Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Scales are for weighing stuff


My wife was laughing at me when I returned from my ride yesterday. She and my kid said they saw me coming up Baxter and laughed at sight of my sleeveless jersey. She should be damn glad I am out there compared to the rest of the 45+ year olds roaming the isles of Dierbergs clutching mayonnaise based dip.

I had on an old Velo Force Jersey; my first jersey from joining the team back in 2004 after I left Dogfish for a 100,000 signing bonus, but let's keep that under wrap. I still have a bunch of old jerseys of teams etc. There is something to keeping them around, showeing up at rides, talking about how it was back when that jersey was...around. The old Velo Force jersey looks like fish scales and is purple, yellow and red. I am sure Mike Rosen (formerly of Velo Force and now of Big Shark) didn't choose these colors. His style is much too impeccable, driving a 911 with a 3000 bike to the trail head on winter Sundays. Can't one up him on that for christsake. It wasn't long after the scales went away that the red bibs went too. Women didn't like the red bibs. Or maybe they liked them but didn't want their children to see the men wearing them.

Actually, I always liked the fish scale jersey and wish now that I hadn't cut the sleeves off to show off the guns.

I suppose it was in an effort to proclaim myself more of a MTB enthusiast, a little more grassroots, a little less Roadie Euber Farnsworth. Not that there is anything wrong with it, a declared "road concentration" of scientific and financial magnitude. It is just not me. I figure I can keep up with most of these types for a while. Because, after doing this for a while, there is a level of fitness that you can attain that pretty much keeps you from getting shot out the back. You can suck wheel until there is a gap, and as long as you don't let a gap happen and your fitness is there to keep it from happening, you are good to go, until you say that your route takes you away from the group, like yesterday.

Had a nice kick with Team Seagal Member, Matt Hoffmeister yesterday. He was on his fixed gear, pre-1980-Frankenstein of a bike. Me on a a 613. I could not believe how well he road that thing. He had a backpack on too. I was grasping for air on the first couple climbs thinking I am old and fat, again. Then it occurred to me that, not only has Matt been doing this for a while, but he has been commuting, holding non-races, showing up time after time on rides and races. He is a fit dude. And, most obvious, he is powered by the magic of PBR.

It also occurred to me that I don't have a century in my legs and my road miles have fallen short this year. A century is in order for this weekend, no excuses. We need an 80 miler every week. The Castlewood training has effected my ability. No more Castlewood for a while. I plan on spanking Eric this weekend. I hope he is ready.

3 comments:

TeamSeagal said...

Close, Hoffmeyer is the other MAtt - I'm Grothoff.

I'd totally be down for a century with ya this weekend, but I don't have a fully-functioning road bike. at least, not one that I'd like to do a century on...

-Matt Grothoff

The ralph account said...

Well that is just plain stupid that I called you the wrong name. Especially since I have known you since you were in college. I am not right.

Anonymous said...

Gee Ralph, don't be so hard on yourseld. I called you Pflemmer repeatedly because I saw Mike Weiss write it that way once and I never let it go despite my efforts.

Dan....I mean Stan