It was hot in Denver this weekend, so I thought I’d head out of town and up a little higher to do some exploring and take some pictures. I decided to head to Sedalia and take a scenic drive along State Highway 67 down along the South Platte River.
The highway still doesn’t continue straight through from Sedalia as a paved road. So like seemingly everyone else I took Pine Creek road down to the river. Since I was out for a scenic drive I wasn’t happy being in a big conga line of cars, so I pulled over and let everyone by so I could have it mostly to myself. (Note to Colorado drivers: stop tailgating me on mountain roads when I’m already over the speed limit. Just relax.)
After that it was a somewhat crowded drive along the South Platte. (Stop tailgating already!) I saw a lot of people out fly fishing, though I swear more were sitting in camp chairs behind their cars than actually bothering to fish.
I turned around a couple miles past Deckers, watched a few motorcyclists see how fast they could go, then headed back up towards Denver.
I took another route between the South Platte and the road to Sedalia, and found a bunch of ATV and dirt bike trails. Could be fun, if I had either.
Although the spring afternoon was threatening rain, I took a chance and drove down the Jeep to South Valley Park for a short hike and some photos of the rock formations. I’ve been here a number of times before, but I enjoy how it changes through the seasons.
I had good luck, and no rain. It was a good afternoon to get out of the apartment, and a decent warmup for tomorrow’s 10k race.
I flew down to Arizona for a long weekend with my friends Alex and Danielle (and Bomber Dog). After a couple days in the Scottsdale area we loaded up Alex’s military surplus M1078 LMTV and Danielle’s Jeep with camping gear and telescopes and headed north up to the Tonto National Forest and Agua Fria National Monument for some exploring, stargazing, and camping.
Alex had done some research and we sought out petroglyphs in the area. We found them, along a cliff face. We found hundreds of drawings in the rock face, of lizards and elk and people and possible astronomical events. Very cool stuff.
At our camp site Alex set up his large telescope. We had a clear night with thousands of visible stars. Out there away from city lights there were so many stars that some of the familiar constellations were actually hard to make out against the backdrop. We got clear views of the Orion Nebula and could see Jupiter’s stripes and a few moons. We even saw the shadow of a moon on the surface of the planet.
After a cold night, I went for a 10k run in the desert on Sunday morning. The sun was hot and there were more hills than I expected, so I didn’t set any personal bests. We packed up our camp late in the morning, and planned to head back to Phoenix. Before we could though we spent a couple of hours trying to fix a belt on the LMTV.
The truck runs great, but has a number of small issues Alex is going to have to sort out. There’s a small air leak, which leads the compressor to cycle more often than necessary. There’s also a noticeable hydraulic leak which temporarily kept us from raising the cab to get at the engine. The truck also needs new side view mirrors, and the passenger door is held in place with a ratchet strap. And one of the alternator belts was slipping which meant the truck couldn’t generate 24 volts until it caught. After a while we got the belt tight enough to keep the alternator going, but not before Alex tried to arc weld his wrist to it. Thankfully none of the repairs should be major, though they will take some time.
On the way out of the park I got a few miles practice driving the LMTV off road. It takes some getting used to; it’s much wider than a normal car, is slow to start from a stop but has a huge amount of torque so can climb a steep grade easily, and when you reach the top of a climb it picks up speed remarkably quickly. The front wheels are behind you so turning it is weird, too. But I did just fine and enjoyed driving it a lot.
Last December I bought two Fuji Espree bikes from the mid 1980s. I didn’t need them, but they were a matched set, beautiful, cheap, and in fantastic shape. And the larger bike was my size.
I spent some time cleaning them up and installed new cables and new bar tape, but otherwise the bikes were all original.
I found myself riding the Fuji just for kicks, especially on days when I wasn’t aiming for a specific speed or distance. This wasn’t because the bike is slow or heavy (far from it) but just because I had the Trek for those rides already.
But with the Trek and the Raleigh covering the full range from single track and gravel to pure road riding, both with modern 11 speed drivetrains, I didn’t have much real use for the Fuji. I certainly wasn’t going to convert it to a fixed gear or single speed, since I already had the Scwhinn. So what to do?
I decided to convert the larger Fuji into a town bike, and keep the small one as a road bike in good condition, ready to lend as needed. I mounted a set of fenders for rain and put the kickstand back on. I installed a rear rack and changed the handlebars from narrow road drop bars to wide upright bars. I got new brake levers for the existing brakes, and mounted a bell too. It’s totally retro nerdy, and I think it looks great.
It’s now my grocery bike, weekend restaurant and brewery bike, and occasional commuter. I also find myself jumping on it in street clothes to ride up to the reservoir, when I otherwise might not. My goal is to not track my heart rate or cadence when I ride this bike, and to not care about my average speed. I doubt I’d choose this bike over the Trek for a 25 mile ride, but 10 to 15 miles is quite enjoyable.
I’m still thinking of making a few more tweaks to the riding position, which would largely be a taller steam and more setback seat post. I’m also considering moving the shifters from the downtube up to the handlebars, but for now I’m not going to spend any more money. It’s really nice as-is.
My last post here was on May 1, a relatively standard update on my goals. But in a lot of ways things kind of went to crap after that, and I haven’t really felt inclined to write. But Sam’s been on my case for a while, and so here’s an update.
My silence this summer was mostly the result of a number of stressful things, all piling on. My friend Lisa got sick early this year. She was diagnosed with amyloidosis and multiple myeloma in April, and by July she was gone. She was 43, and she had been a huge part of my family’s life for 20 years. Her influence was enormous, and included simple things like grabbing a few beers to complex things like organizing several family vacations. She was a constant source of fun and adventure, a cool aunt and a big sister and a fellow beer drinking cyclist. I kind of want to write more, but it’s hard. I’m going to miss her forever.
Meanwhile my wind project in Michigan had been dragging on almost forever, and finally died in a township level referendum vote at the start of May. This could have been a relief, as I had been stressed out about the project for several months, but it merely led to the emergency development of an even more stressful, constrained timeline project. This is an ongoing source of frustration, but I’m doing my best to keep it moving.
That all combined with more work-related travel than usual, which will probably continue through September at least. And to be frank I am very much over airline travel of any kind. Flights, hotels, car rentals, fees, delays, traffic.
So from May through now I’ve fallen way behind on my goal for running distance, and I’ve gained 10 pounds. So much for all those well-laid plans from January. I’m still running, and I’ve been riding my bike a lot, but nothing went to plan.
But I don’t want to dwell on all the bad times, because there was good too. And I want to highlight that and let you all know how much I love you and wish we could spend more time together.
April: Jeff and Diana visited
My brother and sister in law visited in late April. Diana was here for a conference, and Jeff joined later in the week to stay the weekend in Denver. They rented a cute house just outside of downtown.
We did a short hike on Saturday morning at South Valley Park in Jefferson County. The park is a favorite of mine, with easy trails, nice views, and cool rock formations. We also visited several Denver breweries, including Great Divide, Wit’s End, Wynkoop, and Vine Street. The only downside was that it rained all day Sunday.
May: I ran into John and his kids after a bike ride
This one was unexpected but rather wonderful. I had been planning to go on a long gravel ride all spring, and was just waiting for some non-rainy weather so the roads would actually be firm. Eventually in early May we had a Saturday that, while the ground was still a little wet, was dry enough to ride.
I drove down to Monument to a trailhead on the New Sante Fe Regional Trail. From there I rode my Raleigh Tamland north to Palmer Lake, then followed the trail to the northeast for a ways. After that I just headed east on the gravel roads for a while, before turning south to make a long loop of the day.
Along the way I saw very few people, several ranches, some cattle, and a zebra. I saw two other cyclists all day. The sky was cloudy but the sun was out. In many ways it was a perfect day, other than the still damp gravel which took a lot of speed off the ride. I finished around noon, and headed over to the nearest brewery to grab a beer and some lunch.
Unexpectedly, amazingly, my friend John walked in with his daughter Mari and son Victor right as I was getting my food. John lives in Colorado Springs, and we were both quite a few miles from home. We had a couple beers together and played chutes and ladders with Mari (who won). This was quite seriously one of the highest highlights of my whole summer.
May: Michael got married, and I saw Victoria and Hilary
I had a lot of trouble finding a reasonable flight to Kansas City for this Friday evening wedding, so instead I got in the car and drove to my aunt’s house in Topeka on Thursday night. The wedding was way out in the country southeast of the city at a pretty neat place.
On Saturday I joined my family for breakfast at a cool place my little sister found, then we went over to Boulevard for a beer tasting and a short tour.
Surprisingly, Hilary was in town to see Victoria the same weekend, so after the Boulevard tour I joined them for dinner and drinks on Saturday night. I got to meet Victoria’s boyfriend Jordan, and we went to a barcade downtown. Then we played Cards Against Humanity and had a few drinks. Sunday was a lazy start, but I got coffee and Hil made some tasty biscuits before I got in the car to drive back to Denver.
May: Camping in Washington
For Memorial Day this year I flew out to Seattle to go camping with Alex and Danielle. We drove from Redmond east over to Leavenworth, then up into the hills in the Entiat area. We took the two Jeeps up to a sweet campsite and had a nice easy evening with a campfire and a few beers.
The next day we explored the forest roads, and did a little unexpected four wheeling where the road had washed out. Things got a little scary, but everyone made it OK. On the way back we drove to the Grand Coulee Dam, along the Columbia River, to Vantage, then back to Seattle, stopping at a few neat places including Dry Falls.
After we got back to Seattle we spent some time at Kubota Garden before I had to head back to the airport.
Suzy came to visit in June. We drove down to the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs and did some hiking on a hot clear day, then had a really nice lunch at Brother Luck’s on John’s recommendation. After that we went over to Ivywild for some Bristol beers and John joined us for a while.
I also got to take Suzy on a bike ride around the reservoir, a nearby favorite cycling route. The water was still high from the unusual spring rain, but we were able to make it through the whole way. We also got some good pizza at the Wazee Supper Club, which I hadn’t been to in years.
July: I rode RAGBRAI
This was a big one. I first (and last) rode RAGBRAI in 2002, but for 10 years or more I’ve been telling myself I wanted to ride it again. Finally this year I got organized enough to sign up for the ride with a few friends. Seven days of waking up early, packing up tents, throwing things on a truck, and riding bikes.
The team was me, Jim, and Ben, and Nathan joined us in Cedar Falls for the last few days of the ride. Ben is a little nutty and did the ride as a self-supported tour. Jim and I put our stuff in hiking packs and loaded it onto the baggage truck every day.
Jim did every mile of the ride, including the gravel loop and the Karras century loop. I didn’t do the gravel loop, but did do the century, and ended up riding over 500 miles that week. Ben rode the standard route, but he also did the whole thing with all his gear on the bike.
I ate a lot of pie, a couple burritos, several burgers, homemade ice cream, church dinners, Chinese buffet, pulled pork, pizza, and more. We bought beers most nights (but couldn’t find any IPAs in Eldora). To end the week we had a tasty lunch at a brewery in Davenport before making the drive back to Ames.
August: I stopped by Joshua Tree
This was at the end of another work trip, but I admit the chance to spend a few hours in a national park is always welcome. We drove up to Keys View, and although it was 100 degrees in Palm Springs we had a cool breeze coming in up there. On a clear day you can see the Salton Sea and Palm Springs easily. On that day we could make out the Salton Sea shoreline but we couldn’t see Palm Springs at all.
We also did a short hike to Barker Dam, which had a scenic little reservoir and a small stream outflow. It was a nice way to spend a few hours before heading back to the airport.
August: Jason got married
Just this last weekend I flew back to Michigan for the second family wedding of the summer. My cousin Jason got married at the chapel on the Michigan State University campus, the same place my aunt and uncle were married 35 years ago. The weather was perfect, and I got to spend a good day with family.
So there you go. Hopefully next time I won’t wait so long to write something.
April was an active month. I ran my second half marathon of the year early in the month, and set a second personal best this year. I also rode my bike a decent amount. Mostly 20 mile rides with a couple shorter loops of the lake, along with one 45 mile ride.
We got into RAGBRAI so I’ll have to step up the riding distance to be ready for 7 days on the bike. But that will be fun. I’m hoping we get more sun than we’ve had recently so I can have fewer worries about long rides on dirt and gravel.
Not much progress
I lost no weight in April. I was mostly good day to day, but very up and down. Bad days definitely offset the good. I’m wondering if I should make some changes, maybe stop using exercise to let me eat more. May will be a challenge, too. I’ll be traveling quite a lot which means less cycling and more restaurants. Both are bad for my progress.
I ran my third official half marathon over the weekend. Even though this race was only two weeks after the Spring Fever Half Marathon, I signed up for it because it was at Cherry Creek State Park, just down the road from my apartment. The course was on roads and trails I run on often, and I thought it would be fun to do a race there.
Since Cherry Creek Park is so close I decided to walk to the race. I left early and checked in with plenty of time to spare. It was chilly but the sun was out, so by the time the race started I was fine in shorts and a long-sleeve shirt.
The course was flatter than the last race, so I expected to improve on my time from two weeks before, if not by a lot.
The run went well, I was steady at about 8:50/mile through the whole thing (the course measured a little long by my GPS), and didn’t really feel tired until the uphill portion near the end. Even then it was mostly my legs that were ready to give and not my heart or lungs, which was a good feeling.
I finished in 1:56:22, at 8:53 a mile. That’s about 6 seconds a mile faster than the last race. More than a minute off the total time. It’s a nice feeling to set two personal bests in a row.
March went well for me. The weather turned nice and I started riding more often. Maybe not quite as much as I wanted, but I got a few really good rides in. Including following up a 40 mile moderate effort ride on a beautiful Saturday with a 30 mile easy ride to one of my favorite breweries on an equally beautiful Sunday for a couple pints of Berliner weisse.
And I parked right in the brewery. Wit’s End is such a great place.
Late in the month I ran the Spring Fever Half Marathon again and set a new personal best time of 1:57:40, at 8:59 a mile. That beat last year’s time on the same course by over 30 minutes
And I actually stuck to my weight loss plan for once. The good news is running and cycling burn enough calories together that I don’t feel like I’m starving myself. Four pounds down in March and on target for the end of the year. I’d like to go faster but we’ll just have to see how things go.
Last year I finished in 2:28:08, an average pace of 11 minutes and 19 seconds a mile. This year I finished in 1:57:40, at an average pace of 8 minutes 59 seconds a mile. I dropped over half an hour off my time: 2 minutes and 20 seconds a mile.
I’m thrilled. I didn’t expect to achieve my goal to run a half marathon in under 2 hours on the first go of the year. And I definitely didn’t expect it to be on a course with so much uphill in the last few miles.
I’ve been planning to build a hop spider for a while, so on this cool but sunny Saturday afternoon I stopped by the hardware store and picked up what I needed. I’ll be using this on my next brew, although with only 2 ounces of hops in the boil it will hardly be necessary. I hope that it proves useful the next time I make a big IPA.
This was a simple project, with only about $20 worth of parts. I probably could have saved some money by going with smaller bolts, but at least the finished product is unlikely to drop into the kettle. I used a 5 gallon bag because I want plenty of room for the hops to swim around in the wort as it boils.
Parts
4″ to 3″ PVC reducer
3 ⅜″×10″ carriage bolts
6 ⅜″ washers
6 ⅜″ nuts
5 gallon nylon paint straining bag
1 5″ hose clamp
I even drew a little diagram before I went shopping.
Construction
I started by measuring the circumference of the large side of the PVC reducer. It measured just under 16 inches. Since I went with 3 bolts, I marked off spaces about 5 ⅜″ apart, and about ¾″ down from the top edge of the reducer. There was no need to be perfect but I wanted things to look nice.
I then drilled three ⅛″ pilot holes.
I switched to the ⅜″ bit and finished out the holes. The cuts were pretty clean, but still left some burrs. I cleaned things up a little with a pocket knife.
I threaded a nut and washer onto each bolt, then placed them through the holes and secured them on the other side with a second nut and washer. I adjusted the length of the bolts a little, then tightened it all down with a couple of wrenches.
Now I had the structure, so I opened up the 5 gallon paint strainer bag and placed it over the small side of the PVC reducer. I tightened up a large hose clamp to keep things snug, and was done.
The project really couldn’t have been any simpler, and it fits great in my 10 gallon boil kettle.
