Austin

1/23

Austin, TX

An exhausting couple of flights, complete with headache del diablo. This was not a good day to fly.

But we arrived at hotel acceptable, and were soon outside walking, recovering and breathing fresh air. It was foggy and damp, very fresh. We walked over to the “Gateway”, looking for calories. Calories were found in the form of a “Whole foods” market. Many tasties were inside, from fresh organic strawberries to awesome ceddar broccoli soup and warm rolls. We were in heaven, walking out with bags full of good grub.

I was fortunate to hook up with Austin local Brent, who happened to purchase TF a few months back. He was too kind, lending me his time, expertise and spare bike. So we met up and he took me out to the “City Park” ride.

I was warned that the trail was technical, but people often have different ideas on what constitutes technical. So I wasn’t expecting much. City Park was a nonstop challenge. No steady climbs, but plenty of up and down and plenty of challenge.

For me the challenge was a notch or two higher than normal. It was dark, my lights were failing and I was on a bike I had never seen before on a trail I had never seen before. I soon re-learned how unforgiving rigid forks can be. Normally not a problem, but when it’s dark and you don’t know the trail, a bit of forgiveness comes in handy. I got my light situation sorted out and was able to clean a few tough ledge spots. What a trail.

While riding a rare mellow incline, free of ledges, I felt the seat moving around, like it was loose. I lifted my weight off it, only to hear it drop off the bike. The seatpost broke clean off. I felt bad, but it was a 10 year old post. I attached the seatpost to the outside of my camelbak and we continued on. Now I really had no sense of bearing. I didn’t know where I was, what trail I was on, or what bike I was riding. And now an important part of “feeling” both the trail and bike was gone–the seat/post. Disconnection.

The first couple of climbs were tough. I found myself crashing into trees and generally not ending up where I wanted to be. But I was enjoying the newfound challenge. Downhills were a bit easier. I was starting to get a handle on what I could and could not ride, understanding the terrain.

Climbing came slowly. Once I was able to clean sections the burn set in. It is tough to keep it rolling and impossible to spin. It was awesome to have such a challenge. The Austin locals have it made with this trail.

1/24

We popped over to REI to grab a new seatpost for Brent’s Trek 8700. I found a cheap one and then noticed that there were some new cateye LED models. These lights are the savior of commuters everywhere, or at least, of us. The lights run forever. They don’t light much, but they are perfect for commuting. They had some new designs–a more powerful one and a single bulb one, but in the end we just got another three bulb unit, and a couple more rear blinkers for my new commuter and the tandem.

More tastiness of the organic kind at whole foods. Soup and rolls again. Yum yum.

It rained a bit over night, .27 inches, which was apparently enough to close the venue of today’s ride. It was still raining on and off, but we found a window and went for a little tour of the town.

We rode down the Schoal creek trail towards downtown. Again, the ride was not quite was I expected. So called “river trails” in Tucson and elsewhere are usually paved and well defined. It was often not clear which side of the creek the trail was on and sometimes the trail just ended for seemingly no reason.

It ended up being a nice tour of the town. It’s impossible for me to get a feeling for a city without riding a bike around it. You miss so much trapped inside a car.

We rode the Town Lake “hike and bike” which was full of joggers, walkers, runners and cyclists. It was great to see so many people outside exercising, a real change of pace from most cities. Apparently people were mistaking me for MR Armstrong, because I was getting double takes and an unusual amount of eye contact. I have the USPS helmet, unfortunately, and I’m a skinny kid, so it’s really the only explanation I can come up with.

Hottie was able to hook up with the Elite coordinator, who got her registered and invited us to the elite dinner. They shuttled us to the Holiday Inn, where we tried to fit in, but mostly just played the quiet game. But it was nice, and we got some new perspectives on elite running from some of the best runners in the country.

1/25

We walked down to the start of the race at 5am Tucson time, and they were off. I did not have a bike, so I missed all the action, but the elite drivers were kind enough to shuttle me to the finish line. Hottie ran a solid race. Nothing spectacular, but a good performance, which, after a string of stinkers, is a step in the right direction.

They had a band playing non-music (aka music to be ignored) up on stage, that was interesting for a few minutes. I watched in wonder as people finished 2.5+ hour half marathons. Ouch, and why pay money to run/walk down 13 miles of city streets? At least they are out there, I suppose.

1/26

The sun is shining bright in Tucson. The rain of the last few days has cleared up. Scheming on the RATS (Ride Around The Santa ritas) continues.