OUCH!!!

Another small ride today - We thought we should do two things - get some miles in and practice on our clipless pedals. The first hour and a half went pretty well. Then we started to think that we really weren't doing anything to get used to the pedals because we weren't stopping and unclicking them. So we thought we should do a little starting and stopping. The first thing to happen was that Mary Kay missed a turn and ended up in some gravel. It is just a little scrap on her knee, not too much blood. Fortunately nothing is broken. Of course I couldn't say much, because it just wasn’t the right thing to do. We started out again and were trying to get clicked in - we were in a fairly high traffic area so our plan was to stay on the sidewalk for about a block - get clicked in, and then get back on the road. Good plan - we just hadn't planned on having a family take a stroll down the sidewalk at the same time. As we looked up after getting clicked in, ahead of us were three adults with the mother pushing a stroller with a baby in it. I yelled to Mary Kay, "You better click out in case we have to stop." Well she did - and stopped! I wasn't ready to stop, but I did - after running into the back of her bike and almost falling on the stroller, because I was still clicked in. Fortunately, no one was hurt, no blood and I didn't force the baby stroller into the busy street. Mary Kay told the people that we had new pedals that we were trying to get used to and that we were clicked into them. I am sure they thought - why in the world are those old people using those kind of pedals?
We made it home without any more problems and even practiced clicking in an out a few times.

Looks like we are going to need all the remaining 42 days before the big ride to make sure we aren't a hazard to others!

A Year of Not Buying Anything New!

The decision to not buy anything new in 2010 began to surface during the Christmas season.  During our shopping we realized we were having a difficult time choosing gifts for each other and the rest of the family.  There was nothing we needed or even wanted that we did not have. Our children suggested we adopt a family through a local charity and we would all buy gifts for the family which we did.  We still bought gifts for each other and the rest of the family.  Although we all enjoyed the gifts it was apparent that we all had so much!  We have a wonderful family and we really do not need all the "stuff" we have.  I also love to buy things, new kitchen gadgets,books, furniture, the list goes on and on.  I rarely go to Target etc without spending at least $100 dollars. We really did not need all of the things I would buy so I began to think I should just go "cold turkey" and not buy anything.  We talked about it and developed our plan on paper and signed it like a contract.  Briefly it says we will not buy anything new with the exception of running shoes and items for our biking trip.  We can buy gifts for each other and for the family but only for legitimate holidays and birthdays.  We also have $50.00 discretionary money each month which is cumulative.

So how are we doing???  We started on January 1 and that day we went to Starbucks for coffee and I started to pick up the coffee mugs that were on sale from Christmas until Jack reminded me that they were new!  It really has been an eye-opening experience it is so easy for me to pick up things to buy without really thinking.  It has been good for me I simply do not think about buying things which is somewhat "freeing"  I know where my weakness is because I have spent the discretionary money on books mostly cookbooks.  Doing this for only a week or two a month could be a way to start.

44 days to the Spokin' Home!!

Clipless Pedals

Yesterday was another step in our journey to become cyclists.  After much encouragement from our kids that clipless pedals were something we had to get, we decided to give it a try.  The theory behind clipless pedals is that both your shoes and the pedal will act as one unit.  The shoe is a little stiffer through the inner sole and this allows use of force by each leg on the whole 360 revolution, instead of just on the down stroke. 

Okay, that makes sense the scary part of this was that your shoes actually click into the pedal.  This was especially scary for Mary Kay.  The thought is that we won't be able to get our feet out of the clips if we are falling.  We had our shoes and new clipless pedals and a friend Dan King said he would help us set them up and get us comfortable with them.  We rode our bikes to the LifePlex to meet Dan.  We were going to do all this in their Spinning room.  On the way out Mary Kay said, "Maybe I can put just one clipless pedal on and one regular." 

Dan was a big help.  We got everything changed and practice a little with our bikes on stationary stands.  We went outside to practice in the parking lot, and soon were riding home.  We were pretty cautious at intersections so we wouldn't have to stop and get out of the pedals.  We actually felt pretty good all the way home and were glad we had made the change.  I have to say that we both nearly fell when we got home and stopped, but no harm was done.  A big thanks to Dan for his help and to Chad Barden for loaning me an extra set of pedals.

49 days until we will be Spokin' Home!!

Rochester for Lunch

Yesterday we rode to Rochester to my sister and brother-in-law's house for lunch.  The ride is around 25 miles one way.  Not a bad ride, but we were riding into headwinds all the way there.  It took us over two hours, but we didn't feel too bad about that.  You really notice the hills allot more on the bike than you do in a car. There were times when we were going up a hill and the wind would really be blowing as we reached the crest, that I wasn't sure I was moving forward. I wonder how the hills - mountains in Colorado and the Ozark Mtns. in Missouri will be? At least we will be riding West to East - the wind does usually blow that way right? So we will have the wind to our backs. Kinda like the Wind Beneath My Wings. No problem with dogs, though.  That was good. 

We had a nice lunch and talk at Betty and Bob's house on Lake Manitou.  Our ride home was much easier.  All in all it was really a great ride and day.  We had a great supper at home and woke up this morning ready to do it again -- but we didn't.  Other things going on today - birthday celebrations for two granddaughters in Lafayette (Michaela and Annabelle) and a long distance one for Phoebe in Denver.  We love them all.  I probably replaced all the calories I used on yesterday's bike ride with cake and brownies.  Two steps forward and one step back. 

In the next few days I will talk more about our hope that others will be inspired to act in their own lives for a good purpose.  We will be telling you about a scholarship that we are starting in memory of our grandson, Michael Noel Magee.  Have a great start to your week and keep with us.

Let's get ready to ride!!!

Our first big adventure is scheduled for late May and June of this year.  Mary Kay has been a runner for many years.  I am a pretty good watcher! Although sometimes even that wears me out.   Over Memorial Day Mary Kay and two of our sons will run in the Bolder Boulder 10K race.  After a few days of rest we will start out on our bike ride home to Plymouth, IN (approx. 1300 miles).  This is our first blog entry.  I will try to catch up on some of the past as we begin to make more frequent posts about our preparations and the actual ride.

Mary Kay and I have spent the last month trying to organize our ride.  It is only about six weeks until we head to Denver - and then we ride home.  We recently visited our son Matt, his wife Julie and our two granddaughters Phoebe and Sylvie in Denver. While we were there we looked for equipment.  We are using our own Trek Hybrid bikes, but certainly needed additional items.  I have been reading a few blogs and other sites for ideas over the last several months.  Our plan is that Mary Kay will put rear panniers on her bike, carrying most of our clothes.  I thought I would get a Yak trailer to pull behind my bike with our tent and other supplies.  We were fortunate that one of Matt's partners in his architecture firm loaned us the panniers and rack.  As tight  as I am with a nickle that helped me feel better about buying a trailer. 

Craigs list had a trailer listed about 15 miles away.  I contacted the guy and made arrangements to go see it.  Well, it just happened to be the night of a big Spring snowstorm in Denver.  Being from Indiana I figured I could drive through it.  About 3 hours later I returned home with the trailer.  For some reason there were not snowplows out at all.  About 8 inches of snow fell in just a few hours.  Another one of my traits, besides being cheap is that I am a little stubborn too.  Well, I did get the trailer and I did make it back safely.

After buying some shoes, clothes, an air mattress, sleeping bags, and a tent we were pretty well set with our gear.  Things look like they will fit in the trailer.  However, I left the packed trailer in Denver, so the last month and a half of training rides will be without the trailer.  The first chance I will have to try it out will be a few days before we leave on our trip.

Another great part of our trip was being there with our youngest son, Kyle and his fiance Sarrah.  Kyle has just moved to Denver - a dream of his for several years.  Sarrah is finishing her degree in special education at Purdue.  They will be married in December and living in or around Denver.  This will give us another good reason to visit Colorado.

Mary Kay and I are really getting excited about our ride.  The part that has us a little nervous is where we will sleep each night.  We realize that there may be times when we are not close to a campground or hotel.  Hopefully, we will find some kind people in those cases that will let us sleep in their yards.  That is one of the most exciting parts of the trip.  We love to meet people in their home environments, to find out what they are thinking about, what is important to them, what their friends and neighbors are like. We plan to journal some of these times throughout the bike ride and also as we end the summer in Europe.  Stay with us.