Day 222 - Butt Shot

The weather has been crappy the past two days. Drizzle and cold in the 50s. Not great riding weather. So I've been couped up in the house. On Wednesday morning I woke up and wanted to ride bad. The drizzle had let up but it was still cold. I decide to do it and throw on my wind breaker, toe covers, skull cap, and warm gloves and take off. It was cold at first, but I warmed up as I put in the miles. Rode north in the bicycle lane along Conway Ave. in Mission and Highway 107 to Edinburg and back, a total distance of 30 miles. Because of the wet weather there was some mud on parts of the bike lane, which rooster sprayed my bike and my behind. See butt shot. I stop at De Alba's near my house and bought some tamales on the way back. When I got home I popped open a frosty and ate my tamales to celebrate. I had been wanting to do this ride for a while to see if I could handle the commute. If I rode each work day that would be 150 miles a week. I don't think I ready to go that hardcore yet.

Day 216 - Cool Skull X-ray

Just got back from seeing the doctor. The good news is my nose is not broken. They took a couple of x-rays at the doctor's office. They came out negative. I didn't need stitches either. Doctor says it should heal on its own. I didn't think it was broken, but my wife had insisted I get it checked out. After explaining to the doctor how my little accident happened, it turns out that the doctor and his son had ridden at Mission Trails that very same day. They're new to mountain biking and enjoy it. I told him about the club and my wife gave him the club business card. He joked how he could be the club's doctor treating us for our injuries. "That would be cool" I thought to myself. I know our club members would keep him busy!

Day 215 - Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer

I get home. My nose has swelled up and is red like Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer. Fortunately, my wife was not as upset as I thought she would be. I guess she has seen worse, like the time I came home from Flat Rock Ranch with fifteen stitches in the side of my face. I looked like Frankenstein! She made me take off the bandages and she cleaned it up with some hydrogen peroxide. She put some sterile stips over the cuts to keep them closed and put a bandaid over them. She thinks it is broken. I don't think so. While I feel some pain and throbbing it doesn't seem that bad. Like a mosquito bike compared to the pain I was in when I broke my hip. I down two Iboprofen and apply an ice bag to keep the swelling down. My wife wants me to go see the doctor to check. Looks like I'm going to see the doctor tomorrow. Later in the evening we go over to my wife's parents house for Christmas dinner. I get ready for the Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer jokes.

Day 215 - Little Christmas Surprise

Got a little Christmas surprise this morning while riding in Poo's Forest, a tight, twisty, trail that runs through and is covered by trees at Mission Trails. Was hauling the mail rounding a blind corner I suddenly come up on a fallen tree branch at head level. Too late to avoid, I smack the tree branch hard with my face. The branch hits me in the bridge of the nose and then scrapes across my nose. I stop and feel my nose. Blood is dripping out. At first I thought I have a nose bleed. I hastily take out a rag from my camelback and apply it to stop the bleeding. Using my digital camera I take a picture and look at it to see the damage. Had a minor cut at the top of the bridge. Another cut on the tip of the nose it worse. It is 1/4 to 1/2 inch long and is where I'm bleeding from. I take out two bandaids and apply them to my nose as best I can since I can't see my face. The bandaids stop the bleeding. I think about calling it a day, but decide I better ride, because after my wife sees my little Christmas surprise I'll be grounded. I ride for another hour and head home.

Day 206 - Three Miles

I'm been skipping my indoor cycling machine in favor of running. Since I work in my office most of the day, it feels good to get outdoors and work off my stress. Running seems to help my hip more than cycling. It also feels like I get a better workout. I ran three miles today during lunch at work, which was the farthest I have run in a long time. Ran it under 30 minutes which was 10 minutes a mile pace. Still got a long ways to go. My goal is to improve my pace so I can run with my wife next year. She runs on the treadmill three times a week and puts in several miles. I have a long way to go to get up to her level. My knee hurt afterward. I hope it is temporary.

Day 205 - Gettin' in Some Riding

The weather has been crappy lately. That with the sun going down at 5 p.m. means I there isn't a lot of time in get in a ride. After two weeks of not riding, I finally got in a ride on Sunday. In the afternoon I went out to the trail and got in a ride. Hooked up with Richard, who happened to be at the trails and we rode a lap. Hector showed up later and we did another lap. The trails were hardpacked from the recent rain and were fast. After an hour of riding I cut out and went home. Later tevening we went for our annual Christmas light ride with our cycling club at the "Festival of Light" in Hidalgo. See picture. It was a slow, fun, family ride. We finished the ride off with some hot chocolate and cookies. What a good of biking.