Look Who’s Fasting

With all of the exercise that I performed this past weekend I still managed to eat and drink enough to make myself feel bloated and disgusting. It’s a talent, one I wish that I could lose again. I am going to try and fast today, although I have a feeling that I am not going to make it.

Mission Failed: 80% Complete
Eventhough the weather was 180 degrees different, well not really that different but at least there was no snow, the results at my attempt at completing the fifty-mile ALS ride course (.pdf) up in Suches was the same — DNF.

For thirty-nine miles I was “in the zone.” I rode at will, and with the exception of the saddle sores which arose because of my lack of training, I was having a great time. The first hint of difficulty occurred as mile forty approached, my quadraceps started to cramp. I had been afraid of cramping so I consumed water, Gatorade and fruit the entire ride in an effort to fend it off. Unfortunately the cramping started as the worse part of the course was about to start. The final ten miles of the course climb up Wolf Pen Mountain, down the other side and then two small up-and-downs to the end. I had planned to ride fifty miles and my stubborness would not let me quit.

As I started to climb Wolfpen my quads started to cramp more frequently. In an attempt to quiet them down I got off my bike and walked. This practice occurred three times in total. When cramping occurred when I attempted to mount my bike and clip into the pedal I knew that the pain was too great and bailed — forty-one miles into the ride.

There was great shame on my behalf for not finishing what I started. I get comfort knowning that it was not an act of God nor a mechanical breakdown that did me in, but rather something in which I am in control of in the future — the lack of preparation for the ride. I shall return next year, on that you can guarantee.

Sunday, Better Sunday
Even with the loss of an hour’s sleep Sunday’s gorgeous weather meant that I had to get out and stretch the weary legs. This being a Black Sheep Sunday there was little doubt as to what the exercise of choice would be.

I hopped into the car and drove OTP (yikes!) to a land near a land called Newnan. While most of the trail was unusually easy we were greeted with a shoe-sucking swamp to end the day. My shoes will never be the same and I kind of wish that I had left them outside so that Mother Nature’s tricks this morning could start to wash off the mud.

Signs Of The Times
While driving south on Moreland Avenue heading to the hash I saw two interesting signs. Had I more time I would have stopped and taken a picture of each for your pleasure.

The first sign was a handmade sign outside of a closed bar which read “No Traspass.” There is really no need for this sign since I didn’t want to enter the building when it was open, and I definitely have no desire to enter it now.

The second sign was even more startling. The sign was a re-election billboard for New Orleans’ mayor Ray Nagin. The billboard read “Re-elect OUR MAYOR Ray Nagin” and included a headshot of Mayor Nagin. Even considering the high number of New Orleans residents who made their way to Atlanta after Hurricane Katrina I find it rather strange to have this billboard in Atlanta. I am also intrigued to find this billboard in a neighborhood inhabited mostly by African-Americans and wonder if the “OUR MAYOR” reference has a subtle, secondary meaning.

And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood – feelin’ huge and feeling very hungry already
Current Music – listening to the MacCast podcast
Website Of The Day – Nothing better than a food website when I am trying nott o eat. I present Tomatoes Are Evil.

If you ever want a quick glance of the sites I’ve picked for my Websites Of The Day, you can check them out on del.icio.us, my user name is InsideThePerimeter (go figure), and they are all tagged as “blogged.”

Exercise (b)Log – biking, forty-one miles on Saturday; hashing on Sunday

Cheers!
Paulie [eatl/ga]