So It Goes, So It Was Meant to Go

Off To A Slower Start

The ride to the PSPS has not yet been repeated. Warmer, though breezy weather, has been promised for this coming week, however. It's early in the season, and this is not likely to be a record setting year. I'm surprisingly good with that.
I don't ride a lot on weekends, especially on those when the COTU visit us. I have discovered that I need to ration my energy as I creak into old age, so I save it to do things with them. Still, I felt the itch to ride this morning, and though my window of opportunity was small, it was a nice ride. Cold, however. But extra socks and warmer gloves and a shorter ride meant that I was comfortable the whole way.
We just have the two lakes here, the big one and the small one. This is the small one, and it has been free of ice for quite a while. There's a small trend shaping up that I am trying to nip in the bud .... I rode fewer miles in February than I did in January. And if I don't get in at least one more ride between now and Wednesday, I will ride fewer miles in March than I did in February. At this rate, summer will arrive and I will have no legs. (Not literally, of course.) Today's ride puts me within single digits of February, and within low double digits of January's miles.

Spring Rides

There is no substitute for fitness. And my biking fitness right now is very low, after more than three months with very little biking. Lower than at the end of November, without question. Legs, cardio, lungs. None of them were conditioned for a ride to the PSPS. Sadly, the only way I know of to get them conditioned for a ride there is to ride there. And ride there. And ride there.
Three times usually about does it. It was a beautiful day, in a not quite 50 degrees sort of way. For March in Michigan, this was about as good as it gets. I was a little under dressed, and got a bit chilled on the way home, but no harm was done. I figure that I probably burned a couple of extra calories shivering.
The sun isn't as high in the sky here as it is in Florida (DUH), and even in the early afternoon the shadows between the tree line and the blueberry field were still long and interesting. It's not unusual for March rides to be both cold and hard, and this one was no exception. And fun. Did I mention fun? Out and back to the PSPS. A classic ride.

First Sunday in Spring

The COTU and I checked out the beach this morning. The big blue house is an attention getter, but very attractive. I haven't seen the inside of it lately, but I've been promised a tour of it this week.

The beach has more sand than it did the last time I was out there. February is the month where the lake typically has the lowest water level in a normal year, according to TOPWLH.

The wind off the water was cold, but there isn't any ice on this side of the big lake. Another sure sign of spring.

Signs of Spring

I planted a few crocus bulbs in my front yard about 20 years ago, and every year they let me know when spring has arrived. Today was that day for this year.
I took the Elite for a short ride today, trying to adjust to temperatures in the low 50's. I haven't ridden in temperatures this cold in quite a while -- except for those two times in January and those other two in February. I was a trifle overdressed today -- Gortex is amazing stuff. Good base layers make a difference. A balaclava works quite well to keep my head and face warm. Wool socks are great. Those mid weight Body Geometry gloves are remarkable, too. As someone .... I forget who .... once said, there's no such thing as too cold to ride. Just inadequate gear. Today I had adequate gear.

We Need to Rethink the Singing Rule

It was the second sunny, windy day in a row, with temperatures in the low 70's. I showed the 'kids' the official one mile walk out my front door, then left them to 'rinse, repeat' after the first lap. Tula collected what might well be the first 'reverse honey' of the season. Instead of being called honey by a waitress or check out person, the typical insult that all of us geezers learn to live with here, she was called honey by an old person. As in, honey, you must not be from here. It's too cold to be outside without a jacket. (It was about 67 degrees at the time.) They are both still insisting that it is plenty warm here. High today, 74 degrees.
Since this was a Spring Training trip for them, a trip to the ballpark seemed necessary, though today was a lay day for the Rays. (Do they call it that in baseball?) We checked out the team store at the stadium while we were there. (Closed circuit to GZ: the only Stone Crab caps were of a stiff material, not what I thought you wanted at all, so I didn't get one.) We spent a little time wandering around the stadium, going in through the gate that appears to be pretty much always open along the first base line. There was a guard at the gate to the practice fields, however, so we didn't get to walk down that way.
Ponce de Leon Park and the Peace River Wildlife Center were last on the list of local attractions we explored this afternoon. The hermit crabs were active along the mangrove swamp walkway, and there were a few big boats and soaring pelicans riding the wind currents above the waterway. We arrived at the Wildlife Center just as they were putting away the resident pelicans prior to closing up at 4 pm -- none of them can fly due to injuries, so they need protection overnight from bobcats and raccoons, we were told. There were a couple of sandhill cranes in the big fenced in area -- I don't remember them from previous trips there, possibly they were visitors, maybe they were permanent residents of the sanctuary. A & T are currently practicing their vocal renditions of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" in anticipation of their trip to Ft. Myers tomorrow to watch the Twins play at Hammond field in Ft. Myers. I think Andy gets his singing DNA from Dad. Perhaps the "No Singing At The Table" rule needs to be expanded.

Just Kids

Some youngish people showed up today, lowering the average age of the population of Charlotte County by at least a bit. Bright sunshine and the usual breezy conditions didn't make for the most flattering of photos, but this was the only one I took that had water in the background. At the Port Charlotte beach.
They are typical Minnesotans -- they seemed to think that 72 degrees was okay, even warm.
It was just a quick tour, but I wanted to include the Banyan Tree in Punta Gorda -- mostly because it is the favorite spot of the COTU. These kids liked it, too.
We ate supper at The Fish Market in Fishermen's Village, where they admired the handrails on the handrails at the entrance. As John got up to leave he said, "I'll go to the car, you bring the kids." Florida. It ain't just for old people.

The 'Dry' Season

The rainy season in Florida typically lasts about 5 months, from June until the first of November, according to NOAA. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.) The irony of the fact that NOAA is pronounced 'Noah' is not lost on me, by the way. It seems that this year's rainy season has arrived early. A couple of inches of rain have fallen here already today (late edit: the evening news reports 6 inches of rain today in Punta Gorda), and it isn't done yet. It has even been raining inside my porch. Just a little wind driven rain, no leaks or anything. It is less than 10 degrees warmer here than it is at home, which I take to be a sign of something. I'm not quite sure what.
I spent some of the day doing laundry, and washed up all of my bike gear. It really hasn't been worn much -- I have done minimal biking down here this year. Maybe if I'd brought along warmer gear I'd have ridden more -- I'm not sure. I occasionally like to bike in what I call 'the elements' but mostly I am a fair weather biker, and there's not been a lot of fair weather here since mid December.
But clean bike gear is a good thing, and I can now decide what to leave here and what to take home. I did take a nice ride earlier this week, and took this picture up near Jimmy's Grill of some flowers that have recovered from the January freeze and are blooming again. Maybe all the rain has helped. A last bicycling note -- my bike log has a few entries in it for every month so far this year, so there are no zero mileage months in my records since January of 2004. I'll hang on to that one as long as I can --

COTU

The COTU spent the past weekend visiting family on their Dad's side of the family, thanks to Ted's cousin Patti. Thanks also to Patti for these photos, which she took.
She looks like she is having some serious fun, doesn't she? (The date on the photo is misleading, it was taken either Saturday or Sunday.)
I believe chickens were involved. I am seriously glad that I didn't have to do his laundry. Seriously. Really, seriously.
The wife of one of Ted's cousins (I think I have that right) gives riding lessons. Both kids got their horse to trot. They've loved riding since a trip to the Double JJ ranch about 2 years ago.
They both look pretty comfortable on a horse, don't they? I am glad they had so much fun. Thanks again for the photos, Patti.

Monday -- Beach

Ollie's Pond Revisited

Earlier this week TT and I visited Ollie's Pond Park, and walked around it twice. We each blogged about it, TT's is here and mine is here. I revisited the pond today on my bike because we were uncertain how far it was around it -- it was even a subject of the conversation we had with the other visitors to that spot on that day. The path is crushed gravel and seashells, not a good surface for riding a road bike, but I was determined to do it anyway. (The path around the pond is just a little over 1 mile long.)

It also seemed that a photo of the actual pond was missing from the earlier reports, so I took some today, starting with the north end of the pond, looking south from the parking lot. It's pretty scummy looking. With no obvious inlet or outlet, I imagine it is a breeding ground for mosquitoes in the summertime. Still, I like the pond -- a little bit of 'nature' in the middle of a mostly urban setting is a relief to my senses, I think.
Ducks of an undetermined type were hanging out there today, as they were when I was there with TT. This photo was taken from the south end of the pond -- the path mainly runs through what passes for woods around here. Somehow palm trees and Spanish moss don't say 'forest' to my northern eyes.
It is a better walking path than it is a biking path, obviously. Another interesting (?) tidbit of biking here is that this pond is probably only about 3 miles from the house, maybe less. But because of the waterway system and my desire to avoid as much as possible the high volume of traffic on those streets that have bridges over the waterways, my ride over to, around and back from Ollie Pond Park was 15.5 miles. I'm a little knackered.

Boys Of ...... Summer?

I have very little real interest in baseball, but it was a passion of my Father's, and I grew up with more than just a middling knowledge of the game. I remember that a trip to spring training was on his bucket list, so when I have a chance to go, I go. I don't think that the spring training that he envisioned was quite the same as the way it is done these days. The high paid talent expects, and gets, the best facilities money can buy -- even for their training camp.
We arrived early for the game -- last year we got stuck in traffic for nearly an hour and missed the opening pitch. Today we watched the batting practice before the game, and the preparation of the field. Apparently it takes 5 men to hold the hose while wetting down the newly raked red earth.
A young man named Longoria was popular with the crowd. He got a nice hit on his second at bat.
Except for four girls in Hooters uniforms (????) the crowd was bundled up to ward off the chill. We ate some ballpark food, and the man serving up TT's sandwich said that he was expecting snow. I think -- but am not certain -- that he was kidding. Frost and freeze warnings are in effect -- again -- for inland areas tonight. Might as well go home.

Twice Around the Lake

Not at all intimidated by winds blowing at 25, gusting to over 30 mph, we continued our search for a new place to walk. Ollie Pond is not really a lake, and we met the same four people 3 times as we walked around the lake twice. It was marginally pleasant, and so were the other four people. I almost felt like I knew them by the time we left. They were also bundled up and we exchanged good natured grumbling about the wind and the weather. Outside is good. Warm would be even better. And the wind is just getting ridiculous.

Whining Continues

Rain, wind. Supper.

Charlotte County Stadium

If you've got a minute, check out OSLO's blog, and the new piece of art work that the girl COTU brought home from school today. I know that Grandparents are well known for gushing over the accomplishments of their gene pool, but I believe the girl has talent.

Today featured a trip over to the Tampa Ray's spring training ball park. The first home game is Thursday, and we purchased tickets -- along the third base line, about 10 rows up. The field looks to be in pretty good shape.
I didn't see any ball players, but we nosed around a bit anyway. We checked out the practice fields and the batting cages.
And the texture of the red sand. (I'm fairly frightened of that shadow like creature at TT's feet. It looks fairly gatorish.)