Thoughts on biking and Czech life through the Eyes of an American

Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Un-Welcomed Surprise


Ride Stats

  • Distance:0.0

  • Time:2:01:12

  • Avg. Speed0mph

  • Max. Speed0mph

  • Climbing:0feet

  • Avg. HR:141 bpm

  • Energy:1455 cal



Biking Shot of the Day



Snow

35°

High: 36° Low: 30°



My IE
35°

High: 36° Low: 30°






I could not believe when I woke up this morning to this sight. After several weeks of mild temperatures we all thought mother nature had upgraded the Czech Republic to "Early Spring" status. The sad result is 2 hours of boring trainer riding... at least the view was nice.

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Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Walkin' on Broken Glass


Ride Stats

  • Distance:53.5 mi

  • Time:3:04:26

  • Avg. Speed17.5 mph

  • Max. Speed40.8 mph

  • Climbing:4580 feet

  • Avg. HR:145 bpm

  • Energy:2286 cal

  • Miles in '07:219.96



Bike Ride Shot of the Day



Sun with Clouds

45°

High: 45° Low: 32°




High: 6° Low: -3°





Good ride today, weather and smells remind me of riding in mid-March around Ithaca or Vermont. This invigorates pleasent associations like the smell of impending spring as well as not-so-pleasent sensations like the abhorrent smell of fresh manure. Riding through the city was rather temerarious with shards of glass that seemed to litter every intersection or driveway entrance. Was yesterday "National Brake-Free Day"? Perhaps a glass factory offloading a botched run of Czech crystal wares?

Also interesting to note was a peculiar police method to pull motorists over. I was heading back home on a busy 2 (or 3) lane road going about 30mph when I noticed a police vehicle parked on the side of the road ahead. The policeman held out a lollipop looking stick towards my direction. The car just a few feet ahead of me immediately pulled over. Passing by I tried to determine the nature of the infraction but the little old man in the red matchbox-size car looked pretty innocent to me. Is this some form of random police inspection? Certainly the guy on the Honda race bike fresh off the Brno Grand Prix track looked more culpable than little ole Gramps. Either way, I was glad that they didn't pull me over for some strange bike law ordinance.

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Saturday, February 17, 2007

Being out of shape & Wheel Sucking Posers


Ride Stats

  • Distance:53.6

  • Time:3:11:07

  • Avg. Speed17.1 mph

  • Max. Speed41.6 mph

  • Climbing:4980 feet

  • Avg. HR:139 bpm

  • Energy:2420 cal



todays bike ride



Cloudy

40°

High: 43° Low: 30°





Considering yesterday's ride and a poor night sleep, I decided to take it slow today. After all, doing the miles and the time is what early season rides are all about. We had a great day here weather-wise, still cold and the wind required serious layers but the sun was a welcomed sight after several days of rain.

After riding for about 40 minutes I came to an intersection and noticed a rider climbing the hill towards me. I crossed the road but wasn't sure if he was also heading in my direction. About 1 mile later I was having some shifter issues at the base of a 2.3km (about 1.6 mile) long climb. I wrestled with the shifter as the shim seemed to be stuck then proceeded to slowly climb the hill since my rhythm was wrecked. Then, in the corner of my eye I caught a glimps of a shadow that wasn't mine. Initially I thought it was some mountain biker that was trying to tag along but I didn't want to turn around to look. (Note: I think there is an unwritten rule that if you turn to look then it immediately turns into a race). I pressed on, not too hard but just enough to see if he/she would drop away.

A half mile passed and I could still see the shadow glued to my rear wheel. At this point I was a little pissed. I've never liked people who suck on my wheel especially if I don't know them. This never was really an issue back when I was fast because not many people would do training rides at my speeds (usually solo at 22mph with 3300 feet of climbing on the windy coast). Now that I'm out of shape I guess I have to get used to the fact that I might get someone on my wheel from time to time. It only happened once last year on a long climb and I got schooled!


At this point I was getting angry. Everyone knows that sitting on someone's wheel makes it easier and I was getting a little pissed that he wasn't doing any of the pacemaking ... AT LEAST ride up beside me and say "Hi" or "Dobre Den"... I mean, if you are so great, you ride up front! We rounded a 90 degree switchback, zig-zagging along the forested road as my heart rate continued to climb. Getting impatient, I thought "I am just going to turn around and say..'enjoying the ride back there?'" I decided against it since I don't think it would be very friendly and who knows if this guy speaks English anyway.

Finally with only 500 feet to the top he came around me and I got my first glimpse of the leech who had been sucking my wheel for the past mile of climbing... Sure enough, he was a poser of the worst kind... decked out head-to-toe in full "Team Discovery Channel" garb. I've never been a fan of wearing pro-team jerseys because it just looks like you are trying hard to be someone you're not. If you really want to be good, wear your own stuff or support you local bike shop with their jersey. "Alright Lance, go for it," I thought as he attacked out of the saddle. I didn't make any effort since I'm never one for "drag race" sprints on training rides (especially when I still had 43 miles to go and this is only my second ride of the season).

Watching for behind I did notice that he was pretty good though. I'm positive I would have been able to keep up or even drop him back when I was a Cat 1 climber... not the Cat 5 wash-up I am now.

Then I started thinking... "what a loser, he even had the Trek Madone carbon bike.. the shoes... the booties... the sunglasses. Why Discovery anyway? I would think people here in Europe might support a more local team, T-Mobile isn't far away, Italy isn't too far... what's the infatuation with Discovery or Lance Armstrong? I thought I expect it in the US but not here. "Geez, he is even wearing one of the team knit hats they were when training in the spring... this guy went all out. But can you even buy those hats? And isn't that the new 2007 jersey?"

"That isn't a poser WEARING Discovery Channel stuff... that's Pavel Padrnos, A DISCOVERY TEAM RIDER!!!"
Pavel Padrnos at the front... for once
I completely forgot that Pavel Padrnos lives in Czech Republic.. I originally thought he lived nowhere near me but I discovered that he lives in Ostopovice which I go by nearly every ride. Its a very small village (pop 1,400) that you certainly wouldn't expect to produce a rider who's been in the Tour de France 5 or 6 times and is a 2-time Olympian! He was on Armstrong's team to help him win 5 of his Tour de France titles.

Was it really him... hmmm, we may never know.

He took the a different road as I was headed to the big hills to do more climbing. Check out what you missed Pavel!
Pozor! Fun ahead!
So I guess you never know what you might see on your next "boring ride". But honestly, Pav, next time do some work on the front. Dik. :)

Further Reading:
ThePaceline: Pavel Padrnos - The Czech Republic's Pavel Padrnos is truly a giant among men in the sport of cycling. Standing 1.89m (6'3") and weighing 82kg (180 lbs) he towers above most of the other riders in the pro peloton... [more]


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Friday, February 16, 2007

Maiden Voyage 2007


Ride Stats

  • Distance:53.52 mi

  • Time:3:02:14

  • Avg. Speed17.7 mph

  • Max. Speed44.8 mph

  • Climbing:4580 feet

  • Avg. HR:140 bpm

  • Energy:2283 cal



bike



Cloudy

43°

High: 43° Low: 27°




Sorry about the image (no I am not Ivan Basso), I'll edit it soon, hopefully with a picture from the ride each day.

Today was the first ride of the year after spending several days trying to get my bike in working order. Stuck to my favorite route which you can see is pretty hilly. Now that I have my new Polar S625X heart rate monitor I am able to tell exactly how undulating the terrain is around Brno... 4580 feet of climbing... ouch!

No real time to write but some of the interesting things spotted on todays ride were an extra-large pair of black and white striped panties on the side of the road (anyone missing a pair?) and the sweet smell of coal that embraced the various small villages along the Czech countryside.

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Friday, February 09, 2007

Because sometimes you have to jump...

Its occurred to me that it has been quite some time since I contributed to this blog. I guess everything between the previous post and this one is the exact same. Still with the same job, still have the same bike... oh but wait, maybe a few things are different...

I met a nice Moravian girl in the summer of 05 who was working for the summer in Maine. Coming all the way from the Czech Republic, Linda was relegated to a small B&B on the Maine coast which is extremely beautiful (some even regard it as the most pristine coastal setting in the US) but it's also quite... mmm how do you say... boring, for an adventurer traveling to the US for the first time. When I heard about her frustrations in dealing with the isolation of Brooklin Maine (population: a few hundred lobsters, some fish, and a porpoise or two), I decided to meet up with her and hopefully redeem the state's image before she returned home. With no car, a B&B owner who only cared about the discount international labor, and the student exchange agency that didn't seem too interested if the students enjoyed themselves for the summer, I decided to take matters into my own hands.

We hit the major tourist spots as well as some areas that only Mainers with the thickest accents know about. Colorful mountain-top sunsets, gourmet dinners outside by the water, bike rides that passed by placid lakes and rocky bluffs, swimming (...burrrrr), rather lying on the beach, were all special moments where Linda discovered Maine, and I discovered joy in my life once again. Certainly I am omitting several details ...but some paintings have to be seen with your own eye to get a full appreciation of the art... punching keyboard keys, no matter how I color the words, can ever replicate the true masterpiece.

Of course, Linda would have to say goodbye at some point. I had to fight with the questions, is letting go something I will regret later? Do I really want to wonder each and every day what she is doing, where she is, if she is thinking of me, if our love can survive a distance of 4000 miles? So many questions but there was an easy answer for me. If I want to find out if she is suppose to be part of my life then I know exactly what I have to do...

Greetings from Brno, Czech Republic.

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