"Spring Training"

Papi, Pedroia, Youk and Paps aren't the only ones who are "gettin' it done" this Spring. Ta and I have dusted off the ol' bikes and have hit the ground running... well, maybe hit the ground jogging, or at the very least we've hit the ground at a light trot, but make no mistake, we have officially hit the ground!

For Spring break, we headed south to Ft. Myers, FL to take in a few Red Sox Spring Training games. While we were in the area, we hopped over to Sanibel for a lovely 13-mile bike ride through the Ding Darling Wildlife Sanctuary.

The rental bikes were not quite what we're used to (but, hey, I could get used to a ginormous seat with crazy shock absorbance... and the basket was pretty handy, too) and there were many stops along the way to check out various avian species.

All in all, we completed the trek in just over 2 hours.

[See more photos at http://picasaweb.google.com/CCArmsby/SpringTrainingEtc#]

Since we've been home we've renewed our resolve to keep to our training schedule of 30min/day on our trainers (that doesn't exactly mean we've been doing it, but at least we have a renewed resolve to do it).

And yes my bike does still have it's 2008 Memory Ride number on it (i.e., no, I have not gone for a ride since July 26, 2008.

Team Charlie was amazing last year, raising a total $11,427.25.

This year, we welcome Jim Morlando to the team, so barring any injuries, we should have at least 8 riders!!!

Visit http://memoryride2009.kintera.org/teamcharlie to make a donation or to join our team.

Go Team Charlie, Go!!!!

Not Quite Biking Weather

Well, we were all set to start our training for the 2009 Team Charlie ride... but then...










it snowed. So instead we finally got a chance to cross country ski. Hey, it's cross training right?

Anyway, both Nancy and I are now officially enrolled in this year's incarnation of TEAM CHARLIE. I noticed we have already slipped from second to fifth place. But of course we haven't even gotten started yet. So, we hope to see some more names up on the Team Charlie roster soon to keep Hootie, Sarah, Nancy and I company.

Meanwhile, we're gettin' it done, frosty style!

Memorial Day Ride

We had such success with our first ride this weekend, that we decided to try a second. Although it was a bit shorter (20mi), it was MUCH hillier... I suspect much closer to what the actual ride will be like. Still we managed to keep up our 11.5mph average. The weather was lovely, although it was a little hot in the sun and I got a bit of a burn.

Our route took us out to Lincoln right by the DeCordova museum.





Then down past Drumlin Farm.

And then back via Rt 117... and you know what that means... DAIRY JOY!!!

Break from work - 10 miler

This is an easy ride anyone who works in Boston can do during a lunch-hour break. It's "tres bon" to do on a nice day, too. I did it yesterday in just under 50 minutes and could probably improve on that time on a weekday when there's less traffic on the Charles River recreational trails. Anyone who wants to do it together let me know and we'll pick times.

Unphotoshopped nerd.

Ok. My first official training photos.--

No photoshopping, no trick angles.

Just pure cyclo-nerd.

BTW, how's ev'body doing?

Polly's gettin' it done.

We had lots of fun bike shopping with Polly last weekend in North Cackalacka. We learned many interesting factoids about the different bike manufacturers. Most interestingly, we learned that Polly is apparently "all legs".

As you can see in the photos, Polly's form is flawless... and the wifey sneakers are the perfect biking shoe.

Of course, anytime you go shopping with Sarah, even if it doesn't start out a shopping spree for her, it will be by the end of the day. Sarah says "I NEED this bike!!"

Sarah and I are going to try and put in some miles this weekend (if it stops raining).

Ellie & Ned, we are super-impressed that you've already gotten your appeal letters out. Now the rest of us need to get it done. Go team Charlie!!!