Saturday, September 8, 2018

Fifty Eight trips around the sun

Yes....when I wake up in the morning I'll have been on this earth FIFTY EIGHT YEARS!










I had to leave a few blank lines there, signifying my complete incomprehension and also denial as to how that has happened so quickly.

I mean (and yes, I'm looking at YOU TJ  Van Garderen!)...it just seems like yesterday that I was an OH SO YOUNG buck, getting ready to get out of Montana by joining the Navy (cuz, you know...I was TIRED of people telling me what to do...ie, my parents...so OBVIOUSLY joining the military was the way out of that, right?) I signed up while I was still 17. I still remember the afternoon that I brought home the papers my parents had to sign (as I was under 18) for me to be able to enlist. Complete SHOCK is what I most remember (they had no idea I was talking to the recruiters). I know my mom was devastated...she had totally figured I'd be following in big-brothers footsteps and going off to college, likely in Bozeman (Montana State).

But as the middle child, it's my lot in life to be the black-sheep...and darn it, I was GOOD at it! College...yuk! For ONE thing, what would I possibly study? I had NO IDEA what I wanted to do, other than to NOT be in Montana any more. Yeah...butting heads w/ Mom and Dad...not sure if all teens go thru that but I sure did. My Dad was MUCH more understanding (he had been in the  Air Force back in Korea)...he understood it was time for me to spread my wings and fly away from the protection of the nest. He talked sense into my Mom that night and the next day they signed the papers and I was almost on my way (my date to go away was 9 months later...they called that "delayed entry"). 

I still needed to graduate from High School tho (not a problem, I was honor roll pretty much my whole life.... with the exception of one class...fundamental Drafting (it was during my Senior year too). I VIVIDLY remember THAT day. In drafting you do a requited drawing and when you think it's ready you take it up to the teacher to grade. Any mistakes or problems were points. A perfect drawing was a zero...and your overall grade at the end of each quarter was based on total points...the lower your points the higher your grade. I was working on a VERY low point total until THAT day. I took a drawing up for grading, and he deducted points that I didn't agree with (it was only like 2 points). But hey...I was wronged. so I pleaded my case, he told me to "go sit down". I crossed my arms and stood there wanting a fair appraisal of my disputed deductions. He then said I was going to get a point a minute if I didn't go sit down.

I ended up going from a very high A to a D minus for the quarter that day (at the end of that day it was technically a HUGE "F"), and forever lost any zest for architecture (I was pretty good at it actually). My parents were quite upset (I explained the situation to them, they started making phone calls to the school, and finally after a meeting with the principal and the teacher I got a D minus for the quarter, and a C for the semester (the part that goes on permanent transcripts). I also dropped that class like a hot potato (how on earth would I ever get a fair grading after all THAT?)

Apparently I had a history of such behavior.

Back as a 3rd grader in Sheridan Wyoming, I took a stand one fine winter day for the injustice to my class. You see, our little school (Linden School) sat on a property with a very nice hill behind it. In the winters the hill was covered with snow, and during recess nearly the entire student body (kindergarten thru 6th grade) would be on that hill, making tracks and sliding down, going back up, getting in line for which "track" you wanted to go down, and going down again...until the bell rang and we all ran inside. Well, on this particular day I somehow got pretty wet (soaking)...and my teacher (Miss Wastaski) decided as punishment that the entire class wouldn't be allowed on the hill for a week. I thought this was wholly unfair to punish everybody because I got soaked (gee...playing in snow and getting wet from it...the crime of the century for SURE!) So in my protest I turned my desk around and sat facing backwards and wouldn't do ANYTHING she said. Of course this quickly resulted in my going to the Principals office where I had to explain myself.

Turns out the Principal thought I had a good case as he called Miss Wastaski down to explain HERSELF (she was the text-book Biddy-Old Maid I can safely say...I think I could actually sketch her from memory, with her short bun-red-hair and glasses, which is odd as I can't remember what I did YESTERDAY). Boy was she PISSED at that meeting! She stood up to the Principal defending her punishment of the entire class, and the principal said it was her decision, and that was that.

NOT!

Day after day I'd sit facing the other way, not doing any classroom-work nor homework. Didn't take long before there was a parent-teacher-principal conference and boy did she look silly trying to explain my low grades as this had been going on over 2 weeks (yes, it went on that long, I don't think the principal realized it at the time). As a continuing part of my punishment nobody in my class was allowed on the hill the entire time I was protesting).

All punishment stopped the day of that conference, and I believe Miss Wastaski had a SERIOUS ass- chewing by the principal AND both my LIVID parents! BOY were they UPSET (and NOT with me for a change!) I seem to recall the rest of my year of 3rd grade being rather frosty (to me) from Miss Wastaski (not the class, I think they respected my defiance even though all of hadn't slid on the hill for over 2 weeks, double the original ban)...but I got thru it.

Once the class punishment ended I ended my protest and got back to being the class-clown that I always was (while still getting good grades). For 4th grade I had Mr. Englebert (how on earth do I remember this stuff??) and he obviously knew about the situation (I believe the entire staff did, how could they NOT?) but I never had any problems with him (that I didn't deserve anyway). I DID write a LOT of lines however, saying "I won't  do" blah blah 500 times or more (note: my technique was I start at the top of the page and write "I" in the start of each line all the way down, then back at the top write "won't" all the way down, and so on and so on for each page until it's filled with sentences). Seem to recall I wrote a LOT of lines throughout my grade-school career. I also recall the lovely chalk-board-nose-in-the-circle-on-the-board punishment more than a few times. If you never had the joy of that one, you get called up (usually for talking or some other disruption of class....ME???) and stand directly in front of the class flat-footed facing the board...the teacher than makes a tiny "chalk circle" about 2" above your nose, where you then have to go tippy-toe and put your nose in the circle while the class progresses untill the bell.

Gosh, you'd think I was some kind of TROUBLE-MAKER or something (GRIN!). Boy do I have a LOT of good stories on THAT subject!! (though in my defense, I have never been to Jail or anything like THAT!) Well....there WAS that crane incident when I was 10 that resulted in the Sheriffs office being called and my Dad cutting a business trip in San Francisco short to GET HOME NOW! I had both my brothers involved in THAT one, even though they were totally innocent...sorry Greg and Dave....well, no, come to think of it, I'm not really very sorry...I was just preparing you for life...get over it! I think you're both better people for it! I MEAN, you NEED experiences like that to more fully appreciate life! (that's my story and I'm sticking with it!)

Gosh, I have REALLY wandered here down the ol' memory-lane. I think I was GOING to talk about how I CANT BELIEVE I'M FIFTY EIGHT YEARS OLD all of a sudden!

Maybe I'm a TEENSY BIT freaked out by it....I mean....(if you don't know what the "I mean" thing is all about, one of the American road-racers by the name of TJ Van Garderen says that about 90 times during a 2 minute interview...drives me CRAZY...pretty much EVERY sentence he speaks starts with that! I've been saying for YEARS they need to send him thru some kind of public speaking class...SERIOUSLY!)

So... back to THE subject (of how OLD I suddenly am)....my Mom just passed away back in June at 84 years old. That's now only TWENTY SIX YEARS AWAY!  I just CAN'T be that old! I mean (HA!) that means I'm already likely now thru over 2/3rds of my LIFE! I mean...I"m still getting stronger on the bike! How can this be?? (well, I'm not getting stronger just at the moment...I'm still embroiled in my annual "Post Tour de France" slump). Had a rough week on the bike (my rides both Weds and Thurs and then today I felt like I had sludge for blood and no zip whatsoever...today on the group road ride I was dropped the last third of the outbound leg, and pretty much immediately on the return leg). It's like I SUCKED or something all week! I sure hope next week is better...I mean...Jeannie got me a new pair of "gravel" bike shoes (road shoes that actually have some tread, unlike traditional road shoes). She gave them to me a day early, and I totally thought I'd get the "Wizzard of Oz" shoe boost in todays ride....but turns out it was more like a shoe-SUCK of all my energy. Seriously...I was pathetic to the point that the group stopped with about 25 miles to go for water and food, and I went on solo, not wanting to stop, and also too embarrassed to be dropped AGAIN. Funny though...once I went solo (ie: setting my OWN pace) I felt pretty good, and I was quite surprised the peleton never caught me...it was a rather large and FAST group of about 20 riders). Maybe THEY were tired too from CRUSHING me all day and were taking it easy. "hey...Matt's not here, let's slow down finally...I'm tired". Yep...that's what they must have been saying (in my mind).

And so. my birthday doesn't really bring joy...just the dread that I'm ANOTHER YEAR closer to hanging up my cycling shoes (especially my Mt bike shoes...I LOVE Mt biking!). I mean...how many more years can I SERIOUSLY expect to Mt bike? Ten? Fifteen maybe??? I mean (see, makes you CRAZY, doesn't it?)...so far (knocking on wood NOW) I've never crashed on a road bike. But I HAVE (and will likely continue to do so, however infrequently) crashed on the Mt bike. At what age does that risk become not worth it? I've never really been hurt (once again, knocking on wood NOW)...the closest I've ever come was March 3 years back when that big red (brown/orange?) bull knocked me down the bank and stomped my wheels. That day WAS a miracle as he would have killed me if it had played out any differently. And I HAVE had more than a few CLOSE CALLS on the road bike...(inattentive drivers) and THOSE are more scary than the bull! So scary that I'm very much afraid to ride solo on the road (which also was pretty odd that I cruised by the stopped group for a 25 mile solo ride home today....VERY unlike me!)

No real idea where to go from here...(in this post I mean). In TWO hours I will be 58. For now I guess I'll go finish a bottle of water and go to bed (I AM tired...seem to have forgotten to take my Geritol today). Actually I seem to have forgot that I had forgotten to take my Geritol today until just 30 seconds ago. That's even worse.

But at least I got a free hamburger from Red Robin Friday afternoon! I always have THAT to look forward to! (and if I were to go to Dennys tomorrow I get a free Gand Slam).

There. I'm now looking on the bright side of life. Yes, "Always look on the bright side of life"! (Thank you Monty Python)

And so another year begins anew. Cheers!




Late update: the picture below is of my good friends (Navy family) daughter Jessica...she was a newborn when I first 'met' her (yep, feeling OLD now!). Don and Janice had just gotten back from Okinowa (where Don was stationed) and I had just came to Norfolk from Peal Harbor. Turns out we were all staying at the Norfolk Naval Station Navy Lodge, unbeknownst to each other. I was walking to the lobby to pay my weekly bill, and Janice was coming FROM the lobby after paying their weekly bill. We passed each other and both spun at the same moment, and hugs and happiness ensued...I was taken to their room, and there in a crib was baby Jess, just a few weeks old...she was a Korean adopted baby. ANYWAY.....Jess and her Strike Team from Indiana had volunteered to go help with the Hurrricane Florence efforts. She's a pretty amazing young woman for sure (and it would appear her Strike team think so too).

 Jessica being held up by her Strike Team (she is team leader) in Spartanburg SC (where they were pre-positioned to help rescue people in need during Florence).

26 comments:

  1. I'll be back later, but HAPPY BIRTHDAY one day late! :)

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  2. Matt, you crack me up! 1st of all, does Jeannie know about your "criminal past"? :) :) Actually, I'm quite surprised to read of your "delinquent" school days, but since I'm a "middle child" also, I, ahem, can relate. LOL! My naughtiest phase apparently was 2nd grade & boy, if I had a nickel for every "I WILL NOT..." opus I had to write, I'd be sittin' mighty prettee today! LOL! (One of these days when you feel the urge for confession once again, you'll have to illuminate the "crane incident". And perhaps 1 or both of your brothers could supply THEIR side of the story. :) :)

    And Matt, you're in such good shape that 58 is not old at all! You'll be able to ride at LEAST another 20 years (if not on the public roads & I think they're dangerous for ANY one of ANY age).

    Well, hope you had a FABULOUS birthday & in case you didn't know, this entire WEEK you have "birthday immunity" (a perk I've decided is due for the 50+ crowd). :)

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    1. Hey Susie, thanks for the B-day WEEK wishes! (I like that...I was operating on the "B-day weekend"..."Week" is much better!) It's funny when my brothers and I get together and we start reminiscing, how we each remember things differently. Oddly, I seem to have much better (and vivid) recollection of my/our childhood than they do. For instance, my little bro has NO recollection of me putting him down the laundry chute in our house in Sheridan Wyo as a kid (ok, in his defense he was like 4)! The laundry chute went from an upstairs bedroom and just dropped the laundry down into an industrial laundry hamper-thing...I'd lower Dave by his hands down into the chute as far as I could hold him, then let go and he'd drop into the hamper, climb out and I'd go down it myself...it was our "secret escape hatch"! (our mom was always wondering why the wheels were bent out on the hamper). I have LOTS of stuff like that floating around in my grey matter...it's just the new stuff that doesn't seem to get much space. The "crane" story will have to be an entire post...I just might have to write that one up day. Anyhoo...thanks for the Vuelta updates! Still to me seems like anybodys race! (anybody being one of maybe 4 guys that is).

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  3. Ok, now on to the Vuelta Update. Glad to read you're watching when you can, Rae & I also have been rooting for Rigo.)

    WEEKEND AT THE WUELTA :
    (Could someone have just watched (again) - "Weekend at the Waldorf" on TCM last week? Why, YES, yes I did! :) :) ).

    Saturday - a multi-mt stage but the final climb was only 6K, but oh boy, the ENTIRE 6K was between 15-20% gradient! It had never been used in the Vuelta before & in fact, had never been PAVED before. And for some reason, they stopped the paving with 1K to go, & thus, the race finished on gravel. Sooprize, no one from the breakaway won the stage! The small GC bunch attacked each other several times but no one really got away until Yates attacked with about 750 meters to go. He won by 2 seconds over Valverde & Lopez & is back in the Red jersey. Quintana was about 7 seconds back, which was enough that V & Q LEAPFROGGED GC placements once again.

    Sunday - COLD (in the 60s, brrrr), but also a multi-mt stage & its final climb was more than TWICE as long as the previous 2 days (about 12-13K I think). Our hero, Ben King, was once again part of a large breakaway but like yesterday, it did NOT last till the Finish. This mt was much more like TDF climbs for the 1st half (i.e. gradual incline), but then in the final 4-5K, it got STEEP like the previous couple days, but also had some flat bits (which the previous 2 days did NOT have in the final climbs). When the TV broadcast came on, Astana was doing the pacesetting & that lasted until their guy Lopez attacked about half-way up the final climb. He eventually got caught. There was some more attacking but no one got away until Pinot went. He made it to the end & won the stage by 28 seconds over Lopez, quickly followed by Yates, Valverde, 2 guys & then Quintana. Unfortunately, Uran struggled a bit even more than yesterday & lost over a minute. The final 2K of the stage was so FOGGY that we could barely see the riders on the road & nothing past 7 feet! I think the final meters were also gravel, but I'm not sure.

    Here's Where They Stand : Yates leading, Valverde is 26 seconds back, Quintana at 33 seconds & Lopez at 43 seconds. Uran has fallen back to 8th at about 2.5 minutes back & all podium hope looks gone unless some guys crash, get sick, or crack big time. He's a much better TTer than Quintana & Yates but I don't think he can make up THAT much time.

    The final week consists of a TT (tomorrow), then a hilly stage that finishes uphill, a flat stage, another hilly stage that finishes on a larger 'hill', & then the final MT stage on Saturday & the flat finishing stage on Sunday. Simon Yates LOOKS to be the man to beat & there's no Froome in this race, so I'm thinking he'll be the eventual winner. However, apparently in the Giro, after dominating for much of the race, he completely fell apart in the final week. Will this be a repeat or did he learn from that disaster? We'll soon see. Well, Rae & I will & then I'll have to tell the BIRTHDAY BOY! :) :)

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  4. TODAY AT THE VUELTA :

    Today (Tues) was Time Trial day & it impacted the GC a bit. Rohan Dennis won the stage (his 2nd, after winning the 1st mini-TT of Stage 1) & an American (Joey Rosskopf of BMC) was 2nd (yeah, Joey!). The top GC man was Steven Kruijswik (anybody else have trouble spelling this guy's name? I have to look it up EVERY time!), who came in 4th. Simon Yates had a pretty good TT for himself, 1.5 minutes behind Dennis but more importantly, 29 seconds behind Kruij (I'm just gonna abbreviate from now on!). Valverde was 7 seconds behind Yates but Quintana was 42 seconds behind Yates & fell from 3rd overall to 4th behind Kruij. The guy who really shocked me with a poor TT was Rigo Uran! Wow, he was 48 seconds behind Yates & has now fallen to 9th overall! Don't know if he was sick or injured or maybe his heart just wasn't in it after losing time on the last 2 mountains. I guess your brain asks why you should bust your ass when it "won't make much difference" but Kruij just got himself into podium contention so I hope that's NOT what Uran was thinking!

    So, WHERE THEY STAND NOW : Yates is leading, Valverde is 2nd, 33 seconds back, then Kruij at 52 sec & Quintana now 4th at 1:15 back. Lopez is lurking in 6th at 1:34 back. All it takes is for any of the top 3 to have a bad day or get sick & this race is still up for grabs. However, Simon Yates has looked the strongest in the mountains, so barring disaster, he looks like the eventual winner. The rest of the podium is firming up but still open, I think.

    Did you do anything special on/for your birthday, Matt? Get yourself anything? Maybe you should buy yourself a "How to Survive a Hurricane" book as prep for when you & Jeannie move to the East Coast. See what you have to look forward to?! Ok, ok, you've had to deal with earthquakes & fires all these years so I guess what's a 'little' hurricane to you. I'll tell ya - YOUR frenemy Mr Wind comes for an unwanted visit & makes a mess before he leaves!

    Talk to ya tomorrow! :)

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  5. I can't update with today's (Wed) stage till tomorrow as even though I read cyclingnews' LIVE blog for the final 10K, they left out too much so I have to watch myself before I can update! I do know it was REALLY FOGGY again for the final few K, which was some kind of mountain. AND there was a bit of a shakeup in the Top 10 of the GC, including top 3, but Yates is still leading, followed by Valverde.

    Catch ya, tomorrow! :)

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  6. Wasn't sure you will be at work tomorrow Susie (Thurs)...isn't Florence barreling down on ya'll? As of this morning (Weds) it was still 950mi away but looking like a solid hit in ur area...of course any movement north or south will change drasticly who gets creamed...I as in Norfolk for Hugo (destroyed Charleston)...that was a doozy. I remember driving south about a year later and still had giant piles of debris out on the road (waiting for pickup) and the forests were creamed...2 out of every 3 trees snapped in half and the top lying w/ top-down still somewhat attached w/ a few shreds of the tree...it was a serious doomsday look, like nothing I'd ever seen before (I think Hugo was a 5 when it made landfall right on top of Charleston, then it stopped moving for a bit giving them some extra 'love'). I see they've already evac'd the outer banks...anybody who stays out there is a fool. It won't be pretty, that's for sure. Stay safe over there!

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  7. Hey Matt, the hurricane won't affect us (areas around Wash, D.C.) till late Sunday, Monday & into Tuesday. It's the Carolinas, especially NORTH Carolina that will take the brunt. From what I heard this morning on CNN & the Weather Channel, Florence is WIDE & will stick around for a few days right over N.C., which means DISASTER for them. Once it comes inland, the track can change quite a bit. It COULD go down to GA & not affect VA & MD at all or it could do the opposite. The bad thing where I live in MD is that we are ALREADY up to our chins with rain (it's been raining every day since last Saturday) & the land is what they call "saturated" & part of the repercussion is that there's nowhere for excess water to run off to, so it SITS on roads, combines with even more rain & you've got flooding.

    I live on high(ish) ground & not near water. This was CHOSEN by me. I learned at an early age what low ground & excess rain can do (flooded our "low fields" all the time). I learned from Hurricane Agnes back in 1972 what WATER can do in areas not usually seen as at risk : (lift an asphalt road CLEAR OFF the ground & move it 15-25 feet).

    I'm actually constantly AMAZED at people who buy beach houses around the Gulf &/or along the Atlantic Ocean. They are INSANE in my opinion, UNLESS they have so much money that losing the entire structure & everything in it will not affect their networth at all. Of course, I LOVE watching "Buying the Beach" & HGCT's "Beachfront Bargain Hunt", etc, partly because I'm always in such disbelief at the buyers. A few (4-5?) years ago there was a middle-age woman from D.C. wanting to buy a beachfront house along one of the Carolina beaches. We see her visit the various properties & one was a cute & quirky 1950-60s built cottage RIGHT ON THE BEACH & when I say right on, it was ON the sand so close to the water, I was SHOCKED. She was told that if the house ever got demolished by a storm, she would NEVER BE ALLOWED TO REBUILD, as houses had not been allowed to be built that close to the water line in quite some time. This one was "grandfathered" in but any buyer was informed in no uncertain terms that if a storm took it down, that was it. Imagine my shock when THAT house is the one she bought! I can still remember her nonchalantly remark how it had "stood all these years just fine so I'm sure it will ok". OMG, I screamed at the TV - "YOU ARE AN IDIOT!" If that cottage is still standing, it will be gone for sure after Florence.

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    1. Er, that's "HGTV's". Darn fingers! :)

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  8. Alrighty, here's my update for : YESTERDAY (Wed) AT THE VUELTA!

    The route was specified on the Stage List as "hilly" but I'd call it semi-mountainous. The final climb was about 7K & while the 1st half had gradual inclines (4-8%), the 2nd half jumped to 13%,14%,24% (yes, 24%!!OMG!), 8% & 14% gradients (with some flatish bits too).

    Once again, a VERY large (over 25 it looked) breakaway got away & once again, many (13) of the guys finished before the GC guys. It was a GREEN & glorious-looking stage with LOTS of trees (I was ecstatic). :)

    I can understand now why the LIVE blog was so confusing - it's because the damn Vuelta organizers have the same SICKNESS as the TDF - no PIP or split screens! Since major action was happening with the front break guys and the GC guys a few minutes back, the damn camera would skip between the two but it was difficult to know which was which for at least 10 seconds, plus we MISSED far too much of the GC guy's final 4K, right when they FINALLY started attacking! In fact, we saw NONE of the GC guys between about 2K until the final 400 meters! Oh, and the final 1K was shrouded in fog & it got worse with every pedal stroke until one couldn't even make out WHO was coming across the Finish line!

    The biggest surprise of the day was Quintana cracking on the final climb BEFORE the going really got tough & he ended up losing almost a minute to Yates. His hopes to win another Vuelta, or at least THIS Vuelta, are over. His career as a protected GC leader could now be in jeopardy as he failed in both the TDF & Vuelta this year.

    The winner of the stage (from the break) was Michael Woods of EF team! He's Canadian & apparently was a distance runner until not too long ago. He dedicated his win to his wife & late son, who was stillborn just a few months ago. She was 35-36 weeks pregnant so that must have been devastating for them. Glad to see some happiness for them now!

    The GC guys finished almost 3 minutes behind most of the break guys, lead in by Enric Mas of Quick Step, a guy I didn't even count as a possible podium contender till now! Valverde was with him, followed 8 seconds later by Yates & then Lopez. Kruij & Quintana finished together so Q was not the only one who struggled. Rigo was even farther back & I'm assuming he's just given up entirely or is sick.

    Where They Stand Now : Simon Yates leading, Valverde 2nd at 25 seconds back, Enic Mas has jumped up to 3rd, 1:22 back, Lopez 4th at 1:36 & Kruij 5th at 1:48. That 3rd podium step is totally up for grabs & the winner is still TBD as 25 seconds COULD be overcome quickly with a win Fri or Sat & some distance.

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  9. TODAY (Thursday) AT THE VUELTA!

    It was a flat stage with only a 3 man breakaway so surely it would end in a bunch sprint, right? NOT SO FAST! At least that's how the sprinter teams led the peloton until it was too late! :) Two of the breakers finished RIGHT before Sagan & the bunch could catch them. Jelle Wallays of Lotto Soudal won the stage. There was NO change in the GC (or at least not in the Top 10 that I look at).

    Alrighty, your TV viewing "reporter" is signing off for the day. Catch ya tomorrow! :)

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    1. Wow, it's great having you as a commentator Susie! I think you'd do fantastic sitting in w/ "the boyz" in le Tour! Somebody would say something stupid and you'd just CRUSH them (in a good humored way). I'm gonna miss your commentary next week!

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  10. Hanging my head as I say it, (whispers) I think I would like to see Valverde pull off the win. You know I have a soft spot for the "old" guys. He has never won a grand tour but has been on the podium so many times, and he has always been a consistent threat, if not winner, in so many of the classics. And yet...

    At the same time I am suspicious of his performance.

    And it WOULD be great to see someone new win a grand tour!

    I was so happy to see Woods win yesterday! for himself and for EF! What is up with Rigo this year really is a good question, but that seems to be the way with this team since its inception.. singular good results or a win here or there, but no consistency (exception, Wiggins)

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    1. And Rae, good to know you're still 'listening'! So just WHAT are you doing with your time now that you don't go to work anymore? (besides watching bike racing that is) I I'm with you...I'd like to see Valverde pull it off...and also agree that I'm suspicious...(but I have to admit that I wasn't when Horner pulled off HIS GT win a few years back...what does that make me?) Valverde has been pretty consistent for years...just a really great rider...I'd be crushed to find out he's not on the level. I'd like for him to be able to retire with his head high, not in disgrace. My ose colored glasses are on HIGH POWER!

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    2. er...that's "Rose colored glasses". Dang fingers!

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  11. Thanks, Matt! It's been fun! I was all ready to watch yesterday's stage last night but when I clicked over to the Olympic Channel at 8, it was NOT THERE! No repeat broadcast all night! I was pissed. Then I checked for tonight & also no night broadcast on OC! Luckily, NBCSN will broadcast it, but not till 11PM!

    TODAY (Friday) AT THE VUELTA! (don't read yet, Rae if you haven't already watched).
    Movement in the GC! Some shocking CRACKS! Gee, I am DYING to see the stage myself as the Live Blog was a bit confusing & some BIG changes happened! Here's what I gathered from the Live feed & the end result :
    Today's stage was not much UNTIL the end which was a 17K mountain! Unlike the previous mt stages, this did not feature leg-breaking 15-24% gradients but it did start with 14% then a flat bit, then 10% & after that, mostly 3-8%. Quintana attacked (!) with 13K to go but at around 8K, he slams on the brakes & drifts back to help Valverde, who, dunh, dunh, dunh, was NOT HAVING A GOOD DAY! Unfortunately for both of them, Yates, Kruij & Pinot all followed Quintana & they did not drift back! With 4K to go, Valverde was a MINUTE back! There was some attacking at the front & in Valverde's group but I need to see it myself to know who did what. Pinot ended up winning his 2nd stage, followed 5 seconds later by Yates, & Kruij in 3rd, another 8 seconds back. And HEY, good news, Rigo apparently got his missing legs back as he finished 4th! Uran finished at the same time as Lopez & Mas. Valverde finished 1:07 behind Yates!

    WHERE THEY STAND NOW : Simon Yates still leads, followed (at a much further distance) by Valverde at 1:38 back. Kruij is back up to 3rd at 1:58, then Mas at 2:15 & Lopez at 2:29. Honestly, this ENTIRE PODIUM could change tomorrow as it's a 6, count 'em, SIX mountain day! The biggest mts are #s2-4 but it is an uphill finish (with a bit flat at the very end it looks like). If ANY ONE of those guys has a day like Valverde did today, they are off the podium! Even Yates, although he's definitely looked the strongest from the very beginning. He would have to crash badly or crack HUGE to lose over a minute & a half but look what Valverde hemorrhaged today! I'm not ruling ANYTHING out!

    Between the Vuelta & watching all the hurricane coverage, my weekend is booked! :) Take care everyone & I'll check back Monday!

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  12. WEEKEND AT THE WUELTA!

    Ok, so only Saturday was a day of "action" but OH WHAT A DAY IT WAS! By the end of this penultimate AND ULTIMATE day, 2/3 of the podium had COMPLETELY CHANGED!

    The stage consisted of 6 mountains crammed into only 97K! The final climb, which included a hilltop finish (the map thing I looked at last week made it look like the very end was flat but it wasn't!) was about 9K. Almost from the start of that final climb, Yates, Lopez & Mas attacked & got about 20 seconds ahead of the other GC bunch, but then Yates was dropped a bit & for the rest of the climb, Lopez & Mas lead with Yates vacillating about 10-25 seconds behind. All three of them increased the distance & time to the remaining GC group as the road continued. With 5K to go, it was apparent that Valverde was having an even WORSE day than yesterday & that he was losing the podium if things continued like that. Quintana was with him but he didn't look overly strong either. Somewhere between 4k-3k to go, Kruij, Rigo & Pinot left Valverde & Q behind & at 2K to go, Rigo attacked & Pinot went with him, dropping Kruij! With 1K to go, V & Q were 2.5 minutes behind the leaders who stayed together until only 200 METERS to go & Mas won the stage with a sprint. Yates finished 3rd, 23 seconds back, Pinot 4th & Rigo 5th. Valverde & Q finished over 3 minutes back & Valverde lost the podium & tumbled all the way down to 5th!

    Some observations & comments : Yeah, Rigo had NOT entirely given up & actually did some strong riding in the final 2 mt days! Perhaps he had been sick during the TT? Mas rides for Quick Step, a SPRINT team (!) & when he came across the finish line on Saturday with the stage win, he, er, looked a bit like the creature from ALIEN! Large jaw & lots of teeth! :) The lack of crowds on the final mountain stage, a SATURDAY yet, was quite shocking. Only the final 1K was filled on both sides of the road. Wow, Valverde & Quintana FAILED bigtime at this race. I'm not sure which shocks me more - the poor results of Quintana at both the Tour & Vuelta OR that Valverde cracked so hard the final 2 mt days in the Vuelta when he was solidly in 2nd until the final 2 mt days. I'm thinking that losing that minute on Friday just CRUSHED his spirit & the hope that he could win the whole thing & thus on Saturday, that loss of belief contributed to his poor legs. What do you think?

    Sunday was the usual parade-type of stage ending in a bunch sprint after several laps around Madrid & Viviani won his 3rd stage, with Sagan 2nd.

    FINAL GC : Simon Yates won, Enric Mas 2nd at 1:46 back, & Miguel Angel Lopez 3rd at 2:04 back. Kruijswik fell to 4th & Valverde 5th. Rigo had gotten back up to 7th overall, 1 place above Quintana. Movistar won the "team" award but you have to wonder if ANY of the guys wanted to go stand on that Madrid podium.

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  13. Confession - until the middle of this year, I'd thought the Yates boys were Australian! (Hangs head). Well, they ride for an Aussie team! And I don't think I'd listened to them speak before! Sheesh. FTR, they are from ENGLAND!

    BTW, with Simon's Vuelta win, this means ALL 3 Grand Tours this year were won from riders of Great Britain!

    I'm looking forward to next year's TDF already! Froome & current TDF champ Thomas again on the same team vying for a repeat win, Dumoulin's intense desire to win the Tour, Simon Yates attempting a TDF podium at the very least, Porte trying to make it PAST Stage 3 & onto the podium, & Quintana riding for REDEMPTION & his professional future. For the 1st time in years, I'm excited before they even announce the route!

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  14. Of course, not all was joy this weekend. Those poor folks in NC! Especially the ones in areas that had never flooded before & are in absolute shock. And the flooding may get even worse over the next couple days. My heart palpitates & breaks for all of them.

    Matt, please promise me that you & Jeannie won't buy a Richmond area house next to a river! Or lake or stream or even a creek! And hire a real estate agent who channels some Sly & the Family Stone : "Let me take you HIGHER!" :)

    Alrighty, I'll talk some more later this week. :)

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  15. I didn't understand why, with the day Valverde had had on Friday, Quintana was sent up the road to waste his energy attacking and staying at most 20 sec in front of the peloton. Sure, Valverde was hanging in okay early on in the stage, but surely someone on that team must have suspected that the old man might need more than a little help on all of those brutal climbs. Got my 20/20 glasses on, yes indeedy!

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    1. Hi Rae, I was mystified/perplexed at Movistar's so-called tactics in both the TDF & Vuelta! In this case, all I can think of is that it was their ONLY shot to pull a "Giro-Froome" move for the win &/or that they didn't realize how spent Valverde really was. MAYBE if the Vuelta had been the only GT that Valverde had ridden this year, he would have had the energy/legs to win or at least stay on the podium. But expecting a 38 year old (who looked like his career was OVER after that horrific crash/injury in last year's Tour) to ride both the Tour & Vuelta (especially when the TDF started 1-2 weeks later than usual) was beyond optimistic & bordered on delusional.

      Personally, I think Quintana should have tried to break his contract for next year. It's apparent that Movistar has NO belief he can win the Tour. One of the TDF memories that I believe will still be fresh in my mind a year from now is Quintana ALL ALONE on the road after a flat or mechanical during the 1st or 2nd day of the race. He lost a chunk of time right then. It could have been worse, but HOW do you not have at LEAST 3 teammates with your GC "guy"!!

      Maybe they know something that we don't - that he really does NOT have it anymore. I've always thought his fair-poor time-trialing would keep him from the Tour win, but if his climbing is now weakened too (as it did for Contador in those last 3-4 years), then there really is no chance (unless every other GC fave gets sick or crashes out).

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  16. As for Valverde being on the level -- well, we know that prior to the Puerto scandal he seemingly wasn't (although unlike most, I don't think that he ever admitted guilt). As for after all that came out, he continued to ride at a high level. I did make a mistake earlier, though -- he did win the Vuelta once before. And won LBL 4 times!

    So what do I do all day? Sometimes I ask myself that question -- what did I do all day? Well, I am still working on house/yard/garden projects (slowly), for example still need to finish painting the new porch ceiling and front door, overseed and spread compost on the front lawn, repot roses to get ready for winter... and this winter I plan to paint the built in cabinets in the family room and put down a new vinyl floor in the basement), I am spending much more time on the internet than I would have thought I would, just following my curiosity much of the time; long hikes and trying to get my running engine restarted; watching TV programs also that I really haven't done for years -- trying to catch up a bit on Dr.Who for one.


    About your birthday post, Matt, I just wanted to say that whenever I have to enter my age on a form I feel a bit of a shock when I see that 64 in cold hard print! It just seems so strange!

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  17. Rae, Susie, thanks for your insights on the Vuelta! It's sure sad to imagine what the folks back in the Carolina's are going thru right now...not sure if I said this already but the daughter of one of my Navy family is the leader of a Strike Team that volunteered to go down (they drove 1100miles in 24 hours to get there ahead of the storm). They've been down "IN IT" (Charleston, Raliegh and other places). Jess is like the daugher I never had...SO smart (and stubborn...she is an EMT and wanted to qualify as a Fireman in their local station, was told by pretty much all the guys there's no way she could do that..she's pretty small...well, you know how THAT goes...tell her she CAN'T do something...so she did...same quals as the guys pass). I posted a pic she put on FB of her with her Strike Team (up above all the comments)...this is the "Goofy" pic (she is the one being held sideways).

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  18. She is the kind of woman I admire!

    Hey Matt, will you by any chance be near Boulder on Oct. 26-27? I have an invite for an event with the EF team (a group ride on Saturday, plus other activities) that I won't be using. Have to RSVP by next Friday. I can message you the code if you would like to attend (or know someone who would)

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  19. Hey Rae, boy I wish I could be in CO then...but I'll be stuck here, we are SO busy right now (pre-mission preps started 2 weeks ago...we have a spacecraft fueling op starting Oct 8th, then a spacecraft transport mission right after we come back from New Years, and then another transport right on the heels of that...2019 is gonna get off to a BUSY start). I had to grovel to HOPEFULLY get 3 days in early Oct to meet my brothers and go take care of Moms place down in Yuma (we were going to do it back in Aug, but big bro's work nixed that plan...this is plan B). But thanks so much for the offer! I'd ask Jill Homer (aka "Jill Outside" blog fame) as she lives outside of Boulder in the mtns, but she's in France right now w/ boyfriend Beat. Don't think she is a "group ride" kind'a person anyway...she's more of a solo "I may not be fast but I can ride longer than you can" type of rider (and by that I mean she's done things like the Tour Divide (2700mi, over 300,000' of climbing, TOTALLY SELF SUPPORTED, AND set the new women's record when she first tried it about 8 years ago...or so). Anyway, don't know anybody else who rides even close to that area. Too bad you can't go...I mean, you're RETIRED!!! This is EXACTLY the type of thing you SHOULD be doing!

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  20. I also think Jess is fantastic! As I do Rae! Gosh, all that stuff you can do in/on your house is impressive! Goodness, you & Matt could buy a "fixer-upper" & be real estate tycoons in no time! :)

    One final thing today, Matt - a TORNADO touched down right outside Richmond earlier this week (thanks to Florence). There was video & it mowed down some buildings. I'm not sure which scares me more - earthquakes or tornadoes! Wouldn't you think with all the technology, we could CONTROL the weather, just a little bit?!

    Have fun this weekend! Ride safe! :)

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