Almost Home

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That's me right there! Sprocket Man.

It's always good to get away but always better to come home.

Like a Timex

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My four dollar Raleigh has to be the best investment I've ever made. Portland to Missoula - 550 miles, Natchez to Nashville - 5oo miles and now getting near the end of Pittsburgh to Washington D.C. - 350 miles. All with a loaded trailer and panniers. Lot to be said for the "All -Steel Bicycle".

Still Riding

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Not everyone rides with a dorky looking helmet and some polyester jersey.

Don't forget Flag Day today!

On The Trail

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The Missus bringing me a little water. A guy gets thirsty putting in all those miles every day.

Off We Go

Photo from here:

Leaving for Shop Teacher Bob's Big Adventure. Off to Pennsylvania and all points south east along the trail. I'm in pretty good shape, looks like some good weather for the first couple of days and I need to get away. I've got a digital and an old film camera I'm packing along so I should be able to get some good photos. I always keep a diary of my journeys so I'll have plenty to write about when I get back. We're planning on about 50 miles per day, depending on where the campgrounds are located. Should be able to get sunburned and stinky without too much trouble. Hopefully it won't be like the Natchez Trace where we had to go three days without a shower in the heat and humidity (the old bike shorts were getting a little yeasty by then). We're renting a room for tonight, so I should be able to catch the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup and start the trail fully rested. Should lose a couple of pounds along the way, so I'll be ready to start the marathon training when I return. Man, I'm one lucky son of a gun.

Rock on, people. Get out there and have yourself an adventure as well.

Leon's Triathlon

That's Leon on the left.

Here's a shameless plug for my son:

Surly spent Sunday taking pictures of the triathlon run by Leon of QBlast fame. It took place in Hammond with the swim in Wolf Lake and the bike portion on Cline Avenue. I used to commute up and down Cline when I was teaching in East Chicago. I would've loved to have been able to ride my bike on the same road I took almost daily for 18 years. The only reason I didn't participate myself is the fact that I can't swim. I thought seriously about taking some lessons this past winter but I didn't figure I could get good enough to feel comfortable swimming a mile in a lake in time before the event and I just didn't have time to train like I needed to for the bike and the run with all the other things I had going on. This would have required pretty serious training for most anyone, especially an old duffer like me.

Check out the photos at Surly's gallery - he's getting to be a pretty good sport's photographer. While you're there, might as well order a couple of photos before he gets too famous and you can't afford him any more.

Zombies & More

We hosted a couple of actors at the gym the other day for the filming of a zombie movie, in case you haven't checked out the boxing club link lately. I didn't take a camera along, like the big doofus that I can often be, but Surly shot a mess of photos the previous day at a different location. You can check them out at his Smug Mug site. They're pretty cool - order a couple of prints for the garage or workshop. While you're ordering, might as well get a couple of the fight photos as well.

School's officially over for the year. I have to go in on Monday to do some work and my official check-out but year #34 is in the books. I've had some ups and downs over the years but the last three months have probably been the worst, at least from the standpoint of how management has mistreated people. They've poisoned the waters to the extent things will never be right, at least in the few remaining years I plan on working. Damn shame how they've managed to screw things up in such a short time. My thanks goes out to our union president and all the rest of the membership who've been fighting this uphill battle.

It's all systems go for next week's departure for Shop Teacher Bob's Big Summer Adventure. 350 miles on the bicycle pulling my trailer and camping along the way. Don't know how many blog posts I'll be able to put up while I'm gone - probably none - but I'll be sure to get some things posted as soon as I return. I'll get something up prior to my departure as well. I'm sure that will ease the minds of all of you loyal readers.

Enjoy the weekend.