1 Month Until MS150

Ben and I are finally getting serious about training for the MS150. It's unfortunate that I'm starting from below zero, but I can feel myself getting strong every week. It's also unfortunate that I'll need to wear my special orthopedics for the ride. I'm going to see if Power Grips are an option as my toe cages are too narrow.

This week has been an awesome week in terms of weather too. Hopefully next week will be equally nice.

Charles River Bike Path (Brighton/Boston)

Last week Kerrie and I decided to make a northern excursion to the Charles River. We hadn't ridden the path in a couple years so we weren't sure what to expect. Luckily, we were pleasantly surprised by a mostly uncrowded ride through Boston. One of my major hang-ups about bike paths is the traffic. A few years ago I rode the Cape Cod rail trail and was dumbfounded at how crowded it was, even on during a weekday. The Charles River path offers more maneuverability through various bike lane splits. It's also fairly easy to cross any of the bridges into Cambridge directly from the path making sightseeing and lunch getting relatively uncomplicated. Overall we had a great time. Here are some of the more notable pictures from our trip.

Back in the Saddle

It's going on 80 days since my initial running injury and I've been chomping at the bit to at least get riding. So, this weekend I decided to see how my achilles felt. Yesterday and today I tooled around the neighborhood and took some pictures. Much to my surprise, it didn't hurt very that much. It felt good to at least get my legs spinning after stagnating for so long. It also gave me an excuse to explore some areas around town that I normally don't see.

While I'm far from being back to normal, I'm at least starting to see some signs of improvement. There certainly isn't any running in my near future. It would be nice too if I didn't have to bail out on the MS150 at the end of June. Below are the fruits of my labor. Happy Easter!

Still Injured

At this point the weather here in Mass is beautiful and I'm still in too much pain to even consider riding my bike. Word to the wise, don't run unless you're being chased.

New Whip: Cyclocross Style

Even though I'm hobbling around like a geriatric zombie, I found the necessary energy to expend three bills for a bike I can't ride. Make sense? Don't worry, my girlfriend didn't understand either. Good thing it makes sense in my mind!

2001 Lemond Poprad

Reynolds 853 steel. Not bad for the price, however, it might be a bit small.

The Last Time I Ran

It's been 34 days since my initial right foot injury. I've literally done nothing since that time to stay in shape or exercise. I currently have lifts in my shoes to isolate my achilles, but even so, I sense it's going to take weeks to recover. I guess it could be worse; I could've ruptured my achilles. But the pain I'm experiencing seems to get worse each day I'm not running or biking. Especially with all the nice weather we've been having. This week I'm going to lay low and try to stay off my foot as much as possible.

Oddly enough, I found a video of myself on YouTube. Apparently someone was filming the guy right behind me.

P.S. I'm the dork in the bright yellow jacket.

Injury Update

After much wheel squeaking I was finally able to get a podiatrist appointment for Wednesday. After all, it's only been a MONTH since my initial injury. These people add a new definition to the word healthcare. Anyway, before I go on a political rant I'll end this post. I'm passing up a lot of great riding and running weather with this injury.