Life on a Bike: Excuses

Sometimes excuses lead to a good thing, sometimes they do not. A recent switch from my car to Raja's has me coming up with any excuse to drive somewhere. It all started because Raja has been coming up with excuses for ignoring his recent knee pain. When it got so bad that it kept him off the bike, he came to his senses and did something about it. A visit to my aMAZONingly wonderful Janusz has Raja back on the mend, but he still needs to give his leg a rest from his new GTI clutch action.

I whined a bit at first over having to give up my car. I'm lazy and do not like to engage my brain anymore than necessary. But after the first mile in his zippy new ride, I was enjoying myself!

Before the GTI, I always hated it when I had to drive his Mini. It was fun being part of the Mini Universe, but I wasn't sad to see either of them go. Going to the Mini United event in Italy was way cool, but the only thing I miss is their cute looks.

The MINIs were super uber-cool with their go-kart handling,

but after a while I grew weary of the constant drama involved in driving it. Whether you're driving hard or mindlessly to Kroger, you can't tap into its power until you reach 4500rpm.

I haven't been keen on any of his racey cars lately. Even though the BMW handled like a dream, the clutch was a bear and required way too much diligence for my feeble skills.

The GTI's low end, flat torque curve allows you to get into the power immediately providing nice linear acceleration. It is smoother, quieter, and much more comfortable. It's fast, handles great, has room for bikes, gets good gas mileage, and doesn't break the bank. Fits all our criterion for the perfect car. I'm hoping he'll be happy with this chariot for a couple years. So far, I am.

I found an excuse to drive to Buckhead this afternoon on my lunch break to Full Cup Bookstore to buy bread. Their fresh homemade Ezekiel bread is by far the best I have found after searching for over 7 years.

The tiny bookstore also has great Basil Chicken Salad Sandwiches and a grilled vegetable sandwich (only on Wed/Fri). A funny coincidence; turns out the owner's brother is one of our fellow roadie friends that we ride with on the in-town weeknight rides. Small world.

Yesterday, there was no excuse not to get out and ride. Even though I was still tired and unmotivated to ride around the same old route, the brief stint of warm weather was tempting. Occasionally, the sun tried to break through the clouds, while the winds gained momentum in bursts of fury.

Alexis and I went out early before the winds were to reach the forecasted 30mph.

We enjoyed a nice leisurely ride from the house out to Kennesaw Mountain. I am lucky to have the mountain practically in our backyard.

The nice thing about Alexis is she believes in spinning, unlike the male roadies I know. As I stated before, these guys are not physically capable of an easy ride. The only male I've ever ridden with that could refrain from hammering is Travis Hagner. Two years with the Cycling Center of Europe and racing alongside the pros must have taught him something. I'll never forget when Alexis and I joined him during an "easy" 4 hr base ride, and we really did ride "easy" base. Amazing!

My friend, Al, is having his birthday mountain bike ride this Friday. This is one event I'd rather not have an excuse to miss.

Right now, the Blur is in the sick ward waiting for new bearings for its rear end! Raja was hoping to get everything in on time in order to put it all back together, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen.

I really was having to push my luck at work anyway trying to get the day off. So I guess this way, I'll get to keep my job. Sorry to miss your birthday party, Al. But I know you will have a rip roaring good time regardless. Can't wait to see the pics and hear the report.

Colder weather Thursday and Friday looks like my excuse for staying indoors on the trainer. No outdoor riding at least until Saturday.