This Just In: Still Chock Full of Hate.

I'm bordering on hating. No, I'm totally hating. I'm hating on how ZANY everything is getting around here.... Novelty afros and celebrating nearing 666 friends on farce borg is getting me down.... As someone quoth in the comments section the other day;

"I must say that the 'dress up and play an alternative singlespeeder for the weekend' ethos witnessed at a number of Singlespeed events shits me to tears."

I couldn't be more down with this sentiment. I'm "boring passionate" (thanks, Dad) about the single speed. Both my bikes are single speed (1x shit bike all weather commuter and 1 x rigid 9r) and I don't really have any interest in riding a bike with gears or suspension (at the moment). Do I like bikes with gears? sure. Is the Nomad a good bike? Yeah, They're mean as if you ask me...just not my cup of tea. Is this trieste potentially a means of putting off writing an essay? Damn skippy. Do I wear a Tutu when I ride my (Single speed) bike with my friends? No. DOES ANYONE I KNOW WHO RIDES A SINGLE SPEED dress up in fancy dress when they ride or race (apart from the SS champs)? No. Am I dour? No. Overly serious? No (ask anyone who knows me). Like beers? yes. Like riding a lot? yes. Like racing? Love it. Mediocre at it? at best, yes. Feel misrepresented by all the SSWC10 marketing hoopla? Yes. Hating on the event? No. Excited as all get out by it and already entered? Yes.

I guess the point is this; Reductionist or overly simplistic, one dimensional representations of groups/things/people/ideas gets me down. I was listening to Dan Carlin the other day discussing an option for the USA addressing their somewhat tenuous relationship with Iran and the causes of this relationship (Clue: the Theodore Roosevelt quote "He's a son of a bitch, but at least he's our son-of-a-bitch is particularly germane).* He said something really interesting to the effect that in keeping with perhaps apologizing for supporting a regime which some would say terrorized Iran's people for years that the USA should adopt a more self effacing and humble approach. "The elephant in the room doesn't need to tell everyone he's big, and everyone will resent him if he does" was the passage that stuck in my mind.

I think that if the elephant that is the SSWC10 stops telling everyone in the room how big (or zany) it is, the better it will be. I mean, this event is going to be amazing and I'm so excited to be part of it and racing and being around hundreds of other people from around the world all of whom love the single speed is going to be a peak for me. We'll be balls deep in zany antics I'm sure, and the costumes, beer, shenanigans and tomfoolery that will be on hand will satisfy everyone to some level. I'm hopeful that if this japery does take place (and I have no doubt it will) that it's in a natural, beer fueled (or not) manner of the like minded mob..rather than the unnatural "ZANY ZANY WOW WOW WOW, I'm-on-a-single-speed-freak-bike-just-this-once-look-at-me" manner which I'm hopeful won't permeate the event to a great extent. Yeah, that's about all I have to say on the topic and totteringly boring as it is I'm at the point that I'll explode if I don't get it off my chest..so there you have it. Rant over.

In other news,I started "cross training" today with a running program. It was pretty shit, but alright and a challenge, so we'll see where this takes me.I'm okay with copping to training (I'm just not very good at it) and am hopeful that having a riding/running thing up on the go will help when the winter series roles around. Running itself was no challenge from a cardiovascular stand point so that's good, just muscles being used differently(MENTAL PICTURE OF ME RUNNING- A starved, slavering walrus chasing a bucket of herring down a gravel road). I've commuted via bike all week which has been surprisingly pain free. The lung appears fine now, I'm off antibiotics,pneumonia free and staring down the barrel of my first off road ride on Saturday after work. I'm going to try something different and will no doubt post some shoddy photos on here after the fact.

In Closing.
I'd be really sad if anyone reading this gets up and arms because I'm ragging on the SS champs. I'm not. I just don't reckon this battleship grey, proud buttocked elephant needs to shout "I'M A BIG, ZANY MOTHERFUCKING ELEPHANT...LOOK AT ME. WOOOOOOOOOO" etc. It just needs to hang out, eat peanuts, get brushed with a yard broom and go on a terrifying yet humorous rampage through the circus at the appropriate time**. Much cooler. Oh, yeah. on that Iran thing, I'm not saying that the current regime is any better either. Just sayin'.

*Whilst riding my single speed (drunk+ and in a tutu#)

** Hopefully killing as many clowns as possible. I hate clowns. Laughing-on-the-outside-crying-on-the-in-no-business motherfuckers. Hang them all.

+ This is a lie.

# I may as well be, I look reeeediculous in riding gear.

Player Hater Plater/

Is it wrong that I feel despair on some level when the organizer of SSWC10 is continually raving about how great riding his NOMAD is?

HEY GUYS! WOOOOOOO!!!! SINGLE SPEEDS!!! YEAH!!! ZANY FUN! RIDE IN COSTUME!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! sigh.

And what about the Single Speed club that you can't join? man...

It's grunge man, grunge. (that makes me Tad Doyle)

Resumption

The lung and I are back on speaking terms. The ride in this morning was okay. Washed out from first day back in 10. Pleased that the hospital scales a week ago added 11lbs to my weight that didn't exist. That's puzzled me. Now off to watch The Wire (so last year, I know).

Whirlwind (whirl WHIND?) pt 2.

I awoke at four in the morning in agony. It was as if Rebecca had finally snapped and shanked me in my sleep. Also, Rigors. RIGORS RIGORS RIGORS (Rye-gorrrrs), It's like burning to death and freezing to death at the same time. By this time I was pretty sure that I'd caught a dose of H1N1 and was fretting that my pregnant wife was gonna get the swine, I was acutally quite reassured by the whole thing, swine flu is not that big of a deal, some water and rest with some panadol and I'll be fine. By seven am things had gotten worse. A back and forth with Rebecca regarding a Dr's appointment (At this point Rebecca's call was "man flu") was settled by a spectacular display of vomiting and then immediately coughing up blood. It was my finest moment in a "I told you I was sick" kinda way. My GP. Who's stone cold excellent immediately called "Pneumonia" on my ass (lungs) and it was off to hospital for a feverish 24 hours of "Stat" fluids and IV antibiotics. man, what a drag.
Long story short. It was shit house. Stay the fuck away from pneumonia, kids. Seriously. Give it a wide berth. Now, as of a week later, I'm all anxious to get back on the bike, however worried that I don't wish to push my luck too soon. Monday I reckon, and I'll be back at it. For now? just sitting around.

Whirlwind (whirl WHIND?) pt 1.

I could feel things getting out of control at the beginning of the month, my workload stacking up with family, study, actual work, sleep and trying to ride would indicate that this thing would take a hammering. So be it.

Tuesday last was setting out to be a good (great) day. I'd had my front hub serviced, wheel re spoked and fettered with strong, good spokes and had also finally amassed the needed infrastructure to ride sans camel back (little under seat bag, mini frame pump and jersey pockets). I had a grand 2 1/2 hour ride, hither and yon in the forest, 38km, lots of trails, lots of fun. Home for some food, swap kit, bikes and ride to work for the PM shift, all good so far. Get to work and about four pm start to feel achy in my quads and calves. I'd put this down to the reduced amount I've been riding off road this year (1-2 weekly vs. 3-4 times a week this time last year) and managed same with paracetamol. Long story short by nine pm I'd spiked a 38.5 temp and was rather down-at-heel. It was a busy shift and I stuck it out to the end and copped a ride home rather than ride 16km home in the cold. I remember leaving the car and saying to my work mate "I'll no doubt feel better in the morning, see you at work".

The Numbers for February/2010 totals.

Days worked in February = 20
Days commuted by bike = 18 (576km)
Days commuted by car = 0
Off Road Rides = 6(156km)
Races = 0
Road Rides= 1 (41km)
===================================
Total Km's for February = 773

Total Km's for 2010 = 1539
Total Commuting Km = 1092
Total Dirt km = 406

I need to ride more harder off road.