Log 1/29

Two four hour rides this weekend -- one on the road bike in the Berkeley hills, and the other on the mountain bike around Boy Scout camp with Carrie, and then solo up to the top of Pine Mountain from Fairfax. All of this was supposed to be under the heart rate range of 115-125...but as per usual, I slip over in the nasty bits where there's no other way to get up and over the hump. This side up on Pine Mountain is tough (I've never done it before). Mud and slippery boulders. I thought Carrie and I were pretty tough getting around Boy Scout camp in slippery conditions until we ran into a friend of Carrie's who was coaching the local Redwood high school team. She was showing them how its done despite looking a bit of a pudge. She knew her stuff though, commenting on the advantages of doing the Transalp with a hard versus soft-tail bike (she's done both!). I didn't quite know how to ask Carrie about how she hefted her considerable self around on so difficult a route. Carrie cleared up the mystery -- she's 7 months pregnant (with her second child). Evidently she trained with her first child on board well into the 9th month! So I was impressed.

This week is a big ramp up until the fall off expected for Mexico in the following week, and then potentially the trip down to Melbourne. That's a bit uncertain right now as my client is behind schedule on their work and it could therefore push my dates back. Darned -- as I'm all set up for doing the Karapoti classic in Wellington on February 18th.... and the boyz are waiting to dust me (Pete, Tom, and even Baz will all ride). So I'm hoping I can wangle things to keep them on order.

For the upcoming week I've got some intense 2 hour workouts with 3x15 minutes at lactate threshold (T, Th) and a longer but easier day inbetween. I hope to role out to the Barrel on Tuesday to hook up with the surveyors.

There's been an indication that I may get expedited handling of our replanting plan from the county if we separate out our filing with them from the one that might have to go through Caltrans and cover our request for an encroachment onto their land for our desired driveway.

I've finished my book by my former prof, Gordon Wood: "The Creation of the American Republic 1776-1787" which was an excellent (if heavy) treatment of the evolution of political thinking between the outset of the Revolution, the failed Articles of Confederation, and the successful Constitution, complete with our foundations for Federalism. This is waying on my thinking about all sorts of structural issues for my upcoming design of varioius business paradigms and ventures. I am now well into Lord Macaulay's "History of England" -- essentially a very slanted leadup to the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Its a Whig (distorted and prejudicial) history, but I enjoy the language. Here's a quote describing George Fox, the founder of the Quaker movement:

"He long wandered from place to place, teaching this strange theology, shaking like an aspen leaf in his paroxysms o fanatical excitemen, forcing his way into churches, which he nicknaed steeple houses, interrupting prayers and sermons with clamour and scurrility, and pestering rectors and justices with spistles much resembling burlesques of thos sublime odes in which the Hebrew prophets foretold the calamities of Babylon and Tyre..."

I also recently finished "The Biggest Game in Town" which covers the feel of Las Vegas arount the (in its infancy) World Poker Championship of 1981. This text is written by a poet and skilled writer by the name of A Alvarez. I'll include a clip or two from here another time.

That's it for now....