Tough Love

This blog will have to wait until Monday. It certainly was a full house with TKO, Goose, Red Dog, Guru, Big Tim, Rhino, Egg and Noose. I am too tired (but satisfied) to blog tonight.

Missed a Few Days

I can tell I haven't felt well - my mind was fuzzy and got days/dates messed up - unusual for me! Anyway - Egg came up Wed night with the reassurance that I am not contagious. I did stay away while they rode. Egg chose my favorite - Hills Baby :) I knew Goose probably would not have ridden, so I am glad Egg was in the house. I could hear him starting to push buttons about half way through - it felt weird to hear them and not be riding. Goose seemed to be happy with the ride, He has been working really hard this month (and it is ONLY January - Yes Jeff we know that ----- but you lose that excuse in a couple more days!). Between running hard and riding hard - hopefully he will see a big difference when he gets on the road (earlier than last).

Egg plans on coming up Friday night - I am still up in the air if I am riding. Sunday will be a long hard day - not sure if I want to chance not being over this crap.

Monday?

Yep it was Monday - that is what the calendar said! Goose did his normal workout at the Y. He actually got out of work on time - not many people at the Y so he workout went fast.

The cold that I caught from a couple of kids at school caught up with me. Decided to take a night off - not what I wanted to do but thought it was best. I get a little ticked off when people send their kids to school sick - love it - Oh I didn't know they were coughing that bad - or I didn't realize that green/yellow stuff was coming from their nose!

I think Jeff was feeling Fri/Sat/Sun hard workout in his legs. I'm lucky - my legs feel good - it is just the stuffy head that is getting me!

Good Day of Training

As long as the weather is crappy there is a standing time on Sunday for trainer rides. They are typically longer and you just never know what it will be or who is coming (well except the usual nutz - Goose, Egg and me). Today it looked like TKO and Red Dog were heading to Tipp also. Got an email from TKO that his daughter was sick and needed to stay home. Mad Dog left a message last night that he was definitely in.

Saturday Jeff ran with Mark and they got in about 9 1/2 miles of trail running. Jeff said his legs felt "OK" for the miles he ran yesterday.

After the good ride Egg had outside with Rick, Tim, Vince and Todd I had sent him a tweet about adding the Prologue and Super Spins at the end of No Slackers to the end of Dropping The Hammer - he was in - we just think Goose needed to know ahead of time.

We warmed up to Lance TDF for a few minutes and then it was time to get down to business. There were a few times that Egg was the only one able to talk - so he talked, cheered and coached us. That hour went by very quickly - everyone was working hard. I put in the second DVD - Goose knew we were doing the Prologue but didn't listen to everything we said, so he went all out and thought he was done - nope he had a little more to go - the look on his face was priceless! For the cool down he got off a little early - so he had to ride a little extra for his penalty time.

After the ride we chatted for a couple of minutes and everyone headed home. Another excellent training day in the books. Thanks Egg for the coaching - Mark glad you were able to make it ------ Now next Sunday - is another run of Tough Love ---- hmmm who will show up (well beside Egg, Goose and I)?

HA HA HAAAAA

Friday night trainer ride in the books - thank heavens. Egg got here a little early so we could get a few minutes warm up before Goose got home. He announced what was on the agenda - I asked if told Goose - Yep and he said Goose was up for it. I wondered if he talked to "my" Goose!

Goose got home and changed, jumped on for a few minutes of warm up and it was time to get busy on No Slackers. This has an excellent mix of everything we need - fast spins, standing, 5k Prologue. Goose is usually making his famous sounds about 10 minutes in - tonight he hung tough and barely made any noise. The one time I could really use him to drown out the room with his calls - he doesn't. I have to admit I let out a little one, hoping nobody heard it - wrong - Egg casually mentioned it while we were eating.

It was a good ride - Egg and Goose were spinning their legs off - I was hanging on but having fun. Of course, I asked Goose if he had fun - Yep - since we were all done - which is the usual answer for him.

Dinner after was just as fun as ever. We (err me - ha ha) solved all the problems of being married which brought laughs from the guys. Talked about upcoming events and had lots of laughs. Isn't that what life is about - working hard, playing hard and laughing about it afterwards?

Sunday will be a long day on the trainer - looking forward to it.

Recovery Day

After last night's trainer ride, recover was on tap for Goose and I. Goose had planned a water workout to get the junk out of his legs. I wanted to spin, a very easy one. I had to go to Sam's Club first and I always stay on I-75 during rush hour - headed down 25A and got about a mile from the house with a detour. Couldn't tell what was going on - looked like maybe a wreck. On the way home - started home on 25A - almost got to the old Ginghamsburg Church and total stand still - pulled a U turn and headed down back roads again.

I was 30 minutes out of sync with the time I wanted to be in - do I ride - to say to hell with it. I serious changed my clothes and sat down on the couch - kicked my self in the butt and changed into my cycling clothes. One hour in the saddle and feel great - best thing I could have done.

Just watched the news and found out somebody had put a bomb in the house that had been foreclosed on in the area that was block off. Just found out somebody I worked with was showing the home and found the "bomb" ticking. Luckily got everyone out and called police ----- People are Nutz!

Riding Away the Stuff

I think most are aware of what is going with Egg's mom and many have expressed thoughts, prayers and support to get through this life's trial. It looks like everything was discovered early - which is excellent. Many years ago I was diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer in Stage 2. I was young and probably in denial. I had a family and it was my job to take care of my family. I somehow think Egg's mom will probably be the same. She is going to have a rough road for a while but will come out strong. After all, Egg had to get his hard head and determination from somewhere - which I would say is from his parents.

Tonight's agenda was Hillacious. Egg, Goose and I rode our hearts out tonight. I think in our own little way we were helping Egg's mom through the night. We all rode hard. It was a quiet ride, which is VERY unusual - but we all had our own thoughts and agenda for tonight.

Afterward - dinner, rut beer, popo juice and good conversation. Once again, thanks Craig for an excellent workout and positive talk afterwards. You say we could do it without you - no we couldn't - we wouldn't want to.

Good Training Day

Tuesday was a good day! Goose had a training day and got out early. He headed for his Tuesday run, saying he would join me on the trainer when he got home. I thought I would be home about 45 minutes before him, so I told him I was starting without him. Things worked out that I didn't so we stated at the same time. After his hard run he only stayed on the trainer for 21 minutes - plus he had to make a delivery close by. I stayed on the trainer and had a blast watching Lance in his early TDF days. I was able to stay on for an hour with lots of standing (getting ready for our Wednesday night torture ride).

After riding Goose called Egg about his mom - no real news - surgery had a major delay - still keeping positive thoughts for his mom.

Looking forward to our Wednesday Nite Trainer ride.

MLK Training

Since I (Noose) had the day off I had planned a long recovery spin. AJ and Rebecca had a difference idea. She wanted me to go to lunch with them and then bowling. I haven't bowled in over 30 years. I had lunch with them, but begged to just watch them bowl - AJ was having nothing of me watching. I "shoed" up and we bowled. It came back fairly quick (with the aide of the bumpers!). I actually had a great time., When I got home hopped on the bike for an hour lazy spin.

Goose did his usual Monday at the Y and lifted weights. Ran into a guy that "raced" in the past. Said he did Crankenstein (which we found) put couldn't find his Speedy Feet Triathlon he did last year. As we know, everyone can talk a big game, so who knows what he has really done.

I do have to admit Monday morning, our legs felt the TT. I didn't hurt at all after the first one - but I did this one (and I rode slower?). Oh well - 3 weeks to get our heads out of our you-know-whats and train hard.

Indoor TT #2

Set the time a little earlier today. Wanted to make sure TKO could fit it into his schedule. Egg was here first, then TKO - and then the man with equipment - Guru - he is the trainer man! Big Tim was in the house and we were waiting on T-Bolt and Red Dog. Egg got a text msg from T-Bolt - he couldn't make it and we never hear from Red Dog. Not sure what happened with him.

TKO was up first, Goose second, Big Tim third, Egg (Ditch Digger) fourth, Guru fifth with me literally bringing up the rear. The guys rode awesome - crushing the numbers from the last time. Me? I survived. Not sure what happened - was slower than last time. BUT, thanks to Egg and Big Tim, we (I) have a chance to redeem myself on Feb 7th. They have signed Goose and I up to do the Team Dayton TT - Thanks guys (I think!). Time to get serious and figure out what will make me faster.

WTG Team Mad Cows - you guys rode extremely well.

Bday Ride

Egg emailed and called that he could come a little early to get extra saddle time in - that was great - I was glad to get the extra time in. Goose was running a little late but when he got home he was ready to roll. With the conversation I had with him while he was changing, I thought Oh no here we go again, he was going to have a bad ride. Nope, he showed up and showed us.

Egg had a gig after the ride so it needed to be short - he decided on Zoot. Yep it is short - 41 -42 minutes of a good hard workout. It is getting easier for me to stand in little chain-15. I know it is all the DVDs that he has chosen that really targets the standing. I complain about them - but appreciate him pushing Goose and I past our comfort zone to make us better.

Looking forward to Sunday's indoor TT at out house. Looks like a good crowd - will be interesting to see how people have progressed in two weeks.

Thursday Recovery

After a hard ride on Wednesday, Goose opted for a water workout. Mark had run on his own and said he had a great run - Yeah Mark :). Egg was lucky and got his much needed outside ride with Big Tim, Bottabing and Guru. With his mom's health issues, nothing like the open road to clear his mind (oh no I just admitted he has a mind!).

I opted to have an hour of stretching that I have neglected lately. Worked out all the kinks (from old age) and felt great when I was done.

Jeff and I both knew we would have a hard trainer ride on Wednesday night, so recovery was just was the Dr ordered.

Sufferin' Succotash

I can always tell by talking to Goose on the phone when his day has struggled at work, and today was one of them. I read a tweet by Egg that his mom was taken to the ER. Prelim info isn't good, but it can be wrong. I know we all hope it is wrong. Definitely something wrong, but let's hope it is the lesser end of what it could be.

I think all three of us needed to get rid of "stuff" and sufferin' on the bike is the way to do it. With the Spinerval chosen (SufferOrama), you really had to give up your personal problems to survive the ride. Once again, stand up ---- sit down was the drill. I am finding that standing is less stressful than a month ago. Goose rode really well, at 100+% the entire ride. Egg put down some impressive numbers (again!) while cheering/coaching us on. The time ticked away very quickly (apparently not fast enough for Goose) and we were done. I know everybody felt better and sat down to eat and chat.

Goose went to bed to watch UD play - I doubt if he saw 10 minutes of the game. He ran hard Tues night and rode hard tonight - it is that transition time again ---- only this time it is in January not April, I know he will realize his hard work has paid off come racing season.

Snow Run

It's Tuesday so it means Goose ran. He met Mark (Red Dog) again tonight for his run. He just got home with a smile. Said he tested the legs and said they felt good. Let's see how they feel after Torture Wednesday!

I spent the entire afternoon testing a Kindergarten class. How can that make me so tired? Don't know but did get on the trainer to Lance Porm for 45 minutes. Felt good to unwind and do something for me.

Oh my what will Wednesday bring on the trainers?

Lance Monday

Usually on Monday's I struggle with how my legs feel because Egg and Goose and worked them really hard. Sunday was a struggle ride, but today my legs felt really good.

Goose was going to work out at the Y tonight and had a really good one. At our age - ya gotta keep moving.

Egg left his Lance "porn" again for me, so I spun for 90 minutes just enjoying watching Lance ride. It's funny, you know the results, but I still find myself pedaling faster to help him.

Dinner done, Goose is cleaning kitchen and it will be night night time soon. Fun day today.

Lifting the Lid

Today was the day to do that for Egg. He decided to nut up and go for it. He registered for the Team Dayton TT and showed up and put it down. WTG Egg. The results are still being posted, but at this time Egg is running 3rd overall locally - YEAH.

After his TT he came up and decided to further torture Goose and I. Coach Troy and Mt. Lemmon was awesome today. Once again he shook up the workout and had us standing through the DVD - Hills Baby - and what a Coach Troy view! I kept thinking how much longer on the Big Chain 13 - oh not to worry ----- we got to change gears - Big Chain 12 for the rest of the climb. At one point I really wanted to give up but Egg came up with some funny remarks (that can't be published - this is a family friendly site) that kept me going. Good ride - thanks to Goose and Egg I didn't give up today.

This week he will be helping us concentrate on getting ready for the next indoor TT on Sunday. I know I want to better my time and I know Goose wants to better his distance :) No famous dismounts on Sunday.

Frigid Saturday

Goose has to work so he met Mark (Red Dog) to run after work. He said the snow is hard to run through but he had a good run.

Me? I took advantage of Egg leaving his TDF DVD and got my fix of Lance winning.

Got some financial crappy news - but will ride that away tomorrow. Oh how I love banks (not)!

Brazilian Friday

Egg emailed and wanted to come a few minutes early to get more time in before Goose got home. Luckily, I was able to get home so he could. No school for AJ but Rebecca's school didn't close. So, I was definitely ready for adult conversation :)

We warmed up to Egg's TDF - watching Lance is always motivating. He choose Zoot Challenge. It has been over a year since we used that video and I had forgotten what it was. Guess we have a theme of standing and torturing Noose going on. I know it will definitely make me stronger on the road. We had fun with me not caring for the 1 minute standing followed by the seated spins. Egg had to get off his bike for a few seconds and Gooses issued a penalty - which Egg did. I forgot to stand on one rep, so I took mine also.

The sights during the video were good for the guys. I had fun making comments. Always a good workout with Egg and Goose. I think everyone had demons to ride away Friday night and we felt better when done.

Once again, food, rut beers, popo juice with fun conversation.

Let it Snow

Thanks to the person who invented the trainers! Had a solo spin this afternoon - much more fun with others. Got it done and that is all that matters.

Goose "thought" about running outside with Mark tonight. He rethought that and then said he was getting in the water. Plans have changed - coming home to clear away the snow. Giving his legs a rest for one day won't hurt him.

Slackers Were Excused Tonight

Nice cold night - actually I was freezing. Goose wanted to open windows and turn on the fan - guess he didn't hear me that I WAS COLD! Egg came after lessons and we warmed up to more Lance porn. After a good 45 minute warm up - OK I wasn't cold anymore. Egg chose No Slackers and the game faces were on. Windows were opened, fan on - game on.

Once again, Egg cheered us on, pushed appropriate buttons, penalized the Goose 20 seconds (except he made all of do the penalty) and we had a blast. Good hard workout.

Homemade Veggie soup after. Talked about the next indoor TT at our house, Egg set the schedule. We solved the problems of the world again tonight over Rut Beer and PoPo Juice.

Fun!

Oh Goose

What are you gonna do with him? He won't ride his bike when it is 25 outside, but he will run on the slick/ice trails when it is 10? Now that doesn't sound right to me. He did run tonight, outside with Red Dog. He has a little slip and slide on the ice - but he is proud that he got right back up and got back into his groove. Don't need any more falls on the trails!

Me - came home and just spun again tonight - no DVD - just TV. I went between the big and middle - 23 and 12 - seated and standing. Just wanted to get the rest of the junk out before Wed night.

Monday Grind

Wow - back to the normal grind for both of us. The alarm went off too early!!! Goose headed to work and I headed over to AJ's (which made him happy).

After getting him to school, I headed back home and got on the trainer and rode for about an hour - just easy spinning - wanted to get rid of the junk - my legs actually feel really good.

Goose headed to the Y for a workout - giving his legs another day rest (Tues he will be running with Mark outside). I surprised him - I had already built a fire (yep girls can do that also), dinner fixed and ready to eat. Off to bed where it is warm.

• BTW - I intentionally drove Evanston this afternoon, thinking B&*ch - you're mine this summer :)

Sunday Fun

Sundays always bring a new adventure. Ya' just never know what we will ride to or do. This Sunday was no different. Got an email from Egg saying that the Guru was coming up to ride - cool - Rick is always fun, especially when he brings his rollers!

Doorbell rang about 11:40 - knew it couldn't be Rick, he is NEVER early (sorry Rick!). Egg always calls so we can open the garage door - opened the door and it was TKO. He was able to make it again (twice in one week) to ride.

Egg showed up next and explained that Guru was bringing his rollers AND his computrainer to do a Time Trial on. We warmed up to a nice 45-60 minutes on the trainers to Egg's Bike "porn" DVD with Lance. My legs felt good, no real extra aches or pains from the NYD HC100. Goose had worked his legs pretty hard on Saturday in the water. Between Jan 1 ride and 2nd water workout his quads were feeling "it".

Rick got his trainer hooked up to the TV and the ride order was established - TKO, Goose, Egg, Guru and maybe me if I decided to go through with it.

TKO showed is suffering through his sweat dripping and his funny facial expressions. Excellent ride for him, next Goose. After almost 3 miles he stopped, his quads were sore and he has a long race season again this year and didn't want to push it or take any chances. Egg was next - wow - the TT started and he never let up. Impressive watts, mph and time. Great poker face on him also. Rick wanted to go last, he needed to get his legs warmed up, so it was now or never for me.
I wasn't totally convinced that I could do this - but then I thought if I am always afraid of failure, I will never have the opportunity of success. So, I got on my bike (nervous). Egg got on his bike back on his trainer and jumped on to cool his legs down. He told me which gear to start in, I closed my eyes and started. The one nice thing is he has ridden with Goose and I enough to know how we ride - he also knows when he spins faster, that makes me spin faster. With his coaching, Guru's counting down the distance at the end, I made it. And, I have to admit, it was fun. Looking forward to when Rick can bring it back for another TT.

Afterwards, I warmed up leftovers - Rick had his after ride snack - we all sat and enjoyed stories and laughs.

Thanks to Goose, Egg, Guru and TKO for another successful/fun day in the saddle,

Day 2

Wasn't sure what day two would bring. Surprised that I could walk with no pain except the left knee (which is everyday). Goose said he could feel a "little" in his legs, but after his water workout - all is good. A good spin Sunday with Egg will work out the junk.

I have to say New Years Day was fun. Goose and I were a bit nervous - knew it would be 5+ hours of hard saddle time. Mark (Red Dog) actually was at the house first - ready to roll. I did my best to talk him into 4 hours - but gotta remember Buckeyes are very dear to him and no way was he riding that long. Plus, his saddle time has been very little.

Egg arrived next, he usual chipper/motivating self. Full of pep talks for everyone while setting up. He brought his tripod to get a picture of everyone (where is Mthd when ya really need him?) We moved furniture in anticipating of Chuck (TKO), Big Tim and maybe T-Bolt.

Chuck arrived next sporting his new trainer. I guess I don't remember his trainer from last year (must have been the medication I was on!). He sat up in his usual space, next to the fireplace, except this we didn't burn a fire the night before! He also appeared to be very motivated. He has changed his hours back to 5 days instead of 4, which allow him more time to ride.

Egg missed a call from Big Tim so Chuck called him back. Big Tim was under the weather and opted out for the fun ride. We missed his one-liners that definitely crack everyone up.

Egg got a text message from T-Bolt - he couldn't make it - but made up for it by sending text messages during the ride and we talked to him afterward (sorry Howard, I was a blubbering idiot - I was tried and probably didn't make any sense).

The ride? It ROCKED!! There were times I would just stare at the floor - I was "talking" to myself - giving myself valid reasons to continue - ride as hard as I could (plus staring at another woman's breast didn't really interest me) It was difficult, the last hour was really ramped up - I think Coach Troy was trying to kill everyone. Egg started giving us the mileage count down - the last couple of miles I wanted to yell "PEDAL FASTER DAMN IT", I just wanted it over. We didn't quit (well, that wasn't even an option).

The next great adventure - January 17th - Tough Love - celebrating me (Noose) holding off another year of getting older. Let's see who is up for that one!

Happy New Years Fun Day

Wow - first day of the year and marked off a very important goal ----- The ENTIRE Hardcore 100 ---- standing and all - DONE. YES :) Expecting maybe 7 - Big Tim was sick, T-Bolt just couldn't fit it in (next year Howard!) - TKO knew he couldn't stay the entire ride and Red Dog did want to get hurt (he has ridden in a while), So we started with 5 and ended with 3. What an accomplished feeling for all - nothing held back (comments especially). I can't even think of the funny moments (I'm sure Egg can at this point) but I can say DAMN that was FUN!

More tomorrow with pictures.