Miles and Madness

Spun Bicycles is OPEN

2013-03-17T12:04:00.002-04:00

Just a quick link to my bike shop's website. Check it out. No time for blogging anymore.
http://spunbicycles.com/

2012 - the year I quit blogging.

2012-12-28T18:49:00.000-05:00

Oh shit. It's been a month since I've posted.

I've been thinking about this blog and well, I think it's pretty much done. It's been a good 5 years, letting it all out up in here. I think the site has run it's course though, and it's time to end the madness.

Social media sites make it easy to access one's privacy these days, with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, etc. You can find me there, if I haven't already blocked you.

I bought the domain spunbicycles.com and the site should launch in the next couple of months. There will be a blog on the site to promote news about the shop. We also have a Facebook page set up for the shop if you want to follow the progress there.

Lots of highs and lows, the past 5 years have provided. It's fun to go back through the posts and read them. I don't regret one single sentence I ever typed.

Enough said.
Thanks for reading.

Spun Bicycles

2012-11-27T20:08:00.000-05:00

The buzz has already been created but I wanted to go ahead and make the official announcement here:

WE ARE OPENING UP A BIKE SHOP!

Dominic has wanted a bike shop since he was 10 years old. He was born to do this. We have people from all over town asking him to work on their bikes - everything from restoration to basic repairs. Hell, we even had a frame shipped up from Louisville to be painted for our friends Nick and Laura.

The plans have been in motion since July when we signed a letter of intent to rent a space on Hamilton ave in Northside. It's 940 sq feet and includes an office. The rent is cheap. The location can't be any more perfect, just 4 blocks away from the bike co-op, across the street from Hoffner Park where the Slow Ride leaves every Thursday, and right next door to a craft beer and wine store that will be serving specialty brews on tap in the near future.

This neighborhood is in desperate need for an actual bike shop. The people who live in the community ride bikes. Lots of them commute. It's just a few blocks from the coffee shop where I work, and not one shift goes by that someone doesn't come in to ask me for help with a bike, or where to go to buy a bike.

I've watched this neighborhood grow since the late 90's. The property values are up, and people from the suburbs are moving in. Businesses are popping up left and right and storefronts are hard to come by.

We want to provide a service for the community of Northside. We will cater to the urban cyclist, the commuter, BMX'ers and even skaters thanks to Lew from Fickleboards.

We will provide the very best customer service - no snotty elitist attitudes at Spun Bicycles. We will have a flat screen TV pumping out BMX videos and music. Dominic is in the process of fabricating his own bike racks. This bike shop will be nothing like any other bike shop in the city. It will be a destination. A place to hang out and have a beer while you get your bike worked on.

We sign the lease in 3 weeks and have already started ordering construction materials. The branding contract has already been signed and the logo will be completed in 3 weeks. I expect to be working on JB and QBP applications once the signage is complete and the store is set up for inventory. Everything is moving in the right direction and if all goes according to plan, we are shooting to open in late March or early April.

This has been a dream of ours for as long as we've been together. Our entire relationship has been built around the bicycle - we met in a bike shop - first date was a bike ride - and we got married at Interbike. Our love of the bicycle has always been something we cherish together, and now we get to own a business together and hopefully succeed as business partners in an industry we have so much passion for.

It's going to be a challenge, I know, but we can do this.
Failure is NOT an option.

Product Review: OrthoLite Insoles

2012-11-16T17:07:00.000-05:00

For the past 6 weeks or so, I've been suffering from a heel injury. At first I thought it was plantar factitious, but after a few weeks of doing the recommended stretches and hot yoga, I started to think maybe it was something else. I read up on both PF and stress fractures, and the symptoms I was experiencing seemed more like the later. I thought I was doomed to stop running for 6 months. Total bummer.

So when I got an email asking if I'd like to do a product review for OrthoLite Insoles, I jumped on it. Normally I don't do product reviews because a) hardly anyone offers them to me, and b) if they are offered to me, it's usually a product I have no need for, and c) does anyone even read my blog anymore?

The insoles seemed like a great idea to try and I am too cheap to buy them, so when they sent me a pair 3 days later, I was on it. I put them into my newest pair of Asics and did all of my dog walking in them (usually 2-3 miles a day). I wore them to work as well.

I've been using the insoles for almost a month now, and I gotta tell you, they work. They really work. I was able to run 3 miles on Monday and another 4 miles yesterday w/ zero pain in my heel afterwards. HUZZAH! There is nothing like an endorphin buzz from running and I am so so stoked to be back at it.

OrthoLite features include:

Designed to fit all athletic and outdoor shoes or boot.
Made with open-cell foam, allowing air to circulate around the foot.
Wicks moisture away from your foot leaving your foot cooler and drier.
Unique spring-back technology ensures that your insole won’t flatten out and it will retain over 95% of its thickness over time.
Their patented anti-microbial formulation (approved by the EPA and FDA) fights fungus, bacteria and shoe odor.
Lightweight and fully washable.

You can order the insoles from Amazon for $19.99 and $1.00 will go to the Level Field Fund (their mission is to bridge gaps in funding for uniquely talented athletes, following the belief that opportunities to pursue excellence in sport should not be limited by an athlete’s financial situation - way cool).

Website here.
Facebook here.

Hello November.

2012-11-01T15:30:00.000-04:00

I saw a fucking Christmas commercial on T.V. last night. Come ON.

So, yea, October just kind of flew by and I got sick again last week when we had this awesome four day blast of 80 degree days and all I did was sleep.

Then Sandy came and blew up the east coast and our temps dropped 40 degrees and we got a bunch of rain and wind and my cold got worse. Coughing fits that produced vomit, and green snot from Dominic's nose. Both of us are on antibiotics and needless to say, I am banned from my bikes.

October was a good month though. I got to ride a bunch.

Dominic did a couple of demo's as well and we made some friends along the way. Lew from Fickle Skateboards is Dominic's new BFF. They are like two peas in a pod.

Lew and his crew of skaters and Dominic and his crew of BMXers did a little demo before Northside's Movie Night at Wordplay a couple of weeks ago. It was super fun. After the demo, we went back to Lew's place and ate a shit ton of pizza and got to see his awesome workshop where he makes his boards.

Michael Providenti took a bunch of pics you can see here, but these are just too cute not to share.

Dominic also did a demo for the Cub Scouts last week for his buddy Dave. I've never seen so many amp'ed up kids in my life. There were 30+ little boys listening to Dominic talk about safety on bikes and then afterward, he did a flat demo for them. Dave texted me later that his boys couldn't go to sleep that night, they were so freaking excited. It's rad to get kids stoked on bikes.

This weekend are the big UCI3 Cyclocross races and I am not racing them for the first time in 3 years. I am going to spectate though, the pro-races anyways. It will be fun, since my buddy Russell is in town and he has never been to a CX race.

Oh, and we're opening a bike shop in April.
:)

Sucking it up in the cold and winter isn't even here yet.

2012-10-10T19:39:00.000-04:00

One day it's almost 80 degrees and I am out riding in shorts and t-shirt and the next day I am pulling out the wool. Weather changing over to cold is rough for me. I already miss summer and the 100+ degree days.

Today was cold and breezy. A road ride would have destroyed me, and Zac wanted to ride MTBs. I knew the woods would block us from the wind and keep us warm, so he picked me up at 12:30 and off we went to Devou. Wool knee socks, bibs and shorts and a long sleeve shirt was enough to keep me warm.

We rode the loop twice and then the lollypop loop again. We talked about trying the expert downhill trail just to see if we could do it. The signs we passed read CAUTION! EXPERT SECTION AHEAD, and out of curiosity, I just went for it. Down we went, and it wasn't really all that scary. It was so much fun!

A great time we had on the trail today for sure.

Yesterday it was about 38 degrees when I left the house for work. I had on wool knee socks, corduroys, t-shirt underneath a wool sweater, my thermal Raleigh jacket, two pairs of gloves and a knit hat under my helmet. So uncomfortable, but for a 6.5 mile commute, I managed to suck it up. A tad over-dressed, but at least I stayed warm.

After work, I had to run some errands and the sun was out. I kept the wool sweater on and shoved my jacket in my messenger bag. I rode up Montana to my bank for a deposit, then to the auto shop where my dead car is. I somehow lost the titles to both my cars, and in order to scrap the dead car, I needed to apply for a lost title which required the registration. I grabbed some shit out of the glove box and rode off to the BMV and then rode home.

It really is kind of satisfying just riding to these destinations via bike. I like it.

This past weekend I was totally not into riding outside though. I banged out a sweat session on my rollers instead, watching the neighborhood girls ride bikes outside. I kind of hated myself for being such a wuss but I have such a hard time acclimating to cold weather, the slightest chill makes me uncomfortable.

Monday I went to the Y to swim but some kid had an "accident" in the pool, so it was closed. I lifted weights and tried to run on the treadmill, intervals at first, and then 30 minutes at a slower pace. My foot was killing me, and after 3 miles, I was done. Plantar factitious or stress fracture, whichever it is, isn't going away. I'll admit I am not doing enough stretching, and standing on my feet at the coffee shop doesn't help.

Last week I got out for a nice long road ride with Chip and Zac. It was so gorgeous outside. Sunshine, warm temps, the leaves changing colors...we had such a good ride. I felt like I had lost a lot of my fitness though, struggling to stay on Chip's wheel after we climbed up into Alexandria.

About 30 miles into the ride we passed a house with this very cool old school stationary bike in the yard. If I could have taken it home, I would totally have it in my house right now.

We stopped for coffee in Newport after the ride and I was spent. I got in 60 miles and 3000 feet of climbing. Longest ride in IDK how long.

That night, Dominic came home limping from the skate park. And the bruises keep on changing color and expanding down his leg, 5 days later. Pretty shades of purple, right?

Just another Saturday night blog post, cuz ya know, I have no life.

2012-09-29T20:13:00.002-04:00

That picture has nothing to do with anything going on recently. I just love the picture. My friend Geo posted it on Facebook last night along with over 600 pictures from the MoBo Kid's Day Race. I think I was caught up in a moment of anxiety or just straight up pissed off. Probably the later. And Dominic looks like a mexican gangster with his fake Just For Men colored beard.

In other news, more current....

My car died last night. It's gone for good. Probably gonna scrap it or sell it to a guy I know for parts, who happens to have to have the same exact make, model and color car, only his engine has been rebuilt. We'll see what happens. I am not hoping for much.

So this leaves me car-less on the nights Dominic works, and makes things a bit challenging. But fuck it, I am always up for a challenge.

I've been commuting to work for 7 months now, which is fine. I have both CX bikes ready to go, geared and SS. I have two sets of lights on each bike, as well as pedals - eggbeaters on one bike and candies on the other. This saves me the hassle of switching anything over and if I blow a tube pumping tires, I can just grab the other bike and go. Kind of like having a pit bike...only it's for commuting 6.4 miles to work and I don't really have a choice in the matter anymore. I have to ride there.

You know what's gonna suck the most? Not being able to get the groceries on Saturday night. That's been my routine for a while now. I am usually exhausted after work, cuz I open the coffee shop and we're slammed from the second we open the door till the time I leave. I like to ride home, chill for a bit, then drive a mile to the P-Hill Krogers. Then I come home and prep healthy food for Dominic to eat when he gets home from bar tending. He also likes to have Perrier after work. Both of us bust our asses in the food industry and especially on the weekends, it's a fucking bitch. It's the little things that help get us through....

I'll manage somehow, cuz I always do.

After my run last weekend, I came to a conclusion that Running Hates Me. I have a bad case of plantar factitious in my left foot. My plans to up mileage this fall on the trail are pretty much ruined. I have been doing a lot of calf stretches and even went to a Hot Yoga class, which, BTW, helped tremendously. The pain in my foot, especially in the morning, has subsided to a low score of about 4 now, so maybe I can run again in a few weeks. Running steps at Crosley starts in a month too. Shit better be healed.

I do know I need more Hot Yoga. My hamstrings are still sore 3 days later.

It's rained a bunch this week. Temps are in the 70's. Perfect CX bikin' weather. I took my SS out for 40 miles on Thursday, splish-splashing through every puddle I saw. Having not been on my SS in a month and a half, I realized I have been spoiled with gears and need to HTFU and ride w/o them for a while. So I am riding the SSCX to work now.

It's the spice of life, people. Variety. Gotta have it.

Before the rain came, I made sure to hit up the trail. I went over to Mitchell and rode for a couple of hours. It amazes me how much better I get at nailing a rock garden each time I ride. I love the trails so much and will miss them when they close for the winter. I am taking advantage as much as possible now. And playing with Instagram in the woods is fun too. That log though, I had to walk over and then snapped this picture.

The road bike calls out to me, ride me! and I've ignored it for a while. But then Chip will send me a text hey lets ride and I'll try to meet up with him once a week. This past week didn't work out cuz of the rain but we did get together the week before. We enjoyed 50 miles in Kentucky with my other friend Zack who snapped this picture of Chip showing me where Carrie and Andrew got married last month.

Dominic over-did it with the testosterone and had to stop cuz his levels were at 2100 (normal range 800-1100). He grew 12 lbs of muscle in a month and was fucking huge but it's been almost 2 weeks without a dose and his size has shrunk a bit. He goes back to the DR on Monday for more bloodwork and hopefully they will figure out how much needs and how often. He's hating life right now, but I tried to tell him....

Other than that, not much else is going on except.....

Dominic has 3 BMX demo's scheduled for the month of October. I am so proud of him and how much he's been practicing. This week is a street event, the kick off party for Foto Focus, a month long photography show through out Cincinnati. On the 20th, he'll do a demo in N-side for Movie Night alongside Fickle Skateboards, and on the 23rd he's doing a Safety Bike and BMX Demo for the Cub Scouts. He's just so stoked riding flat.

I'll leave you with this music video by Why? It was filmed at the N-side 4th of July Parade and Dominic can be seen at :50. Pretty rad.

The Delhi Skatepark

2012-09-24T18:00:00.000-04:00

Dominic found a new playground. It's a skatepark about 5 miles from our house. DUH! Dominic's new BMX riding buddy, John, turned us onto this skatepark in Delhi last night.

John lives about a mile from us and rides a trials bike. That dude can bunny hop 5 feet. I've never seen anyone ride trials before and it is pretty rad.

So we went there last night. We had NO idea this place existed. Dominic was ecstatic. These two old guys pretty much showed these kids how it's done.

I thought the kids would ignore them, but it wasn't like that at all. They surrounded Dominic and his bike and asked him a ton of questions. Dominic let one of the kids try his bike out. None of them are used to the way his bike is set up. They were all kind of freaking out.

All that shit I have heard about skaters and BMX'ers not getting along is a bunch of shit. The skaters and the BMX'ers all hung out together. They watched out for each other and made sure no one got in each others way.

Lots of girls hanging out watching their boys ride. Dominic was kind enough to point out that I was "the oldest Betty there". One girl was skating. Another girl laid on the ground and let the boys jump over her.

After about 2 hours, I had to drag Dominic out of there. He has found a new place to ride and is stoked! That is, until the new skatepark in Northside is built. :)

Ghost bikes in Cincinnati

2012-09-13T11:52:00.000-04:00

** UPDATED 9/14 BELOW **

My obligations with MoBo are coming to an end. I haven't really done much for the co-op since the Kid's Day race which was August 12th. I took a couple weeks off after that, and then I got sick. They needed a fill in at open shop last night which Dominic fulfilled and I worked the front desk until another volunteer showed up. I have learned so much from MoBo and am proud of the co-op and all they do for the bicycling community in Cincinnati.

Speaking of bicycling in Cincinnati....

We've had TWO people die on their bikes in the last TWO weeks.

A couple of weeks ago, Andrew Gast was hit from behind on his road bike, around 6:15am. He was 27 years old and out riding his bike before work. That night a number of people showed up at MoBo and build up a ghost bike. The following week a memorial ride was formed by the Cincinnati Cycle Club and 540 bicyclists showed up to ride in his honor and his ghost bike was mounted.

Photo by Steve Magas - Ohio's Bike Lawyer

Two nights ago, Ronald Richardson, 59 years old, was riding in the street in Bond Hill when he was stuck by a Metro Bus and killed around 8:30pm. The Cincinnati Cycle Club asked MoBo to build another ghost bike. The installation is supposed to happen next week. I just hope the cycling community makes just as big a deal for Ronald as they did for Andrew....

*** Ronald aka 10-Speed will have his ghost bike mounted on Tuesday.

Cincinnati has come a long way in the last few years with new bike lanes, new bike signs, new bike shops. This article that came out yesterday was pretty good. I agree, the city has a long way to go, and with cycling becoming more and more popular, the cars and just gonna have to get used to us. More and more people are moving from the suburbs to the city so they don't have to commute as far by car. Who can blame them, with gas at 4 bucks a gallon, it's just plain silly.

Be safe out there ya'll. Your next ride might be your last.

Nothing to see here, just a rant on sickness affliction.

2012-09-06T13:06:00.001-04:00

Day fucking 11 of being sick and I am not in the mood to be nice anymore. I have missed out on the last days of summer and I am over being sick and in this fucking house, in bed.

It started when I wrote the post below. The following Monday I was down for the count. My joints ached like I had just ran 26.2. My fever spiked up to 101. I slept and slept and slept, for days.

Saturday I returned to work, trying not to cough in people's faces while I rang up their coffee.

Rested Sunday and Monday.

Back to work this past Tuesday, still tired, still coughing, but no one to cover my shift. A customer recommended Colloidal Silver and Apple Cider Vinegar so I went and bought some after work.

Yesterday I went to the Y and sat in the steam room. It was hot outside and I swam a few laps but the chlorine hurt my throat. Came home and laid around some more.

My neighbor brought me home made chicken soup last night - the second batch in a week - she is so sweet.

Today I woke up feeling like someone had sat on my chest for 8 hours.

I emailed my acupuncturist and she called me, recommending even more vitamins.

D3
C
Zinc
Fish Oil
Garlic cloves

I am taking as much as my bowels can endure.

OVER IT.

Back to work tomorrow and Saturday and i-swear-to-fucking-god if I can't ride my bike by Monday, I am gonna off myself.

Not really, but fuck.

I don't get sick often, but when I do, it literally keeps me down for WAY too long.

Feeling my age.

2012-08-26T18:17:00.001-04:00

I have period cramps and I am EMO and sensitive my body feels run the fuck down.

It's 5:15pm on Sunday and I am cooked after a day of doing pretty much nothing except for a 2K swim and some shopping. I am tired as a mother fucker. I feel old.

Dominic was feeling really run down too.

He's insisted for the last 2 years that he was experiencing 'low t' (testosterone). Without a blood test, I never believed him. Well, he finally got some bloodwork done last week and the results came back the next day. His levels were at 274. Normal is between 500-1000 for a 39 year old. Apparently too many blows to the balls on his bike throughout the years may be the cause....

Anyways, he started on a testosterone replacement this week and KABOOM! He is back. It took one dose, which he gets every 2 weeks, and he's feeling like he's 25 years old. He isn't sleeping as much. He can bench 20% more than he could a week ago, and he's even doing the laundry while I am at work! His mood swings are pretty much gone and its amazing to see him feeling so good.

I started back on a strict vitamin regimen this week. A couple of years ago I faithfully took a handful of vitamins every day. Fish oil, magnesium, vitamin e, d3, and a shit ton of vitamin c. I quit because I basically got lazy. I used to care for my body a lot better with massage, acupuncture and vitamins, but since I've stopped endurance sports, I stopped worrying so much.

This last week, my leg muscles have been so sore, so much that it's hard to get through a 7 to 8 hour shift of standing all day at the coffee shop.

I look at my Strava feed and don't see all that much happening. Once or twice a week I get in a 3+ hour ride on my CX or MTB bike, a run here and there, and my commute to and from work.

I did do hill repeats once last week and raced my MTB a whopping 12 miles last Sunday. Ran the next day and then on Tuesday I rode to and from work. Wednesday I rode my MTB to the trail and did a couple of loops and rode home (26 miles and 2000 feet of climbing).

By Thursday my legs were so fuckin' sore, I was sure something else was wrong. I lathered up my legs with Icy Hot and even took an ice bath.

I still rode to and from work and then got a massage on Friday after work, riding there and then home. I drove to work on Saturday, only cuz I blew a tube and didn't have enough time to change it. I figured a full day off would be good for me, but instead, I went running in new shoes after I got home from work.

I woke up this morning and my ankles were so sore, I could barely walk. I don't think I bought the right kind of running shoes. I should have stuck to my old 2700 series Asics. These looked cool though.

Planning on a short, chilled out MTB ride tomorrow with Dominic and hoping that I am just PMSing and my body needs some sleep and recovery. Recovery from what, I have no idea. It sure does suck getting old.

At least I get to grow old with someone as rad as Dominic. August 24th was the 5 year anniversary of the day we met and I am more in love with him than I ever have been.

Back to my roots....

2012-08-18T19:57:00.000-04:00

This picture was taken in March, 1991. I was 20 years old. I fucking love this picture and was stoked when my friend Stacy posted it on Facebook. This bike (a Raleigh!) brings back so many memories. I rode it everywhere, and I mean everywhere cuz I didn't have a car. Or a driver's license.

I had an apartment on Auburn ave across from Planned Parenthood and I'd ride to the bar. Sometimes the bike would be back in my apartment the next morning and other times I'd have to go looking for it.

I rode it to my nanny job down on Ludlow, as well as my waitress job downtown. Back then, I couldn't ride back up Vine st. hill and I'd have to walk.

One time, I rode this bike all the way from Clifton to Loveland (24 miles!) just so me and my boyfriend could get something to eat at his Mom's apartment cuz we had no money for food. And then we begged a friend to come pick us up cuz there was no way we were riding back.

Funny how shit changes.
Sorta.

This picture was taken last month. This is the kind of riding I've been doing a lot of.

You know what's really funny? I signed up for Strava so I could track all my commuting.

I was curious about these Strava posts I kept seeing on Facebook. Someone educated me and so I downloaded the app cuz I got this iPhone in June. I've never had a Garmin before and I love to see the elevation profile of my rides.

I record all my rides, 6.5 mile commutes and all. Someone said Strava would make me want to race again, but that's actually the opposite of what happened.

I am so very happy not racing, and just getting back to my roots. Enjoying my bikes. How awesome it is to wake up at 5am for work and hop on my bike, turn on my blinkies and ride 6 miles to work and NOT be going out for a fucking training ride! This truly has become something I look forward to.

I will always remember the days on that big ass yellow Raleigh I rode 20+ years ago.

I can't believe it's already August.

2012-08-05T10:29:00.000-04:00

Today is Dominic's 39th birthday and we are going to dinner tonight with the LoPresti clan + my Mom, a total of 14 people.

Last Monday was my birthday and I turned 42. Birthdays generally suck for me, just like X-mas. I just try to move on through the day w/o expectations of anything spectacular happening. I tried to keep busy, plans for the day included a MTB ride with Dominic and Kid's Night at Mobo.

The MTB ride was great but it ended up with Dominic knocking himself out unconscious on the trail. He decided to shred the downhill at Devou and crashed (he was wearing a helmet). He was pretty far ahead of me, so I don't know how long he was out. When I woke him up, he puked, a sign of a concussion. I got him home and he assured me he was fine, despite the ringing in his ears and a raging headache.

Kid's Night would have to go on without him. At first I was pissed. Why did he have to be so stupid and irresponsible on a bike? Why did he have to ruin MY birthday?

So I left him home alone and drove to the co-op to get set up. Once I got busy doing what I needed to do for the kids, I forgot all about my birthday and memememe. A friend brought 36 little cupcakes for everyone, my mood brightened and the evening went really well.

Fast forward to today, and Dominic is all healed up and feeling fine.

Riding my MTB has been awesome. I really am getting better. My rides have been short and more focused on getting over the obstacles w/o unclipping or getting off the bike. When I trained for Mohican it was all about being on the bike for long periods at a time. It's nice to go to the trail now and just ride for a couple hours, slowly. If I can't make that rock garden on the first try, I back up and do it again. I try different lines. I do it until I get it right. Those big fat wheels keep rolling, and man, that is some fun shit.

This is my first summer in 3 years I won't be training for CX and I am not mad. I plan to ride my MTB for August and September and just enjoy the trails while they are still dry. The rain and cold will come soon enough and trails will be closed again until spring. I plan to make the best of them this fall and stay the fuck away from CX and the races and all that shit.

Summer nights and kids on bikes.

2012-07-25T19:24:00.003-04:00

MoBo's Kid's Night has taken priority this summer. Dominic and I plan our week around it. Hell, we've planned our entire summer around it. We've dedicated ourselves to this program, and it's been one of the best summer's of our lives together.

I spend about 15-20 hours a week on Kid's Night, between emails, forms, donation requests, shopping, and hauling bikes to the co-op. Monday we usually leave the house around 3:30 and don't get home until 9pm after clean up. Afterwards, we are emotionally and physically exhausted in a way we have never felt before. Dominic always comes home covered in dirt, sweat and grease but with a HUGE smile on his face. Most weeks, I am too tired to even talk, other weeks, my adrenaline is pumping so hard I can't sleep.

My focus was to put kids on bikes. The kids in the neighborhood have next to nothing. Giving them a bike is like giving them a key to freedom. I've learned a few lessons along the way....

Stolen bikes:

Sometimes the kids come back the next week, telling me their bike was stolen. I've learned the hard way that we just can't replace these bikes week after week. It made me sad at first, but as the weeks went by, I started to get hard and set policies into place - one hard lesson to learn.

A bike was actually stolen a couple weeks ago during Kid's Night, by a young dope boy who was walking past the co-op, and he just grabbed the bike and took off. I ended up driving around the neighborhood for 45 minutes hoping to catch him but we never did. Now we make the kids park their bikes in a safe spot.

Bad behavior:

Two weeks ago we had 33 kids there + a number of their friends hanging around. We had few volunteers and not enough activities and it was hot as hell and the kids were agitated. One girl got flip with me, and after numerous warnings, she was asked to leave. She proceeded to call me a 'fucking bitch' and I had to get Dominic to escort her off the premises. Her older friends were out in the street and threw rocks and a bottle at Dominic which ended up with cops coming and much drama.

Only a handful of kids have had to be kicked out for bad behavior, and this is always hard on my heart, because I want so badly to be a positive influence for them - another hard lesson to learn.

Activities:

- Teaming up with the gardening program works well as long as we have enough gardening volunteers.

- A friend of mine who rides bikes and is a scientist brings a microscope and the kids get to look at cool stuff on slides.

- Last week we asked a few of the older kids to act as mechanic's assistants so they learned how to wrench.

- One mechanic sat with a group of kids and had them patch tubes.

The more they use their brain, the easier they are to handle - lesson learned.

Growth

I've read through the reports from past years, 2008 and on. Last year, on average, they had 14 kids. At the end of the summer, they had given out 27 bikes.

This year - SO FAR - we have had an average of 25 kids and given out 77 bikes.

A few pictures taken by Michael Providenti:

The bike blender

Jheri, dedicated volunteer and MoBo board member teaches this kid to change a flat

A stoked girl riding her bike

Me and my precious binder

Learning science!

Signing kids in

Kids wrenching

A moment of stress

After it's over....

Simple, sweet, solo night ride.

2012-07-18T19:06:00.000-04:00

My legs were tight from my commute home from work on my SSCX bike. I debated whether or not to drive the 7 miles to my 8:30pm meeting. I had been planning on it all day. It was hot out though. I talked myself out of it several times.

At the last minute, I decided to ride. I threw my heavy messenger bag over my shoulder, grabbed my SSCX bike, and walked out the door.

Once pedaling, I knew I'd made the right decision.

I got to the house where the meeting was about a half hour early. My people were home though, and we talked outside on the porch, their cigarette smoke still smelling pretty good to me. More people showed up and after much laughter and a few hugs, we went inside to the cool air conditioned house and sat down at the dining table for our meeting.

My Tuesday night group, they are so special to me. I've been going to this meeting for 14 months and I love it so much. The hour flew by and then we closed the meeting, hugged, chatted, and said our goodbyes until next week.

I pedaled home, my headphones plugged in to a Pandora radio station that played songs like Erotic City. The hot humid air on my face felt so good. The smell of summer sweat mixed with rank car engines filled the air. The humidity was so thick you could cut it with a knife. I was sweating, my cut off cargo shorts wet with swamp ass. I hadn't changed from my work commute and I could smell the odor which wasn't pleasant, but still satisfying.

Bike rides that serve a purpose are far more enjoyable to me than going out and riding efforts. I have been getting in one long road ride a week with my buddy Chip, usually 50-60 miles. I ride my MTB a couple of times a week, and the rest of the days my bikes take me places that I need to get to and can do without a car.

I like simple.

Chasing cock on a Sunday morning....

2012-07-15T20:04:00.001-04:00

I was walking my dogs this morning on our usual route when Lola spotted something.

I thought to myself, what the fuck is a chicken doing on the side of the road in Price Hill?

We walked across the street and continued on towards the park on Sunset. I sent a text to my co-worker Kelly, who has friends who live in Price Hill and also have chickens. I told her it had a red head. She then said it was a male and that it probably belonged to the Eco Village or something. She gave me her friends number.

We walked through the park and then down the trail and onto Gilsey, our usual 2 mile walk which takes about 45 minutes. When we came back to the corner where we had seen the chicken, sure enough, he was still there. I called my other friend Shawn who raises chickens and explained the situation. He couldn't take this guy because males and females don't get along.

And apparently, I was using the wrong terminology. Male chickens are roosters, or cocks. Female chickens are hens. But what the fuck do I know???

So I got home and Dominic was sitting in the kitchen and I told him we had to go try and capture a chicken. He jumped up, got dressed, found a big box and we jumped in the car together. I called Kelly's friends Amanda and Dave and they were willing to take the chicken and gave us some advice on how to catch him.

So off we went.

I wish to hell I had video of Dominic running after this chicken on the side of the road. Chickens aren't easy to catch. He kept running into the bushes and we were trying to corner him.

Dominic whispered to me, "Chickens aren't very bright." As if the chicken could hear him.

I got Amanda back on the phone and asked her to come and help us.

COCK LOOSE IN PRICE HILL!

I was losing it. This was insane! There we were, all 4 of us, running after this chicken/cock/rooster. Finally we got him! Dave had brought a plastic bin and threw it over the chicken/cock/rooster.

Then they lifted the bin just a bit to get it flipped over and BOOM he got away. The chase was on all over again. I basically stood there taking pictures and laughed my ass off. This was too much.

The chase went on for a half hour.

Dominic and Amanda were in the brush and finally Dominic just grabbed him. Dave had gloves on and was able to grab him and keep him from going anywhere. Note Dave's sweaty face. This was not easy.

He was thin, not in very good shape, and there were some marks on his side as if he had been pecked at. Perhaps there is some cock fighting going on in the P-Hill now that pit bull fighting is so high on the radar.

Amanda and Dave took him home and later when I texted her, she told him he was doing fine. She had him with her hens and they were eating and all hanging out, real chill. They might name him Paul.

Giving back.

2012-07-07T20:40:00.002-04:00

I gave a lead on the 4th of July. I usually don't talk about how much service work means to me in a lead, but I did that night and decided to share it here.

Back when I was on dope, I'd steal anything. ANYTHING. Bikes were a big deal. I remember in S.F., the dealers would come and shoot us up with meth and we'd go out and pop u-locks all night long.

That's something I have always been ashamed of.
I believe in Karma.

So when I kicked dope in 99, some things in my head started to change. I wasn't in recovery yet, but the guilt I felt from all the wrongs I had committed were very apparent. I felt the need to give back somehow and change my Karma, ya know?

In 2001 I had my dog Cheeko certified as a Therapy Dog and we visited a nursing home together. I loved the work and it felt so good to make those old people happy. They LOVED Cheeko and over the course of almost 5 years, we got to know many of the patients and sadly, see them die. It was bittersweet.

In the winter of 2001, a doberman rescue was started about 40 minutes east of me. I remember how stoked I was that I could actually do some dog rescue work. They had a 20 kennel facility and needed all the help they could get. I worked my ass off there for 6 years.

Every weekend, on Saturday I'd do the nursing home gig with Cheeko, and on Sunday I'd go to the rescue and scrub kennels and walk dogs. It was a routine I enjoyed very much.

It just felt like the right thing to do.

In 2007, I signed up for my 1st marathon and somehow, I forgot about volunteer work. I became self obsessed - totally focused on myself and my training. All I cared about was memememe. I'd raise money for rescue running marathons, but it wasn't the same as getting my hands dirty and being present.

And that's when I started using pills again. And weed.

Ironman training was the worst. Dominic tells me now that I was so self absorbed with myself and my training, I was a total bitch. That lead me to using.

Now that I look back, I see a pattern.

Once I decided to really stop the training and start giving back again, I stopped thinking about myself so much and think about other people.

It's been 17 months since I started going to meetings and working a program in recovery. In those 17 months I've become more and more active with MoBo, and I can't even begin to tell you how rewarding it is to work with the MoBo kids every Monday night. It brings me more joy than you can ever imagine.

Last week was the big 4th of July Rock n Roll festival and I skipped my usual Tuesday night meeting to work the MoBo booth and sell t-shirts. My sponsor texted me, asking me where I was, and when I told her I was busy working the booth, she told me I was doing some great service work.

So, my advice to you is this - if you're sitting around in the heat feeling sorry for yourself - the best way to get out of your head is to go do something for someone else. Seriously, this shit is for real. Pass this around and go do something nice for someone else. If all you care about is your next race, or your next ride, or your next whatever, you just aren't doing yourself any good.

Can you tell I am getting stoked for another kid's day at MoBo? In just 3 weeks we have given away 37 bikes and helped 56 kids total with bike repairs. Fuck yea.

A few pictures from my volunteer work:

Cheeko at Christmas in the nursing home 2005

Lucy helped the kids read at the library 2006

Cheeko loved the old folks 2006

Kids on Bikes - 2011 (Micheal Providenti pic)

Dominic gave a workshop on bottom brackets and hubs at Mobo last spring (Micheal Providenti pic)

Dominic gives a bike safety demo at Chase Elementary in May

Week 3 of 2012 Kid's Night at Mobo

Happy and free of guilt - riding with MoBo in the 4th of July parade 2012 (Amy Hartman pic)

I heart summer.

2012-06-22T20:37:00.000-04:00

June.

It's my favorite month. The days are so long as the summer solstice rolls on through. It's almost 10pm when the sun sets. I awake with the sun most days, Lola's tail thumping at 6:20 most mornings. I don't know why I bother to set the alarm, we can't hear it through the new window AC unit Dominic installed last month.

On the days I don't have to be at the coffee shop, I usually let the dogs out for a half hour while I lay back down and try to sleep. When the coffee maker starts brewing, I can't help but get up to get some in me. I swear the Sidewinder blend has a hint of crack in it. It's so damn good. I lounge for a while in the kitchen playing with my Iphone. I feed the dogs and prepare their evening meal at the same time, lounge some more, and then walk the dogs for an hour.

On the days I have to work, I commute by bike as I have been since March 1st. The 7 mile commute is some of my favorite bike riding these days. I have a variety of bikes to commute on now and for the last few weeks, I have been commuting on my Raleigh CX bike. I love that bike. I like having gears and getting places faster.

Speaking of Raleigh...I got an email from them:

".....just wanted to say that Raleigh sponsored/liked/connected with you because of YOU, not DC. We're still in your corner, and digging what you're putting out."

Pretty awesome.

Since Mohican is over and Kid's Night at MoBo is going smoothly, I feel like my summer is going according to my plan. I ride when I want - sometimes long and sometimes short. I swim when I want - usually a mile and not much more. I run when I want, which isn't very often to be honest....

And I am NOT racing.

I went to watch the Ault Park crit a couple of weeks ago and got a little stoked to race again - they finally gave the women their own race (remember the shitstorm?) - but then something came up the next week and the stoke to race was gone.

Dominic built up a super flashy singlespeed 29'er so he's hitting the trails with me which is rad. This is the only time he can go faster than me on a bike. He's able to ride anything and everything and isn't afraid of eating shit a few times. We just have to build up his endurance.

Last night we rode from the house down to Northside and caught the Thursday night Slow and Steady ride and had a great time. Dominic rode his 9'er and was playing show n' tell all night. We rode downtown to the river, took pictures and then rode home.

It's going to be a great summer, I think. Hope yours is too.

MoBo KIDS!

2012-06-19T20:54:00.000-04:00

Last week was our first night coordinating MoBo's Kid's Night. Dominic and I are doing it as a team this year and so far, everything is working out so well, I had to share.

This program is really special to me. We volunteered last year and it was an amazing experience. Providing inner city kids with a place to come and work on bikes, or adopt a bike, filled my heart with so much joy, it's hard to put into words.

MoBo, our bike co-op, is housed on the property of the Village Green Foundation in Northside. The Village Green is a public gardening center where people from the community have their own space to garden. The co-op co-exists with them. It's pretty cool, for the most part. The VG has a program in the summer for kids as well, called Summer Sprouts. This year we teamed up together so the kids can work in the garden while they wait to have their bikes worked on. It's working out really well.

We have an adopt a bike program. The kids have to earn their bike, so they have to work a certain amount of time, depending on age. We put them to work in the garden, pulling weeds, or they help work on bikes. We also have a swap a bike program for kids who have bikes that they have outgrown.

We have a variety of activities for the kids to do, games, coloring, blowing bubbles, or making the sidewalks look pretty.

The gardeners even have a bike blender. We have fruit donated from Whole Foods and they pick berries from the garden and mix them in with some frozen OJ, pedal the bike, and BOOM. A smoothie.

The first week, we had 11 kids show up. Some had bikes that needed some work. We gave out 6 bikes that night. Last night, we had 17 kids show up and gave out 10 bikes.

This program is, no doubt, the most gratifying project I have ever been involved with. The kids have a cool place to come and hang out every Monday night with adults that care. The volunteers are amazing. The kid's are amazing. The program is amazing, and I am lucky to be involved.

KIDS + BIKES = RAD

Tuesday night ride

2012-06-12T23:01:00.000-04:00

The meeting adjourned at 9:30pm.

I put on my helmet and the glasses I usually wear when I drive at night. I roll my bike out through the gate of the back yard where we have our Tuesday night meeting in the summer. Out front, one attendee is pulling out in his car.

"Be safe Judi", he says to me.

I smiled.

I pedal down the hill onto Colrain and down across the little viaduct that ends up on Beekman.

I've been going to this meeting for over a year now, it's my salvation. The house we have it in is special. The people who come are special. I miss them when I don't go and they miss me.

I pedal slowly down Beekman, watching for cars behind me as well as bumps in the road in front of me. It's only 7 miles to my house and I want to soak in every last minute I have riding home.

The kids are out and about and drug dealers doing their thing. I think about what would happen if I got a flat. My extra tube was at home in my messenger bag.

Once through the light that crosses Westwood Northern, I pedal around the bend towards Queen City, my front light blinking brightly.

I think about my faults.
My actions.
The patterns in my life.
I understand that it's me. Not them.
It's always me.

Once onto Queen City, the streetlamps guide my way. The one way traffic was light and I easily run 2 red lights to stay ahead of the cars coming towards me. I cross over to the left side of the street and turn up Quebec. As I climb the hill, I am thankful to have gears.

At the top of the hill, I see a police car. He waits as I turn onto West Liberty. I ride up the hill and onto First ave where a few kids are walking a dog. It's after 10pm.

I roll down my street slowly, ride into the grass in my front yard, unclip, and hop off my bike.

I love riding at night.
It makes me feel naughty.

...and life goes on.

2012-06-08T19:13:00.000-04:00

When I blog, I blog from the heart. You all know that. I don't hold back, never have. It's not my style.

On Memorial Day, my Dad died. I got a call from my Mom at about 7pm. I was tired from working all day and she had said she heard my Dad was in the hospital from someone who was at a BBQ with him that day. She wanted me to go over to the hospital but I didn't. We weren't close. His "other" family was with him, and I figured if it was really bad, I'd get the call. Then about an hour later, my Mom called back.

"He's dead."

I went outside. The sunset was gorgeous. I laid down in the grass for about 45 minutes, soaking it in. My Dad and I were on the outs and had been for quite some time. As a kid, I didn't understand the full extent of why he left. I just knew he was remarried with a kid, my half brother, who is just a year younger than me. As an adult, I got the full story. He fell in love with another woman while married to my Mom. I was angry. I tried off and on to accept it and accept him, but then I'd get mad again and quit speaking to him.

I never expected him to die at the age of 77.

He was an athlete, my Dad. He played basketball and tennis. He hung out with Sandy Koufax before I was born. I got my athleticism from him. I remember my 1st marathon. He was supposed to meet my Mom on the course and cheer for me. He didn't show up. The last dinner we had was at my Mom's 75th birthday, and all he wanted to know is if I made money racing my bikes. That makes me smile now, cuz my Dad knew how to make money. He was successful in that area of his life.

So, this all happened on a Monday. Gnome was flying out Tuesday night and I was supposed to pick him up from the airport Wen morning. Dominic called him to make sure he still wanted to come, with all the drama and what not. He flew out, but without a bike to race Mohican. We'd been planning this event for 5 months, and I was ready to bag the race at that point.

Thursday I went to the funeral. It was surreal. I stood in line with my sisters and brother, my half brother, and my Dad's 2nd x-wife (while they were divorced, they still were "together"). I shook hands with about 300 people from the jewish community, most of who commented that they had no idea he had another family. One man even wrote our names on his hand so he could remember us. I skipped out on the cemetery, it was all just a little much.

I decided at the last minute to make the drive up to Mohican. It was definitely a good day on the bike. The forest that surrounded me for 10+ hours was amazing therapy. I thought about my Dad for most of the day. I was at peace. I felt such a release of pressure once I was done.

Gnome flew back to Arizona on Monday, and we returned to normal life.

I wrote out my race report for DrunkCyclist, a pact I had with the race director of Mohican in exchange for a comped entry. Some drama erupted over when I could post it because they had other priorities, and they decided I would no longer be a contributor anymore. I woke up this morning to have my admin log in bounce, my DC Facebook admin capabilities gone, and was booted from the google group.

And ya know, I am totally and completely ok with this. Now I can pour my heart out over here like the old days. It's gonna be ok.

Pics from my Ipod that did not make it to Facebook

2012-05-28T18:54:00.003-04:00

Does anyone else hate the new Blogspot format? Fuck, this sucks balls. Maybe that's why I don't like to blog here anymore.

"Training" for Mohican is over. I definitely did not ride as much as last year. I have no idea what will happen come "race" day, but I know for sure, at this point, I don't really give a shit anymore. I have, however, fallen deeply in love with the sport of mountain biking. You can read about that right here.

Since I don't feel like typing right now, here are a few pics from my Ipod from the last couple of weeks.

Our tandem is awesome. We rode it on the slow and steady ride last week and ended up hauling ass on the way home. And yes, he rides in the back.

Dominic did a bike safety class and flatland demo for Chase School (67 kids!) to promote Kid's Day this summer at Mobo.

Sitting in Hoffner Park.

On the slow ride, we stopped by the new fountain lights near the Bike Center.

Me and my co-pilot, Ari. He has been limping this weekend and I am worried.

"Dominic, when I try to do wheelies, my handlebars slide down, can you fix them?"

Riding the little kids rides at Taste of Cincinnati. We spun the teacups so hard we almost puked.

The stoke is gone.

2012-04-30T21:07:00.000-04:00

To blog, I mean.

I got this email from TJ over at TrailerParkCyclist the other day.
"Reading about your training and your racing, your community service and your enviable relationship with a man of many hair colors is, and hear me, an inspiration to many people. I am one of the strong ones but I have many readers who need to know that getting out of bed in the morning is worth the effort. Your stuff is one of the places that I go to draw strength my ownself and I am happy to have a chance to say so. You once said that maybe you have outgrown your Blog and I stayed silent. But now I will say that if you stopped posting the world will be a little diminished and sadder for it. I send ladies your way all the time and there is a book in you and one million little girls might become Big Strong Women as a result."

That's really sweet of you TJ, but fuck, I don't know what to say anymore. Blogging isn't something you can force. I used to be able to sit down and pound out a post 3xs a week, never running out of words. Now, I just sit here, looking at this blank screen and have no idea what to say. I feel....blah.

A few updates for the readers who choose to keep coming back here.

* I am now a board member of the MoBo Bike Co-op. It's just a fill in position, and elections for the new year are in June. I haven't decided whether or not I will run again. The board meets every other Sunday. Last night's meeting went on for 2.5 hours. I am not sure I have the time to dedicate to this. MoBo Kid's Night starts in June too, and that's where my heart is, for the most part.

* I am just 4 weeks away from the Mohican 100K, and I am dreading it. Not the ride. The racing aspect. The race scene. The boatloads of local racers I no longer feel a connection to, or even WANT to, for that matter. The pressure to put in miles sucks balls too. I love to ride, but I have come to loathe "training". I do, however, look forward to Gnome's visit, and that's about it.

* This summer I have nothing on the schedule for racing for the first time in 5 years. It is going to feel good to just exercise again. If I want to go out for a run, I will. If I want to go lay out at the pool and swim laps, I will. If I want to ride my bike for 3 hours, I will. No pressure. No training. Just the goal to stay fit and healthy and strong.

* Dominic had a set back last weekend. It was a dramatic event that always ends in a catastrophe. The broken window was replaced the next day, and then we pretended nothing ever happened. I expect it will happen again 4-6 months down the road. Such is life with a dry drunk.

* I continue to get deeper and more involved with my network in recovery. I have grown to love the people I've met, and the longer I work with my sponsor, the more I grow. I have learned so much over the last 14 months, it amazes me on a daily basis.

* The dogs are well. Lola is in charge now. The boys love her. I don't take them to the woods anymore. They get an hour long walk on leash every day and then they play in the yard. I miss the hiking I did with them, but I can't chance the boys running off again. At least, not until I can replace their e-collars.

* Work is good. I like my non-grown-up job at the coffee shop but I know I can't do it forever. My friend Cheri Pi reminded me though - I am happy there. There is some truth to that. It's also nice to be in N-side, being social, running into friends from the past. Plus the espresso is so fucking good.

* I love commuting to work. I have found that there are some days, when my legs are screaming for rest, I drive, and then I feel terribly guilty. Most days I commute though, and riding a singlespeed around the city is making me stronger, especially when I have to lug a 25lb bag on my back up Glenway hill.

* We got our wedding tattoos. This is mine. I couldn't remember our wedding date at first.

RIP BONES - One Year Later

2012-04-18T21:30:00.004-04:00

A memorial bench for Bones.

This week has been a bit of an emotional roller coaster. A year ago my friend was killed by a police officer. The full story has finally been disclosed to the public.

http://www.friendsofbones.org/overview/

He was featured on the front page of the paper yesterday.

While I was at work, the new Cincinnati Magazine came, and smack in the middle, an article about Bones.

The family and friends of Bones have finally filed a law suit against Officer Mitchell, a full year later. I hope justice is served.

http://www.friendsofbones.org/

We will not forget.

#occupybikeseat

2012-04-12T18:57:00.007-04:00

After the crash on my road bike, I took 2 days off and then the crazies went off in my head.

I had to pedal. And so I did.

-A social urban ride.

-A day of long miles on my road bike.

-A day of hill repeats up Sycamore.

-A couple of MTB rides with Russell from PA over Easter weekend.

-And the commute to work.

Some days after work, I find myself riding for a couple of hours all around the city, across the bridge to Devou and then down route 8, across the ferry and home. I trash my legs on that singlespeed, climbing, testing the waters, seeing which hills I can handle, always 20lbs heavier with a messenger bag on my back.

I never realized how much commuting to work on a SSCX bike would impact the rest of my riding. It's making me stronger in a way, but I feel tired, like, A LOT.

After Sunday's trail ride, and nine consecutive days on the bike, I was cooked. I took Monday off to get shit done around the house and when Tuesday rolled around, I had a good excuse not to ride to work. I had to meet a friend at work with a rear MTB wheel, so I drove, and goddamn if I didn't feel guilty all day.

Yesterday's commute was nice and easy. I felt better but still tired. I rode home after work, to my injured, whiny, and very needy husband. I tried to spin my legs on the rollers, real easy. My legs were on fire after 45 minutes so I called it quits and went out to eat. I know when to listen to my body.

Today I commuted to work and when I got off, I did some errands on my bike. I ended up climbing Glenway home with 40lbs on my back. On a singlespeed. Yowsa. It hurt.

Tomorrow I am off and I plan to get in a long ride on my road bike.

Seven weeks till Mohican.

Here are a few pictures from the rides.

About 35 riders showed up for the Riverside ride to Lunkin, to promote the need for bike lanes on this road. People brought food and beverages to snack on upon arrival, and then I rode home solo. Urban night rides alone are the best.

DrunkCyclist reader Russell from PA was in town and trails were in prime condition to ride. We rode almost 30 miles at Verailles on Friday, and then we rode at Mitchell Memorial again on Sunday. He's so much fun, and has been reading DC for a long time. It's hella cool we hooked up through the site and we ride bikes whenever he comes to town.

My bike, locked up in the courtyard at work with the resident bunny, Patrick.

Out on the road, solo.