SWIM Throughout the Fall, I was psyching myself up to do the New England Masters Short Course Yards Championship. I was making it to practice regularly, feeling stronger, swimming faster, almost ready to fill in the entry form and BLAM.
Let the shoveling begin!
Winter – like 3-feet-of-snow-winter – smacked me upside the head: practices were canceled, my mom fell and I wanted to visit her more often (can’t blame winter but it caused a change to my workout schedule nonetheless). Missed practices, stress, worry, vacation (well that was a good thing – I got to do an open water swim with a group in Barbados!). Sure I still could have signed up for the meet and just done whatever I could, but competing is always a big deal for me. It’s stressful enough – I don’t like feeling defeated before I even start. So now I’m getting my swims in when I can and looking forward to the day when the ice melts and the snow goes away. It’s officially Spring, and perhaps it will eventually feel like winter is over. And thankfully, my mom is doing better!
Carlisle Bay, in front of the Barbados Yacht Club
BIKE Other than commuting and spin classes, not much going on in the bike department. I went to the basement and visited my road bike the other day. Actually touched it! Even thought about pumping up the tires, but really, why bother? They’ll be flat again by the time it’s warm enough to ride. Soon? Last year I got out in early April. We’ll see.
[RUN – I don’t usually post a “RUN” section I’m running again! After taking a long time off (a year?), I’m giving it another try. I’m hoping the exercises my chiropractor gave me will help my disc stays where it’s supposed to. Could there be a sprint tri in my future? Stranger things have happened.]
READ I’ve read a bunch since I last posted. The most recent memorable ones are All the Light We Cannot See, by Anthony Doerr, and Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel. Two VERY different books. Both really well-done.
and EAT! Lots of that going on, but nothing noteworthy, unfortunately.
A while back I bought Bikeglow bike lights using a Groupon. I thought it seemed like a pretty cool lighting system – fun, festive, bright, great color choices. I don’t ride a ton in the dark but I do commute year-round (unless it’s too snowy or icy), and for a couple months in the winter it’s dark for my ride home. And there are some rare occasions when I go to an early gym class or swim practice before the sun is fully up.
New package of Bikeglow lights
What it is: Read the website if you want the technical details. It’s like a long filament that you wrap around your bike frame, with a battery pack that needs to be affixed somewhere. That somewhere is typically under your seat. The pack takes 2 AA batteries, and when it’s tucked and secured under the seat you won’t know it’s there. Keep in mind that you need to be able to access the pack to turn the lights on. There’s a small button on the side of the pack. There are 3 settings: steady on, fast blink, and slow blink. Somebody told me I looked like my own little disco party when I was stopped at a light. Interesting, for sure, but at least I was visible!
bikeglow on my frame – the picture doesn’t show how bright it really is.
Waterproof! This has been proven, since I get stuck in the rain sometimes and the lights continue to work.
Downside: Not so great in extreme cold. I couldn’t figure out why my bikeglow stopped working when I was biking home one night in temperatures in the low teens (F), but was fine after a night in the garage. I contacted the company (after checking the batteries, of course!). The customer service person responded right away, but hadn’t heard anything about the unit not working in the cold. They’re in Santa Cruz, CA – what do they know about cold?! I quickly received another email saying that yes, very cold temperatures will interfere with bikeglow’s function. Luckily I rarely ride in temps THAT cold (and have other lights anyway, they’re just not as fun).
Recommend? Overall I’ve been happy with my Bikeglow lights. And their customer service is excellent.
swim.bike.read. 