Bye Bye 2010 - Welcome 2011

Well, 2010 is rapidly fading into the rear-view and 2011 is fast approaching. It's time to get busy "Making A Difference". This year, among other things, I will be an assistant coach for Team in Training's 2011 Death Ride team. It promises to be another fantastic year full of new, energetic endurance athletes riding 5 mountain passes over 129 miles in support of cures for those battling blood cancers.

Through this blog and on my website, I will chronicle the ups and downs and challenges inherent in such an event. The story will include photos, progress reports, and general musings that rumble up from my inherent madness.

I hope you will check back often or even become a follower of the blog as it progresses through the 2011 training cycle and culminates with the Death Ride, http://www.deathride.com/ on July 9, 2011. Who knows you may even want to join us as a participant in a run, walk, hike, or cycling event to raise monies through 100% tax deductible donations as you take part in making a difference.

http://pages.teamintraining.org/sf/touralps11/jgustafson

Feel free to comment at any time about the blog because I would love to hear from people about what they like, don't like, and how it can better support the mission of being entertaining and informative as our team and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society works to eradicate blood-cancers.

You can also follow me on Twitter, http://twitter.com/ jgustafs10, or add me as a friend on Facebook as well.

May 2011 bless you with good health and happiness throughout the year.

Cheers and Go Team!

Jeff

Season's Greetings

Christmas looks a bit different than I remember, ho ho ho. :)

Merry Christmas to all lovers of SexCigarsBooze (1920×1200 W... on Twitpic

My Blackberry Is Not Working! - The One Ronnie, Preview - BBC One

Dixie Chicks - You Were Mine

A great Dixie Chicks tune.

Steve Perry - Strung Out

I think I am having a flash of Bay Area classic rock nostalgia.

COLIN HAY - WAITING FOR MY REAL LIFE TO BEGIN

Jaime Edmondson - Hot Clicks

Ok, this almost makes me like the Baltimore Ravens.

Jaime Edmondson; Giants-Bears sackfest; Arien Foster TD run: Hot Clicks - SI.com - Extra Mustard

Roger Hodgson - Give a little bit

Stop MS

Well, today I went for a ride in support of MS fundraising for my friend Tami Kratz. It was great to get out there with folks of all levels and see old friends like Tamara Simbirdi. It was an interesting ride from San Ramon to Walnut Creek and while the group broke up, everyone seemed to have a great time. I managed to get some time trial miles in on the way there and rode more after. I think the total was a bit over 40 miles. Of course, I forgot to turn the computer on and off properly...some things never change.

Great soccer today played by Germany against Argentina. It was tough to see Argentina go out because they were fun to watch. They were undone not by Ozil, as I suspected, by Bastian Schweinsteiger. He was the very definition of a box-to-box midfield.

Chain Management 101

Wow, Coach Jeff’s weekly Wednesday ride had quite the kickoff. As part of the training I decided to get a flat rear tire. Seemed a routine flat at first until my Campagnolo derailleur decided to make a 360 degree spin and tangle the chain. For some reason, the coach was completely overmatched on this day in getting the problem straightened away. The tire repair itself took only a minute or two, but the ‘Chain Tangling 101’ clinic went on unabated for around 20 minutes. Everyone chimed in to help the befuddled coach, but the chain was getting the best of the whole group.

We should have great photos courtesy of Tammy for the website where a lively photo commentary should ensue. Thanks to everyone for their patience and a special shout-out to Michael for finally getting the proper final twist on the problem; whereby, we finally nailed down the solution.

Just to add to the hilarity of the whole situation. In my haste to get back on the road with my cohorts who were already up the Kilkare climb, I slapped the wheel back in the dropouts without the slightest review and hit the road again as my patient charges headed back to our start point in the other direction.

On the way up Kilkare, the pedaling seemed a bit more challenging than usual… It seems I was climbing with the back brake pressing against the rim. Sometimes it just isn’t your day (but the climb was a bit more of a workout).

I guess the next order of business will be to orchestrate a ‘Chain Untangling’ clinic. Of course, I suppose this will take place after a trip to bike shop to figure out what is going on with my crazy derailleur.

Moral of the story, we should always keep pushing forward – Go Team!!!!

TNT-Point Reyes Ride

Wow, what a fantastic day for a TNT ride. The Point Reyes weather was really off the chain. Group 1 welcomed, Craig, from the Redwood/Wine Country team and he seamlessly dovetailed into our paceline and added another set of wheels to our echelon training on the way out towards Nicasio. The group rode extremely well. Of course, the idea was to start at around 12 mph which was actually 17 mph in practice; still no one seemed to suffer from the quicker pace.

The group is in the process of trying to figure out a good name for our group. So far, a number ideas have been floated around such as "Betsy's Boys", but nothing has really fit the bill perfectly. I am sure that we will find our song around the same time as we take on a nom de guerre.

We all tried to make it back in time for the World Cup game between Ghana and the US, but it just didn't happen. Still, the post ride lunch in Point Reyes Station was good. Of course, as a side note, I am bummed that the US couldn't make it past Ghana to advance.