30 June 2006
The Tour starts tomorrow and it's already looking grim. Check this out.flickr
28 June 2006
The dog days of summer are upon me today. I was up late last night preparing some portfolio items when I had an uneasy feeling in my stomach. I could barely keep my eyes open so I decided to retire for the evening. I woke up several times during the night with the worst case of the chills I’ve ever had. This morning I was defiantly running a temp and had little choice but to stay in bed. I was hoping to have a nice day off today. Head out on the bike for few hours, finish working in the yard, clean up the house for Shannon and I even had a date planned to play some soccer with my nephew later in the afternoon. None of that was accomplished. Instead, I spent the day fading in and out of sleep while laying on the couch. Sometimes I’d be wide-awake, other times I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I was happy though that I got to spend some time watch the world cup. Typically the only T.V, I watch now days happen to be the Spanish station soccer games. I’m feeling pretty discouraged because lately I haven’t been able to get the things done that I’d like to. I’ve not been a good help in the house, I seem to only be riding my bike once, and maybe twice a week the list goes on. I’m now going to make a list of all the things I’d like to get done and plan out my days by the min. I’m the type who needs a busy load and some structure or I start to wander and as Shan says “Lollygag” around. I'll keep you updated as to how thing turn out and to my nephew Skylere... You better get your game face on because I got to watch some sweet soccer today.26 June 2006
New to the Studio Phive Blogger, "Site of the Week". Every week I'll post a new link to a site that I feel is well designed, fun, or a good source of information. Click on the Title of this post to see the "site of the week" ENJOY
24 June 2006
Spent 5.5 hours in the saddle today with some of Utah's fittest rock stars. Eric Jones, Bart Gillespie, Jason Sager, Blake Zumbrunnen and anther kid from Texis named Blake. We all met in SL at the mouth of immigration Canyon and preceded to south. Our destination... The Alpine loop in American fork canyon and back. The ride was fantastic, and the company was great. it was just what I needed. Stay tuned to Sager's Blog I'm sure he will post some photos.23 June 2006
So I met Shan at the courts after she was finished teaching some tennis lessons. I step up every now and then for a good laugh and to be a supportive husband. I really enjoy playing tennis with Shan and tell her that I'll come to the courts any time and shag balls. This time though, thing were different. She proceeded to give me the same lesson and advice that she has in the past but for some reason things clicked a bit more in my head. I actually returned a few (of her soft and easy hits) with a minor amount of accuracy. Shan smiled at me and told me how proud she was because I was doing so well. I had a really good time, more than I usually do and hope that we can continue the fun. She's an excellent teacher and very patient with me even when I jack it out of the park. If you or any one you know wants a few lessons, shoot her an email or give her a call. But be careful... She's got a mean serve that will knock you up side the head before you even see it coming.
This photo is from Halloween 05... I've always had it in me, and it shows.
I just posted some photos on my flickr site. Shannon, my father and I took Liddle to n wed. evening. He has always loved riding in the back of the truck and even better, he loves Snowbasin. He's covered a lot of ground up there. Hiking around every season, barking at moose and getting in the way of the nordic skiers. His limp is getting worse every day... it's only a matter of time.
Everything looks better on a Mac
21 June 2006
This is what web deisgners have to deal with all the time.. Below is a screen shot of my blog. One using Safari and the other using Firefox. The shot form Safari is how I've set up the code and should look except for the missing icon in the url. Firefox displays the icon but the text does not the share the same style.Screne Shot from Firefox
Screen Shot from Safari
Been playing with CSS (cascading style sheets) and linking if from my studiophive site to the blog. I changed the background to a repeating image that looks a bit like old wallpaper. I also gave my blog the official Phive Icon. The little icon in front of the url... On the Mac I primarily use Safar as a web browser but for the blog'n I pull out Firefox. The icon shows up in Firefox but not Safari and I'm yet to check it on Internet Explorer, yuck. Hope ya'll like it.
Hiding my thoughts and feelings
19 June 2006
What a day today... I made plans to ride with my good friend Ryan Blaney today and was in rout to his home in the UC, when I received a call from my mother. Last thursday my father and I took Liddle to the vet to have a biopsy done on his leg. There was about .0001 chance that his problems may just be a nasty infection and not bone cancer. The vet told us to expect a result in about 5 days and I'm assuming that in our pup's case, his problems were pretty significant. My mother broke the news to me... The results are positive, our pup has a sever case of bone cancer.I was expecting this and thought I'd be prepared to hear those dreaded words, but the flood gates opened right up. There are times in life when men and boys are allowed to cry and in my case, I take full advantage of those. My mother told me to keep my plans with Ryan and stop by later to hang out with Liddle. I arrived at Ryans place and we headed out to ride some bikes. We spent about five hours in the saddle today, riding one of the best roads and trails in Utah. We charged the Alpine loop on our road bikes then saddled up the mountain bikes for sweet decent down Mill Canyon (which is actually closed for some much needed trail work) we climbed the pavement on our mountain bikes this time to our vehicle at the top. It was a great way for me to get away from the feelings of sorrow and anger that I keep inside.
After our ride I rushed home to hang out with my pup. He seems to be in an excruciating amount of pain as he restlessly limps around looking for a good spot to try and get some rest. As he looks at you, you can tell that he just wants to be fixed and run through the yard and chase that cat as if nothing was wrong. Unfortunately there is no way to help him and improve his life at the same time. It's only a matter of time now... probably days, before we have to say good by. He's going to be missed.
17 June 2006
The Intermountain Cup MTB race series made another weekend stop, this time at Sherwood Hills, near Logan. Pretty good venue, nice trail, and healthy attendance in the pro category. The race went well and even though I've only ridden my bike for a bout 5 hours in the past two weeks... I'm seeing my fitness continue to get better. But all of that can be talked about later. For now I'd like to pay a special someone a big THANKS and I LOVE YOU.
My dear wife, who throughout our entire marriage and the two years of dating prior to, has religiously attending almost all of my bike races and is always there to provide me with 110% support. It means more to me that I could ever tell her and I know many of the other athletes feel the same way. She has become the designated feeder (the one that everyone relies on to get a fresh bottle from each lap) and supporter to everyone at the races. She often times volunteers at registration in order to comp my race fee and is usually the one who can yell the loudest, except for my father.
She spends her Saturdays following me from race to race, with a smile on her face and fresh bottle of my top secret performance enhancing drink mix to keep me going strong. THANK YOU VERY MUCH SHANNON. You are the best support I could ever have and every will have and there's no one who does it better. YOU'RE THE BEST.
the above photo is shannon at the 24hrs. of moab...getting her support on.
Bike Race, Expensive Mexican Food, Air Show, Dippin Dots, and The Beach Boys
11 June 2006
What a weekend, or should I say what a Saturday. woke up at 5:30ish to make my breakfast which consisted of top secret bike racer food aka: Toast, eggs, and because I had nothing else... some cherios. They're good for your heart! The race was a Deer Valley and we had to be there by 7am. Shannon has been helping the race promoter with registration (which also comps my race fees, even though my team pays for them... but now that cash can go towards some travel costs) After a long and emotional week with only one ride, I was very excited to be on the bike and spin the pedals. My expectations were pretty low concerning the race, my fitness, and moral. But as soon as I began warming up I could feel things get better. I love the bike racing scene. You're typically surronded by a lot of good healthy people who are not only out to give it their best but they all really enjoy doing it at the same time. I have a lot of really good friends that race as well, and there's noting like seeing them all do really well even when you're having a bad day.
The race went better than I thought as far as my fitness and ability to "put the hammer down". I'm really starting to believe that the little bits of training i've been doing are slowly paying off. In other words,I felt great. I did though, have a pretty nasty crash. Similar to one I experienced a few years back that left me with a concussion and bruises on my head from my helmet. I did manage to keep my eyes open through the ordeal and after the dust settled, I took inventory of body parts bike. All was intact, some were bleeding and torn but they still functioned and I had a lap and a half to go. I finished the race feeling strong and not totally wasted regardless of the skin I left on the trail. The worst part about it was the fact that I cracked my $200.00 helmet. I guess my skull is worth a few more dollars than that so I'm saving in the long run.
After the race our crew headed to some of our favorite eateries in PC only to find that everything was closed. None of us knew why and were pretty bummed so we settled for a place that clammed they were 110% Mexican. May have been true but It all became false advertising when we got the bill. Oh well.
Next stop: The air show. I'm a big fan of the United States Military spending millions to fly jets all over the sky and make a lot of noise. Good times.
Just getting warmed up! It was off to SLC to meet up with our other friends Kevin and Shannon (crazy but true) who had tickets to the Beach Boys concert. Need I say more... Yes. The beach boys can still rock the crowd much like did years ago. They put on a good show and took lots of photos and sound clips for my dad. He's their biggest fan. We then headed to the SL Roasting Co. for a little less rowdy atmosphere. A good way to wind it all down and chat with some friends. Plus the dippin dots at the concert didn't fill me up so I needed a snack.
Want to send our a big CONGRATULATIONS to Ryan for his big "W" (win) in the race. For those of us in the Pro class, we better watch out... He may step in sometime.
06 June 2006
Laying it all out and up front... Liddle has been diagnosed with bone cancer that is spreading rapidly through his body. The doctor gave him 2-6 weeks.
A recent trip to the vet because of a slight limp in his left front leg, turned out to be the least of his problems. He soon developed a limp that progressively got worse in his right leg, almost to the point of being useless. A trip to the vet today and few x-rays later... the unfortunate news is now on the table.
For those of you who knew Liddle, you probably fell in love with him. He had the charm and compassion to melt your heart and make you forget about the drool that he left on you leg. He is caring and protective and according to my father, he's the best "helper boy" yard work'n dog around. Liddle loves the chance to go anywhere. He is an avid snowshoeing companion, and has been to his share of bike races as well. He loved to chase after a ball but would only bring it back once or twice if you were lucky. His most favorite thing is to ride in the back of the pick-up truck and bark as much and as loud as he could, just so everyone could see him. He's my best buddy and has been for the past five years. Unfortunately, he's young... but he's lived a wonderful life and been a great family member. We'll all enjoy and continue to love Liddle until his time is up. Thank you
05 June 2006
I was fortunate enough today to spend some time around the house cleaning and hanging out with Zipper. I also had some extra time to get out on my bicycle and hit up one of my favorites... Francis Peak. Mid day heat is not exactly the best time to go after it but once you get in the canyon the temp is just about right. I was hoping to feel a bit stronger today than I did but I think because of my lack of recovery from Sat. my body just didn't want to go hard. That's fine with me because when you're climbing for 2hours and 5,000 feet, it's nice to settle in.
As I approached the top, beyond the closed gate and no trespassing sign, I caught up to a man and his two kids hiking up the road. For a brief moment I felt like a super star in the tour... you know when the crazy people run next to the cyclist putting both their lives at risk. Well, the boy (i'd say about 7 years old) would take a few short sprints next to me as I mad my way towards the summit. He would get out in from of me a few feet, stop, turn around and give me the eye. In the process he would be swinging his plastic sword franticly as if he had intentions of removing my limbs one at a time. A bit distracting so I did what any respectable person should do. I lifted the pace a bit causing the young boy to crack and fall behind. My body wasn't feeling it's best but I was able to drop the crazy sword boy.
the snow is still deep and is calling our for some skiing. if anyone is interested let me know.
p.s. sorry about the crappy image... camera phone was all I had.
Flawless is how I would discribe the race on Saturday but for some reason I didn't win. The venue: Sundance ski resort. Conditions: Perfect. The Course: 28 miles, 4500 vertical feet... Brilliant. The Pro Mens field: stacked full.
To relate the word flawless to my race last saturday is mostly describing the fact that I had a really good time, on a great course with lots of climbing and effing sweet descents. The entire time I felt like I was consistent and smooth, and I progressively got faster each lap. Unfortunately my fitness level doesn't allow me to keep up or even contend with the rock stars leading the race, but It will come around. For now, I'm really enjoying the scene and happy to see everyone doing so well.
Congrats to Eric Jones, Thomas Spannring and Bart Gillespie as your top three finishers in our Pro Mens field.
check out the intermountain cup website for more info on the races and also This for information on Deer Valley Nationals.