adaptable

SS or with gears? fenders or not? racks or not? options = good for this fat tire road bike.

Happy Tofurky Day!

Yes, Tofurky. Yes, I am a hippie.

But I was thinking today about how thankful I am to have not one, but two glorious steeds to choose from:

Doesn't get much better than that. Unless, of course, I could learn to wheelie like my hubby Andy. That would make life just that little bit better.

Proof is in the Pudding

Without further ado, pictures from the triathlon. It was worth every bit of the five dolla chop (fried chicken with fries) and Belikin Beer afterwards. On the side of the street I might add sitting in a parking lot. Not to mention hanging out in an Esso Gas Station eating candy, ice cream and drinking beers while waiting for the rain to pass. This is Belize!

Before the event, pumping it up. Our team. Breezie ran, Kelly swam, and I cycled. We called ourselves the "Soul Tornadoes". There is a hit song in Belize by Lovaboy called "Slow Tornado", and for the longest time I thought it was "Soul Tornado". Go figure. We happily adopted the name as a team. We are all Peace Corps Volunteers (PCV) serving in Business and Organizational Development Strengthening. The video is pasted below for your viewing pleasure.

Here is the bike I used. We borrowed it from a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer that ironically still lives in Belize. Technically, she is not 'returned' to USA. I flatted 1/4 of the way into my final lap, and carried the bike to the finish line. No tubes. Oh well. Life goes on.

This is Taylor, and this is the bike he started out with. It was also a borrowed bike from another PCV. He also had technical difficulties with his bike and the chain popping off. He ditched the bike, and picked up someone else's bike along the way to finish.

This was our team number. We were excited to have the number.

After we finished. Thank goodness we did.

The entire PCV crew including Taylor, who did the entire triathlon by himself instead of the relay team option. The gal that got us involved, one of the locals and PC staff, did both the relay and the individual. Talk about motivated.

fun time still

had a great fall here in the middle west. blustery today but not that bad.

Holy Hell. I am racing again!

Yes, that's right folks. It's been since June 2008 that I saddled up to race. Definitely have put in my share of riding miles plus some over the past few years, and now it's time to put the pedal to the medal. In Belize of all places. No public shame.

This will be taking place in Belize City, on a Sunday (November 20th), at 6:30am. And, it's a Super Sprint Triathlon meaning it's shortened. Please don't cringe. I will be competing on a team with two other Peace Corps gals, Kelly and Breezie, who will be doing the swim, and the running respectively. Yours truly will be the cyclist on board. It's 6.6. miles of cycling. The flyer says something like 10km, or something or another.

My training = riding a coaster bike on a daily basis through a village of about 2500 on dirt.

The diet of champions = conch ceviche, tortilla chips, tacos, Chokis Cookies (these are the bomb here - similar to Chips Ahoy, but definitely tastier) especially dipped in milk, ice cream, papaya, bananas, oranges, oatmeal, beans, carrots, broccoli, beets, potatoes, apples, peanut butter, eggs and pancakes. Of course some beers, Cosmos, and maybe a Cuban Cigar since those can be found on the streets around here. No telling what pre-race fair will be the night before or the day of.

My race kit = my Soulcraft shorts for sure, and maybe my jersey. I have a Peace Corps Futbol jersey, and that may go over my Soulcraft jersey. Oh, and the Soulcrafts socks. Probably ribbons in my hair as well. Shoes will probably be flip-flops. Maybe I shouldn't be wearing socks.

My bike = borrowed from a former Peace Corps Volunteer who lives here and races road on occasion. She is in the States right now pursuing pastry chef school in Chicago. Look forward to her return. I could get away with racing my bike that I use here in the village, but was offered this bike, so why not. Hope I remember how to shift!?!

My equipment = Peace Corps issued bike helmet that will definitely sustain any fall should I take a spill. Soulcraft water bottle because 6.6 miles is a long way...

I promise I will post pictures for my next posting. In the meantime, wish us luck!

Even Stan Beaver rides a Dirtbomb.

When Stan's sober alter ego Dan Cheever rolls, it's a beautiful bicycle, but when Stan gets on board, it's a rolling shit show. Speaking of the Dirtbombs and shit shows, WTF, man?

My next door neighbor lubed my chain with EVOO

Since I have been in Belize, approximately a bit over six months, I have borrowed two bikes. I have yet to purchase a bike. Before I left the USA, my plan was to have my Soulcrafts shipped to me. Now that I have arrived at my placement site for the next two years, that plan has to be adjusted. I live on the coast, and there are no paved roads where I live. The population of the village is about 2500, and the main form of transport is the bike. The problem is that rust is rampant here due to the moisture, and the climate. At this point, will not be shipping the Soulcrafts out. Mom did manage to send boxes that I left back in the USA to be shipped when I arrived at my posting, and in one of the boxes is my baby blue Soulcraft hoodie. That will have to do for now.

So, back to the borrowed bikes. The first bike I was lent was a hot pink s/s coaster with a basket. The Peace Corps Volunteer I replaced, had borrowed a bike from one of the other local PCVs, and that PCV was in no hurry to retrieve her bike. I rode that bike right up until the beginning of September. All during this time, I have been shopping around for a bike. One of the challenges is that I can buy a bike in the village, but the shop that sells them, sells them at a premium, which they can. After all, they have to haul the bikes here. I really haven’t found one at the shop I am fond of, and has all the accessories I need such as fenders, basket, and so forth. There is a shop that has the goods, but the challenge would be to haul the bike here on the bus, or find one of the locals with a car that can haul it back. The shop is about 2 hours away from me. I talked the shop owner a couple of days ago, and he said he could leave the bike in the box, but then I am faced with putting the bike together with no bike tools!

In the meantime, after riding first borrowed bike, my landlord has now lent me his bike. He has two cars, and his son lives next door and has plenty of bikes. No basket, and no fenders. There is maybe a trace of paint from the original paint job. The seat has seen it’s better days, as there is no cushion – only the seat molding. Ouch. The seat post is also rusted into the frame, the chain is rusted, and the foam around the handlebars is falling off. Needless to say, I have a bike for now, and it works. My work partner frequently borrows it at work, since he has a car and no bike now. Lucky for me, when he borrows it, he airs up the tires for me. Sometimes I think I should be ashamed to say I am a cyclist since I have let go of what tire pressure means. I know when the tires need air if my bike starts to roll slow. That’s my gauge. Go ahead, sure you are probably cringing as you read this, but there is something simplistic about knowing by tuning into the bike. The tires here are pretty heavy duty anyways.

My next door neighbors also borrow my bike. Yesterday, they borrowed it and brought it back with the tires aired up. Shortly after that, one of them came over and mentioned to me that my chain needed lube, and proceeded to ask if I had any cooking oil. I quickly produced my olive oil. He remarked that it wasn’t “1-2-3” which is vegetable oil and the common brand in the households here. I told him, no it’s olive oil. I don’t think he had probably ever seen nor heard of olive oil before. Really. Shamir then proceeded to lube my chain with the oil. Who in the world would have thought of that? I think it is awesome to be resourceful. Granted this is not a race bike, or even close to it, but what a great call. After my lubing my chain, Shamir looked up at me, and mentioned that he had a tool to work on my chain to make my bike go faster. My chain consistently pops off due to it being stretched out. I have learned how to put the chain back on without having to remove any parts or with any tools. I said okay, and he took my bike away. He came back with a relatively new chain on it, and showed me how fast I could now go on my bike by lifting up the back tire, and cranking the pedals. He then gave me a huge smile!

He also asked me earlier if I wanted to touch the goat he was holding my the horns in the yard. There is a pack of goats that roam freely around my neighborhood. I told him that I would leave him to touching the goat – he looked like he was doing a good job.

While I know I have not been the best at keeping up with the postings, I hope to do better in the future now that I am settling in. Can’t say that I will be doing racing anytime soon unless it’s on my coaster.