Merry Christmas 2007!!!

After physical therapy on Christmas Eve morning I made the trip to my parent's house in Novi. I arrived around 1:00 and didn't have a lot of time to hang out before we headed over to my Aunt's for Christmas Eve. My cousin's daughter Kassie wore me out playing catch with her ball. She's only four years old and has one heck of an arm. I'm predicting a softball player. It was a lot of fun, great food and was great to spend some time with my family. After dinner we exchanged presents. Opening presents is always much more exciting when there are little kids around. Kassie had a stack of presents and it was fun to watch her tear open the paper and show everyone what she got. It was really funny when she was opening her gifts and would come to a box that was clothes, she would kind of look at and think, what is this? Then toss it aside and on to the next one. Needless to say she was not a fan of clothes. We headed home and I ended up watching a movie with my mom (well she slept on the couch while I watched it) It was called "Cider House Rules." It was a really good movie and I recommend it to anyone that hasn't seen it.

Christmas Day I slept in a little bit and woke up to pancakes and eggs. I timed that just right, I wish I could wake up to that every day. My parents and I exchanged presents. I think we all made out really well. My dad ended up buying himself a 16' Kayak for Christmas. Pretty nice. I had been looking at Kayaks for a little while and reading up on them in magazines at Barnes & Nobles, now I have a little pressure to get one of my own. It would be fun to head out with my dad. And with Lake Michigan only 35 minutes away, that would be a blast to take it out when there are some good waves. My mom spent the day in the kitchen cooking my favorite meal; turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, etc… This is my absolute favorite and was as good as usual. She invited my grandma and Aunt over for dinner. I don't get to see them all that often so I'm really glad they came over and it was great to see them again. I even didn't mind that they ate some of my mom's famous stuffing J I did notice my grandma trying to sneak a second helping… just kidding. After dinner I relaxed for a little bit and around 8:30 packed up the car and headed back to Kalamazoo. I couldn't miss my physical therapy session on Wednesday morning. I'm progressing so well that I can't afford to mess that up. Friday I make the trip back to the doctors for some more x-rays and to find out if I can start doing some strength programs with my leg. I'm predicting that the doc is going to be shocked with how well I'm doing. I'll keep you all posted.

Well I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable Christmas.

When’s the last time you built a snowman???

Wednesday was my 7^th session of PT and I still can't believe the progress. My range of motion has improved over 100% and I am so close to my flexibility being back to normal. My strength will still take some time; unfortunately we can't start working on that until the Doc gives the ok. My next visit to see him is on the 28^th so I hoping for good news. I have been walking without crutches and spending some time on the bike and putting in a little effort. Today at therapy I was working on some ladder drills that worked on balance and footwork. These drills were great and my speed progressed each set I did. I have to say the teamwork between Carl and myself is the reason for my speedy recovery; Carl brings the knowledge and discipline and I just do as he says.

On my way out of therapy Carl mentioned that he was going to be building a snowman with Allie this evening and wondered if I wanted to come by. How could I refuse; a free pass to play in the snow and hang out with my little pal Allie. It's been a while since I've built a snowman, I think the last time was back in college when we had a snow day and that turned into a huge snowball fight. Carl got held up a few minutes at work so I hung out with LeAnne, baby Luke, and Allie in the kitchen. Each time I see Allie she's learned something new. She was counting to 10, singing her ABC's, singing Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer and all this while coloring Christmas Cards for Grandma and Grandpa. Needless to say I was impressed. So Carl, Allie and I headed outside to build "Frosty." Allie enjoyed playing in the snow and being pulled around in her sled. Carl did most of the pulling and I took a turn or two but when Carl or myself would stop pulling Allie would say, "again, again." She was having a blast and of course we would listen and keep pulling her around the yard. Hmmm… I'm going to try that technique in the spring when I'm out riding with my buddies and there is a strong head wind, I wonder if I said "Again, Again" if they would keep pulling up front and let me draft off them. For some reason I don't think that's going to fly. I'm really glad that Carl gave me the invite because building the snowman with Carl and Allie was a lot of fun and I'm quite impressed with the end result. After we warmed up a bit we headed downtown for dinner at one of my favorite restaurants / microbreweries "Olde Peninsula." This seems to be the place I always take family when there in town visiting.

Dinner, Friends & Hockey … It doesn’t get much better than that!

It's been a while since I've had homemade tacos. Monday night my good buddy from college Marc and his wife Kendra invited me over for a good dinner and some entertainment. The entertainment was their two and a half year old son Mason and 1 year old daughter Jada. Their kids are a lot of fun. Marc and Kendra recently moved back into town, not only is it great to have them here, but here's the best part… they only live about a mile down the road. Marc was my lifting partner during college and partner in crime on the bar nights. Lots of good times and memories.

The U.S. Junior National Team was playing W.M.U. in hockey Tuesday night. I knew this was going to be an awesome game. The U.S. team had 20 of 22 kids already drafted to the NHL, the only reason it wasn't 22 of 22 is because 1 kid was 17 and the other 18. I talked with my buddy Jeff to see if he and his son Jack were interested in getting tickets. Jeff grew up playing hockey and Jack started his ice hockey career this year, so he was geeked to go. If all goes as planned, Jeff and I will be coaching his team next year. Fortunately I was able to get tickets for free from my neighbor who works all the games as the goal judge. The game was a blast. We were all really impressed with what Western brought to the table. We all expected a blow out, but the final score ended up being 4 – 2 (the U.S. team won). Western games are a blast and every time I go I always wonder why I don't go more often. It's always good hockey, the fans are a riot and there's not a bad seat in the house. Almost forgot… so we get to the game and Jeff and I sign up for the drawing to get picked for the games during intermission. Jeff got picked to play "shuffle puck," which is where you stand on the goal line and try to get the puck as close to the circle at center ice. Jeff was up against five guys and unfortunately that night he had too much muscle and sent the puck a little too far. It was pretty cool to see a buddy out there and we were able to yell for him when they called his name. Hope everyone has a great Holiday.

All this snow and fun too!

The last couple days have been quite productive. Friday I had PT in the morning and I am always amazed at how fast I am progressing. Right now I am walking without crutches about 70% of the time. My hip is fine, but I am working on rebuilding the muscle in my leg that they had to cut through during surgery. Friday night I met up with Carl and Leanne at their house and we went downtown to work at the Kalamazoo Food Drive. This was my first year attending and I was amazed at how many volunteers they had and how well everyone worked together. We were working on putting together 1500 meals for families in the Kalamazoo area. It was really nice to help out and this is something I would like to do again next year. Later that evening we went to dinner at University Roadhouse. It was really nice to sit and talk for a while. I know Carl and Leanne really enjoyed it as they were able to leave the kids at home with the babysitter.

Saturday was filled with running errands, Christmas Shopping and working on projects around the house. Today I woke up to 8" of snow on the ground. I really enjoy this time of year and wish I was 100% so I could be out skiing. I did get out the snow blower and spent a couple hours outside taking care of the drive and some of the neighbor's driveways. My leg and hip feel pretty good. The rest of the day consists of relaxing and resting my leg, making some white chicken chili and heading over to a buddy's house to hang out. Thanks for reading.

Physical Therapy Session #3

I'm back on the bike… Can you believe it? Well kind of back on the bike. Today's PT session started as the others with the thigh massage and the love / hate stretching session. Next, Carl thought it would be a good idea to get me on the stationary bike to work on the motion in my leg. I wasn't going to argue with that. It took a couple of minutes of my leg going back and forth on the pedals before I finally developed the flexibility in my leg to go completely around, but by the end of the session I was spinning my legs away. I think I got a little too excited because I was wanting to put some resistance on the pedals to make it tougher but thankfully Carl kept me inline and said maybe next time. What's that saying…? You got to learn to crawl before you can walk. After a 10 min session on the bike we headed over to the treadmill, I put on the vest and harness and got hooked up to the machine. This time we set the weight at 50lbs opposed to the 70lbs it was just four days ago. This session I was much more comfortable; I was able to walk at a fairly decent pace without using my hands. At one point I even said to Carl "check this out" and began to jog. Carl looked at me smiled and said "no, no, not yet." Once the 12 min. walk was over I felt great and Carl gave me some exercises to do at home. Today I found out that if you are in Physical Therapy at KVO you are allowed to use the gym any time during their regular business hours for a small fee. Carl introduced me to the weight room and I did some circuit training on the upper body and some core workouts on the ball. It felt great to get the heart rate up and to finally break a sweat. My next PT session is on Wednesday, but I plan on heading back tomorrow to lift weights and hopefully hop on the bike, but no resistance!!! Cheers!

Physical Therapy

Today I was teased with what it will be like to finally walk normal again and it felt awesome. I had my second physical therapy appointment this afternoon with Carl. Although physical therapy can be somewhat painful I really enjoy it; I get to spend time with a buddy, get out of the house and each session I get closer to being 100%. Today's session started with a thigh massage, we all know you can't beat that. After the massage comes the not so fun part, stretching. Because of the surgery the doctor had to cut through the muscles in my leg to attach the plate to the bone; needless to say my thigh muscles are very stiff and tender. Even though the stretching can be painful and at times it can feel as if the muscle is tearing, in a twisted way it actually feels good. After the stretching we went over to the treadmill where I got to practice walking without using 100% of my body weight. It sounds funny to say practice walking, but it really is like starting from scratch. I put on a harness that went around my thighs, waist and had a vest that attached to it with hooks on the shoulders. The hooks attach to a frame above the treadmill that is tied into an air weight system. Carl set the system at 70lbs which means it was taking 70lbs off my body weight so I was only using about 52% of my actual body weight when walking. Although I had this support system on and to some may have looked funny I think I had the biggest smile on my face just from the feeling of being able to walk normal again. An incident like this really makes you thankful for what you have and that things could always be worse.

So I was looking forward to getting my Christmas Tree and decorations up this year but was unable to bring the stuff up from the basement myself. I had some friends (Jason & Cecily, and Mike N.) get together and decide that Tuesday would be the day. They called to make sure Tuesday evening would work for me. Hmmm… let me check… yup I'm free. I was excited by the fact that they thought of me and decided to do this without me asking for their help. I guess that's what makes great friends; they know that right now is a difficult time and they think of you without having to ask. Cecily was the project manager on this task, she had the guys bring the stuff up from the basement and put the tree together. Then Cecily went to work with a keen eye for detail spacing all the ornaments throughout the tree. I also learned a lesson… by placing some of the ornaments further back on the branches it gives some depth. Who would have thought, certainly not me. Tuesday evening the decorations were out, the tree was up and everything was looking really great.

West Virginia 2007

Physical Therapy Bound

Friday finally came and it was time for my two week post surgery check-up. Wow it seems a lot longer than two weeks. Anyway Dr. Cline had ordered a couple x-rays to check on my progress; I am progressing well and was able to view the x-ray and see the metal in my leg. It looks a lot like the picture I posted below with the difference that my plate is longer and I have four stabilizing screws as opposed to two shown in the picture. Wow… I was just thinking that between this surgery and the one I had in High School that this right leg of mine probably has about $120,000 invested into when all said and done. I am progressing well and I was written a script for Physical Therapy which I start on Tuesday. For now I will be unable to do any strengthening exercises at PT and will be limited to range of motion exercises and gait analysis. The doc would like for the bones and muscles to be healed before starting to work on strength. I have to say Dr. Cline is a great doctor, very personable and takes plenty of time to reassure me that I will be able to ride my bike again and be back to 100% shortly. Needless to say he is well aware that I am very active and am anxiously awaiting those days where I will be back to 100%.

It has been great when friends and family have gotten me out of the house or stopped by; it really helps pass the time. The days get extremely long when I spend the entire day on the couch. For all you movie goers I saw an awesome, must see movie this week, "August Rush." This is one of those movies that I plan on buying when it comes to DVD, it was that good. Highly recommended. Saturday I made it to Barnes and Nobles for a couple hours. I picked up a book on clearance called "Beautiful North America." Its' like a big picture book that talks about the must see places across the U.S. and Canada.

Once I learn to post videos and slideshows on here I plan on putting something together for my West Virginia trip this summer along with some others. Until next time, take care and Happy Holidays!

Thanksgiving Week

It's been a week now since my last post, not a whole lot new. I've learned to give myself a daily shot of blood thinner. It took a couple of times, but finally my stomach can handle it. There's just something about sticking yourself with a needle that can make you feel wheezy. It's the anticipation. Carl has been stopping by most nights after work and working with me on physical therapy. It has been helping tremendously. I was having problems with the swelling in my leg and Carl used some Kinesio Tape http://www.kinesiotape.ca/ and that took the swelling down quite a bit. I'm looking forward to my next visit to the doctor so I can get my prescription to see Carl at his office so he doesn't have to spend his personal time helping me out.

Unfortunately I ended up missing my mom's famous Thanksgiving dinner; I wasn't feeling all that well and didn't know how the two hour drive in the car would affect my leg. Thanksgiving is my favorite day of the year. My mom makes the best stuffing. If you've had it you know what I'm talking about, if you haven't had it unfortunately you probably never will, I don't like to share J I knew that by not going home I had a couple offers from some friends Lisa & Chip and The Kucharski's to spend the day with their family here in town so I knew I wouldn't be without a place to go if I felt up for it. Unfortunately Wednesday night I was up for the majority of the night with the chills; I didn't think anything of it, but my mom said she hopes it's not an infection from the surgery. I didn't feel sick, so I don't know what it was, but I ended up having the same thing last night, but still probably feel the best I have since the surgery. I wonder if it could be withdraw from the pain medicine which I stopped taking the other day. Thanksgiving Day I spent a majority of the day sleeping and an old buddy Pat O'Boyle that I grew up with in Novi stopped by and spent part of the day with me. Friday (Day after Thanksgiving) I was feeling much better and I was invited to The Fried's Thanksgiving dinner. I was really looking forward to this, I knew the food and the company was going to be great, and I was really looking forward to my first venture out of the house. LeAnne grew up in the South so with her and her mom spending the day in the kitchen (very much appreciated); needless to say the food was plentiful and fabulous, so much to choose from. Today (Saturday) my parents are heading over to help out around the house, I'm looking forward to seeing them (my mom's bringing leftoversJ) just kidding, it will be nice to see them and have some good company. Thanks for reading and take care!

Post Surgery and Back Home

Sorry it has taken a couple days to post an update. The surgery Wednesday evening went well and I'm really glad that's the route that was taken. I no longer have the sharp severe pains that I got when I moved my leg. I have been up on crutches and graduated physical therapy at the hospital today. YEAH!!! PT at the hospital is really a joke and more working with you on using your crutches. I am looking forward to starting PT with Carl here shortly. I was released from the hospital this afternoon and I can say that I was definitely ready to come home. After spending 7 of the last 9 days in a hospital bed, it is great to be lying in my own comfy bed right now. Except for I seemed to have misplaced the remote.

I had a lot of friends and family that stopped by the hospital, called, and sent e-mails. Your support is greatly appreciated. Thanks for the snacks, balloons, dinners, and loaning me the magazines, movies, etc…

Intertrochanteric Hip Fracture

I was able to talk with the Doctor last night to find out exactly what the medical term for my fracture is… I was told I have an "Intertrochanteric Hip Fracture." I was able to do a little research on the internet and found a diagram that shows the fracture and how they will be repairing my hip.

Surgery Bound…

I ended up making a trip back to the emergency room today and the Orthopedic Doctor decided to admit me back into the hospital. The doc took some more x-rays and decided that the best decision would be for me to have surgery to repair my hip. As of now my surgery is scheduled for 4:00 tomorrow (Wednesday). I was blessed with some great company this evening in the hospital… The Vichinsky's came by and visited for awhile. It was great to see Kevin, Julie, Nick and Elise, we shared some good laughs and spending time with them really helped to pass the time. Shortly after they left; The Fried's stopped by for a while and my little pal Allie was making me laugh, it appears she's quite the cookie monster, much like myself. I'd like to say thanks to my dad for all his help and support; he has been staying with me and helping out around the house. Fortunately he was able to head back to Novi this evening to take care of some things around his and my mom's house. Thanks again for everyone's support. I will give you all an update sometime after the surgery. Cheers!

Out of the Hospital & Back Home…

Sunday morning began with Physical Therapy which consisted of getting me out of bed and up on crutches making sure I could go up and down on stairs. My leg and hip felt really good and they announced that I'd be able to go home later that morning. I figured I'd better shower and shave at the hospital since there shower was much easier to get into. It felt really good to get cleaned up. The nurse wheeled me out to my Dad's car, this was the part that hurt the most; my leg got twisted every which way getting into the car. On the drive home I decided to call my buddy Marc to help get me out of the car. Marc was a great help, he got me out of the car and I was up on the crutches, but the pain was very intense when trying to use the crutches that Marc and my Dad ended up carrying me into the house. I think it was the twisting of my leg to get into the car that set me back, it felt like I was starting recovery all over again. When at home, Sunday seemed to fly by, my day was filled with visits by friends and lots of phone calls. Marc stopped by for a bit and helped get me out of the car. The Fried's came by with lunch and visited for a while. It was great to see them and their daughter Allie can always make me laugh and bring a smile to my face. Later that evening my friend Rachel stopped over for a little bit, it was good to see her and spend some time watching TV.

Fortunately my dad has been able to stay with me and even though we bump heads once in a while he has been a great help. My friends have been great with calling to check in; seeing if I need anything or if there are anyways that they can help and setting up times to stop over and visit. If it wasn't for everyone's support this process would be much more difficult. My thanks goes out to everyone, it is very much appreciated.

I called today to setup an appointment with Dr. Cline the Orthopedic Doctor on Friday to take some more x-rays and to make sure the hip is still aligned. If it is surgery won't be required. I will keep everyone posted. Thanks Again!!!

Update…

After a sleepless Thursday night I decided to have my dad come into town to take me to the hospital. We spent about an hour trying to get me up off the couch, but the pain was so intense that it made me nauseated and feel like I was about to pass out. We ended up calling an ambulance around 9:00am Friday morning to take me to Bronson Hospital. I never noticed how bumpy the roads were in Kalamazoo until this ride Friday morning; every bump sent a shot of pain through my groin area. Let me just say the nursing staff on Friday was exceptional. Laura K., one of my nurses (wife of Luke K. who I also ride with once in a while, he also joins the Wednesday night ride every so often) was amazing, if it wasn't for her I'd be sitting at home icing my groin diagnosed with the wrong injury. I met with the Doctor and they took X-Rays of my hip. After the X-Rays; the Doc sent a message to the nurses to get me up and walking around on crutches, he didn't see anything on the X-Rays and was going to send me home with a strained groin and to put ice on it. (The Doctor didn't even come explain this to me or what his plan was, I guess he figured its 2007 and an e-mail would do, I found this disappointing). When I heard this I thought crutches… this guy is crazy, its 3 hours after I had to call an ambulance to get me off the couch, I still can't move my leg even an inch. Obliviously if you're reading this you know me pretty well and know that I am pretty strong-willed and would have not called an ambulance if I could have handled a fraction of the pain. Thankfully Laura my nurse understood what I was going through and also believed that something more was wrong so she went to talk with the doctor herself, that's when they sent in an Orthopedic Doctor and scheduled an MRI for 6:00pm that evening. After the MRI, they called immediately down to the emergency room and said to stay completely off my leg and that I had fractured my hip. Later that evening they admitted me into the Hospital where I still lay right now. On a positive note, as of now surgery will not be required because the bones are still aligned, if for some reason they come unaligned, surgery will be required to put in a metal plate and a couple screws. To be honest I'll do whatever it takes to get back to a 100%, surgery or not. Right now my focus is on healing and getting better. Rumor has it that I will end up being on crutches 6-8 weeks and I may get to go home from the hospital tomorrow (Sunday). Tomorrow is a new day so we will see what that brings.

On a positive note I will have lots of free time to keep you all posted with my progress, the other side of that is my posts won't be too exciting, they may consists of exciting things like "Yes… I got off the couch today on my crutches; I learned how to use one crutch, while carrying my dinner to the couch, things like that." However I am looking forward to physical therapy and spending time with a buddy Carl who is not only a great friend, but is so knowledgeable in his field that he's probably the only guy I'd trust to help get me back to 100%. There's nothing like putting the pressure on him early... Just kidding!

I'd like to say thanks to all my family and friends that have visited / stayed with me at the hospital, have called to check up, sent e-mails, etc… It is greatly appreciated.

The Curse of the Iceman!!!

I can't believe I am writing this just 6 hours after my post about looking forward to this race. Unfortunately an easy training ride this evening, which is pretty much a routine ride has ended my chances of racing the 2007 Iceman. Mike B., Joe and I met at the Kal-Haven Trail this evening for an easy 90 min. ride. About 25 minutes into the ride we crossed DE Ave. We were riding about 22 mph and Mike B. was up front, then Joe and then myself, as I went to come around Joe another one of our buddies Mike Jones was coming in the opposite direction about 22mph. We all had our lights on, Mike J. had his head down not wanting to shine us in the face and as I came to go around Joe I didn't see Mike J. and he didn't see me. Well you can probably figure out that Mike J. and I hit pretty hard. It wasn't anyone's fault and that's why it's called an accident. We collided hard head on and it threw me directly to the ground landing on my right hip and right elbow. When I landed my right leg didn't come unclipped from the pedal and I believe that is what caused my injury. Mike fortunately landed off to the side in the grass and walked away with a swollen knuckle. First let me just say "for the most part, THE BIKES ARE OK," that's always the first thing guys worry about when they are involved in a crash. At first I thought my hip was the main issue, but come to find out it is my groin area that hurts the most. I was unable to move my leg because of the intense pain so they carried me off the trail and Mike J. stayed with me while Mike B. and Joe went back and got my truck and the van. Mike and Joe carried me into the house and onto the couch, got me changed out of my clothes, fixed me some food and got me settled on the couch where I sit now. Rochelle and Taylor brought over some crutches and Codeine (I'm looking forward to that kicking in). I believe I severely strained or tore my groin, right now I am unable to move my right leg, but I am hoping that the icing helps. Now I have to focus on getting better, hopefully it's a speedy recovery. Let me say I am very thankful for great friends Mike J. for keeping me company on the trail, Mike B. and Joe for getting me home, changed and settled, Taylor and Rochelle for bringing over some crutches and Codeine. I know that's what friends do for each other, but I am very appreciative of their help. As they know I'd do the same for them. Hopefully this injury allows Mike J., Mike B. Joe and all the others to have a safe, mechanical free race Saturday. I'm still hoping that if I can move around tomorrow I would like to head up to the race and support my buddies, but as it looks now I'm not going to get my hopes up. I'll keep you all posted and hopefully the next post has some positive news. I'll be there for the 2008 Iceman ready to battle. Cheers!

Iceman… The Final Countdown!!!

It's that time of year again and I'm not talking about the weather. There's now less than 48 hours until one of the largest mountain bike races in North America takes place in Northern Michigan… ICEMAN. The race 27 miles long starts in Kalkaska and finishes on the East side of Traverse City and winds through the Pere Marquette State Forest. For myself and many others this is a must do annual event, and marks the end of another racing season. The race itself is a top notch event, but I think it is the atmosphere of the race and the race weekend that most people enjoy. The atmosphere is very chill and most of the racers are out to have a good time. Don't get me wrong, it's still a race and myself and others aren't there racing for second place. I'm looking forward to the trip up north this year with Mike, Taylor, Joe and myself, we will be staying with John Spaulding and his family. I was fortunate this year to join John and his son Evan along with Mike, Taylor and Joe on their annual trip to West Virginia for some Camping, White Water Rafting, and some killer Mountain Biking. I'm looking forward to that trip again next year. I am hoping that we all have a great race this year; although I hear Taylor won't be racing due to a hand injury. It's too bad, I had my money on him winning the expert 15-18 division. Mike and I have not had the best of luck the past couple years with flat tires, broken chains, crashes, etc… I am hoping that this 2007 Iceman will be our year for a mechanical free race. Stay tuned for the 2007 Iceman Race Report.

Route 89A Flagstaff to Sedona

By 6 am the car was packed and I was ready to hit the road, 1^st stop was Montezuma's Castle for a little history lesson. The castle is located about 2 hours north of Phoenix and about 10 miles South of the Sedona exit. The drive went fast, I got out, stretched the legs and headed towards the tourist center where I paid my $5 and took one lap through the little museum to gain some knowledge about this Montezuma's Castle. Come to find out Montezuma never even made it this far north from his home town of Mexico City, so why it is named after him boggles me. So I asked for a refund and hit the road… just kidding. I headed down the path to get some great pictures. One might ask why would they build this castle so high up and recessed in the cliffs??? And nope it wasn't to protect themselves from enemies. They did this to provide protection from the desert sun and the cliff helped hold heat in during the winter months. The Sinagua obliviously were not cyclists… I can't imagine coming home after a 4-5 hour ride and having to make this steep climb into your house. (See Pic)

Next I was off to Sedona for a good bike ride along route 89A. After taking Friday off the bike my legs were feeling good and looking forward to getting in a good ride. I reached Sedona and the first thing you notice is the Red Rock on the Canyon Walls. I made the turn onto Rt. 89A and immediately noticed no bike lane or shoulder; I started to get bummed and drove a little further hoping the roads would open up. No such luck, with the roads filled with traffic, tight turns, no shoulder and tourists being tourists not paying attention to the road, I decided I better use my head and accept that today was going to be another day off the bike. I wasn't going to let this ruin my day; heck there was a lot to see. My first stop was Slide Rock State Park. This place was beautiful, quite possibly the most picturesque place I've seen. The trees and rocks were filled with amazing colors, accompanied by the peaceful sound of running water it really just made you relax. Well for a minute anyway, then it was off to explore. I decided to head up the river to see what I could find. It was fun boulder hopping trying to get across the water and the flyer I grabbed at the entrance talked about a steep rock wall that you could scale if you were feeling adventurous. I scaled up the rock wall and down the other side and hiked for a little bit and then decided to turn back before I got into trouble. This place would be a blast during the summer months when the air and water are both warmer. Today the water felt like it was 65 degrees. They say the rocks are so smooth that you can actually use them as a water slide, there's also a deep area that acts like a pool with rock jumping possibilities.

Back on the road I headed north to Flagstaff, which could quite possibly be the coolest city ever. It screamed outdoors and mountain bikes. Seriously there were mountain bikes everywhere, and not just some beat up huffy chained to a light pole. I'm talking big name expensive bikes. Anyway I spent about an hour walking through town checking out the local shops and grabbed a quick bite to eat before I headed back to Phoenix.

Mt. Lemmon

After a couple days of working hard and riding in the Phoenix area I decided to make the trek down to Tucson on Thursday to ride the famous Mt. Lemmon. I was looking forward to the challenge and was excited to ride the same roads that the famous Lance Armstrong and his Discovery Channel team trained on, along with many other US Pro Teams and Riders. A 25 mile climb reaching an elevation of 9,157 feet, the summit is about 25 degrees cooler than the desert below. The change in scenery and temperature is very noticable. About every 1000 feet of climbing is like your traveling 600 miles North, going from desert cactus to pine trees and the brightest yellow leaved tree's I've ever seen.

About the ride... I started off not really knowing what to expect of my legs on the 25 mile (ended up being 30, starting from the car) journey to the top, I knew it was going to be more mental than anything. The only thing certain was that I was making it to the top: ride, walk, crawl. I had read on a local cyclists website that a good time was 2-1/2 hours from the parks entrance (25 miles), obiviously my goal was to beat that time. The mind games started early, I distinctly remember riding up on mile marker 3 and thinking to myself, you got to be kidding me I'm at mile marker 3 and I have 22 + to go. I decided at the beginning of the ride that it would be best if I saved the picture taking for the ride back down. I knew that if I stopped I would have a hard time getting my legs going again. I believe that it was aroung mile marker 16 that there was a distinct change in temperature and scenery. A 15 degree drop in temperature and strong odor of pine. At mile 28 I reached the town of Mt. Lemmon, I stopped and asked two local workers if this was the top. They noted that I had missed the turn to Ski Valley and would have to back track 500 yards and make the turn for the last two miles and 15oo feet of elevation gain. I chatted with these guys for a couple of minutes and decided that my time was up when one of the mountain men asked "That's a nice bike, where'd you pick that up?" I know this is bad, but by looking at this guy nothing about him screamed out cycling. How does he know this is a nice bike? At that moment all I could picture was me, 28 miles at the top of the mountain, in spandex shorts, shaved legs and this guy riding away in my $6000 bike. Really though they were two very nice and helpful guys, I enjoyed my chat with them, but I'd be lying if I said that thought didn't cross my mind. The short 5 min stop made the last two miles seem very long and painful, when I tried to stand and put pressure on the pedals, it felt like every muscle in my legs was about to cramp up. Finally I reached the top... 2:15 minutes from the park enterance and 2:31 if taking the time from the parking lot. After a moment of taking in the view I was on the hunt for some fuel for the way down. Off to the side was a very small store selling various candy, drinks and fudge. After remortgaging my house I walked away with a snickers bar, water and a pop for the decent back down the mountain.

The Ride Down... With the drop in temp I began to get a little chilled at the top, I put on my arm warmers, vest and hopped back on the bike. Finally... the part of the ride that I worked so hard for, there's just something about flying down a mountain at 30 - 40 miles an hour. (Mom don't read this... my top speed was 48 mph :) The descent was fun, fast and filled with road side stops to capture some memories. Finally I reached the car some 3-1/2 hours later, cleaned-up, changed clothes and hopped back in the car for the two hour trek back North to Phoenix and my legs are very thankful that Friday is a rest day.

My next venture is Saturday where I will be heading two hours north to Sedona for what is supposed to be the most scenic road in the country, state Route 89-A Sedona to Flagstaff, Oak Creek Canyon. Stay tuned for pics.