Myrna CG Mibus - Idyllwild

Today was a day full of fun and a lot of bicycling activity. For starters, today was the day of the Minnesota Iron Man. Owen and I had been talking about riding the 30 mile route but decided mid-week that we would opt out this year. Too much going on and we didn't feel ready - then add in a flat tire, rain, and a sore butt (Owen's - he's still searching for the ideal bike saddle) and we were very okay with our no-go decision. Still, we did feel like we were missing out on something this morning when I read tweets from some of the 30 Days of Biking guys who were doing the 100 mile ride. Yes, I tweet now, or do Twitter now. Or something. I'm not really sure what it is that I'm doing with Twitter but it appears that I am posting my progress on #30daysofbiking for the 30 Days of Biking Challenge. Oh yes - update - I've  biked 23 days in a row. Only seven to go... So what does a biking family do when no one from said family is riding the Iron Man? Stand in the ...

So I decided to ask if I could participate in the 30 Days of Biking challenge even though I was starting two days late. I figured out how to tweet Patrick, one of the guys in charge of getting people on the 30 Days of Biking list, and he said I could do it. Yay! I'm in! I just got back from a very quick ride around the neighborhood on my hybrid. The kids are home from school today, their last day of Spring Break, and I looked at our schedule and realized that if I was going to ride my bike today I had better jump on my bike and do it now. So, even though I had already showered and was dressed in real clothes, I stuck my helmet on my head, rolled up my jeans, grabbed my Specialized hybrid and took off. I have not ridden my hybrid since last fall. Now that I've been riding my new Giant Avail road bike the hybrid feels really strange. Very upright and much harder to pedal. Now I'm  kind of amazed I did the 30 mile Jesse James Bike Tour on a hybrid. As for my first two da...

Yesterday, Owen told me about a spot he heard on MPR about two guys who have vowed to ride their bikes at least once a day each day during the month of April. Since making their pledge, dozens of others have joined in the fun and have also pledged to ride every day. Sounds like a good goal, though one I won't be making because I didn't ride yesterday or today. Still, I could shoot for the rest of the days of April, I just won't be signing the 30 days of riding pledge since I've missed two days already. Hey, I wonder if they'll let me in if I promise to ride twice a day for a couple of days to make up for the two days I've missed. Hmmm. I suppose I could ask. Whether I sign up or not, I will certainly visit the 30 Days of Biking website and read the blog entries and tweets. There's a lot of fun stories up on the website already, I expect there will be many more as people post their stories. The more I think about this the more I think I should see if I ca...

It's  a lovely spring day here in Minnesota and I really want to be outside reading a book or riding my bike or something fun like that. Instead, I have work to prepare for my Memoir: Writing of Family class so I'm in my office with the windows open getting ready to get to work. First, though, I'm allowing myself a chance to do some fun work. I've decided to write a quick blog entry which will help get my head in the right place for the writing I need to do for class. At least that's my rationale. I reality I suppose I'm goofing off and avoiding my class writing. Oh well. Last night we took our bikes to Valley Bike and Ski for a few adjustments. Owen's seat was too low and I've been feeling like I'm putting too much weight on my arms when I ride. Dan, one of the guys at Valley, took care of our adjustments while Jerrod, another guy who works there, answered Ryan's questions about shifting gears. Rose announced that she wants a road bike so she...

I picked up my new road bike last night. The nice young man at Valley Bike and Ski taught me how to clip in to my Shimano SPD pedals. It took me awhile to figure it out but I got the hang of it enough to feel like I could practice more at home and do fine. And, since I know just about nothing about riding a road bike, he then showed me how to shift my Shimano 105s, the gear shift things on my handlebars. He answered more questions for me, helped me pick out a bike bag, filled my tires and helped me load my new bike and Owen's in my van. To say I was excited is an understatement. Excited and nervous and also wondering a bit of what I've gotten myself into. Remember, I only started riding bike for real last summer when I bought a helmet and decided to ride the 30 mile Jesse James Bike Tour in September ( you can read about this adventure if you click here ). I rode regularly for a month to prepare for the ride on my old Specialized hybrid bike and finished the ride averaging a...

We'll I'm back home now and had a great time celebrating my birthday yesterday. I had my memoir class at The Loft in the morning then went out to Perkins for a Birthday dinner with my family last night. It was a great day, the kind where I remember how much friends and family mean to me, how much I enjoy relatively simple things like good conversations with family members and friends. The final fun part of my birthday was a trip to Valley Bike and Ski where I finally picked out my cycling shoes and Owen picked out some cool weather cycling gear. Our bikes are there in the shop all put together and ready for us to take home. My plan is to head back to the shop tonight and have the guys check me out on how to clip in and out of my pedals. Then, thoroughly checked out, I'm planning to load the bikes up and bring them home. That means I'm going to be cycling soon, maybe even tomorrow. Our plan is to ride the 30 mile Iron Man at the end of April. I have some cycling to d...