Thor at 4 months, photoshop, & bike racing

Thor close up b&w watercolor
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

Thor had his 4 month doctor's appointment today, which meant 4 shots 8-( but he is doing very well.

The stats...

15 pounds, 14 ounces (75th percentile)
26 inches (88th percentile)
pooping daily
smiling and giggling constantly

And he's sleeping 10 hours a night!

We are soooo in love.

I just bought photoshop and can already tell that I'm going to have a lot of fun with it.

I really dig the black & white watercolor effect on the above photo.

I raced my bike last last night (first time since May at the JHU Druid Hill training series. I got in my intervals and had a fun time, though the racing was very negative. Everyone felt a need to chase down everything immediately and then just sit on the wheel.

I mean, if you're going to chase down an attack why not take a pull or 2 to try to make something stick?

In any event, it was good training & I badly needed some interval work to prepare for 'cross. I'll be back out the next few Tuesdays.

Good night.

Bordeaux Chateau

Bordeaux Chateau
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

Here's a cool shot of a Chateau in Bordeaux. We found this place during a ride on our 2003 Tour de France trip. Notice the two riders heading up the dirt path to the Chateau. That day's ride was incredible. The weather was perfect and after several hard days in the Pyrenees I felt trés forte on the rolling roads of Bordeaux.

Beeeeeeeeeeeeer

It's Friday and I'm ready for a beer, but this'll have to do for now.

Check out this link to a very cool Cecil B. Demille-ish ad for Carlton Draught Beer.

http://www.bigad.com.au/

Or click on the title of this post.

Weekend plans...

Tonight: Beer (maybe 2!), carryout and a movie on the chesterfield (that's Virginian for super-comfy couch)

Saturday: Road ride, then el salto for a margarita and grub......mmmmm el salto, my favorite Wendy's converted into a cheap Mexican joint!!! I already know what I'm getting...jumbo margarita frozen w/salt, cheese dip, guacamole, & a burrito con azada w/chicken. Damn, with all the talk of booze and mexican food this is starting to sound like a post from fatmarc's blog.

Sunday: mtb ride & new recipe night on sunday...still on the grilled fish theme.

There will also be a lot of Thor-time all weekend long...it's the best.

On Monday I'll be up before the crack of dawn to catch a train for a quick trip to NYC for what promises to be a long day.

I'm getting hungry. Time to grab lunch.

nutz

Should I expect funny looks if I wear a cup under my cycling shorts?

Yesterday evening I got out for a ride at Avalon with Sean. We rode a steady pace and punched it on a few of the shorter climbs making for a nice ride. I felt pretty good for most of the ride, but at the start of one of the rocky climbs we got to chatting and I stopped paying attention.

I rode right into a rock and went over the bars (going uphill), but only after slamming into my stem in the worst possible place. Needless to say I was doubled over moaning for a few minutes before climbing back on. After that I was pretty sloppy on the rocks as I was afraid of another impact. At least we have Thor already in case I did any permanent damage to the fellas. 8-)

Grin

Grin
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

It's amazing how a little grin can absolutely make your day. Good times.

Melanie is out for a ride this morning with her friend Erin. They'll probably do about 4 hours riding the country roads north of town.

Thor and I are chilling on the couch for a bit. Then we'll head out to do the shopping for the week.

I'll get out for a short ride later today and then tomorrow morning me and the boys are doing a long, hilly one up close to PA and back. It should end up being around 5 hours round trip.

I've been doing a lot of 1-3 hour rides so I'm curious to see what my body does the last couple of hours.

I'm printing out some small Thor photos to tape to the handlebars of my various bikes. They should be good for inspiration when the going gets tough.

I've been listening to a lot of French language stuff on my iPod lately, trying to improve my linguistic skills, yo. I'll probably only use it on vacations, but I think I could go for working a year or two abroad...getting immersed in a different culture and doing a lot of road trips around Europe. Thor is already into travelling so I'm sure he would have a good time.

That's all for now...the countdown to 'cross season is in full effect...two months 'til the first race.

Pigeons

update

Long time no blog, so here's a quick update...

Fooooooooooood

We've been trying to try some new recipes. To that end we alternate weeks preparing a new dish. In the last month I've grilled fish a couple of times. First up was rockfish marinated with olive oil, lemon juice, and capers. Next up was salmon marinated with an orange soy teriyaki siz-auce. In each case, the marinade added flavor and moisture without taking away from the flavor of the fish. We'll be grilling more fish from here on out.

Since I've been doing mostly base training and zero racing I haven't been too freaked about my diet so I've been enjoying a regular belgian beer...Duvel, Chimay, Hoegaarden, Stella...as well as some ice cream from the neighborhood shop. I've been enjoying the added calories, but I couldn't go nuts on the beer and ice cream year round.

Continuing the food & beverage thought, every time we're in Paris there's a certain Latin Quarter cafe that we always hit for a Kir and some good people watching. Since we didn't make it to Le Tour this year we've been drinking Kir's here at home. They're easy to make....Sauvignon Blanc with a splash of Creme de Cassis. The only thing missing is the Parisian atmosphere and attendant cigarette smoke.

Riding the mountain bike

I've been riding the Fuel ex doing 2-3hr rides and covering the whole park (Patapsco Avalon). Disc brakes and 4in of travel with on the bar lockout make long rides over varied terrain a lot o'fun. This bike is perfectly suited for endurance racing and it's the bike I'll use for the Shenandoah 100 next year...too much going on to do the race this year.

I've also done some riding on my generic rigid singlespeed. This machine has no frills, but it's such a pure riding experience. The connection from trail to rider is organic and requires bike handling skills that are an afterthought on a full-squishy bike...good for improving one's skillz. When I get back to doing some XC racing I think I'll do it on a SingleSpeed.

Running...ugh

'Cross season is nigh, and since it's my only racing focus this year I started the running early. I'm still doing a couple of 20 minute jogging sessions per week. Next month I'll begin some running intervals to really start the suffering.


Thor

He's smiling, giggling, and growing! He's 13 weeks old and already too long for most of his 3 month old clothes. For the past couple of weeks he's been sleeping from roughly 9pm until after 6am, so we're all getting plenty of good sleep. wooohooo!
This is a really fun age, as he's learning new things every day. He really enjoyed listening to coverage of the Tour and seemed to recognize Phil and Paul's voices.
I'm hoping that he'll make it out to some 'cross races this Fall to cheer on his Dad.

That's all for now.

Thor's first day at the beach

07-05-05_1753.jpg
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

@ the beach

All Night Long

"All Night Long" by the late great Mississippi blues genius Junior Kimbrough is an appropriate song this morning.

Thor slept from 9:30 last night until almost 7:00 this morning. That's the first time that he has slept through the night.

Let's hope this turns into a habit. 8-)

Time to run

I did my first run of the year last night. It was barely 15 minutes and it hurt.
Since my road season is done I'm starting the running earlier than usual.
My goal is to get a good base of easy runs so that I can do some good hill/stair sprint workouts as we get closer to 'cross season.

'Cross is all about saving little bits of time every lap. You can do that by making improvements in various areas: cycling fitness, bike handling, 'cross technique, and running fitness. To do well at 'cross you really have to train each of these. Weaknesses get exposed pretty quickly in a 'cross race.

Roots

I had a sweet 2 hour mountain bike ride at Avalon this afternoon. The weather and trails were perfect.

Here's a shot of a nasty ribbon of roots coming down toward the cascade falls and the swinging bridge.
It can be intimidating, but you just pick a line and let it roll.

Curtis Leschyshyn in Velonews

Curtis Leschyshyn, Chris, and Radek Bonk
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

This is a photo of Curtis Leschyshyn, Me, & Radek Bonk hanging out at the cafe/resto near the summit of the col du Glandon during the 2004 Tour de France.

Curtis and Radek are NHL stars who had some time on their hands due to the impending NHL lockout. They're both great guys. We had a lot of fun talking bikes and hearing their war stories from the NHL. They're also cycling freaks and really strong riders.

I played a lot of hockey and followed the NHL growing up. Now my athletic focus is on cycling. Thus, it was a real treat for me to spend some time with a couple of NHL cyclists.

Check out the latest (June 20, 2005) issue of Velonews for a Q&A with Curtis Leschyshyn on page 14. With a season off from playing hockey it seems that he spent a lot of time riding and racing his bike.

While riding with him in France I could tell that he was very strong so it's cool to hear that he has done well racing, including winning 2 stages of the Excel Sports Boulder Stage Race in the cat. 4's. He used to play for the Colorado Avalanche and that's where he and his family have settled down.

Blog the Tour

Subaru is holding a contest to pick someone to blog the last two weeks of the Tour de France. Check it out at www.racetothetour.com

The winner will receive a laptop, a camera, and a cellphone to blog updates from the Tour. They will follow the race with Trek Travel, which means plenty of riding, incredible food, luxury hotels, and access to Discovery team riders.

Go to the website to enter. No blogging experience necessary, but you'd better be prepared to ride a lot of kilometers over some big mountain passes.

I've done this a couple of times, but it would sure be nice to have Subaru pick up the tab!

Post-ride mexican...mmmmm

06-12-05_1515.jpg
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

post ride mexican...mmmm


Mel and I got out for a nice 2.5 hour mountain bike ride at Avalon today. With Grandma looking after the baby we had most of the day to ourselves. We did a big loop in the park, working up a big appetite riding in the heat. Of course, we then went to El Salto for the best post-ride meal...mexican and margaritas! Livin'!

Future Mountain Biker

We're starting him early!

Satisfied

While listening to the legendary 4/3/96 Widespread Panic show from Huntsville, AL I found myself contemplating a few verses from that evening's version of "Arleen". Specifically, I focused on a few lines of Van Morrison's "Satisfied" channeled through JB in the midst of the "Arleen" jam.

"Go to the mountain
Come back to the city
Where a whole lot of things
Don't look very pretty
Spiritual hunger and spiritual thirst
But you got to change it
On the inside first
To be satisfied
To be satisfied"

Initially this struck me as rather bleak and dark. However, after studying more lyrics (that JB doesn't rap) from the original song I see it as more hopeful.

"Talkin' to my baby now
I'm satisfied
With my world
Cause I made it
The way it is.
Satisfied (Satisfied.)
Inside."

I like the idea that you can shape your world the way that you want it. In fact, you must take responsibility for your actions and your world.

"You know, baby, cause and effect
I got my karma from here right to New York"

Cause and Effect. Everything you do has an impact on you and your world.
Pretty heavy stuff & uplifting when you look at it with a positive frame of mind.

Good tunes, good times.

Thor!

From Eurosport's live coverage of today's stage of the Dauphiné Liberé between Aix-les-Bains and Givors

2 km THE PELOTON IS BACK TOGETHER!!! ALL THE SIX MEN HAVE BEEN ENGULFED!!

1 km The sprinters get ready for the final assault...

0 km And it's a victory for Credit Agricole's Norwegian giant Thor Hushovd! A great name, a great rider, a great victory!

16:11 Sean Donohoo, from Italy, sent in his coolest name nomination just before the finish: "I've got to go with Thor Hushovd. Anyone named "Thor" has got to be a bad-ass." A bad-ass he is, and also one hell of a powerful sprinter! The Credit Agricole man has taken this 224 km first stage from Aix-les-Bains to Givors, and taken it with some performance. His team timed their assault on the six leaders with perfection, catching the men with two clicks to go before leading in their Norwegian trophy hunter to the kill.

Thor!

National Champion

06-05-05_1533.jpg
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

I took this photo yesterday in Philly just minutes after the end of the Wachovia USPro Cycling Championship race. I snapped the shot with my camera phone through the chainlink fence behind the podium.

Chris Wherry had just won the race and was on stage receiving the National Champion's jersey.

He rode an inspired race and deserved the win after a bold late race attack that he held to the finish.

We split time between the start/finish area and The Wall in Manyunk. The Wall was nuts...parties and chaos everywhere.
I'm sure the riders fed off the energy each time up the climb.

We had a fantastic time and really enjoyed Philly. It was nice to see a big-time bike race with a huge crowd in the US.

Thor was a trooper and thoroughly enjoyed the race.

Top of the Manyunk Wall

06-05-05_1354.jpg
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

This is the turn at the top of the Manyunk Wall. The climb levels out to a false flat and then makes this turn before plunging back down. This photo was taken with my camera phone late in the Wachovia USPro Cycling Championships in Philly, June 5, 2005.

LSV/Kelly Baltimore BikeJam 2005

LSV/Kelly Baltimore BikeJam 2005
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

The front row is the only place to line up for crits and 'cross races.

Bike Jam was fast and fun.

I'll have more to say about it later.

Growing up fast

Growing up fast
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

Thor had his one month visit with the pediatrician yesterday. We knew that he was rapidly growing and now we have confirmation.

He's now 23 inches and 9lb 14oz!
That's 2 inches and 2 pounds that he's put on since birth. His length puts him in the 95th percentile and his weight is 60th percentile.

The kid is a good feeder! 8-)

The Tools

pedros tools 2
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

Here's another pic of the tools...mmmmmm.

The Coolest Wife!

pedros tools
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

How cool is my wife?

For my birthday she got me this mack-daddy Pedros Master Tool Kit. This thing has just about everything you could need to wrench a bike.

When we move into the new house we'll have a very nice work area in the basement for our ever growing stable of bikes.

Thor waking up

Here's a short film documenting a 3-week old Thor waking up from a short snooze.

http://homepage.mac.com/cbnystrom/iMovieTheater9.html

Or click on the title of this post.

He turns 4 weeks old today and he's growing up quickly!

Baby Blogging

Baby Blogging
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

This is a pretty common situation these days...Thor and I chilling on the couch listening to music or watching an old cycling video (we both enjoyed the '04 Koppenburg 'Cross race) and goofing around on the iBook.

I got out for a 3 hour ride yesterday, the longest since pre-baby. It was a beautiful day and the legs felt good. With my training hours way down I've been doing shorter, high intensity rides whenever possible. It was nice to get out for a longer, mellow ride. We still did some hard efforts, but mostly we were chatting and enjoying the day.

I might even get out on the mtb later today...that would be a real treat.

For now, Thor and I are hanging out enjoying some coffee, listening to Medeski, Martin & Wood and reading the live updates from the Giro...nice sunday morning.

Me in the early break

Chris early break
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

Here's a photo of me in the early breakaway. We're just entering the dirt road and you can see that one of the NCVC guys in the break has overshot the turn and had to unclip. We drilled it on the dirt to try to establish the move, but were caught by the field as we exited the dirt road.

Ryan giving 'er some gas

Ryan giving er gas
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

Here's Ryan drilling it through the dirt/gravel road at the Poolesville Road Race. This gives you a good idea of what it was like on this stretch of road each lap.

Poolesville Road Race

Here's my take on the 4/5 Poolesville Road Race.

LSV squad
JT, Ryan, Mark, Dan, Chris, Sean, Jack, Carl, Dave

After a nervous start on a narrow road and a turn onto a gravel strewn country road a
handful of guys rolled off the front, still early in the first lap. The group contained
a few of the favorites, including Pat Cusack of Rockville/Harley. I was near the front
glued to Eric Krause's (strong All American rider) wheel. Eric had spent most of
Walkersville in breaks so I knew he wouldn't let a strong move go without him. Once the
move had a few second gap he dropped a couple of gears and accelerated out of the pack.
I was prepared and got a very easy lift across to the break right on his wheel.

When we made it to the break and looked back there was a decent gap to the field. With
some strong riders and all of the larger teams (NCVC, LSV, Coppi) in the break we all
decided to work and give it a go. The 7 of us drilled it pretty hard in a relatively
smooth paceline...pull through and slide into the recovery line...no long pulls, just a
nice rotation.

We hit the dirt and really gave 'er the stick bouncing down the Poolesville Pavé at 26
mph on the rivet. I was hoping that we could establish a nice gap and then rely on some
blocking in the pack to keep us away. However, one of the NCVC's in the break overcooked
the dirt turn and was dropped and there were enough fresh guys in the field that wanted
to be in the move.

It sounds like a number of guys tried to bridge pulling the field up to us by the end of
the dirt road. While we didn't stay away at least we put the hurt on and thinned out
the field. Once back together the pack was more calm and guys were less inclined to do
sketchy stuff to move up.

Shortly after the catch we hit the rolling false flat the leads up to the feed zone. A
few guys rolled off the front, but were just dangling there. It didn't look like much of
anything. Mark was up front keeping an eye on things and he wisely jumped across to mark
it just in case. A couple more guys went and gradually a gap formed. Once we made the
right turn onto the narrow, double-yellow line headwind section the break really started
to ride away.

NCVC and us both had guys up front and we soft pedalled into the headwind to allow the
break to get established. We talked about it and decided that it was still early and
this would put some pressure on some of the stronger guys in the field to chase it down.
That section of road is narrow and is the only part of the course where the yellow-line
rule is really enforced so nobody could move up and chase until we made the right
turn...this would come back to haunt us later. 8-)

We creeped along and chatted about shit while the break rolled up the road. Eric Krause
was stuck in between burying himself trying to bridge, but not getting any closer. We
were happy to see a strong guy wasting energy and getting nowhere...well, he still had
plenty left to throw down a respectable sprint at the end so he really is strong.

We stayed on or near the front making tempo, but keeping things slow enough to give the
break a chance. The second time through the dirt was a lot more mellow. I was on the
front on the right, chatting to Andrew Curry from Coppi on the left just cruising along
about 19 mph. After the dirt we got a time check of 1:30 to the break. The next couple
of splits were all 1:30 to 1:45.

The break looked like it could stay away. There had been a few short-lived bridging
attempts that we and the NCVC armada had covered immediately, but nobody was really doing
any chasing. We had a decision to make...give Mark a chance to stick the move or chase
it down and try something else. The break had lost one rider so it was a group of
5...enough guys to make it work and worst case 5th place. On the other hand, with 9
riders in the race and several strong guys in the field and feeling good did we want to
gamble on having just one guy in the break? I think the deciding factor was that Mark
has been riding very well recently and we owed it to him to give him a chance.

So we decided to not chase the break. However, we were really hoping that Pat Cusack or
one of the other strong guys that had missed the move would get fed up and bridge. To
that end we had 4 or 5 guys near the front the entire time. Ryan and Dave were all over
Pat and we were ready to go with any chase to get more of our guys up the road. It
looked like this might happen at the end of lap 2 as two NCVC's accelerated up toward the
feed zone getting a gap. Dave, Sean, & I quickly got their wheels and Pat Cusack got
across as well, giving us a strong group with 3 LSV's!!! We had a little gap to the pack
and were almost to the turn into the narrow headwind where we really could have gotten
away. Unfortunately, the pack clawed it's way up to us, single-file...with, I think, one
of our guys on the front. That was an instance where our guys should have eased up to
grow that gap and force others to close it.

If there's a gap with teammates in front of you, force someone else to close it. It's a
win-win situation...either your teammates get away or someone else wastes energy to pull
you up to them. At which point you're still in good position and fresh to counter or
continue to rest up for later. If you close the gap, not only do your teammates not get
away, but you've just wasted energy to pull the whole field up to them.

We still had Mark up in the break riding his ass off in a long breakaway with some strong
riders. Another rider had fallen out of the break so it was just 4 of them up the road.
We were getting a little nervous and had more discussions about whether or not to chase
but it looked like it might work out.

Cue up the foreboding music because late in lap 3 (of 4) we see a lone LSV/Kelly jersey
up on the horizon. We're hoping that it's a straggler from the 40+/50+ race, but soon we
can tell that it's Mark. Oh boy, we're in trouble now. There was still a chance that
the break had fallen apart and that the gap was coming down, but the next time split was
still 1:30.

We should have immediately put guys on the front to chase, but we waited. Near the end
of the lap on the false flat we realized we should be chasing, but it wasn't real clear
who would do it. I was cramping and not really on the ball.
We hit the narrow headwind and it was too late to do anything. The first 8 guys were
clogging the road riding tempo and we finally had several guys right behind them ready to
chase but unable to get to the front. The break was surely increasing the gap as slowly
as we were riding.

I think we realized that we didn't have time to catch the break so we started thinking
about 4th place. The pace started to pick up and we hit the dirt very fast once again
shelling more riders. Coming out of the dirt into the hill the chasing group/peloton was
probably down to only ~25 riders.

We were moving over the rollers pretty strung out when Dave launched a big attack from
probably 5 miles out. He put his head down and got a gap immediately. With miles left
to the line this looked like a suicide move, but he kept his gap for quite a long time
forcing NCVC to ramp up the pace and chase him. It was a bold move that might have
worked a little closer to the finish, but NCVC still had plenty of guys left and they
brought him back.

Heading up the false flat for the last time legs seemed tired because we were going at a
solid temp, but not really giving 'er full gas. Still in the diminished pack were 5 of
us. We had the numbers to up the pace and start a leadout. Sean led the way to the
front of the group and I followed soon after. Approaching the final turn it was Pat
Cusack, Me, and Sean on the front.

We took the turn smoothly and Pat pulled off leaving me on the front. Sean accelerated
on my right yelling for me to grab his wheel. However, another dude was glued to his
tire. I bumped shoulders with him and tried to lean my way in, but he wasn't giving up
the wheel. Sean accelerated and I grabbed a wheel on the left. I could see the surge
starting to come up the left, with still a long way to the line. I jumped to try to get
out front and keep it fast, but my jump was reaaaaalllly weak. I was immediately swarmed
and only able to latch onto the back of the sprint and do a seated sprint to the line.

When our leadout sputtered Ryan got swarmed....NCVC had enough guys that there were 3
separate groups of them sprinting. It was very crowded in the last 500 meters. He still
managed to hang on for 6th in the field sprint, 9th overall. Dave, JT, Sean, and I were
also right there, but on the back of the group sprinting for the line.

We raced really well...had guys in the breaks...always had guys up front...did some very
nice blocking/controlling the pace...covered bridging attempts...had a lot of guys there
in the finale. We raced a tactical and thoughtful race. Personally, I had a lot of
fun.

Maybe we should have chased the break, but we took a gamble and it just didn't pan out
this time. I think it was right to give Mark a chance. Probably what we should have
done was to get another guy into that break. When it was just dangling in front of us we
could have easily sent someone across. With 2 guys in that break I really like our
chances. I guess we didn't recognize the potential at the time, but looking back with
the narrow headwind section just around the corner, it was the perfect spot for a break
to get a quick gap.

In the pack we really tried to do the finish right. Sean and I got in the wind, rode up
front, and committed ourselves to lead it out from a pretty good ways out. We both had
good power, but the top end just isn't there. When we tried to ramp up the speed and
keep it strung out the speed just wasn't there. Sorry guys, but we tried. It's a bummer
that we had strong 5 guys in that group and only got 6th, 14th, 15th, 16th, & 17th in the
field sprint.

We all took our chances and gave it our best shot. In the thick of it when you're on the
rivet it's tough to really think through what you're going to do...you just have to
react. In the end, we raced our bikes and we had fun.

05-13-05_1407.jpg

hungry

Afternoon city ride

afternoon city ride

This is a shot of Baltimore taken from the dock at Tide Point. I got out for an hour ride around the city. I scoped out the new Bike Jam course at Patterson Park, doing a few sprints and efforts up the hill. Then I cruised back around the Harbor and out to Fort McHenry before heading back home. As you can tell by the water in the photo it was windy, but the warm temps made it a very enjoyable ride.

I'm trying to find my legs for the Poolesville Road Race after 2 weeks of no riding and minimal sleeping. The legs are still in slumber mode and hurt when I really push it, but hopefully some hard efforts on the Tuesday Ronde will get me opened up and going for the weekend.

Check out www.olntv.com for live streaming coverage of the Giro d'Italia. For only $5.95 you get access to live weekday coverage online. The feed is fantastic and the price is right!

Panic in Paris!

In 1998, Melanie and I went to France for a holiday. We were dating at the time, but this was to be an important trip for us. Things were getting serious and this was our first real vacation together. We spent a few nights in Paris before renting a car and touring the Chateaux of the Loire River valley.

Widespread Panic happened to be in Paris...good planning 8-)...so we headed over to the Chesterfield Cafe to catch the show.
The Chesterfield was a small bar/cafe just off the Champs up near the Arc de Triomphe. There was no stage, just the band set up in a corner. The place was packed with no room to move. We wiggled our way up to the front, just a couple of feet from Mike Houser and settled in for an amazing show.

The band was ON from start to finish. I had made Melanie a mix tape of Panic tunes to introduce her to the music and they played 8 of the songs from the tape on this night...pretty good for a band with a repetoire in the hundreds. I was so happy that she knew most of the songs and could really get into the groove. We were dancing and sweating up a storm. It was blazingly hot in there. Every few songs one of us would squeeze our way up to the bar for a pitcher of beer. We'd drink half of it and dump the other half over our heads to cool off. Yeah, it was that kind of evening.

After the show we walked through the late night Parisien streets back to our hotel in a happy stupor. We knew that we were made to have these kind of adventures together.

The next afternoon we put together a nice picnic by visiting various shops over in the Latin Quarter. We had a nice bottle of wine, cheese, grapes, pate, pastry, and a bagguette. Once we were provisioned we hopped on the Metro and scooted over to the Eiffel Tower. We set up shop in the park at the base of the Tower and enjoyed a beautiful afternoon picnic. As the sun started to set I pulled out the ring and asked her to marry me. I gotta tell ya, it was a magical moment. I get chills just thinking about the memory.

She said yes and we have continued to have adventures together ever since!


For the record, here's the setlist from the show...
Widespread Panic
03/27/98 Chesterfield Café, Paris, FR
0: Let's Get Down To Business, Glory > Wondering > Help Me Somebody > Disco > Hatfield, Pickin' Up The Pieces, Stop-Go > Junior > Party At Your Mama's House, Drums > Don't Be Denied, Walkin' (For Your Love) > Love Tractor
E: Henry Parsons Died > Travelin' Light
['The Other One' jam before 'Love Tractor']
setlist courtesy of my friends at www.everydaycompanion.com

Jazzfest

Up until this year I've been going to Jazzfest in New Orleans every year since 1996, except for 1998 when we went to France to get engaged. Melanie has been every year since 1999. For us, the first weekend in May means that we'll be in New Orleans.

This is the weekend we would have been at the 'Fest listening to great music, eating a lot of rich food, and staying up all night. Jazzfest also ends up being a well-timed break from the bike after a long Winter of training and a Spring of racing. After recovering from a weekend of partying in NOLA I'm always extra motivated to get back on the bike.

Well, this year with a newborn we've been staying all night, having a great time, and not riding the bike, but in a different setting. The staying up all night hasn't been too bad so far. Maybe it's because my body is conditioned to operate on little sleep every year on this weekend?

Eventually we'll settle into a rhythm and get back on the bikes, albeit with a lot more planning and coordinating of schedules than before. 8-) And next year we'll be back to New Orleans for another sleepless weekend of fun, food, and tunes at Jazzfest.

Yeah, you right!

Going Home

Going Home
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

We got home yesterday. On the drive home Mom and Dad were nervous, but Thor slept the entire way. He was resting up so that he could stay awake all night.

The hospital was incredible and the staff treated us like family. They made an amazing experience even better.

sleep deprivation...zzzzzz

Well I got about 30 minutes of sleep last night (in 30 second intervals).

It seems that Thor has confused night and day. He slept all day yesterday and he was awake all last night.
He was constantly hungry (poor Mom) and he needed many many diaper changes...not to mention the 3 clothes changes thanks to the rookie diaper changers (poor Dad and Mom).
He also had the hiccups twice (poor kid). 8-)

The cats were completely freaked out when he got upset. Jack even ran into the dresser after being startled while sleeping under the cradle.

He finally got to sleep just before 8 this morning after I brought him downstairs and put him in his papsan swing.
At this point I wasn't going back to sleep so I made a nice pot of Peet's coffee and some oatmeal.

So now I'm sitting on the couch messing around on the iBook and watching him snooze.
Even with no sleep I couldn't be happier.

04-28-05_1659.jpg

snoozin

04-26-05_1543.jpg

thor & mom

04-25-05_1749.jpg

thor!

04-25-05_1224.jpg

thor 7lb 14.4oz amazing!

04-25-05_0253.jpg

at the hospital 3am

Belly Art

Belly Art
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

This is the belly, 4 days overdue.

Col du Glandon

The last part of the Col du Glandon climb
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

This is the final few km's of the climb of the Col du Glandon. In a few hours the race will arrive. This is a beautiful climb and long at over 20km. The descent is treacherous with many twists and switchbacks over a narrow road.

I was looking through photos from the 2004 Tour de France and decided to post this one as it brings back some beautiful memories.

We decended Alpe d'Huez via a narrow road of the side of the mountain and rode through the valley before climbing the Glandon. Near the summit we sat at a table on the outdoor terrace cafe on the last switchback.

We could view the race on the climb and then right at our feet entering the switchback. Then we were able to walk 20 feet behind our table to the roadside and stand on the road as they exited the switchback.

It was another amazing day at the Tour.

Lunch

Matt, Rob, Mel & I went out for lunch at Spoons.
Now it's time to veg on the couch and read the Tour of Georgia live updates on cyclingnews.com
Good times.

Stroller Cat

stroller cat

Jack is keeping the stroller & car seat warm until Thor arrives.

Interested in moving to Europe?

I stumbled across this site, http://www.expatica.com/

It looks like a great resource for anyone thinking about moving to and living/working in Europe (specifically Belgium, France, Germany, The Netherlands, or Spain).

Maybe some day...

Nesting

With the baby due any day now we're in nesting mode.

Melanie cleaned out and organized her closet...

I updated the links on the blog...

To each his/her own.

When is Meg going to update midatlanticcross.com ??? She's too busy buzzing our tuesday training ride, hanging out the window yelling at us in Dutch.

Baby news as it happens. Maybe even some live photo-blogging from the camera phone.

8-)

Early Avalon ride

avalon



I got out this morning at 6:45am for a ride at Avalon. The trails were empty and the temp was 38 degrees...chilly.
I finished up at 9:00am and the temp was 58...a little nicer. We're off to watch the Carl Dolan races in Columbia.

Fitness & Focus

After months of long rides and grueling intervals you sometimes wonder if the training will actually produce results. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, you're suffering up a climb or following an acceleration and think you're going to blow. You're hurting, but you go ahead and push it a little harder and whoah! you're not blowing...you're going faster...still suffering like a dog, but you've found another gear!

That's a nice feeling. It makes the long winter evenings on the trainer seem worthwhile. Once you realize that the training is paying off you get more confidence that you can push just a little bit harder. I think that the mental edge from training is almost as important as the physical adaptation. When you believe that you can do it you're more likely to make it happen.

Well, my legs are really starting to come around. After a month of racing I'm feeling stronger than ever...just in time to stop racing for a while!

With a baby due any day now I'm in full parenthood mode. I'm really psyched to be a Dad with all of the experiences and challenges that accrue to that position! I'll still get some riding and training in...if only for the mental health benefits. 8-)

By missing most of the late spring/summer races I should be fresh and very motivated for 'cross. Maybe Thor will be able to ring a cowbell and cheer for his Dad at a couple of races. Good times.

Jack

bird stalking

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House Location

Here's a map of the area where we are building. The mountain bike trails of Rockburn Park and Patapsco Avalon are right next door. All of that green area is park land. Our road branches off of Ilchester Road.





Here's a sat photo of the area. It's zoomed in a bit more than the map. Rockburn Park is in the lower and lower-right portions of the screen. The trail is out the backyard and across the creek. E-Z trail access.







map and sat photo courtesy of Google Maps

Tuesday Ronde

The first Tuesday Ronde was a lot of fun.
The idea is to have a fast, spirited training ride through the hills of the Patapsco River Valley and Ellicott City.

We kept the group together as we discovered the route and determined the sprint/kom points. As the ride gets more established and everyone knows the roads we won't wait to regroup when splits happen.

There are a lot of hills...some steep and some gradual, but there are really no flat sections. It looks like the course will be ~ 44km (27+ miles). With the difficulty of the hills that should be a good distance for about a 1.5hr training ride.

Werk

working

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Tyson's Circuit Race

Tysons 2005
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

Here's a good shot of the corner leading into the downhill.

Tyson's photos courtesy of teammate Mike O'Hara. www.phattire.net

LSV/Kelly Team at Tyson's

zkellyteam
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

It was a chilly and very windy Sunday at the Tyson's Corner Circuit Race.

I went down to C-ville to do the Jeff Cup

I went down to C-ville to do the Jeff Cup;
My goal was to ride well and not to throw up.

The changing forecast was cause for distress,
First sunny and warm, then a cold rainy mess.

My warm up was brutal,
The first effort felt futile.

A week full of rest
Does not lead to the best.

At staging we dithered;
Tried to drink while we shivered.

When finally we got going
The adrenaline was flowing.

The thrill of the race
And the fast early pace,

Got the blood moving
And the legs felt like grooving!

First time up the hill
Was a pretty big thrill.

My legs felt good,
Better than I'd hoped they would.

Down the rain slick descent
I must have hit a road dent.

'Cause my full bottle of Extran
Ejected and ran!

Oh me, Oh my...
I'm going to run dry.

With only half a bottle
I can't go full throttle.

Through the feed zone we speeded
I begged and I pleaded.

But no one could think
To give me a drink.

I decided to ration
And just race on passion.

The miles ticked by
And the pace remained high.

Some guys had fragile nerves
When anyone would swerve.

On the penultimate lap
The power suddenly sapped;

Sending me from the front to the back
Like a sad, sorry sack.  8-(

I dug in my heels
And chased after the wheels.

Catching back on
Before the pack was gone!

I struggled up the hill
On sheer force of will.

Over the top I stared at the gap;
Heart wanted to ride; Legs wanted to nap

I flew down the hill at incredible speed
Hoping the pack had pulled over and peed!

But try as I might
My legs said good night.

Another Jeff Cup off the back
I'm clearly a hack.

But it could have been worse
I didn't have to see the nurse!

I'll show em who's boss
When it's time to race cross.

Baby shower self-portrait

Baby shower self portrait
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

Self-portraits are one of the quirky things that we do. Even if there's someone around to snap the photo we always like to get a couple of shots doing the extendo-arm thing.

This one was taken as we were in the middle of opening gifts. We are now loaded up with cool baby gear...thus the happy faces.

We've run out of space in our condo so we're building a house just south of town in Ellicott City. By the end of this year or early 2006 we'll have a lot more space for our 10 bikes and mountains of baby accessories.

Did I mention that we'll be about to hit the mountain bike trails right out of our backyard?
That was a key consideration in searching for a new home...priorities.

Oh, and the schools are great. 8-)

Baby Shower

Cake
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

Our friends and family hosted an amazing baby shower yesterday. It was more of a party really with a lot of great friends and family there to celebrate. We had a fantastic time and were blown away by all of the great baby gifts we received. I thought that cycling was a gear-heavy endeavor, but having a baby tops everything for gear and supplies!

p.s. The cake was incredible and well worth a bit of extra trainer time!

Full suspension road ride

Chris, Bob, & I tried to do a mtb ride yesterday thinking that if we rode early enough the ground would still be frozen.
We were on our bikes rolling into the trails at 7:00am, but it was immediately clear that it had not gotten cold enough to freeze anything overnight.

The entrance trail was very sloppy. This was a big bummer, but since we were already out on our bikes we turned off onto the road and put in 2.5 hours of road riding on our mountain bikes. My new Fuel EX9 has the pop-lock control on the bar that allows you to lock out all of the suspension on the fly. This will be great for races like the Shenandoah 100 that have a fair amount of road and hard-packed sections. Fully locked out the bike did very well on the road, moving efficiently up the climbs and handling some tight hairpin descents confidently.

We did a nice tour of the Ellicott City hills, Oella, New Cut, College, & Beechwood. We rode the hills at a solid pace for a good tempo workout. That area is great for training rides.

When we returned to the cars our bikes were clean & we felt good about sparing the trails more misery. They'll need a good stretch of warm, dry weather to dry up. Thankfully, we didn't see any other riders heading in.

Cycling.tv

Check it out...

www.cycling.tv has LIVE coverage of a bunch of the big euro races this season.

I'm sitting on my couch, drinking a cup of coffee, and watching Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne LIVE on my laptop.

Too cool.

Word.

Jury Duty

I have jury duty today.

Amazingly the courthouse does have wi-fi so I'm able to enter this blog entry from the jury room.

I'm in the "Quiet Room" but that's not stopping some people from chatting.

There's too much excitement...I just don't know what to write. 8-)

The Nursery

IMG_1237
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

The nursery is just about done.

Coffee Shops & Cafe's

Props to Gwadzilla for inspiring this post with his entry this morning.
(click on the link in the title to go to his post)

A coffee shop where the community can hang out and enjoy a good brew is a beautiful thing.

In Paris and other European cities the cafe is a social hub where people gather for fellowship and reflection. Chilling at a cafe in Europe is one of my favorite things in life.

We have an amazing shop in our neighborhood complete with comfortable couches, shelves full of books, and board games galor. Plus, the food & brew are tasty. You'll see people spend hours there reading the paper, working on laptops, playing scrabble, chatting, and enjoying each others company.

I dig Starbucks too. Yeah, they seem to be ubiquitous, but they provide a needed service and they do it well.

Now, when it comes to my favorite cup of coffee Peet's is far and away the best. I'm enjoying a big 'ol cup right now with my oatmeal as I fuel up for a 5 hour ride up around Prettyboy Reservoir.

It's gonna be a good day. 8-)

Surviving intervals on the trainer

Post Trainer
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

Last night I did the first LT intervals of the year.

The trainer kind of sucks for doing intervals. I'd much rather be riding outside...go figure. However, a good race video really helps the brain get through the mental suffering.

I dialed into a stage from the '04 Giro that climbed over the Passo del Mortirolo and some skinny, goat path roads over the Passo del Vivione.

Simoni attacks his teammate Cunego in a long distance break with Garzelli, but Cunego plays it cool and holds onto the jersey.

The best part of the video is the SICK descending scenes that the insane motorcycle-cam drivers get zipping down these skinny roads, slick with snow run-off.

Riders were overcooking turns and taking incredible risks to get to the bottom. Popovych, Cunego, and Mazzoleni put on an incredible display of descending. Several riders crashed trying to keep up with them and the camera was right there giving the viewer a first person perspective of the action.

I let out a yelp more than once as riders flirted with disaster. That's some good stuff.

Belly 28.5 weeks

Belly 28.5 weeks
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom.

This is the Belly at 28.5 weeks.

Snow Ride!

Each year we get 1 or 2 snow mountain bike rides. Usually the snow is pretty deep and tough to ride. Thus, we end up doing as much running as we do riding.

Well, this year the conditions were just about perfect. Earlier in the week we got about 3 inches of snow followed by very cold temps. Enough riders got out toward the end of the week to pack down a nice path along the trails. The kicker is that the forecast for this morning called for a big snow storm to begin around 10am.

This allowed us to ride a traction-rich layer of snow in the middle of a snow storm. That doesn't happen very often & it sure is fun!

We started out just before 9am under cloudy skies and 19 degrees fahrenheit...chilly. The crew was Me, Bernie, Sean, Morgan, and Dan. We ran into Brian out on the trail and he hooked onto our group for most of the ride.

The snow had good traction, but was just slippery enough to make it interesting. The main challenge was the cold. Derailleurs and rims were freezing very quickly. The ideal bike for such a ride would be a singlespeed with disc brakes.
I had the singlespeed, but my rim brakes were useless after creek crossings.



After a high speed crash into a tree when my brakes decided to stop working I decided to walk the rest of the creeks and keep my rims dry, and ice free! That did the trick and the rest of the ride was a lot less stressful with working brakes. 8-)

Heading up the cascade falls trail I stopped to take a photo of the mostly frozen waterfall.



We covered a lot of ground over the course of 4 hours and everyone had multiple snow & ice related crashes, except for Sean, who managed to keep Yellow Bike upright the entire ride! Bernie was the tough guy of the day, riding his 'cross bike over tough terrain in extreme conditions. Don't pick a fight with that guy! Morgan's bike was an ice-magnet & by the end his rear wheel was barely turning due to the ice build-up. Dan was the only one with disc brakes, but that didn't keep him from crashing...once trying to ride a newly fallen tree with a big drop on the back side & the others due to tires that had almost no lateral traction on the slippery stuff. After 3 pretty jarring crashes my saddle came loose, but we tightened it back up even though we didn't have the right size allen key. Yes, there was carnage & plenty of bruises, but I think we all came out ok.



For much of the ride the snow was coming down quite heavily. In the photo above, you can see the snow stripes on my fleece cap where the snow collected through my helmet vents.

On the drive home the roads were really bad. At the Russell St. exit off of 95 a tractor trailer had slid out and was blocking all but one lane. I had the 4 wheel drive engaged, but I still took my time. My bike was encased in ice and slush by the time I got home.



We ended up with about 6 inches of snow, so the trails are probably not all that ridable today. I'll avoid more bruises and ride the trainer today.

The South

We're in Atlanta all weekend visiting family.
It's a nice break to come down here and just relax.
That means no riding, but we did get out and hike up Kennesaw Mountain yesterday.

This was the site of an historic Civil War Battle as Sherman made his way to Atlanta.
The hike is about 40 minutes up a somewhat steep trail.
I was visualizing riding the climb on my mountain bike. That would be a good workout.
The descent would be pretty sweet too.

The view from the summit was spectacular as it was a clear day.
To the North were the north Georgia mountains.
To the South was the skyline of downtown Atlanta.
To the West was Stone Mountain rising from the ground.

It was chilling to think about the fighting that took place on the slopes of the mountain.
Some of the trenches were still visible and a number of cannons were still in place near the top.
A lot of blood was shed.



Speaking of the Civil War....
One thing that is immediately noticable is the absolute duplicitous absurdity of some Southern attitudes.
You get amazing hospitality and friendly folks on the one hand.
You also hear a lot about religion, Church, and being a good Christian.
Then, in the next breath, you hear negative comments about Martin Luther King Day.

While there is a lot of racial diversity down here you really don't see a lot of interaction on a personal level.
I think that people live in such a cultural cocoon that they are ~afraid~ of anything different.
Their defense is to attack and disrespect those different from themselves.
This applies not only to race, but to any difference in culture.
The intolerance of anything different is astounding.
Get out and travel....open your eyes...experience life!
You can't learn if you arrogantly assume that everyone else is beneath you.
Practice what you preach.
Is humility extinct?

I rode my bike today

I rode my bike today

I rode my singlespeed to the Whole Foods to buy groceries

I bought a piece of monkfish

They call it poor man's lobster

I don't know who the heck "they" are but it was pretty tasty

I also bought some fruit and some olives and some cheese w/walnuts in it and some walnuts

I still had the toe spikes in from 'cross season

I made a funky tapping sound with every step in the store

I listened to The Streets "A Grand Don't Come For Free"

British Rap Concept Album...yeah, strange genre

I think the cashier was frustrated because I couldn't hear her

But it was a good song, the one about the clippers needing a shake

Or maybe it was the shoes

I tried to get massive air jumping off the curbs

At least I didn't crash

Those olives are good

I gave into my sweet tooth and ate 14 m&m's after dinner

How will I ever get to 7 Watts/kg eating like that???

I drove my car for 0 minutes today

I rode my bike for 19 minutes today

Please help as you can

Before you head out on your New Year's day bike ride please help the victims of the Indian Ocean earthquake/tsunami.

There are a lot of people in need. Many of those have lost just about everything.

I have friends in Thailand and they can hardly describe the magnitude of the disaster and the number of people in need.

Every contribution makes a difference.

You can go to www.amazon.com and make a quick and easy contribution to the Red Cross.

Thank you & Happy New Year.

Inner Harbor Sunrise

Here's a shot from my camera phone of the sun rising along the Inner Harbor as I walked to work this morning. I like my commute.

Eyewitness Report from the Tsunami

This is an email from some very good friends of mine that live and work in Thailand.
I was very happy to hear that they escaped unharmed.

> Br. Bass,
>
> Thanks for the e-mail and happy holidays! We're all
> safe. We (Me, Eleanor, Miles, Eleanor's brother, his
> wife, and her parents and brother) were all together
> on one of the islands that got hit. Everyone is fine
> and we are now back in Bangkok. We were on an island
> called Railay Beach which is about 40 miles from
> Phuket. Railay Beach is only accessible by boat and
> there are no cars/roads on the island. Phuket is the
> beach resort town that has been in the news that got
> hit hard. Eleanor was on one of the beaches when one
> of the big waves hit. Fortunately, we were staying on
> the east side of the island that was well protected
> and not hit. The west side got hammered. People were
> badly injured and some people were killed. We had no
> warning that a tsunami was coming because it is such a
> freak occurrence. As soon as the waves hit, we were
> told to get to higher ground. We were on a hilltop
> from 11:30 A.M. to 9:30 with about 1,000 other people.
> It had the feel of a refugee camp, but the spirit was
> great. People were helping one another out, sharing
> food and water. It was a nice thing to see. The reason
> we stayed up there so long was because people were
> afraid of after shocks and more tidal waves. Every
> half hour we were told that the "Big One" was coming!
> I felt like Fred Sanford waiting for the "Big One."
> Fortunately, the big one never came. At 10:00 El,
> Miles, and I went back to our place. I must admit, I
> slept with one eye open the entire night on the
> lookout for water. Fortunately, none came.
>
> We had a 2:30 flight back to Bangkok today. The hotel
> arranged a boat for us to get back to the mainland
> where the airport was. When we got to the airport and
> we started talking to people, it became even more
> apparent how blessed and fortunate we were. Eleanor
> spoke with a woman who only had the clothes she was
> wearing. Everything else she had was gone and her
> hotel was destroyed. I spoke with a gentleman who was
> staying on an island close to us and he said all of
> the hotels on his island were destroyed. He spent the
> night helping the hotel staff. The only thing we had
> to contend with was being displaced, hungry
> (everything was closed), and we were without power
> most of the day. Other than that we were ok. It's
> great being back in Bangkok. When we went to bed last
> night the death toll was 11,000 now it's up to 23,000
> unbelievable. Miles has been a real trooper! He has
> been wonderful throughout this entire ordeal. He' s
> slept, he's played, hasn't been fussy. We are so
> blessed. Thanks for thinking of us.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Ryan