairs carried out. The seat, also known as a saddle, was a bit worn but, again, I chose not to replace this item and undergo an adjustment period. Note: I may be the only rider who has not had a good experience with the all leather Brooks saddle, favored by many long distance cyclists.

Many thanks to Mike and Rita. Mike commented that he "would prepare the bike as if he were getting ready to ride across the United States." That kind of assurance is what I wanted to hear with now a little more than one month from departure.

Yahoo! Got out this afternoon (Sunday, Jan 23) for the first time since New Years Day and rode 22 miles on the Silver Comet Trail. NO discomfort from the surgery, just the usual getting used to riding again. The bike felt like a smooth rocket after the tune-up.

Good News

This afternoon I had a follow-up appointment with the surgeon who performed last week's procedure. I received good news and encouragement that I can begin light riding next week. That's two weeks ahead of schedule. Four weeks remains the limit for any hard riding. It's good to know that I can at least begin rebuilding some endurance and renew in my mind just how it feels to be on a bicycle every day.

Ouch!

Last Thursday morning I checked into the Emergency Room of nearby Piedmont Hospital to get a diagnosis of a persistent pain in the right lower abdomen. I was hoping that it was just a muscle pull from all the bike riding or worse appendicitis. My mother, wife and one daughter have each endured an appendectomy and I thought that it might just be my turn. Instead, the diagnosis was an Inguinal hernia (For details, see link: http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/tc/inguinal-hernia-topic-overview)

I had eaten breakfast so I had to wait until 4 pm for surgery to repair the hernia and install a bit of plastic mesh. My wife brought me home where I am now slowly recovering. Although I am supposed to stay off my bike for 4 weeks I am still optimistic that I can train for 4 weeks and be ready to depart San Diego on March 8. More to follow...

Happy New Year

Just a little more than 60 days until departure from San Diego. It was quite cold (37F) yesterday morning in Atlanta but I did get out to ride with the King Biking Group. They commemorate most holidays with a 21 mile route along the North-South MARTA line from Chamblee to College Park near the ATL airport. Ken Gregor, the GM of MARTA when the train system was built, is a biking enthusiast and worked to allow bicycles on board. I chose to ride South with the group and back home on my own totaling 42 leisurely miles over 5 hours. It is raining today and the forecast is for even colder weather on Saturday. Nevertheless, I must try to ride at least some each day to prepare for the 7 weeks of riding coming up in March and April.

Best wishes for the coming year to all.