i dont know if im tired or lazy

part of me wants to go out and ride because its an excellent cure for lazy.

the other part of me thinks im tired because ive been riding/running hard.

im not going anywhere today. Nowhere but work anyways. Im just not feeling it. Running destroys me, i dont grasp the concept of "recovery run". after running at any speed (which i have discovered i only apparently have 2 speeds, "not at all" or "full blown awesome") i feel like a shaken baby. I do not recover whilst running.

the good news is...

my average wattage is up about 20 watts from the last test i took.

the bad news is, im still a gear masher and now my levels are up a lot higher, so my workouts are going to be a lot harder.

i guess that last part qualifies as good news too...?

nerd alert!

Went to the 7th and final stage of the amgen tour of california today, and nerded the eff out. Got myself

• several "let levi ride" shirts from greg johnson
• a VIP pass to catch the final sprint which hincapie won, also from greg johson
• a rock racing umbrella (only people selling one, and it was raining cats and freaking dogs. i really dont care for their tendencies toward drama)
• A slipstream beanie
• a slipstream shirt
• a highroad shirt
• a highroad team poster
• various samples and knickknack type swag

but thats only where the nerding began my friends. Got a little inside info that team slipstream (faves of mine, second only to maybe highroad) would be at chipotle afterwards. Went their and lost it. Some dude said i had sweet tats. Christian Van de Velde told me to say hi to "toughguy" (johny bairos). Took a picture with David Millar. Got a sweet glossy photo-paper poster of the team signed by everyone who rode in the ATOC (minus dave zabriskie).

then the real nerding began.

Johnathan Vaughters, who as far as im concerned is the freaking man and is totally doing all the pulling when it comes to cleaning up the sport of cycling, was sitting at a seperate booth and i looked over at him and made a pantomime of a signature at him. He pointed over where the talent was sitting and i just kept looking at him. A couple of seconds later he said "oh you want MY signature" and i said "oh yeah" to which he replied "well i dont have a pen, go get a pen" so i went over, bother the talent for a a pen and went back, having him sign the poster. So i then ask "can i get a photo with you?" he said "sure, come on around." I went all the way around the back not wanting to disrupt the table and took a pic with him. I asked him if they would be at the redlands bicycle classic to which he told me they would but it would be the u-23 squad. I couldn't resist and said if he needed a haircut or anybody, i would set 'em up" One of the riders took interest and so did vaughters, so i gave them both cards. The one dude asked if id give him a discount, i told him we'd work something out. Then Vaughters goes, "here". Hands me one of his cards. It reminded me of the scene in American Psycho where everybody is freaking out over Jared Leto's card.

"It was perfect....raised lettering, tastefully textured....Is that a f*@$king watermark?"

im mentally preparing myself....

for my fitness test tomorrow by slamming my nuts in a drawer.

those things are about ability to withstand pain more than anything.

wings

...overrated.

i think i might never go to buffalo wild wings ever again. if i go there, i might get like 5 wings. Or no wings and a soda. Its just too greasy. I mean there was a point in time, when i would have been all about it. But that time is gone. Im not saying im some beacon of healthy diet, but it really does make me feel like crap. So on the list of places i can no longer go based on grease content alone, in no particular order (in case you cant tell i live for bullet-point lists like this)

• buffalo wild wings
• cucas
• dehli palace
• lotus garden
• the fam
• santanas

and im only realizing now that half of these dining establishments make the list AS IM TYPING . Obviously its important for me to make a list to re-enforce the ban on said establishments. Also i should add that im willing to expand on said list (im that excited) anybody who views this blog (both of you) are encouraged to contribute.

in other news, ive got complete and total tour of california fever. Stage 2 is certainly wrapped up by now, im hoping cavendish has moved up in the ranks, he's a fave of mine this year. I dunno why but i just can NOT stand tom boonen. Friere, yes, cavendishm yep, mcewen, absolutely, hushovd, for sure, even haedo and gutierrez make the list i would way rather see win than boonen. Maybe cuz he was blessed with hypnotizing good looks and i was cursed with a mug that would make an orangutan point and laugh, maybe because he got beat by his own lead out man and held the WORST line ive ever seen at a finish, all in the same tour he walked with a green jersey. i think i just dont like him, and thats that.

the continuous roll out

Today, zach didnt screw our heads into the floor, cuz he didnt show up. I dont think turner really likes to climb, cuz the climb into yucaipa was not exactly brootahl. Dont get me wrong, im sure he could out climb everyone in that group outside possibly norm, but, no hammer droppage today. In thru the neighborhood i sorta lost steam, then when we got to the gas stations, i just decided i didnt have the hair on my ass to do the man dance through the canyon. Went to the coffe shop to nerd out with turner norm and mark for a couple of hours, then came home and nerded out on the tour of california. More than anything i would like to be a time trialist. Its the sweetest discipline in cycling, and combination of the stupidest looking gear ever. I would like to reign supreme in the stadium of stupid-looking.

i get it, its cold!

moar humorous pics

everybody and their sister had to tell me how out of my mind i was for underdressing for the weather today. It REALLY wasnt that bad. Im pretty sure cars that passed us by squeezed out a "you gotta be freezin..." or two. Im considering bringing a basket on my rig tomorrow with a campfire in it. I just wish people would figure out that the insane amount of steroids im on has a thermogenic affect, and the hours of roid-rage-induced wife beating have brought my core temp to a sweltering 101 degrees. they probably discount that because if i was on roids i'd be faster.

On a related note, i had a goal of keeping my face out of the wind the entire ride, unless i was pulling. I met that goal. I was in a group that got spit out about a half a block back from the finish, but i was pulling that group. Also, it should be noted that i have figured ouut how all the old fat dudes from healthnet operate. They take it easy and:

• yell at you if you arent pulling
• get ashamed and start yelling at each other if you are doing all the pulling
• despite the yelling sit in till the fast group eats us
• act like they werent sitting in when the fast group catches us and try to show their ass

those dudes are lame. Im stillwiting for that one dude to open his mouth again sos i can shut it for him. Speaking of which "stormin" norman carter nearly engaged in some fisticuffs with a dude in a car today on victoria. i dont care if mike tyson would have popped out of the car, if norm was yelling at him, he deserved it. I would have choked dude out and taken his shoes.