From ac754baa9db5e8eaff266d3b9072544ee1fa86c8 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: "R. Tyler Croy" Date: Thu, 2 May 2019 07:24:38 -0700 Subject: [PATCH] Tennis ball!; --- _posts/2019-05-02-tennis-ball.md | 47 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 47 insertions(+) create mode 100644 _posts/2019-05-02-tennis-ball.md diff --git a/_posts/2019-05-02-tennis-ball.md b/_posts/2019-05-02-tennis-ball.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..8375978 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2019-05-02-tennis-ball.md @@ -0,0 +1,47 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Oh shit. One month until AIDS/LifeCycle 2019!" +tags: +- alc +--- + +Today marks **one month** until the beginning of [AIDS/LifeCyle +2019](http://www.tofighthiv.org/goto/rtyler) (ALC)! Which means I am **one month** +away from starting a bicycle journey with thousands of other riders from San +Francisco to Los Angeles as part of our effort to raise money for AIDS/HIV +related services. As of this writing, my fundraising is at $3,377 which is +still short of my fundraising goal: $5,000. If you appreciate my work in the +[Jenkins project](https://jenkins.io), the [JRuby/Gradle +project](http://jruby-gradle.org), or if you have enjoyed my [sass on +Twitter](https://twitter.com/sadserver), please convert your appreciation into +a donation to [AIDS/LifeCYcle](http://www.tofighthiv.org/goto/rtyler). :) + + +In relation to ALC, some of my friends have already started to ask me "are you +ready?" Well, _no_. But will I ever be ready? Probably not. As a first-time +rider, I doubt that I can fully prepare myself for a week in the saddle, but I +sure can try! + +Due to scheduling challenges, I have had not been able to get out on the +weekends for multi-hour rides on the road. Instead I have been regularly riding +the stationary bike, which is a little bit more high-intensity, but the +duration is always shorter. My legs are probably more than ready, my back and +butt? Not as much. + +To get more cycling in, I purchased a simple fixed-gear bike to +incorporate into my twice-weekly commute to San Francisco. It's a giant +neon yellow contraption, which due to my height barely fits in the rack under +the bus. It is not a delicate flower like my road bike, but like most fixed-gear +bicycles, it is dead-simple, tough, and _light_, which makes it the ideal commuter. +I was uncertain about how difficult the pedals would feel with just the one gear, +but the newly developed strength in my legs has me speeding along the Presidio +and passing other cyclists on the hills along the way. + +With the indoor and outdoor cycling, and the cross-training, my current level +of fitness is the best it has ever been. My strength, endurance, and +cardiovascular output are stronger and higher than I can ever remember. I am +also heavier now than ever before, up 15 pounds since a particularly slim time +a year ago. + + +But am I ready?