Oh Yea..........

Already finding it easy to lay back and do nothing! I will try to post up next week so stay tuned!!!

Almost..............

Almost made it. To another well deserved vacation! All I have to do is make it till 4 and I am done.

Tomorrow is my birthday, I never work on my birthday so I am starting my vacation and few days early. Tomorrow I am taking the kid to get new tires on his truck and then I will start drinking beer.

The pool with a float and a cold beer. What could be better than that!

I rode last night and tonight I will ride so tomorrow will be a rest day. What a way to start 10 days, if you can't tell I am looking forward to this. The mountains are calling my name!

We will spend the week riding the mountains and hitting the local restaurants. The kids will be at church camp so we have a week to ourselves.

That don't happen very often.

Killing Time.....

I am the best in the world at "killing time"! I can use every available hour of the day for something. Last night was a perfect example of my hidden ability.

I rode the night before, I hadn't ridden since last Thursday. Friday we were getting ready to head to Kinston, Saturday and Sunday we where in Kinston so Monday was my first ride in 3 days. I usually don't miss a weekend so I was ready.

So that left me with a rest day yesterday! That really doesn't sound right, rest day after just one ride! But that is kinda my schedule, ride Monday-Wednesday-Thursday. Drink beer Friday, ride Saturday-Sunday.

If I miss a day in there I am still too the good.

Anyway, last night I was on my off night and I played in the pool with Chase awhile. Karen got home and Chase and I got out and I cleaned the pool. We decide we where going to do hamburgers for dinner and need buns.

Well I leave and hit 3 different country stores looking for buns. No luck, nobody had any! I gave up and went to Food Lion in Monroe. I try not to go to town unless I really need too, hence the reason I went to 3 different stores before I gave up.

I walk in and I am heading for the bread isle, bam, I get side tracked! Isle 10, magazines!!!!!!

I love magazines! Here I am at the store with no supervision and all these wonderful new magazines!

Finally the phone rings and the wife is wondering where I am! Once she finds out where I am she just asks "are we going to eat before dark"?

My take home for a 2 hour bread trip. Cycle World and Mountain Bike Action, and the buns! I went to sleep with my nose buried in all the wonderful new pictures!!!!!

Now The Kid...........

Although this is not his first web appearance, his mom stole that honor from me when she put him on her face book page. I might forgive her someday but right now I am still kinda mad! I wanted to break the news to the millions of followers of this blog.

You know face book has nothing on me! Oh well she might know a few people that I don't. Plus the fact that I am not on the face book train, she may have made a good decision. Time will tell!!

Yep that's my wife, holding our new nephew. Quincy Paul Honeycutt!!

Right now he would make a good sized fish, he's 10 pounds! Thank god we don't have any kids that age! I like him but my kids are 12 and 16. His mom Eve was busy all weekend taking care of him, I have a good ideal she is still doing it now. Just because we left doesn't mean she got a break.

Of course we have Wriston, he and Chase played hard all weekend. Wriston loves when Chase comes, he looks forward to it. Chase is still young enough he likes to play with him. Wriston is 5, so it's a big deal when he can play with his big cousin.

They swam and rode bikes, watched a movie. They were busy dudes! You ask Wriston what he thinks of his little brother and he will tell you, "all he does is poop, eat, and cry". You gotta love the way a 5 year olds brain works.

Chase also got to meet Minnie Pearl she's a real jackass. No kidding she's a donkey! Even the wife played with her. Eve has several chickens and ducks, the donkey and dogs and a cat!

minnie pearl

A virtual petting zoo we didn't have to pay to get into!

All The Riding I Want !!!!!!!!!!

In a car anyway! So we left out early am Saturday and headed to Kinston, with a stop in Wagram. Why did we stop? Well Karen's mother and brother ended up riding with us and he wanted to go by a gun shop there.

Chase likes to shoot and he likes to play with guns (yea he's 12) so we went by there. Right there in the middle of nowhere is one of the nicest gun shops I have ever been in. But considering I have only been in about 3 of them that ain't saying much.

My brother-in-law, he collects guns was impressed so I assume I should have been too! Gun shops are weird places to me, they are either really bright and new or old and dingy with a fair amount of dust on things. This place was in the middle of that, it was old and dingy but someone does do the dusting.

mid-south guns   Wagram, NC

It had a steady stream of people coming and going so it must be pretty popular. I can promise, Wagram sure ain't keeping it open.

So anyway you go in and they have like 75 cameras on the ceiling and they don't really like you taking pictures when you are there. I found that out when I walked through the door caring my camera. One of the guys told me right quick not to take pictures!

I did take a picture of this guy hanging on the back wall when he wasn't looking! I am such a rebel! Don't ya like the paneling. So seventies!!!

that was the police station-it's for sale..

Then I got bored and went back outside. I took a few pictures of some of the surrounding buildings and a neat bumper sticker on one of the cars in the lot, and to think he was inside buying a new gun!

I love America!!!!!!!!!!!

Time To Ride !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's Friday and it's time to ride! Yep I get to spend 4 hours in a car "riding" to Kinston NC.

We leave in the morning and come back Sunday. It's our new little nephew Quincy's dedication at church. He's 4 weeks old and Wriston's little brother. This will be the first time we have gotten to see him yet.

That will be fun, Chase and Wriston always have a good time playing together. Then we come back and get ready for a vacation! Yep the kids are going to church camp and we are going to the mountains for a week. We plan to ride the Gold Wing and explore the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The Biltmore house will be a day and what ever else we get into.

Besides that I went Sherman last night and rode a pretty quick lap. I got there and Noel was about to ride so I took off and tried to stay in front of him for a lap. I managed to do it only to find out he was just riding and not pushing it.

I thought I was doing something, out in front killing myself knowing he was going to catch me and he wasn't even trying! At least I got a good ride in. I pushed myself harder than I have in awhile and had a good time. That's a good way to go out! I plan to maybe go tonight, if not I will hit the woods Sunday.

Have a nice weekend and see ya next week....

Attitude Adjustment.................

Give me sunshine and my attitude changes for the better, everytime! That's all I need for a change. I have said it before and I will say it again. If I lived in some way northern state I would go crazy without the proper amount of sun.

I love the south and the sunshine!

I did my yard work last night and tonight the wife is going shopping. Sherman Branch, mtn bike here I come. I got in one road ride and now I am ready to get back in the woods. Hell I am in such a better mood I might even wash my bike afterwards.

I said maybe, that ain't a guarantee.

    Armstrong goes on defensive

Anyhow to change the subject, I turn on the computer this morning and find out they are going after Lance again. As of right now he can no longer even compete in Triathlons, not until he has a hearing concerning these charges.

They are gonna get him! It's just a matter of time. There's just to many people who either witnessed it or did it with him that have come forward for the USADA not to pursue the investigation.

Do I think he doped, yep! During the period of time he was winning all the Tour's doping was rampant. Every rider who was competitive at that point has already been caught.

I wish it weren't true but I feel it is. He has done so much for the cancer community and raising awareness and money for research it really is a shame. I hope it goes away and he is vindicated but I find it hard to believe. Lance is the man, no matter the out come I still think he is the greatest cyclist of our time.

It's a shame at this point in time most people are gonna remember more about him being a doper than a cyclist.

Glad They Were Wrong !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What other job is there you can be wrong damn near all the time and still have a job! I want to be the weatherman, there's no way to screw it up! You look out the window and talk!

Easy as that!

So anyhow I got out the road bike and hit the road. I haven't ridin it in awhile. I have been hung up on the mtn. bike so it was really kinda neat to be out on the road. From the weather report I thought it was gonna be raining and storms yesterday so I was glad when it was nice.

Hot yes, but it felt good.

ready for the hay baler

6ft tall corn

One thing has definitely changed over the last 6 weeks since I have been out, the fact the corn has grown big time! They are harvesting the wheat right now so you see wheat fields and corn everywhere.

Last time I saw the corn field above it was maybe a foot tall. I like being in the country. The corn acts like a wind buffer when the wind is blowing.

On the way home I came up the back road and found they are starting a new house behind us. When I say "behind us" it's still across the big field and through the woods. Maybe a quarter mile or so, No ideal what size it will be but they have a great lot with the pond in the front yard.

So anyhow I got in 2 hours on the bike and I am on the motorcycle again today. The weather has changed and I am happy again

As The Wheels Turn......

Or not! You see as soon as I start talking about riding harder and getting back in some kind of "better shape" it starts raining! Every stinking day, not just a shower in the PM but everyday!

I want to follow up on my "epic" (it was for me) ride Sunday. The one I showed up for after all the racer boys had done there thing. Last night was a recovery night so tonight needs to be a ride night. Now I need to get the weather back on my side.

The five day forecast is not cooperating! Rain yesterday and tomorrow and the next day. Damn! At this rate I won't get out till Thursday. That's way to long between rides to gain anything out of Sunday.

I could use this time to do maintenance, but I won't. My ideal of maintenance is fix things when they break! Nothing is broken so no maintenance is required at the moment. I could wash bikes but that sucks too, they just get dirty again.

I do know this much, by the time Thursday comes around the wife will really be tired of hearing my whining.

So no "The Wheels Ain't Turning".............

Lazy night...........

If you didn't figure out from my post in the AM I have no plans to ride this evening. I am sore and the weather sucks!

Why am I on here now you ask. Because I found a new on bike snack I like. If I like it you know it's the bomb.

Try it you'll like it too...... Honey Stinger waffles.......

Hurts So Good !!!!!!!!!!!

Oh yea, right now I have that "good tired-I don't really want to walk to much today" feeling. My legs are sore but not painfully sore!

As I said last week I need to pick up the pace. Yep I ride a good bit but I just ride. I feel like I need to pick it up. So Saturday I went to Sherman and did what I call the "super lap"! I do the roller coaster loop twice and the lake loop twice with the main loop once.

It adds about 6 miles to the overall one lap. Not a big increase but enough to make it more challenging. Sherman rolls good enough that you can punch it and leave with a good feeling in your legs. Instead of 11.2 miles you get a little over 17 miles.

No I didn't do the night race at Uhwarrie but that was my destination for Sunday. I took my bike to church and as soon as we where done I headed to Uhwarrie. They had a good crowd turn out for the race Sunday and most of it was over by the time I got there.

I visited with a few friends and hit the trail. I went out on the Keawee loop and then Super tree, the race loop. When I was almost back to the trail head I went right on White trail back to the top of Super tree. Once back there I went left and did the trail backwards.

That's where you get all the climbing! A lot of climbing! By the time I was back at the trail head just about everybody was gone! That was kinda neat, the place was packed all morning and then it was back to normal. As I was loading up to leave people where still coming in, I wonder if they even had a clue as what had been going on there all morning. Probably not.

I am not sure how many miles total that was but it really worked on me. I feel like if I can get over there at least once a week it will really help me in the long run. One of these days I am going to get a Garmin GPS I would love to be able to keep up with the total climbing on a ride like that.

Pisgah here I come.. I need a mountain trip.....

Laughing at Myself.........

If you can't laugh at your self who can you laugh at! I know I have been slack lately with my riding, I go and ride but I haven't pushed myself in a long time.

I just go and ride and enjoy being outside! That's what we do it for right! If you aren't doing it for the fresh air and exercise what are you doing it for?

Yea, I know that could open up a can of worms depending on who you are talking to, but overall it comes back to exercise. And being outside!

So why was I laughing? Well I haven't put on my bibs lately, I have been wearing just regular cycling shorts and a jersey. I try to save my racer boy bibs for racing, which seems to be pointless since I ain't even racing right now.

So last night I went and rode for a few hours and put on my bibs. 

As I squeezed my fat ass in them all I could do was laugh!!!!

What the hell! How did I get that thick in that short period of time? I got to get back riding and pushing myself! That's all there is to it..

I looked like a sausage roll...LOL... Felt like one too!!!!  One big fat  middle aged cyclist...LOL..

I guess life comes at ya fast....Just like the commercial says....I am still shaking my head,,,,and laughing!!!!

Time To Get Moving............

I have had a case of the lazy ass all week. I haven't riden yet, I go home and lay around. Nothing, yard work yes, that's been it.

With all this time I have at least been planning the weekend. 10 ideals have been kicked around but not much else.

Yes I will ride where I have no clue. So with this little bit of worthless info. I will leave you with a picture that I found.

Ya got to love it!

I Was Wrong.......

OK, yea I was wrong. The night race is Saturday night the 9th and then Sunday is a full on cross country race. They have a full weekend scheduled.

So if I can't go Saturday night I could go Sunday. Will I go? That's the million dollar question.

So now I need to decide, I would like to but it's been awhile. Tonight I am gonna ride and decide. Ha, that just came out. Ride and decide! I wonder how many decisions are made from the seat of a bicycle! You would probably be surprised!

So yesterday I went home and was exhausted. For some reason I had no energy. That doesn't happen often, but it did yesterday. When I finally got motivated I did the weed eating and cleaned the pool. What an exciting evening!

A trip to K-mart and my night was done. Tonight I am gonna have to make something happen, even if it's wrong....

Riding Around Thinking About Riding Around......

Does that make sense? It does if you are mowing your yard.

That was my highlight for the evening, "thinking". Not a very good highlight I know but it got me through the job that needed to be done.

I have gotten to the point I would rather take a beating than mow the yard. My only saving grace is the fact we live in the country and you can't see my yard from the road. I wait till the wife is really bitching about it before I mow.

With that being said I am stretching it out to 2 weeks between mows. Yea it will need it by then but it won't look to bad. At least not to me.....She may have a different opinion on that but it works for me.

OK enough of the yard.

What was on my mind you ask? Well the fact that I really enjoyed my ride Sunday and it went well. That's dangerous!

Why?
                                         June 9^th, 2012 – One Night in Uwharrie

Because now I have the racing bug! It doesn't take much to get me cranked back up! One good ride and a night race coming up that has my attention..

The Bigfoot Hunt! Night race.. Yea this weekend.. Although I think they have the logo wrong. The race is Saturday night the 9th, Sunday is the 10th.

Would I do good? Nope, the podium ain't gonna happen! But I would have a blast, that's what it's all about!

I am thinking, why not take the camper and pitch up for the night. The kids would have fun and we would be in no rush to get home.

Another Weekend In The books.....

Yep, we had the party and Sky High. The kids swam and played, they were worn out and so was I. I still slipped in an afternoon ride Saturday and it was a short one but it was nice to be out in the woods!

Yesterday I slipped off for the afternoon and went to Uhwarrie. I haven't been there in a month so it was nice to get back over there.

I wish I lived closer to the mountains, I would be in them everyday. You have to have a little different mind set when you head to places like Uhwarrie, you are gonna climb! No getting around it, if you don't want to climb don't go. Simple as that..

One thing happened yesterday that was kinda surprising, I have felt really slow for the last few weeks. Like I just can't get going. So yesterday when I finnished my first lap I was really surprised to see how fast I had done it. I wasn't trying to go that hard and came in with a rather good time! Second lap wasn't as fast but right now I will take 1 lap at a good clip..

The trails are really getting some use now, after all the work they did over there last fall it's nice to see the use. I used to go over there and I wouldn't see anybody, now you see people. You don't feel as lonely out there now. You can look at that as a good thing or a bad thing. The place is big enough that you still have the peace and quite.

Also I came across this picture from Saturday's party. I thought it was pretty good so here's one last shot of Chase with his x-box cake....

That Was Fun.......

Sky High, that's what. I figured out this much, I am sore.

Chase right Austin left

chase is the blur to the left

From head to toe! I jumped and played just like they did and I hurt!

Yes Chase said his feet where sore, he was barefoot the whole time. Besides that he's fine, it's me who can complain.

Anyhow, if you haven't been yet you need to go, one hour is plenty. You can wear yourself down to nothing in one hour I promise.

Then we came home to cake and ice cream.

12 and happy!

Check out the cake Karen had made at work, it's an x-box. Chase loved it, he thought that was as cool as it gets!

So now we are good for another year, Cody isn't tell November. Although I have one coming up....

The Party Will Continue !!!!!!!

So yesterday it was official, he's 12. He got a new home computer for his room. He's happy, now tomorrow we are going to Sky High.

The trampoline place for kids (and adults...ME). I am gonna take him and his buddy Austin for a few hours in the morning. Karen and Cody are heading to Cody's girlfriends dance recital. Austin is spending the night so they will be swimming and eating pizza tonight.

Then tomorrow am we are gonna head to Sky High for a couple hours and then head home for cake, ice cream and the grandparents. They can play in the pool for a little longer and they both will need a nap by then.

If I have any energy left I will slip in a ride. We'll see though, I plan to play hard! Karen asked if I planned to jump, of course I do! Hell I am looking forward to it.......

I am only 12 too ya know.....