DRAG RACES, SHORT SLEEVES, & SOME STARS.

International sign for "YOU WANT TO RACE?!" (hands in the drops)

Brian 3
Matt 0
Carey 0

Who wants some?!

Some sprints were to be had last night on the way home and Brain by far was the superstar! I forgot to mention that on Monday Matt killed me on his Sojourn which was weighted down with his panniers; I don't think I have a future in sprinting but I will keep trying!

Right be fore we took off from work my new "commuter" the XXIX had a flat in the rear - so I had to change pedals and ride my Prestige...darn!


Brian was so happy that it was +60 degrees out last evening he thought he would document his joy. I think his collar was a little excited as well.

This was not staged...there must have been a ghost that slid our bags out of alignment on the trail so we had to re-adjust.

Nice...a short sleeve Twin Six jersey on October 23rd - pretty sweet.

We stopped in Georgetown and met up with my husband and a couple evening beverages...this was sitting next to our table. It's probably used as a bean bag toss or something...we thought our faces fit nicely in the stars.

The sun has set time to cruise home.

THIS MORNING:


BLURRY, BLURRY, BLURRY.

The morning was overcast, the light was low, a headwind kept us from advancing at a rapid pace, and Brian got the Magnum PI song caught in our heads.



ENJOY!

THE TALLY:

FIRE IN THE SKY, EMBERS IN THE TREES, & FENDERS ON OUR WHEELS

{words carey images carey& brian}

Ahh...finally we are back on the streets of Seattle, South Park, Georgetown, Tukwilla, and Kent. Interbike has come and gone and Brian's 2 week mountain biking hiatus has ended; what next to do, but get back into the ceremony of riding to Raleigh every morning and riding home every evening.

We left Seattle three weeks ago wearing tank tops and shorts; now we are back and the weather is asking for gloves, chrome knickers, taller socks, soft shell uppers, fenders, and bright lights.

Fall has arrived and I must admit I am thoroughly stoked. How can you not be stoked when the leaves of the trees you have passed all summer are starting to dress themselves in oranges, yellows, and reds? How can you not be stoked about the chilly weather that makes that triple shot americano taste better than it ever has? How can you not be stocked that pumpkins, ghosts, Christmas lights, and rabbits are going to litter the streets? And how can you not be stocked to put your Cat Eye Triple Shot on your bike so you can roll through the silent darkness of a winter morning? To say the least I am excited for a winter of riding; not only to work but in the mountains and around the roads of Washington.

Here are some pictures of us welcoming in the colors, smells, and temperatures of fall/winter.

{CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE}

Morning Blur - 6:30am

10 minutes later I was greeting with fire in the sky!

I told you Ghosts were starting to come out.

Trees around the bend.



Grabbing gloves on the run - a bit chilly out there.

Brian keeping the fun between his legs!

PJ rolling.

Matt with the train cars near West Seattle.

Rolling back into the city after work.

Brian came across this gathering of the art pigs in downtown Seattle.

Until - Monday Enjoy the Ride & Enjoy the Fall!

Over and Out.

SIGN JUMPING & A FUGITIVE CHICKEN

"I am thinking of riding in with you tomorrow," Myles (my husband) mentioned last night. "Sure, that would be cool, can you be ready to go out the door at 6am?" I asked. "6AM!" he exclaimed.

So, at 6:15am we mounted our bikes and started out into the drizzle of the morning. It's interesting how you get used to your route and riding with your devoted commuting partner; I kind of forgot Myles had never been on this route before, so the first big transition of crossing 4 lanes of traffic ended up being a bit of an adrenaline boost. I was ready to cross the traffic to access the Duwamish trail but failed to tell Myles. He was forced to cut fairly close in front of an old Honda sedan. Horn blaring, hand raised, and fumbling with his coffee, the driver passed Myles with a contorted look on his face. Myles seems to collect car horn blasts (this being his 3rd of the morning).

After this, the ride was pretty mellow. We did pass a huge sign on the trail that read "Prosser Piano." Myles jumped the 30ft span a couple times, but I only caught his approach on film. The only other oddity before hitting Raleigh was a fugitive chicken pecking about in the trail side grass.

Myles turned around immediately for the trek back to Seattle (a good 50 miles round trip), while I had to put in a full eight hour day before heading home. The ride wasn't too eventful except Matt and I passed the same mystery chicken that Myles and I did in the morning. We stopped to have a chat with him, but he didn't like Matt that much, so I started chattering, "here chicky, chicky, chicky." We zoned out on this chicken for about 10 minutes before realizing that we were staring at a chicken for 10 minutes...what the heck? So, back on the bikes and onward home.

{Here is a little footage of our pecking friend}



Bikes: Carey-single speed Raleigh Professional Myles-Competition Matt - DBR Podium 5

Coffee: I had a whole French Press of Mind Body and Soul blend to myself (it was one of those mornings).

Rant: Riding is infectious - soon your friends will follow.

SNAP SHOTS OF THE WEEK

{click images to enlarge}

Here's a run of snaps that were taken throughout the week - getting 5 work days in on a bicycle is a sure sign that spring has arrived. Enjoy your weekend everyone and if you haven't been over to how to avoid the bummer life or the crooked cog today you should click here.

Until, Monday...

GOLFING IS THE NEW CYCLING FOR MATT & I

{click on images to enlarge}

Some days we don't ride in and on those days we go for a "lunch ride" and Monday was one of those days. Raleigh HQ is located just off the Green River trail, a trail that meanders through the Kent valley which is made up of farmland, golf courses, and industrial parks. Matt and I mounted our cycles at about 11:30am and started to pedal - after about 50 min we must have felt the lack of calories from not eating before we left and thought a game of BOLF or is it GIKE, would be fun to play. I just watched Matt as my One Way was a bit to heavy to follow through with - I guess carbon really is the way to go for this game.

Bikes: Matt - Podium 5 Carey - One Way

30/30

{words by matt}

Why, oh why didn’t I take the day after my 30th birthday off? Because I’m a glutton for punishment, that’s why. Never the less, I made my commitment to ride into work with Carey and I was going to keep it. So with tears in my eyes I headed off Capitol Hill to meet her and head in.

There’s an issue that seems to rear its ugly head when Carey and I ride together, and it showed up again Thursday morning, flat tires. We heard it while traveling down 4th south, that hissing, spitting sound we all dread. “Is that a flat tire?” Carey asked. “No, I think you just rode through some sand.” But I knew better. Stop, fix, get on, go. We hadn’t even made it half a mile when all of the sudden a herd of cats came out of no where and made me crash! Ok, maybe I hallucinated the cats, but I definitely crashed. Brand new bar tape, shredded. Personal pride, shredded. I did come out of it uninjured though.

The remainder of the ride went by relatively uneventful, especially as we passed our favorite coffee stand on International Blvd. Big trucks with tinted windows ruin it for all of us.

A successful adventure/commute with a great partner, life is pretty good at 30.

{Raleigh HQ}