Laughlin Road Trip

 First things first, cycling! Saw this on a friend's (Ron) Strava posting. Good one!

Headed out to Laughlin with Gina and Cecee.

Turned a bad situation into a road trip. The water at our complex has been off due to a broken water pipe. City and complex going around about responsibility. So about 3 days it has been affected. 

Screw it, taking off Friday from work not having water to get ready etc. Talked Gina into taking the day was well. Who cares if we're not freshly showered driving to Laughlin?  Stayed at the Edgewater as usual, gave Cecee some money to hit the slots, and we're good. Friday and Saturday night leaving Sunday morning. I actually relaxed most of the time, not a ton of walking or carrying camera cases around, just relaxing. Made my video and ate a few places going off my healthy diet. Oh well, just a couple of days and I didn't overdo it by much vs my usual of eating everything I can get ha ha ha! Got to be smarter, even while cheating.

So Denny's on the way, Bubba Gump just to try it, Casa Serrano, my usual want to eat place. They were ok but nothing great this time. Though the coffee at Denny's Barstow is always great, and I don't even care much for coffee. 

So no riding, just relaxing and having a good time in Laughlin Nevada making another one of my videos. AND, Cecee did win a little bit and brought some home this time so she paid for dinner. I'll take it!

Worst Ride Ever and Chatting with Omar

 Good news meeting Omar on video, coming soon. Bad news, my worst day ever. 15 miles up, not feeling good. Break and granola then meeting Omar and few others but not feeling good. 4 miles before finishing, I stopped feeling strange. Couldn't stand too long, legs felt weak, bright flashing lights, numb face, exhausted shoulders. Moved on another 2 miles, stopped again same feelings. Rolled on after 20 minutes, finished but took me about 30 minutes to feel better. But only after puking my guts out. Then 75% better. I'm guessing the eggs were the only thing that didn't digest. Bad egg maybe seeing it's my usual pre ride meal. Or a serious bonk? Not sure but no more eggs for me. Been eating great too so sad to experience this. And the heart was fine. Solo 35 or so Pico to the base of the Azusa mountains and back.

Stopped for a visit with Omar on the San Gabriel River Trail on my ride yesterday. Omar set up a little rest stop on the trail where many cyclists gather to stock up and socialize. Years ago, we did a ride on the trail when there were no places to get water or supplies. Herb M. was on the ride as well. Hot and dry, we ran across a guy riding a bike pulling a trailer selling Gatorade for $1 a bottle. One of the best $1 investments ever ha ha ha! Since then, it has developed into a very popular much appreciated rest stop where at times, there might be 50 cyclists all gathered at one time enjoying the rest stop.

Omar

The Keto Cyclist

Me before the suffering started ha ha ha!

Puke!!! Plenty of fluids and electrolytes and egg. No granola bar from break time, no corn tortilla that I had with breakfast. Seems only the egg didn't digest so I'm thinking the eggs were bad, not sure but ew!

Fat Bastard Sunday Funday

 Another 20 today.  Windy AH on the return.  ML had told me that there would be Santa Ana winds today,  she saw it on the news. But didn't seem windy at all and I was only doing 20, no biggie. 

Arrived at the start only to find very still flags at the golf ⛳️ course.  Figure I'd head into the wind first then tailwind it back.  But no sign of wind so I headed south. Turn around point at a park and still no sign. 

So I played around at the empty skate park.  Btw, what is so hard doing this on 4 wheels when I can do it on 2, one hand and the second hand on a clicker snapping pics? 😄

So I played for a few minutes then the second I got on my bike to head back   BIG   wind. Leaves  papers, flying by. Think I even saw a cow fly by. 

Windy all the way back but feeling great still after a month of healthy eating.  Big difference . I get tired but no feelings of not making it. Matter of fact,  I feel driven.  See someone up ahead and I feel I can catch vs the feeling of wondering why I'm struggling. 

Heck, I knew I was doing well and feeling good catching 2 separate riders 1/4 mile ahead. One pulled off to the side looking beat and zooming by the other as I push 12.5 mph. Yeah, that windy but feeling strong with no intentions of feeling beat. 😄

Felt so good and proud of myself keeping control,  actually caring enough about my health and avoiding the fancy $100 meals, that I celebrated by picking up a set of Sony noise canceling wireless earphones.  The kind with the big comfortable ear pads for my home laptop.  Gina says I deserve it. Ok, time I start thinking about myself.  😄

I found a penny and as Gina always says, " find a penny pick it up, all day long you'll  have good luck!". So I did find another penny at the mall tonight and as luck would have it, Gina would twist my arms to buy the headphones ha ha ha!

Funny when you go buy something and the cashier asks you if you want to round up the change to donate to St. Jude, you say no then they look at you like you're a cheap bastard. All while wearing a $230 St. Jude donator t shirt. Ha ha ha!

Nice! I use a little 5 inch tripod like this to hold my gopro on rides. Hand held mount to pan and record but my trusty tripod that I have used for the last several,, maybe 6 years lost one of the little balls on the legs so it sticks into the material of my jersey at times. I hate to ditch it but don't want to tear up my jersey pockets too much. So looking on ebay, I see them for $11 each but ran across one store that sells them 5 black for $10 or 2 red for $6. What a deal, I bought the black 5 pack and 2 black packso I'm set for a while. Cool little tripod I can use as a handheld or place on a rock, fence, etc type recording.

Too cool all this little stuff. ebay store    pousch-outlet

Solo Saturday

 Solo 40 on SGRT. Feeling great on the bike and sugar numbers are WAY down. A month of eating well, no junk food. Not one bit of ice cream or candy in the month. One cookie for Halloween, free from our coffee lady at Mrs. Fields but other than that, been doing REALLY well watching what I eat and feeling it.

Did run into a friend on the trail as I rolled by the Chalan rest stop. Saw Omar wave but heard a Beanz, Mr. Beanz shout. Wasn't sure what was said at the moment but watching the video footage, it was a buddy that I met about 5 years ago who watches all my videos. Later caught up to me as I stopped to record with my gopro clipped onto a fence. So we had a pretty good chat about many things. He's about my age, a bit younger by 4 years so we have many of the same values on life. So it was fun chatting with him again.

Then to Mongolian BBQ with Gina. My cheat day. By a cheat day, I mean I get a meal that isn't all that healthy, shrimp and stuff. But still not nearly as bad as before. And I really feel it on the bike, feeling great. As my MIL says, it's because I'm not feeding my body with all the poison ha ha ha! True I guess, sugar is my poison so when I avoid it, I feel great.  Sometimes one needs a wake up call and that is exactly why I took the blood test, to know and find out. Glad I did, time to correct the sit-chee-ation.

Omar and his gang at Chalan

Dinner with Gina and Chuck

Totally awesome stuff. Mini clamp and ball head swivel mount. Cool being able to clamp onto a pole or fence and with the swivels, being able to hit just about any angle needed for a video or a pic.

It's A Gina Halloween 🎃

 Gina always got the spirit.  Dressed as an alien 👽 today.  The theme chosen by her coworkers seeing they supply parts to SpaceX for their rockets. 

Work then dinner with my alien 👽.  Then the mall for my usual coffee ☕️ treat.  Always tip our coffee lady well, $2.50 for a coffee but we always give her 5 since Mrs. Fields is so much cheaper than StarSucks. 

So tonight,  giving away tiny cookies for the trick or treat crowd,  she gave us full size cookies 🍪. Yay!

I been so good eating well, my tummy is much flatter, feeling great and strong so I celebrated eating one cookie. Amazing how great one can feel eating the right things. I've missed the feeling and yeah, I feel like a bad muthuh fukkuh! 😄

StarSucks? Hard to believe that Gina paid $7 for a cup of coffee.  Got to our table,  crap was lukewarm.  She takes it back, they say they madevit hot. Got back to the table,  still not hot after another 5 minute wait.  WTF!!! Mr. Beanz mode  I take it back,  MAKE IT HOT OR GIVE MY MONEY BACK,  QUIT WASTING OUR TIME!!! 

Girl explains that it's not hot because they added the creamer. WTH!!! She says she can try to get it hot so again I say, make it hot or money back. She says she's not sure she can get it hot. Oh fukkbthis, just gimme my money.  So she calls the manager from the office to refund my money. 

Of course I yelped StarSucks. A coffee house that can't serve a hot cup of coffee because they added the creamer? What kind of sheot is that?!

They responded asking if there was anything they could do to serve me better. At this point,  I don't want your sheot. 

Solo Sunday Grumpy Old Bastard

 Solo 20, Pico to the Santa Fe Dam and back. Easy relaxed pace. Did manage a little photoshoot of myself. I've gotten a couple of those claw clamp things that clamp onto signs,, fences,  and stuff so I've been having fun taking pics from various spots testing the stuff out. 😄

Feeling GREAT having managed my diet and sugar last 3 weeks.  Amazing how it does a body good. 

Was under the weather last week but this weekend,  body is feeling great after the changes and a little recovery.  Making it through the storm finding blue skies physically. 

Sunday,  my coffee ☕️ and one cookie as a reward for cheat day. I've been so good that I deserve it and didn't even really want it. Just figured I better while I have a chance ha ha ha.