Where have I been

 This, is most definitely not like riding a bike. I am not sure that I even remember how to wright right write, but that would imply that I "knew" how in the first place. I might try to recall what I have been doing for the past three, four, five years here in the next few weeks/months, or I will just post pictures. Who knows what is going to happen. I would say "stay tuned" but not sure if there will be anything in the future to tune into. I've made promises in the past that fell flat. 

 So. I will start where I find myself today. Jan 24th. I am on the island of O'ahu, yes that is Hawaii. I know, I know, don't feel bad for me. I am here for the next short/long foreseeable future. There is good and there is bad. This is a very tiny island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. I could reveal what is behind the curtain and tell the dark side to living in a "paradise" or I can stay in the light and be positive. You might get a little of both. We will see.












As you can see from the pictures, it's not a bad place to look at, which it is very easy on the eyes. The weather is a perfect winter. Just imagine your perfect weather, yep that is what I deal with on a daily. Poor me. It does rain, but it is not bad, it's still warm even in a downpour.

 Road riding is good here, it's no Scotland -Maybe I will get to the time I spent there... There is some MTB trials just a few miles from The Bike Shop, where I steal their super nice bikes. That is the name of the shop, hence the capitalization. I only brought over my road bike and my cross bike. The road bike is in my living room, and the cross has seen the lion's share of the riding. The roads are pretty brutal, and there is some pseudo off road that favors the CX bike, AND I have to lock it up in the parking garage. NO BIKES IN THE ELEVATOR -Haters gonna hate. The Rust is real, it is a daily fight the red menace. 

The Roads #polandfromthesadle

 I had the privilege to travel to Poland for two months this summer. I took my bike so that I would not turn into a raving idiotic lunatic. Needless to say, I was able to ride more days than not. Here are some pictures of the Polish roads that I became friends with...

 The area of Poland that I stayed had every imaginable type of road surface, I rode my cross bike fitted with Challenge Paris Roubaix 27s. They measure out to just at 29mm, and they are at home in the dirt, gravel, pavement, and pave. They were great because the roads ranged from buttery smooth to bombed out broken asphalt and everything in between.

 I tried and tried to learn/pronounce the names of the villages that I visited. This is not an easy task, Polish is super hard for me to speak and most assuredly read.

 I don't know why I have such a fascination with cobbles. They are painful. Hard. Rough. But, something about riding them is beautiful. These were put here by the Germans during their occupation in WWII.

 Not much of a gutter for respite. Just put it in the big ring and gut it out, it feels so good when you are finished with a sector like this.

 From farmland to forest and back again, but no elevation change. It is super flat here.

 It may be flat, but it is so beautiful.

Fathe'rs day

This is a day to celebrate the men in our lives that have helped bring us into this world. Some of them have provided, some were absent, and some are gone. These men that we call Dad, Father, Pops, Popi, Sir, are the framework for what we as young men are supposed to be when we grow up. Some good some bad. I was lucky and have a Dad that is a Man among men. I haven't been able to follow in his footsteps, but knowing him has shaped my life more than I really wanted.

In my rebellious teens I did not want to have anything to do with my Dad. I had to work with him, and it wasn't easy. Don't get me wrong, I had a very good life growing up, provided for to the point of being spoiled. Yeah I was/am spoiled. That is the type of man my Dad is. Hard worker, but even harder player.

Then I moved away and was without my Dad. Every job I got was easy, because of the work I did with my Dad it was a breeze. The more I thought about not being like my Day the more I thought about being like him, I realized that I could never be my Dad.

I can never be like my Dad. He has done things that I hope to do, and he has had to do things that I never want to do. My Dad has provided. He helped raise my sister and me, buried a child and both parents, been successful as a businessman in one of the toughest jobs. I could never do these things as well.

My Dad has been there for me throughout my life, success or not, he has always been a constant. I realize I can never be my Dad, and I just want to make him proud. Don't know if there is much of anything I have done to make him proud, but he still loves me because I am his son, and I guess that is what being a Dad is all about.

Happy Father's Day Dad. You have given me the world when I did not deserve it, you were there when I didn't want you, and you are there when I need you. I can never thank you enough for you being you.

I love you.
Glenn

le nord

I got to go to France. And. I took a bike, my bike. How cool is that? Sounds like bragging, I'm pretty sure it is, but how freaking awesome is that? I'm still in disbelief of the whole thing. France. Well, to be more accurate Northern France in the Normandy and Picardie regions. Right on the Channel (or left depending on which way you are standing). I went to Europe last fall and it was awesome (bragging again). I'm not going to say BUT. (but)This time was different because I took my bike, and we stayed in the same place for a week and a half before moving on to Paris and Bruxelles.

I was on my own to explore wherever my legs could take me. I have to say this is the only way to see a new place, whether it be a foreign country or your own neighborhood. The bike is just fast enough that you can go places, but slow enough that you don't miss out on the nuances. I can say that I made a connection with the places I went on bike. The memories seem more tactile. You see, feel, hear and smell the experience. It's sensory usage that imprints greater because more senses are being recorded at the same time. Towns and villages have more character that one can feel by slowing down. The smells of the agriculture, bakeries, fish markets, and the sea are enhanced by the sound and sights that envelop a place.

 I could go on and on, actually I can't. So, I'll let these pictures pile up the thousands and thousands of words. Yes, it was that beautiful, even on the rainy days. Yes, I did imagine riding shoulder to shoulder with the pro peloton, when in France these things happen. I didn't actually get to ride shoulder to shoulder with the pros, but I did see the end of the Tour of Picardie. I did ride next to and behind the pros as they were heading back to the buses. Je t'aime, France, merci