Happy Birthday Elliot!

My son turns 19 today.

Tandeming to Ft Mc Clary

Unlike last year where I dragged the tandem all the way to Newport but never rode it with Elliot, this time we were riding.  Elliot didn't want to go to the beach so it became the perfect father, son activity. We first rode to the Bagel Basket for breakfast.  By far the best place for breakfast in the York Beach area.  Besides the bagels, he had lemonade and I tried the dark roast ice coffee.

Tandeming around Town

After getting some good mileage on Saturday I decided to take it easy on Sunday and go out for a tandem ride with Elliot.  I wanted to hit the Old Put trail but Elliot had other things in mind.  He wanted to stay local and hit Peach Wave on the way home.

87 & 86 Bottles of Beer on the Wall

I started out strong on my 2015 Bike Commuting goal, even though I got a late start with the weather. By early April, I had ridden 12 times on the Bianchi San Jose but then came the announcement at work.  The company I was working for had decided that they didn't want to be government regulated any more and that meant that they have to sell off many of it's assets and businesses, one of those being sold is the one that I work for.  This was a crushing blow and really put me in a funk, so much so that I had barely the will to ride any more, let alone to ride to work. 

I managed to ride once, just once in May.  It was still cold enough in the mornings to warrant an extra layer but it was hard mentally to get into the groove to ride.

 

Riding home in the afternoon was a lot warmer so I was able to do so with a lot lighter kit. What I discovered is it's hard to enjoy riding when your future is so uncertain.  It almost seemed like another chore to do and I already had more than enough on my plate, complicated with the fact that I now have to find a new job.

Fast forward another month.  Things at work have gotten a little better and the anxiety has lessened to a certain degree which prompted me to get on the bike again for a commute.    

It really felt great to be riding again and I was admonishing myself the whole ride in that I should have just kept riding despite my career anxieties.  Two things kept me off the bike, one is that with the announcement there seemed to be a push to close many of the things I was working on sooner while there were still resources.  So while many others in the office seemed to be showing up for work for the minimal requirement I was working my ass off.  

On top of work being additionally busy, add looking for a new job, which is a job in itself.  Working a full day and then trying to spend time with the kids after work leaves mornings, which I should be been pedaling to work, sending out networking emails and registering on various company career portals hoping to hear back.  

Having been through a layoff before, with the same company, and then coming back and then having the prospect of another layoff on the horizon really sucks.  That anxiety makes it tough to enjoy the things that you really enjoy but after two months I have come to realization that you can't let it drive you crazy and that you need to find outlets, otherwise it will eat you up.  It ate me up for a month or so, and pushed myself to ride on the weekends just to stay in shape but now I am feeling much better and I am just going to keep riding as much as possible because it feels so much better when I do.

When I got home from my ride, Elliot wanted to do our a little L Tandem to the Lake ride that we do from time to time.  His first day of summer vacation was spent at home with his brother and older sister, who was in charge of the boys all day, and I think he needed to let off a little steam.

I was tired from the ride home because I really pushed myself despite my wonky speed sensor on the Garmin but when my son wants to ride it is my duty to answer the call.  The lake was like glass and the setting sun made it look really nice.  After the boat ramp we rode up Pond Brook Road to his friend's house where he hung out with one of his best friends for a half our and I chatted with his friend's father, who rides, too.  Only right now, he has a herniated disc and will be having surgery and won't be on the bike again for a couple of months.

Tandeming the Hat City Cyclefest

Elliot was a little more enthusiastic about riding the Hat City Cyclefest on June 14th, 2015, because we didn't have to wake up so early since it started in Bethel and was only 15 minutes from the house. No matching jerseys this time because he doesn't like zippered fronts.

We met Will and his daughter Julia at the start point and took off.  The course we were riding was the 23 mile route which headed south into Newtown by way of Route 302 and then over into Redding by way of Hopewell Road and then down one of my favorite roads, Newtown Turnpike.  Then it was back up Route 53, then cut through West Redding and up Long Ridge Rd, wasn't expecting that but it did take us off a busy road, then cut through Bethel and back to start. 

We started out strong but Julia, having ridden mostly in NYC, struggled on the hills.

From time to time we stopped so Will and Julia could catch up

and chatted with some of the other riders along the course

Will took this picture of us waiting for them.

According to Will:

One shouldn't drink too much in Redding Connecticut 

with the new Pee Limit law they passed last month!

Down at the Saugatuck Reservoir we stopped to marvel at full the reservoir was.  I haven't see this much water in the Saugatuck in 20 years!  

Elliot and posed for a Selfie

At the food stop, while waiting for Will and Julia to catch up we noticed that there were other riders from another event traveling along the same route.  Apparently the Bike MS ride from Sherwood Island was using many of the same roads that we were.  They also had a rest stop somewhere on Route 53 but it was up the road further.  Yet, quite a few people stopped here thinking it was for them.

After eating we hung out in the shade waiting for Will and Julia to finish their ride.  Elliot was extremely bored and famished because there wasn't much post ride gnosh that he could eat because of his food allergies.  Next time, I have to remember to bring another chain, some more snacks, and of course something to keep him busy.  Of course we chatted.  We chatted a lot while riding together, too.  I think that is why he likes to ride the tandem because it gives us the opportunity to talk about everything going on in our lives.  He has such a unique perspective on life.

Tandeming the 2015 Bloomin Metric

Elliot and I were out the door at 6:30 am headed towards Sherwood Island.  It rained the night before and was cloudy up in Newtown but as we headed south, the cloud cover broke out and the sun was out.  We left the house without sunscreen and had to stop and find some.  That meant by the time we got to Sherwood Island the traffic to get in was horrendous.  Then again, it always is.

Parking this year seemed to be shifted over to the west side the park

The Sherwood Island Connector had fresh black butter

Since my father got there ahead of us he was ready to go and I still had to get a few things set up on the Tandem so I told him to head out and we'll catch up.  It was just as well because I knew riding with him would be a lot slower, after all he is 72 years old!  When Elliot and start riding we were able to maintain an average speed of 15 mph and we caught up to him after 6 miles.  

Sound City changed the 40K route this year so that everyone had to climb Hills Dale Road.  It makes sense because the previous years route always had this loop that I am sure confused riders because you crossed over the path and I am sure many riders missed the loop and thus short changed themselves of some good ridig.

The roads were wet north of the food stop

Three generations of riders!

More black butter on Greensfarm Road.

This year they did food trucks instead of Subway.  It was so much better!

It was great to finally have something that Elliot could eat!

Tandeming to Trumbull

I had already rode 40 miles this morning on the road bike but with two of my three children at birthday parties, it was only natural that I take Elliot over to the Housatonic Rail Trail for a little ride.  We started at the top most part of Pepper Street with the intention of seeing how far we could get in 30 minutes before turning around. With the promise of a frosty treat following today's ride and having to be home in time to shower so that we could go see a play that was being put on by the Sandy Hook Foundation, I figured an hour round trip would be good.

However, we got down to Whitney Avenue in Trumbull in about 25 minutes and it seemed like a shame not to go the entire distance, so we decided to pushed on to Tait Road.  That section is probably the steepest, if you can call anything on a railtrail steep, and we were going really fast, around 15 mph!

Pedaling home was a bit slower but we it gave us an opportunity to sample the surroundings, like this sign on the side of this house that states "Hippies use the side door!"

Of course, there is nothing better after good ride then a visit to Peach Wave!

Tandeming the Farmington Canal Greenway with Elliot

Elliot and I headed over to the Farmington Canal Greenway for a little ride to help me usher in 3000 miles for the year.  Elliot has ridden about 100 miles this year, too!  We rode up to Brooksvale Park, took a little break and then rode back to Hamden where I parked the car.  Elliot and I talk about so many things while riding the tandem and he is such an astute little boy it blows my mind that he is only 10.