the cobbled roads of cleveland...

 or cleveland cobbles if you will. 

I have been putting on this ride for; do the math, my daughter is x years old, minus the pandemic...12 years now. it started off as a good friend of mine were riding and we noticed a few brick roads near my house & as discussions go during rides "wouldn't it be cool to have a cobbled ride in cleveland?" but there couldn't be that many brick roads in cleveland...or could there be? so I g
ot to looking via google maps, & as I started scanning the area; I started to find more & more brick roads. I found questionable alleys to ride. then brick questionable alleys as well. I started to string together these roads, these alleys, & then throw in some quick hill climbs and a route was starting to come together. 

I then hit up a few good riding buddies & said "hey i've got this route..." & they were in. thus was the first official "cleveland cobbles" ride. so I kept looking for brick roads in cleveland, & linking them together in a way that made "sense". going the wrong way on a one way, made sense. overlapping roads & sometimes riding in circles, made sense. one of my all time favorite quotes from one of the early years was "who made this route? a 12 year old?!?! I LOVE IT!!!"

the ride continues to grow in popularity. I try every year to change up the route. to move to different areas of cleveland. so far, i've been pretty happy with my attempts. as this has gone on, I have found that there is enough in cleveland to keep it fresh & interesting. this is one of the reasons, I believe, that people keep coming back (& newbies come). what's the point of a ride if the course is always the same?

I always have the ride during the spring. usually the sunday after Paris-Roubaix. as everyone has the spring classics on their mind, lets keep that spirit going. that has proven to be very interesting here in cleveland with the weather. the 2023 edition was probably the worst weather we've had. just down right cold & rainy. a few people got flats that took forever to change, & that took the wind right out of everybody's sails. so cleveland can run the gambit from gorgeous sunny day (like this year) to snow (that was a fun year). with a beer stop near the end.

like I said before, the ride took a break during the pandemic (for obvious reasons) & when the time lifted to get back to socializing; I didn't know if i was going to bring it back. I thought time passed & everyone forgot about it. but holy cow was I wrong. I started getting messages. people asking me...when's the cobbles ride? so I brought it back. and holy shit did that ride open my eyes to how much people actually love it & look forward to it.

as I lead the ride, people come up to the front to chat; which is always cool, but that first ride after the pandemic...I got a whole new appreciation for what this ride means. the shit that some people went through & to just hang out with people & ride their bikes (this isn't a race) with other people meant the world to them. "hey man, thank you so much..." & then the stories would start. to be able to put on this ride where people could come together. hang. ride a crazy route through cleveland & have a good time doing it is cool. i've always been humbled by the turn out. I joke that maybe five people will show. but after that ride, I was truly humbled by what this ride means to people & what it does for people.

so to this end...I want to say thank you. thank you for coming out year after year. thank you for coming out for the first time. thank you for believing in me that i'll put together a "good" route. 

namaste...

what's the point?

 my wife asks me one day when I was telling her about one of my recent workout sessions. of course my reply was 'what do you mean?'

but it was a question that stuck with me for a few weeks. what is the point of me working out with weights like I do? i'm an old man. i'm not here to do 10 strick pull ups, or a bunch of muscle ups. i'm not seeking out a community. I work out alone in my garage. 

a quick back story...one of my good lifetime friends got me into working out in high school. it stuck with me through out my life. I was never massively into it to get a crazy big body, but I have always enjoyed it. so it has been something constant in my life. sometime ago I did crossfit. I loved it. I had a really good time there. the people were amazing. everyone was very supportive of each other. it was a community that I never experienced. everyone supported and cheered the newbies achieving their new goals and accomplishments. to the veterans getting a new pr. however; there was one problem for me, I couldn't ride my bike. I would work out early in the morning, and then I wanted to ride to the shop I worked at. it was difficult. I was cooked after my workout, and riding a bike just killed me. so my time there changed, but it was better for me to achieve some riding goals. fitness for life if you will. the box closed down and I sought a new avenue as I built up my garage space which was coming along nicely. however, I lacked direction. so I found a coach through my daughter's soccer club. he knew how important riding my bike is to me, and developed a strength plan around that.

from this strength plan, I have noticed some things changing. first, and obvious, is my lifting has gotten better. i'm moving more weights; which in and of itself, feels great. i felt more complete in my workouts. that is true progress that you are able to see. to feel the numbers go up. this is really what my wife was asking...haha. why lift so heavy?

i've then have done some reading on this aspect. there are some studies out that lifting may help with alzheimer's. this is one "point". I want to be an old man, and have my faculties. 

second, I have noticed improvements in my riding. last season I was getting pr's on some strava segments without even trying. so that was really uplifting. to 'see' progress without putting forth a major effort. now, truth be told, there are a few segments out there that I do want & will need a major effort...haha. another cycling related note, is that the other week I noticed that I was stronger climbing some hills. not faster, but stronger. I wasn't wearing out as quick. I felt different muscles in my legs doing some work; which was really cool to experience.

third, I believe that I am "fit". not crossfit fit. not strongman fit. no way in hell am I GQ fit. my wife calls me the "fittest fat guy" she knows. hahaha. but I can throw the weight around. I can ride my bike for long distances. hell...I can even go on a 5k run if I wanted to. once and awhile that happens, but not often. a friend of mine once called me "unassumingly fit". as you couldn't tell actually how fit I was. he knew what kind of work I was putting in and what I was lifting. however; to be clear, I spend from 3-5 hours a week in the garage. the rest of the time I try to get out on my bike. this is the balance i'm looking for. this is what is right for me. a "normal" (whatever the hell that means) functional fitness.

so what's the point? I want to be fit for life. what do you want to do? i'm in. i can do it. I want to move. I want to be able to move. now. tomorrow. when i'm 80. i want to walk up steps. bend over. pick up the remote (if that even exists when i'm 80) and that's the most important. 

take care of yourself for yourself and your loved ones.

amitabha...

unsocial social

 I heard, or more so read, this term about a month ago; and it really stuck with me. it came out of the notion that all these social medias are really turning to shit in recent times. it used to be that we had three big ones. FB, where you kept up with your family members and "outer ring" people. the bird; for news, making new connections of interest and just yelling at people. IG for sharing pictures. Now on my phone I have 3 or 4 apps that are bird related, and I don't know why. I barely check any of them. I look at the book of face only because of a cycling group I still have active, and I only check this during the time of the ride I host. IG has just become a way to send funny things to my friends anymore. then obviously the group texts i'm in with my close friends, or "inner ring".

without getting into why this is happening, mostly because I don't care; maybe the thing to do is get back to this this. maybe a fun simple way to get back to our thoughts. ideas. words. i've said that i'd get back into this in the past, but maybe it will stick this time. plus my wife has said to me that "you should get back into it, or a podcast." that's the last thing I need, is another hobby like that. I have thought about a diy with my gopro and posting, but that's another time. so here I thought about starting back up with posting about three things I really dig that are not my family/people.

one: bed. sure it seems easy, but other than my house and my car; this is easily the most expensive thing i've ever purchased. it's a Sleep Number that adjusts head and feet, firmness or softness, and warms my feet. my wife talked me into it and i'm happy she did. it tracks my sleep. how well I slept, heart rate, breath rate and heart rate variability which deals with stress. if something is off, then the next night adjust the bed to improve your overall rest. the better your sleep the better your mood the next day. plus, on average, the bed is the place where I spend a big constant chunk of my 24 hour period.

two: the garage. more specifically garage gym. I really enjoy lifting heavy objects and putting them back down, but I hate going to a gym. being around other people. finding the equipment. waiting for said equipment. and all the other things that go with that. so I picked up a bunch of stuff for the garage to work out there. I was lost for a bit, but (long story short) got a coach that has a program that I don't have to go think about and I just go do it. I now, for the last two years, have felt better and more focused in the garage. i've seen advancement and that makes me feel good. my goals? that's for another post.

three: the bar. with the help of my dad, we remodeled the basement a bunch of years ago; and with that we put in a bar. I don't know what to say other than it's really cool. it's fully stocked (with what I like anyway) with a kegerator and two mini fridges. plenty of goodies to keep one busy. I really enjoy mixing drinks. playing with ideas for new ones. I bartended (I am a mixologist, I have the paper...somewhere) for a little bit, but late nights were not my thing so I quit. As I got into spirits some more, and beer as well; the kitchen cabinets were becoming full, and I didn't like the idea of putting a fridge out in the garage. so with the remodel, I made sure to put in a bar. so we built a custom made one that seats three. more on this i'm sure as I go.

but those are my quick three things. how this blog will continue in the future? basically my perspective through this thing called life. philosopher, bikes, bike mechanic, gym, bar, existence, family...my wife at least feels that I have something to say; so let's see.

namaste

some quick lessons

when your boss tells you that they "don't know if they'll be able to pay you"...yeah, it's time to cut and run. so I did.

a few things I learned rather quickly while I was running was that I am NOT made for a 3rd shift gig. I thought it would be good. I could work while everyone slept & I could sleep while everyone was at work/school. that did not go over very well with my mental state. I couldn't function and that's not a good thing while you're driving. the other thing I learned was that looking for a job sucked. plain and simple...it just sucked. I hadn't had to do that for a long time. I taught at colleges for 10+ years, and that process was simple. it really was. I have a degree. I have experience. i'm not a basket case and am very competent at my degree knowledge. boom. let's move on. working at bike shops I became a very proficient wrench. i'm not going to lie. i'm good. i'm not breaking my arm by patting myself on the back here. people sought me out. people only wanted me working on their rides. so moving in and around shops were easy as well. my reputation proceeded me. but now that the final nail in the coffin was laid and I left that comfort...I was lost.

I hopped on all the sites hard. LinkedIn. Indeed. where do you go when you're a competent human being. relatively smart. hard worker. excellent work ethic. on time. not a substance abuser. I looked at the local hospitals (some of the best in the country here in Cleveland), local universities; and I had some really close calls. so I began reaching out to people I knew, and had some close calls; but I have one major flaw. one problem in my wiring. I see the bullshit. from a mile away...I see the bullshit. the bullshit questions that employers ask. "what's your problems solving process?" "what was an obstacle that you overcame at work & what was the outcome?" -I din't get fired...haha

the psychological tests that are given that are presented as a "we'd like to get to know you more". when there are no "correct answers", but rather a psychologist designs a "test" around the whatever arbitrary concept the employer deems as what makes an ideal employee. "are you a team player?" "would you rather work alone?" we want you to be independent but yet need us at the same time.

video interviews that are just set questions are not, apparently, my strong suit either. there's no room to talk to a human being. that interplay. that dialogue. when part of the gig i'm applying for is that interplay yet is not there in the interview? wait...what? exactly. when a major part of the job is talking to people and having some kind of personality, the process to get that job has none. ok. makes zero sense.

so my wife and I were in talks about me just being a stay at home dad. which, truth be told, I love it. I love cooking, taking care of the house & of course our child. I enjoyed going to soccer practice for hours on end during a week. however there was a flip side to this, and that being that my wife picked up more hours; which would have made her cranky. justifiably so.

so I got a seasonal gig with UPS and I was really happy with myself that I passed their rigorous driving school. however; just like any other big corporation, they jerk you around as they need you. no set hours. no set time. and the big corporation overloaded employees because of the holiday season. so the search continues...

life changes in your mid 40s

I knew I needed a life change. I knew that much. that was all I knew.

bike shop life was sucking the happiness out of me. I was at a good shop that had promise of long term employment. something you can't bank on in that industry. but I walked away. I was getting angry at customers for the littlest things. it wasn't going to end well. so I walked away. not only for my mental sake, but also the sake of the shop.

I walked away with no plan. well...I had an idea, but no plan. I thought i'd try coding. I like logic. hell...I have my MA in Philosophy and I focused in logic. long story short...I was having a break down in 2 weeks of school. I wasn't eating. I wasn't sleeping. I was a wreck. my most wonderfully supportive wife said to walk away, we'll figure this out. I did.

I learned a great deal about myself in those few months. mostly the importance of a wonderful support system. my family. my ability to walk away to try something completely new, no matter the outcome.  a great deal of fear left me throughout this.

a great deal. not all...

I kept wrenching for a little bit for a mobile shop, but my heart wasn't there; but I pressed on to pay the bills. once that started to dry up...I jumped off a sinking ship. this is when life started to freak me out.

where does a guy with an MA in Philosophy (taught at the college level for 10 years), worked/managed in bike shops (for 10 years) go to get a gig that isn't either? how do I find what I want to do? scratch that...need to do. what was I looking for? no freaking idea. what did I want to do? pay my bills. I knew I wanted something where I could punch in. work and then leave. not think about the work after I punch out.

gearing:

I am not a roadie. This is an obvious fact. I’m not against road bikes. I’ve just never had a standing relationship with one. But cross…there’s a relationship that has endured. I can mostly be found on a cross bike. My oldest cross bike in my quiver right now is my Vicious Cycles Slider. This stead has treated me well throughout the years. She has gone through many changes throughout our relationship, but has been loyal every step of the way.

Another thing about me is that I am not a climber. I can’t climb for shit. I’m also not part of Team Stick Boy, never have been, never will be. Maybe that has something to do with it, and I’m o.k. with it. That being said…I never back down from climbing. I do go out on routes and look for climbs. Hell, I even do hill repeats once and awhile.

But this being said, the one thing in my mind when building up a bike is gearing. I’m kind of terrified about it to be honest. Will this be enough gears? What about this range? Do I have the right chain rings?

A quick history on the Slider…I’ve been running that bike on a 1x system for about 9 years now. I’ll let that sink in…yes! 9 years. I did that mostly because I wanted a simpler system for cross. I didn’t want to mess with a front shifter. I understood and listened to my riding that if I just put on a chain ring that was in between the current two chain ring set up, I could use the full cassette range without problem. Now…I’ve had drop problems for sure, and it wasn’t till my current set up with a Wolf Tooth chain ring are my problems gone. (currently running a 1x10 Shimano 105 set up) But my fear of gearing was still there, and how to get around that pesky road derailleur of a max range to 28 teeth?

Sometime ago with Shimano, their pull ratio was the same on their mountain and road shifters and derailleur. So with some 105 shifters and a sweet XTR rear derailleur my problem was solved. I could climb almost any hill, road or off, and be just fine. A simple solution to a simple problem. My gearing always hovered around a 42 up front and an 11-34 cassette. Now times and tech have changed, and on the Slider currently is still a 42 up front, but an 11-32 in the back.

Now what’s my point with this? That I’m ahead of the curve? Well…yes. History has proven this empirically. People thought my set up on the Slider was crazy. But now people are paying a lot of money to change over their bikes to a 1x set up; when all you need is the right chain ring up front with what the current road rear derailleur can do. I’m seeing more bikes come with a 1x11 set up. I’m reading articles were riders are ‘testing’ a 1x set up for riding, and how and where they are riding. And it’s just been another day in the saddle for me. Is it practical? Not sure. That’s up to the individual. The individual has to be honest with themselves. How they ride. Where they ride. Their strengths as a rider. And, honestly, working in a bike shop I don’t see too much of that coming from customers, but that’s another topic for another time. A 1x system will always be that; 1x. So is this current move towards these systems a fad, like single speeds were? Not sure. You’re also reading this from a guy who loves his single speeds.

Amitabha…

come back....

i'm kicking this back into gear...again.

after a few conversations on twitter, and some other things; i'm going to try and post weekly.

i often take the summer off because of shop responsibilities, and those are still hot right now, but so are the conversations i've been having.

stay tuned, and hope all is well; and that i can put out some words that you'll enjoy.
amitabha...