Oh crap...

I have a ton of stuff to do.

A Century will be on a week hiatus starting yesterday.


Adios!!

M.

Meet Margaret...

Beautiful, is she not?

Margaret is a mid-1970's Raleigh Grand Prix that I have lovingly brought back to life. I purchased her from an elderly gentleman off of Craigslist this past summer and immediately fell in love. Now, I don't usually give inanimate objects names and tell the public I love them, but she is different. As I was trying to fit the bike in the back of a 96 Civic Coupe (fun stuff, let me tell you) she spoke her name to me, and I knew I had something special on my hands.

Let's take a closer look, shall we?

She started out life as a ten speed and I suspect she was upgraded at some point in the late 80's with new tires, cables, and derailleurs. By the time I bought the bike it was in pretty crummy shape. When I finally had it dis-assembled in the garage and started to clean the frame, I noticed how absolutely gorgeous it was. I said to myself,

"This bike is too beautiful to be hidden behind cables and extra brakes and gears. This bike shall be a fixed gear".


And so it was.


So I put an Eight Inch crankset...

Restored the original quill pedals and toe clips.

On a rebuilt original bottom bracket and spindle (only because Raleigh used a proprietary BB thread count that NO ONE MANUFACTURES BOTTOM BRACKETS FOR.)

More anguish than I wish to recall.

I also built my rear wheel with an Origin 8 fixed/free flip flop hub and a bargain bin rim.

Threaded axle for the win.

I run only a front brake (run to the right hand) and installed a freaking awesome interrupter brake lever to replace the turkey wing / suicide lever so I can brake when I'm not in the drops.

Ignore the bikes in the background and admire that head badge.

The latest and greatest addition to Margaret is a Brooks B17 Standard saddle, which I have recently begun to break in. It is most glorious.

Notice the wrap around frame work. Very, very nice.

So there is my dear Margaret. I'll show you Ol' Blue next Tuesday but, until then, here is a look at what I use for repairs!!!!

Park Tool repair stand - a new and valued addition.

Oh. Oh God. Messy messy tool chest.

Specialty tools: spoke wrenches, a crank puller, a chain whip/lockring spanner, freewheel removal tools, Shimano splined bottom bracket removal tool and a chain breaker.

Having extra parts is handy for rebuilds or making friends.

This where all those wrenches on top of the chest are supposed to go.

Grease, lube, and less desirable spare parts (i.e. junk).

Oh, I almost forgot! I'm at 200lbs now, which is still considered obese according to a BMI chart I found on the internets. Oh well! See you all Thursday!

 

Late posts...

are apparently a theme in this blog.

I meant to write, at some point this week, about my bikes and what I have done to them but that somehow fell through the cracks. I think I will cover that Tuesday (I promise).

As for my progress, I feel like I'm doing ok. Not spectacular, but I'm sticking to my guns and making good decisions as often as I can. Now I just have to keep it up...

I went home this weekend and it was glorious. The best weekend I have had in a really, really long time. I brought home Margaret (see bike in background) and rode her everyday and didn't allow myself, or my parents, to stuff my face full of home cooking. I didn't have a scale at home, so I couldn't weigh myself this morning to get a figure for this post, so I'll just get it tomorrow morning and put in in Tuesday's post.

Now, down to business...

I have allergies. Every time the seasons change, I begin to feel like some lethargic sloth who respires through the skin because his airways are impossibly constricted for normal human breathing. Unfortunately, the seasons are currently changing (I don't know if you knew) and, even more unfortunately, my skin is not gas permeable. So I was sucking wind on my rides this weekend. Hard. My mother genuinely thought my heart was going to explode when I was walking through the house today after riding not very far. I'm pretty sure she was just being a Mom, but it didn't feel great. And I can blame some of that on allergies and asthma and all that, but the meat of the problem is that I suck at exercise. And I suppose the only way to not suck at something is to practice. Over and over.

And over.

So I can go from this

Pink dumbbell: like a boss.

 To this

Mesh gloves: not quite boss-like.

Well, not exactly, but you all get the picture.

So  I'm keeping the same goal of 10 miles for this upcoming week, and we will see how that goes. Not sure I accomplished my goal this week, which brings me to another topic:

I NEED STUFF.

Bike stuff, to be more precise. Like an (app, cyclometer, minion?) that tells me various info about my ride. And other things as well....

*drool* (Check it out here!)

But we ('royal we' or my inclusion of the reader? YOU DECIDE) will get into that later. And by later I mean Thursday.

So there we have it! Sunday post is finished!

Enjoy your week everyone!


M.

First ride of the season...

And it was glorious.

I came home a bit early from work because, with help from good ol' daylight savings time, it is not dark at 6 PM anymore. I did some upper body and abdominal work on a Total Gym, pumped up the air in the tires, and took off.

That's about right.

I'm completely thrilled that I took the first step toward my goal but, to be frank, it's apparent that I have quite a ways to go.

I weighed myself this morning, and it read 202 lbs. Using my height and a chart, I am technically obese.

Not really excited about that, of course. Just another motivation to actually follow through with this thing.


SO. I was planning on talking about my experiences at Grad School interviews, but that isn't going to be happening. I mean, I'm going to get my PhD and all, don't worry (I know you all were super worried), but I don't feel like discussing it today. Or ever. Maybe.

Since today's post is technically Sunday's, I'm going to outline some major goals for myself:

1. Exercise every day
2. Eat healthier, smaller portions
3. Be conscious of your everyday decisions

Pretty simple, but I think writing these things down will help me keep myself to them. I think my main obstacle in all of this is #3 up there. I can't tell you how many times I've found myself making cookies, or eating artificial crap, or not exercising because I had become sucked into a video game, without even remembering how I came to such a decision. My un-thinking mind apparently has a vested interest in keeping me portly.

Sorry guy, no more.

I've enjoyed life a little too much, and it shows.

Again, no more.

Everything in moderation, some things not at all, because they just aren't worth it. I have always been awful at resisting impulses.

Finally, no more.


And after that little pep talk, I will leave you with a couple things. My goal for this week is to ride at least 10 miles on my bike, along with keeping up with the core goals listed above. It's a pretty measly amount, as I cleared 1/3 of it today alone, but it is a first step. And for someone like me, it's the hardest and most critical step of all.

And when you have views like this...

Every pedal stroke is worth it.

Tomorrow (or maybe Wednesday): Current bikes, equipment, etc...

A plan arises...

I apologize for the lack of updates (not that I promised anything, remember?). I just returned from Texas and North Carolina from interviews for PhD programs, and this is the first time I've had access to anything but my smartphone. Having been on 12 flights in the last 5 days, I have had a bit of time to flesh out a plan for this blog.


Tuesdays: Plans for the week and updates on bike related things such as repair tips, current gear, or new parts and clothes that I am lusting after. Likely the shortest post.

Thursdays: A more anecdotal post about anything I feel like talking about, which will probably be grad school interviews in the immediate future. I will do my best to bring it back to the over-arching theme of A Century of Change, but tangents are nice for balance.

Sundays: This will be my main post for the week, with updates on how well (or poorly) I am doing, as well as riding experiences during the week. Although there will be photos interspersed in the other two weekly posts, the Sunday post will contain the most and will probably be the most lengthy as well.


So I hope that gets all 0 of you excited about this thing! I know that, once my brain recovers from the past couple days, I will be!

I was going to talk about my trip and visits, but I need to decompress a bit. So Sunday's post will be...

Experiences at UNC, Texas A&M, and Vanderbilt

Exciting, is it not?


By the way, this is me.

photocredit: Laura from http://laurasbloggityblog.blogspot.com/

Goodnight all,



M.

Good Evening...

You may call me M.

I am what some people would call a fatty-McFatterson. I do not like such people.

But they are correct.

I have recently taken a hard look at myself in a full length mirror, and promptly began to panic. I have seen what being overweight can do to self-esteem and personality and I do not wish to go down that same path, with the same medical problems, with the same fears that go with them.

No, it is high-time for change. For too long I have worn sweatshirts when it is probably a little too hot to be wearing sweatshirts. For too long has my wardrobe been nothing but black to mask my girth. For too long I have been lacking confidence because I'm conscious that I'm a tub of lard.

Tonight, I make a change, and this is what this blog will be about.

"But M.," you cry out with concern that borders on alarm, "what about the 'century' bit? Is this blog about living 100 years??!!!! WILL YOU BLOG FOR 100 YEAARSS??!!"

And as I warily back away I reply "No."

As you may have noticed, I enjoy bicycles. I admire their simplicity and their complexity, I enjoy fixing as much as riding. Actually, that is a lie. I enjoy finishing repairs as much as I enjoy riding. I have a couple and work on them often during the warmer months. Margaret, the beautiful bike in the background, is my main squeeze. You will be introduced, fear not.

Anyways.

The Century part of the title of this blog refers to an idea that has been bouncing around in the back of my head for years: To ride from Amherst to Hanover on a bike; a bit over 100 miles, or a Century in cycling terms. I have finally decided to do it, as I will be leaving the state come the end of the summer (maybe more about that at some point later).

The route. I feel chaffed already.

Of course, 100 miles on a bike is no small undertaking. Especially for someone as out of shape as myself. So this blog will be about me taking the steps needed to accomplish my goal and bettering myself physically and mentally in the process. I will update it as often as I deem necessary (a few times a week? Maybe? I'm not making any promises here people) and they will be about everything I've mentioned so far, and I'm sure some extra juicy tidbits for you all to sink your neat little teeth into.

I hope you glean some enjoyment from it.


If not, it's more for me than you anyway. So there.