Riding to work was fine. I am trying to think of something interesting from the commute, but, um, I’m drawing a blank. It’s funny because I remember a few years ago in 2006 when I first started riding my bike to work that I thought it was fast to go 15 – 18 miles per hour on the way there. Today, I was up around 23-24 most of the time. I also used to use the middle front ring but now I use the big ring the whole way. And, I never go lower than 4th gear in the back.

So, it’s just nice to think of the progress I have made. I sometimes wish I had a faster bike to ride to work. But, well, it would still need to be strong. The streets are rough down by the school. Once you get below Foothill Blvd, about halfway, the asphalt is bumpy, rutted, cracked, and crumbling in places. Besides that, there, like, pieces of metal everywhere down there; washers, bolts, wires, nails, staples, screws, and other random things litter the shoulder of the road. Of course, you also have rocks and glass, too. I don’t know that I would like to ride my Allez down there. I feel like a racing bike would get beat to death.

I had wanted to get a nice touring type of bike, or a cyclocross bike. Specialized makes one called the Tricross that I liked. Also, there’s the Trek 520. I seriously considered the Surly Long Haul Trucker as well, and often think this would be the best choice. I have a thing for Specialized bikes. I admit it. I don’t know if it’s just marketing, well, I’m sure that’s some of it, actually. But, I have put a lot of miles on my Stumpjumper and my Allez. They work well and were affordable for the quality. If I could afford to get an Orbea or a Turner, I probably would. Trek is a good company, too. My commuter bike is a Trek. But, that Surly looks good. It looks like I could ride it every day for a month over hundreds or thousands of miles.

My dream touring bike is a Rivendell, or similar, Atlantis. Steel frames, hand-built, and full of awesome details and loving craftsmanship. If I had a bunch of money, that is what I would get. And, my dream racing bike is a high end carbon bike from Orbea, Look, BMC, or Colnago. Those kind of bikes they ride in the Pros. So pretty.

I have never considered a Cannondale. Why? I friend and bike store employee referred to them as Crackandfail back in the day. That stuck with me. Since then, I have never looked seriously at any Cannondale bikes. Totally irrational of me, I know.

My knee hurt less today on the way back. No idea why. I have been thinking about it, though, and back in ’05, when I was riding 3 to 5 days a week, I recall riding up Lytle Creek road and being concerned about knee pain. But, then, I don’t remember it persisting. I felt some tightness in my right hamstring muscle, too. I babied myself a bit on the way home today because of it. I see no point in pushing it and getting a full-blown pulled muscle. It’s weird because sometimes my legs feel like they have their strength back. Then, I get this knee pain or hamstring tightness and I am reminded that I had a lot of time off the bike. It will be interesting to see how long it takes me to get back to where I used to be.

Weight-wise, I am down to about 190 or so. That’s a net loss of at least 7 pounds. It will be deceptive, though because I am adding muscle and that weighs more than fat. I am keeping and eye on the waistline. I was as low as a 32 2006/2007, so, I would like to get back there. I’m getting close to 34 right now. That feels good.

I installed fenders on my wife’s bike tonight. They look okay. I wasn’t happy with it, but that’s another story and I’m getting sleepy. Maybe next time I will talk about it.

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