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Mamma Jamma Ride Wrap-up and Huge Thanks to My Donors of $2,502!

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 8 Comments

On September 22nd, I biked 40 miles for a good cause. (40-Mile Charity Ride for Breast Cancer: No Need to SAG). Tonight, I cycled down to the Livestrong building. Yep, it’s the one named for the cancer foundation started by an Austin cyclist and former seven-time winner* of the Tour de France. That group still exists, a shadow of its former self, and does good work for all canver survivors. Relevant to A Dude, it’s where the Mamma Jamma Ride to Beat Breast Cancer rents office space. This year, it hosted the Bucks to Beneficiaries — the annual awarding of the monies raised for the bike ride held back on September 22nd. A few dozen riders, sponsors, board members and supporters were in attendance. Over $300,000 was given to the seven non-profits helping women and their families with breast cancer. A Dude Abikes was part of that, coming in 9th place as individual fundraiser at $2,502. So this blog post is to wrap it all up, and to especially thank everyone who donated.

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1,826 Days (5 Years) of Daily Yoga: A Demi-Decade of A Downward A Dude

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 3 Comments

It’s another awesome milestone for A Dude Abikes, five years of consecutive bendy-ness!  Simultaneously remarkable and by now, just another day on the mat, it’s too momentous on occasion to not write about, even though this is predominantly a blog about bicycling.  It’s also about my health journey, and yoga is an important part of that.  A new blogger and follower who is curiously named uptightprettygirl said she found me by searching for blogs about yoga.  That and my yogaversary made me realize that one reason I keep writing about my practice is to keep inspiring myself.  Another is to inspire people who also do not fit the mold of a skinny, muscled, super-bendy young man or woman (aka fathlete) but whose bodies can definitely benefit from yoga.  Inside this post you will find a few pearls of wisdom about yoga and how it can help you  Or maybe those are crumbs.  Yes, definitely crumbs of some useful information.   Continue reading →

4,000 Miles Biked This Year! + 3,000 Miles Total on Sophie the Fairdale

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 9 Comments

Well, I did it!  I met my revised goal of 4,000 miles, and I did it 28 days early.  I went into statistics a good bit in my recent post, My November Strava Stats; One Month to Go on My 2018 Goals.  But this number is icing on the cake.  (Which I stopped eating this year along with all kinds of processed grains, and it hasn’t mattered one lick for my weight.  That’s for another post.)  Anyway, as a fellow rider who is much stronger (and younger) than A Dude commented that he “loves milestone days.”  They are pretty special.  If the goal involves a number, and you hit or pass it, it’s sort of like a big weight has been lifted off your shoulders.  And if you’re wondering, 4,000 miles is like riding from Austin, Texas to La Paz, Bolivia and then a bit.  Or, from West Glacier, Montana (a place I’ve been), to the Nicaragua-Costa Rica border.  It’s ok, you may allow yourself to be impressed.  I know I am, and I’m the one who did it!  So let’s explore this YOOGE accomplishment a bit.

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Paul Sherwen, One Half of the Iconic Voices of the Tour de France, Has Died

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 6 Comments

I’m sitting here at my computer in Austin, Texas on a Monday night, staring at the title I just wrote, and now, the blinking cursor.  It’s taunting me to sum up in 500 words (usually many more, in my case), the life, times and relevance of Paul Sherwen.  He died at his home in Kampala, Uganda last night at the still relatively young age of 62, cause unknown.  The simple fact is that no one’s life can be summed up so tidily.  But in all the years I watched the Tour de France, it was his voice, along with that of Phil Liggett, that provided the narration to that epic race and many others.  He did it with style, grace and panache, and forever won the hearts of legions of pro bicycling fans.  He was also a racer himself, finishing five of the seven Tours he entered, and winning the British road racing championship twice.  Born in Kenya, but living in Uganda, he was a staunch advocate of African cycling, and a humanitarian to boot.  All I can do from my tiny corner of the internet is shine a little light on his life if you haven’t heard of him and to chime in. Continue reading →

My November Strava Stats; One Month to Go on My 2018 Goals

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 5 Comments

The eleventh month of 2018 is in the bag, and I thought I’d do a little recap for loyal readers and newcomers alike.  It wasn’t the best or worst month ever.  It’s a bit better when compared to last November, the first month after I was laid off my job (that ironically I had for 11 years).  There have been four elements challenging my progress:  1) the loss of Sookie the Fuji; 2) what feels like less sleep and more fatigue than usual; 3) cooler temperatures coupled with sometimes intense cold intolerance for some reason; and 4) going back to work part-time has shrunk the available hours to be out there doing activities.  Even with these things slowing me down, I still put in a pretty respectable month on bike and foot.  For the number nerds, the data dweebs, git ‘er done geeks and so on, click on through to learn more of what A Dude Abikes has been up to.

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Cycling with Sookie and Sophie: The Saga Segues

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 3 Comments

I found a picture of both Sookie and Sophie, my two bikes. (A third bike is elsewhere; that one was ridden pre-blog/Strava.) The photograph was taken at a community event sponsored by Bike Austin that I helped with. It was attended by several dozen people concerned about bike lanes and sidewalks on two busy and dangerous roads and Austin City Councilmember Greg Casar in April of 2017. Why on earth did I have two bikes at the same event? Well, former BA Campaigns Manager Miller Nuttle forgot his bike, so needed to borrow mine. Something inspired me to snap this shot, and I really like it alot. With the recent news about Sookie, the Fuji Silhouette (left) having a fatal crack in her frame, causing me to have to ride Sophie, the Fairdale Weekender Archer all the time, it got me thinking more about my journey. Keep reading to hear more about this passing of the torch.

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An Imagined Chat with Sookie, My Fuji Silhouette Bicycle, Upon Her Forced Retirement

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 7 Comments

Hi Sookie, are you there?

Yes, Dude, I am.

Good! Well, Sookie, we need to talk.

Oh, that doesn’t sound good.

I’m afraid I have some news that you probably aren’t going to like.

I’m a big girl, lay it on me.

Do you remember when we were at the Sun & Ski Sports bike shop the other day?

Yes, I remember! I always enjoy seeing Mike in the bike shop and the other guys. And all those cool new bikes, including some of my decendants.

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17-Year Old Cyclist Ran a Stop Sign and Was Killed in Austin on November 9

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 6 Comments

On a Friday evening in November, just after dark, a young Asian teenager was riding his bike in North Austin. The road dead-ended into a very fast, four-lane road with a median. He made it half-way across, and then for some reason, didn’t stop to yield to traffic that had a speed limit of 60 miles per hour. A blue Toyota hit him, and the driver stayed at the scene. The victim, whose name was Minh-Tan Pham, died later in the hospital. Another young life was extinguished in mere moments due to more traffic violence. He was the 67th traffic fatality on Austin roads in 2018… so far.

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A Dude Attends the League Cycling Instructor Seminar (Part 2)

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 6 Comments

The League of American Bicyclists class is over, but the learning continues and the process of me becoming a teacher of bike riders is just beginning. I wrote about the first evening of the class previously here in Part 1, Today I write about all day Saturday and a chunk of Sunday. A combination of theory in the classroom and practice on the bike, it was challenging. There is a lot of information to cover and not alot of time to do it. So alot was crammed into the heads of we the students that may take some time to process. But the upshot is that after completing a few more steps, I’ll be able to pass on my knowledge to kids and adults alike. The goal? To get more bikes on butts — safely. It’s a pretty cool and beautiful idea. Read on to hear the details.

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A Dude Attends the League Cycling Instructor Seminar (Part 1)

~ A Dude Abikes ~ 5 Comments

This post is not about San Diego, but it is about a class.  Tonight was the first of three sessions of the League of American Bicyclists class.  That’s right!  A Dude is attempting to become a League Cycling Instructor (LCI).  This is a follow-up to the Smart Cycling class, which I wrote about last month.  I also blogged about the League in this post.  Taken together, you can learn a few things about bicycling safety and education.  I won’t repeat much of the content, though.  For that you can and should sign up for a Smart Cycling or LCI class yourself!  Because it’s an intensive weekend, this will be a more brief post than usual (that’s a good thing).  I’ll post a follow-up on my usual next day, which is Monday.  OK, time to open your notebooks!  Ready, begin.

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