If you're in the States and paying attention at all, you've probably noticed that we've got one heck of a heat wave on right now. Louisville is steeped in humidity; it's like living in a giant vegetable steamer. It also happens that, thanks (I think) to some kind of crazy anomaly that makes storms actively avoid this area when we most need them, there is a chance we'll see no relief in the near future.
The Weather channel website indicates a 50% likelihood of thunderstorms tonight [EDIT: Oops, that was totally wrong. 50% likelihood of thunderstorms tomorrow night. D'oh!]. Personally, I'm praying for a deluge. Amusingly, the Weather Channel is insisting that today we'll see the hottest temperatures of the year, with heat indices in the upper 90s and 'some locations near 100.' Since we've already had heat indices of 104 F, I think they may need to go back to 3rd grade and study up on that whole 'greater than, lesser than' thing. It's a handy skill.
Suffice it to say that, depending on whether we have groveled adequately and/or bribed the right meteorologist (they're the guys who control the weather ... right? :D) Sunday's Good First Century ride might be, literally, a hot mess. However, it's a very flat route with plenty of opportunities to take on water, so if you're in the neighborhood and you're thinking about it, I say, "Do it!" I'm on track to do the ride, though it's not yet 100% certain.
The Independence Day weekend was delightful (especially since I didn't realize until Wednesday or Thursday that we actually had Monday off, so it felt like a bonus day). On Sunday, PT Guy and I tooled around the Levee Trail (aka 'the far end of the MUP') and all but melted. Suffice it to say that, while the ride was fun, returning to the arctic air conditioning of the truck's interior was probably the highlight of the ride. I think the highlight of the weekend, though, was taking PT Guy's Mom out clubbing (I can't say 'dancing,' because for the most part we just sat around, watched the show, and kibbitzed). She's super-awesome, and I can't say I've ever been to a club with anyone's Mom before!
We did not, ultimately, watch any live fireworks. One of the local TV stations was re-broadcasting Thunder Over Louisville, and we did watch that, though we were both a bit put out by the sometimes-distracting camera work. Note to Thunder Footage Editor: fireworks do not require close-ups. That is not how they were meant to be seen. Please see Oxygen Redux on "Can vs. Should" (note: rated PG-13 for language) for further instructions.
In other news, I've been practicing countersteering in fast turns, and tried to teach PT Guy how to do it. I think he has the gist of it down, but says it feels counter-intuitive. That may, in part, have been due to the fact that he was riding Swift. I suspect that the more upright riding position one tends to assume on a hybrid probably feels 'tippy' in a tight turn, and I did neglect to instruct him to 'get down' before boogying (boogie-ing? neither spelling looks right). I'm not sure, because when I wanted to fly through fast turns on Swift I usually just flattened out over the top tube. Maybe once he feels more comfortable with spinning I'll take him out on Quicksilver. QS corners like a master joiner and invites you to stretch out along the top tube.
I think this is going to come in handy next week when I hit 5-Spot Crit #3. I don't think I'll race, though (not sure I'll have the legs for it two days after my first full century!). I'll probably just do the beginners' clinic. Then again, I will probably be so busy going, "ZOMG I R AT A BAISICKEL RACEZ ZOMG ZOMG!" that I won't be able to ride at all and I will fall on my face probably while sitting perfectly still and everyone will laugh at me.
Um.
Oh, sorry, my Prognostications of Doom gland was acting up again for a minute there (apparently, the POD gland deactivates the Grammar Nazi Gland — handy to know next time someone starts picking on me about being a grammar Nazi).
One last bit: a while ago, I made a nifty cue-sheet holder. I thought I had left it here, at the office (it was attached to my bar bag), so I hunted through my drawers (NOT THOSE DRAWERS, PERVERT! Jeez, who keeps his cue sheet holder in his drawers? Everyone knows cyclists don't even wear drawers on rides long enough to need cue sheets! XD) to see if I could find it.
Here's what I did find:
- 26ish napkins
- two sealed bags of microwave popcorn
- a bunch of plastic bags, some 'shrinkable'
- my Emergency Shoe Shine thingy
- a packet of Balsamic Dressing from ... somewhere
- a washcloth
- Swift's replacement bar grips (still not installed)
- my Muay Thai stuff
- a lunch bag from Quizno's
- some dividers for a 3-ring binder
- tons of other crap
Here's what I didn't find:
- my cue-sheet holder
I guess it's time to make a new one. Um, and clean out my desk.
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