Today my brother and I got back into our Mtn Bike riding
schedule and took our usual Monday night ride. We didn’t go into the woods today
as I recently made some upgrades to my bike that included adding new clipless
Crank Brother’s pedals. I thought it best to avoid a more technical ride while
I get used to being really attached to my bike for the first time. We also go a
later start then usual and even though we also have new LED front and rear
lights I didn’t want to get stuck in the woods in the dark.
We opted instead to explore the rest of the Hudson part &
the whole Marlborough part of the Assabet River Rail Trail which we had
previously visited with his kids.This
time we managed to go farther than we did the last time and actually rode all
the way to the end. It was a roughly 9 mile round trip ride from the Main
Street Parking Lot across from the Main Street Cemetery.
The trail we rode was a nicely paved section and offers
riders many great safety features. Every major road we crossed flashing lights to
alert drivers that there were bikes on the path and near the crossing. While
these lights do not give us the right away I appreciate that they alert drivers
of our presence and many very nicely stopped to let us cross safely rather than
dodge traffic. At the smaller roads the path had clearly marked signs to inform
riders of those crossings and stop signs to ensure riders know they too have to
follow the rules of the road.
Its history as a rail trail are obvious at several locations
and had there been more day light I would have taken some pictures of the steep
embankments where bridges over the railway once stood. They also built a tunnel
under the Hudson Road/85 Connector to 495/290 that allowed the trail to
continue without having to cross a highway. The tunnel colorfully showcased a
mural painted by local artists.
On our way home I was glad to have our new lights as the
trail is not lit and does get very dark. The lights did a great job illuminating
the path in front of us and also allowing us to keep track of each other with
our rear flashers. Without the lights we might have collided with a few walkers
wearing black clothing who had no lights at all.
I am looking forward to the day when the entire trail is
completed and extends from Marlborough all the way to the South Acton MBTA
station. Included below is our Run Tracker maps and statistics.
With summer
quickly fading I decided to take a vacation day and enjoy at least one more
beach day before it was too late. My friend Chris and I decided to make it a
day trip to Maine’s Ogunquit Beach. It was a short 2 hour ride from home and we
arrived just before lunch. We found parking to be a very reasonable 15$ and the
attendant was very helpful suggesting a good place to grab a bite before
heading to the beach. We ended up having lunch at Frills’ (see review).
After lunch
we loaded up our beach chairs, umbrella, cooler, and towels and made our way to
the beach. We crossed the bridge over the Ogunquit River and made a left down
the beach. It was pretty busy although not overly crowded. A few friends of ours
had the same idea for the day and we met up with them and found a good spot to
set up near beach marker number 3.
Having been
sitting in the sun at lunch I was ready to cool off with a dip in the ocean. The
sand was soft and not overly hot which was nice. Nothing sucks more than
burning your feet trying to get to the water. The water was refreshing but not nearly as
cold as it was at Spectacle Island the weekend before and after bobbing around
for a while we returned to our chairs to enjoy the sun in an attempt to get
some color.
Crowd
watching here at Ogunquit was pretty good with lots of people moving around.
That is one of the things I enjoy most about the beach is watching the people come
and go.I joined the people and took a
stroll down the beach. It was an active
beach with people building sand castles and playing various games. When we got
back we returned to the water one more time before relaxing on the beach
chairs.
By 4:30-5:00
most people had started to pack up their stuff and head back. The water was
also rising quickly and we too had enough.
A few years ago I bought an Iron Horse Maverick 5.0 from EMS
and it has been a great bike. I didn’t go crazy this round and spent a very
modest 318$ on the bike. It was on close out since EMS was no longer going to
carry bikes and it was discounted down from 549$. Not being a crazy off road
mountain bike enthusiast like I once was it has served me well. It is still in
almost new condition as a result of its light use and rather than replace it I
thought I would just upgrade a few components.
I added a pair of Easton EC90 carbon bar ends to help me
ascend some of those steeper hills that always kick my ass. They barely weigh
anything at a scant 81g and feature a nice ergonomic shape that easily fits the
palm of your hand. I found them on Hucknroll.com for 59$ instead of the retail
price of 75$
As a result I also needed to cap the ends of the handle bar
when I cut the grip to add the bar ends. Being just a plug I didn’t need or
want anything too fancy and picked up a pair of Eleven81 Alloy caps from Amazon
for 5$. They fit perfectly and hold the bar ends on should they loosen at all
while riding.
My brother and I also figured we should get some lights
since we got caught a little farther from home then we thought and had to bike
back in the dark. We opted to get Blackburn Click head light and tail light
combo pack. It retails for 25$ but I managed to get a small discount on Amazon
and picked it up for 18$ not a bad deal.
I also added a pair of Crank Brothers Candy 2 clipless
pedals that also weigh a mere 296g. These too should help me climb the hills with
greater ease.I picked the silver and
purchased them off ebay from an authorized seller and got them for the bargain
price of 54$ instead of paying retail price of 90$
With the Candy 2’s I need a good pair of shoes and settled
on a pair of Specialized Comp MTB in black. My brother has the same shoe although
a little different since his are a year old. I purchased them from Landry’s
Bike shop in Westborough and got a 25% discount and took them home for 112$
instead of 150$.
While at Landry’s I also picked up a case for my iPhone to
mount it on my bike. I use run tracker to track my off road/on road excursions
and am always wishing I could see the screen rather then have to stop and pull
the phone out of my pocket. I got the Wahoo Protector Bike Case for the iPhone
made by Wahoo Fitness and mounts right to the stem of the bike giving me a
perfect view of all the important information I might want while riding. I got
it for 45$ instead of the 60$ retail.
So a grand total of 293$ for all the accessories and the
original 318$ for my bike it is now pretty well equipped to enjoy the off road
or the on road. Now that they parts are all installed now I just need to get
out and do some riding.
At less than 4 miles and only a 15 minute ride by boat from downtown
Boston is an island with a varied history. Spectacle Island used to be two
drumlins connected by a small spit of sand but over the many years of use. It
was first used as a recreational island with two hotels until it was discovered
to be used for illegal gambling. Then it was a horse rendering plant, then a
city dump, and now a state park. It has nearly doubled from its original 49
acres to a total of 85 acres. Spectacle Island is home to excavated dirt and
clay from the Big Dig which was used to resurface the island after its long
history as the city dump.
I joined my brother, Sister-in-Law, kids and my sister-in-law's brother. When we arrived we found a Welcome Center directly of the
pier with a small beach to the left. The amenities included two outdoor showers
for rinsing the salt water off and 4 small changing rooms. There is a small clam
shack with modest offerings in case you get hungry. We opted to walk along one
of the many paths to find a beach suitable for a quick swim. What we discovered
were beaches littered with beautiful sea glass and shells. The kids collected a
few cool pieces.
We finally found a beach nice enough to go for a swim and
the watch was cool and refreshing. We didn’t
stay in the water long but on a nice summer day with the sun beating strong it
was a welcomed way to cool down. We then continued along the paths with the
kids exploring the shoreline. Even though the signs said not to walk or explore
the rock walls we couldn’t resist and explored finding all kinds of cool
things. Aidan got to take home a lobster pot buoy that had found its way to the
island.
The city views from the island are fantastic and as we made
a full circle back to the Welcome Center we explored the history of the island
by reading the Island timeline found in the gift shop before catching the ferry
home. It was a wonderful day exploring
one of the many Boston Harbor Islands.
Date:
Monday, August 6, 2012 www.skyjump.com | (978) 433-9222
Of all my Bucket List items I think that Sky Diving was the
one I was most apprehensive about.The
idea of jumping out of a perfectly good plane at 12,500ft seems well crazy.
Having just completed my first Tandem Jump and am already ready to schedule the
next trip to the clouds.
We arrived at Sky Dive Pepperell at 12:30 for out 1:00
scheduled appointment. We checked in and were told to meet at the Waiver Room
at 1:00 to go through the first part of our training. At 10:00 we signed our
lives away and listened to a video recording of a lawyer basically tell us that
sky diving is an extreme sport and that we could be killed or seriously maimed
by participating.
At about 2:00 we began suiting up for our jump and we meet
the jumpers we would trust our lives with. They were a fun and energetic group
that immediately put us at ease and keep the mood light and playful. One of the
jumpers asked me how many times I planned to jump.With it still and unknown I said probably
once to which he replied jokingly that parachutes are optional then. They were
a great group who clearly know what they are doing.
They explained position of exiting the plan, posture during
free fall, and the specifics of landing. They also gave many tips for ensuring
a good time. While on the plane the continued to keep the mood light and
engaging all the first time jumpers. While our videographers communicated with
us and recorded our last moments before jumping our tandem jumpers were double
checking all the clips that bound us together. Less than 10 minutes after take-off we had
reached our altitude of 12,500 ft and we could see the curvature of the earth.
Suddenly the door opened and the wind grew louder. Two solo
jumpers went first showing us how easy it is. Their effortless exit made it
seem even more exiting. My brother opted to go first and I followed shortly
behind him. Before I knew it he was gone and racing towards the ground. Focused
more on what I learned about how to position myself I had no time for nerves
and I was out the door myself. My gut instinct was to initially close my eyes
and I am glad I didn’t, that first few seconds out the door were best with the
amazing views and hearing the rush of wind whistling by as we accelerated to
terminal velocity.
Caro my camera lady took the next 60 seconds of free fall to
capture video and pictures of my experience.She was within arms length most the time and Reid my tandem jumper guided
us into several spins to show off on film.As we approached the clouds it was an incredible to feel the moisture in
the air and the sudden white out conditions. As quickly as the cloud appeared
we were below it and our 60 second freefall was over. With the pull of the cord
out parachute deployed and we slowed down to a comfortable cruising speed.
During our glide Reid pointed out the various landmarks such
as the Atlantic Ocean and the Boston Skyline before handing over control of the
chute to me. He taught me how to turn each direction and how to slow my
decent.This gentle decent was sadly
over after about 4 more minutes and we began our approach to the airfield where
we had begun our journey.
As I looked down I could see the parachutes of those that
went before me on the ground and as instructed I lifted my legs for a butt
first landing. Right before we landed we pulled down on the cords to slow our
landing until we landed with less force then most do when sitting in a chair.
Caro was quick to join us capturing my big smile
and excitement of the jump.After a
quick snap of the clips Reid and I were again two people instead of the 1 it
felt like on the way down.I can’t wait
to go again and I still can’t get over how comfortable I felt from the start to
finish. SkyDive Pepperell has a truly great time of professional jumpers who
made it an unforgettable experience. Even better was being able to immediately
share the video our jump with my parents who has watched from the ground. I
think my mom might join us next time
Shortly after a thunderstorm pasted us by we were treated to a double rainbow. It was beautiful and I captured it on camera using my iphone. It disappeared as quickly as it appeared and I didn't move quickly enough to find either pot of gold. I used AutoStitch to create the picture below. It is made up of about 35 photos.
The brighter inner rainbow is much easier to see then the outer second rainbow. Unfortunately I should have taken more pictures from on my balcony rather then from inside to capture more of the second outer rainbow.
Event: 13th Annual Eastern Bank Flutie 5K Date: Sunday, October 14, 2012 at 11:05am Location: MetroWest Medical Center - Leonard Morse Hospital 67 Union Street, Natick, MA 01760
In attempt to check off yet another item on my bucket list of 101 things in 1001 days I have decided to participate in the Eastern Bank Flutie 5k on October 14, 2012. The 5k road race benefits the Doug Flutie Jr Foundation for Autism. They provide assistance to disadvantaged families who have children with autism and to fun education and research into the causes and consequences of childhood autism.
Today marks 72 days until race day and I thought I had better start training and what better day to start.
My friend Dan who has run the Chicago Marathon offered to help me prepare and run with me while I work to get back in running shape. He runs a 1.4 mile loop near his house and suggested it might be a good starting point.
We started our run on Kendall Lane and proceeded south to HF Brown Way where we took the left. I made it .5 miles before I had to slow down and walk for a minute before starting again. I was pleased with my pace when I was running and my stride and form is still good. I just need to work on my endurance until I can run without and walking. We continued on HF Brown way until we reached Waverly Street where we took a left again. I unfortunately again had to walk for a minute before continuing. When I got back to Kendall Lane where I took another left for the final leg of the run. I walked my third time for 1 minute before finishing off the planned route to the end stopping exactly where I began.
It is amazing to me how out-of-running-shape this small run showed me that I am. It hurt and felt good all at the same time. I finished the 1.42 miles in 14:30 seconds with an average of a 10:11 min/mile. Hardly anything to brag about but I was pleased for training day 1. I am not as young and certainly not in the same shape I once was. Maybe this will be the catalyst I need to get myself back in the great shape. I set up the following training schedule. I will run every other day slowly increasing my distance and hopefully my endurance and by the day of the race hopefully I'll be running the whole distance in a reasonable amount of time. 71 more days till I race wish me luck. If you want to run too click the link to their website and sign up it is only $25.00 bucks which supports a great cause and if you are 1 of the first 800 you get a free dryfit t-shirt too.
Today, as I was on my usual lunch time 1.5 mile walk with the
boy’s we came across a very bright yellow caterpillar sporting black tufts
moving quickly across the busy road. Having no idea if he would turn into a
beautiful butterfly or an ugly moth I moved him to the side of the road using a
stick to ensure his safety from the cars that travel this one lane road.
When we returned a quick Google search for Fuzzy
Yellow Caterpillar quickly identified this colorful creature as a young American
Dagger Moth Caterpillar (Acronicta Americana). I learned that these fuzzy caterpillar go from
a bright yellow when they are young to a very pale to white color. I also
learned that you should avoid touching them as their setae or coat with black
tufts will sting you and leave irritations on your skin. Thankfully I moved him
with a stick rather than picking him up.
I also learned that they can grow up to 2 inches in
size and that they are often found in their moth form from April to September
and in their caterpillar form from July to October in deciduous woodlands and
forests east of the Rocky Mountains. When in their moth form they are brownish
grey with darker markings and have a large wingspan of 5-6 cm.
(96) Go
mountain biking 10 times (7/10)
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