Basic Economics

I should teach a class in Economics 101 at UK. Just the fact that I have eliminated my gas consumption for a few weeks has lowered the price of gas from $3.09 to $2.66. I have single handily saved many people so much money. Its a simple case of supply and demand. You can all thank me when you see me.

Open letter to the lady in the Ford Escort

Here is a quick note to the lady who came up behind me and laid on her horn. Took about 30 seconds to navigate around me and then in a most classy way told me I was #1.

The lanes on Man O War are about 10 feet wide.
I was riding on the white line 18 inches from the curb
That left you 8 1/2 feet of lane to navigate around me. (plus one more full lane)
If the construction trucks and 18 wheelers can get by me with no problem and you are having trouble getting your 5 foot wide compact car around me then I suggest you find a parking lot somewhere and practice your driving skills.
I hope your life is really not as unhappy as you look.
I hope you have a great day.

On another note I did set a personal record on my trip home, 18:11 including getting stopped by both lights by Kroger near Tates Creek

Sunday Traffic

I don't know what was going on yesterday but the traffic on Man O War was ridiculous. The wave of cars would not stop. The good thing about it was that I kept catching up to the same cars at the stoplights. But I finally got annoyed enough to get off the road and cut through the subdivision by veteran's park. I did have a thought on the ride yesterday morning though. There are always random things on the side of the road. I found a brand new pair of gym shoes, there is a lot more stuff to, like socks, a hat, some boxers etc. Someday I may just ride around until I get a whole new outfit.

Perfect riding weather

It was the perfect temp on the way home tonight. the only thing that was a little annoying was the slight headwind. Not exactly what you want after working 11 hours. Got a couple of leads on some cars. We are looking for something like a 98 Pathfinder for around $4000. Its very relaxing to not "need" a car. And it is also very relaxing to know that the money is in the bank and when the right deal comes around there will be no payments. We don't do payments. No debt for us. Been there done that got the t-shirt.

Nice storm

I got lucky yesterday. Went to work before the storm went through and went home after the storm. I did get to see quite a few trees blown down across the sidewalk and sticking out into Man O War. Something has happened over the last 4 or 5 years. I have gotten fat. even thought I have stayed active I have gained a few pounds a year and now I am fat. If I remember right in 2000 I weighed about 195 lbs and now I am up to 215. This means that one of the many other benifits of riding to work every day is that I am going to shed some of those lbs. Dont get me wrong I think I am still in pretty good shape otherwise. I can hike all day or go on a 3 to 4 hour ride. my blood pressure is good and my resting heart rate is often under 60. But like most Americans I have a bunch of fat that needs to go.

The Beginning

Let me start by saying I have always been an avid cyclist. I love both road and mountain biking and my focus has switched between the two depending on where I was living at the time. Living in Memphis I would spend hours on the roads of Mississippi and nothing can compare to the hills and single track of Knoxville and Chattanooga. I have lived in Lexington for the last two and a half years and have found that there is no mountain biking around here so my rides have consisted of mostly road rides on my mountain bike since I am currently searching for a new road bike. Before our move to Lexington I moved six times in five years because of my employer. My route to Lexington looked something like this. 1998 Memphis, Knoxville, Memphis, Chattanooga, Knoxville, Nashville, Knoxville, Lexington 2004. I have always picked my apartment or house location based on the fact that I wanted to ride to work a few times a month. My easiest ride was when I first lived in Knoxville it was about 1 1/2 miles each way. My longest ride was in Chattanooga and it was about 20 miles each way. Recently on my way to work in my trusty 1988 Acura Integra the muffler fell off. Now the Kelly Blue Book private party sale price of a car like that was $0.00 that just hurts. But it has presented me with an opportunity to do something I have always wanted to do, that is ride my bike more. Now what I am being "forced to do" is ride my bike to work and on short errands. The way I figure it I save about $1.25 in gas every day I ride to work (5.5 miles one way). Now I will be honest with you there are some days when I have to work till about 12:30 am and if my wife offers to let me take the car I may take her up on it but the fact is I have been riding to work over 85% of the time over the last month. I will be recording some random thoughts and observations as my commuting continues over the next few months.