Cough, sniffel, yuk!

Once again all I seem to have gotten sick, actually, I probably was never really over it in the first place and for some reason it is trying to come back and effect my right ear! Damn it, I say! So I got some meds and started taking them yesterday. As for training, well, it has been very little. I got a 4 mile run in on Monday and was planning on hitting 8 on Weds but that didn't happen. So now only 11 days out from the run and flyn out next weds this sucks and makes me a little nervous as far as my run ability. I mean, I feel I have done the distance but it has been a few weeks ago so with being sick just makes me wonder how my run will go, although, I am not going to set any records, just run and see what happens and have tons o fun! Vegas will also be a time to have some fun! My parents live there so along with 8 other family members, oh which, 6 have never been to Vegas, we are going to have some fun and sight see as much as possible. My brother in-law, Gerado, is a huge Roller coaster freak, as I am, so we will be hitting all those over the week, pics to come following. As for now, it's take my meds, get some rest and just relax. I guess I can increase my reading over the next week. Have a great day all.!! Allez, keep working on that knee!!

Running and Toys for Tots ride..

Yesterday was great motorcycle ride for Toys for Tots sponsored by the Blue Knights Galveston chapter. These guys really know how to put on a motorcycle event which totally helps kids! The ride started from Hooters at Nasa Road One on I-45 and went down to The Spot on Galveston seawall.

The ride was very well organized from the aligning of the bikes, to easy registration, to totally blocking all exits on I-45 all the way down to Galveston for all the motorcycles. There were about 350 bikers which strung out for about 3 miles going down the highway, way cool! Here are a few pictures from the ride. A few friends to hang out with and the local Doggy Bar, cant forget about Fido!

So a great big Thank you to the Blue Knights for a Wonderful Toys for Tots Ride! Can't wait till next year!

Now for Today's running. I was able to get 4 miles in without any problems! I still feel stuff but no other problems so running the 4 miles was the start of my last 2 weeks till the Las Vegas 1/2 Marathon. The end of this week it is going to get colder here so I am planning on getting my last long run during the week and just keeping a few shorter runs during the next week.

Gald to hear Allez you are getting better with that pesky knee problem, hang in there and hope to see ya in H-town!

Rockon`

Weekend update.

Well I am finally feeling better, although at times my nose is still congested and makes it difficult to breath but otherwise I feel much better. I still have not ran, since last Saturday. I just didn't want to add stress while trying to recover. So basically I have 14 days left so I will get probably one 10 miler in between now and then and few 6's and 8's and I should be good to go.

What unseasonable weather we are having in late November. It's nice because it makes riding the VTX mush more enjoyable. I rode up to conroe to take a look at a new chiropractic office that is on the market. It was a great ride during the afternoon.

Today, Saturday I am feeling better again with less coughing and stuffiness but not 100%. I will give my self 2 more days and then start back running on Monday.

As for the rest of the weekend tomorrow is a Toy for Tots motorcycle ride down to Galveston. Should be a great ride with about 200-300 riders.

Have a great Saturday! Rockon`

What day is it? Black Wednesday they say..

As my daughter prepares to fly out with her dad and grandparents on this Black Wednesday (that's what the airline people call it) I realize that I will miss her this year for the Thanksgiving holiday. I mean I knew I was going to miss her but saying bye this morning was more of a reality that I felt deep inside that I will not see her during this time, as she will be back on Monday. I have been in her life and her in mine for the last 5 years and seeing her grow up and come into age of a young teenage women is such a wonderful thing to be Thankful for this year!

She has her whole life ahead of her and it's nice to be a part of it and help in her grown process.

I went to court this morning for my 1st traffic citation, yes, I got another about 2 weeks after the first one. So I hired an attorney and went to court this morning where a really nice lady from the law firm named Patty spoke with me and informed me of my options. As I choose to wait it out, which was totally boring for 2 1/2 hours, Patty came back around and told me that the officer was going to dismiss the case but it would have to be reset for another court date, Sounds great to me and beats paying the $195 for 3 months probation. So next court date is April 30, 2007! WTF!... No hurry, huh?

As I get back to the office I see some patients, close out some files and then it's all quite for lunch. My Chinese fortune says "The smart thing is to prepare for the unexpected" Very true.

Well I want to wish Allez, Steven, Wil, Jill, Sarah, and Kat and of course all others a HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Tuesday...

So yes, I got another little cold bug, yuk! I took yesterday off and probably will take today off as well and see how I feel tomorrow. I also have to goto court for a traffic ticket tomorrow, bummer, but hope to get it dismissed due to lack of no posted speed limit signs which I have taken pictures of the previous 1.2 miles and there is NO Speed Limit Signs. We shall see how it goes.

Wish Allez good luck today as she goes to the doctor to get her knee checked out. Have a great day all and talk with you later..

Rockon`

(WTF)...12 miles down, yea!

OK, so I got up late on Saturday morning and so I had to change my run time to later on in the afternoon. So at 3 pm I hit the road with my fuel belt full and 3 gels. It was about 72* sunny and just pretty good weather. With 12 on the books I new I was in for about 2 1/2 hours of running so starting off easy was the key and keeping it steady was the goal. After 3 miles my heart rate was already pushing Zone 3 levels which I did not want so early in the run. I had to attribute the higher HR to the warmer temperature and probably starting a little too fast, so I slowed down and searched for the shade as much as possible. This seemed to help over the next 3 miles as I was able to keep in Z2. Somewhere around mile 6 my right thigh became really tight and I could feel it with every step. I stretched it a few times but knew it was not going to relax so I kept running. As the sun kept shining it felt a little harder to run being as the temps I have been running in have been in the 50-60's so I kept hydrating at all the water stops along the route. As I made the turn around and headed back I was feeling very hungry! Damn, I wanted some food! Only gels and Gatorade were on the menu. After the turn around the sun began to go down and the temperature began to drop which was great and I noticed my HR that had been bouncing between Z3-Z2 was staying at the top of Z2. At mile 10 I passed Starbucks and seriously wanted to go in and grab something to eat but I didn't have no cash on me and I only had 2 miles left so I kept going. At the end of the 12 miles rolling in at 2 hours and 18 mins I felt good just freakn' hungry! I grabbed a protein bar and drank some water, stretched, changed clothes and headed home.

Sunday we had a great family dinner, an early Thanksgiving for my daughter Brittany who will be out of town on Thursday with her grandparents. The dinner was great with Turkey and all the stuff that goes with it, totally Yummy! BTW, I cooked the 20 lb turkey with butter, lemon pepper, garlic salt and powered and 1 CORONA beer! HAHA, sunk that in with no one looking, oh wait, no one was freakn away when I started cooking the bird! haha. It came out really good and had nice compliments from the family, believe me, one year I over cooked it and dried it out and they told me about it.

Then I noticed that afternoon that I started feeling a little weird, like a cold coming on again! WTF!!!! I don't have time for this crap. Today, I wake up with clogged nose and scratchy throat! So I hit the local store from some cold medicine, vitamin C and over all multivitamins, took them all at one time too, OD on vits! So my legs feel tight today being as I didn't stretch at all yesterday and will get my run on tomorrow with 4 miles, 6 on Thursday and another 12 on Saturday and then begin my taper for the Las Vegas 1/2.

Hope your knee is feeling better Allez!

Rockon`

The mind can think

It's finally Friday and the weekends here, let's all have a drink and let the good times roll!!! So basically this week I have totally blow off swimming, why? Not really sure why just didn't feel like it, is that a reason? The weather has gotten a little colder which is fine with me and I really don't mind it while running. Tomorrow is my 12 mile run and I plan I getting it in early so it is projected to be in the low 50's, not bad really.

Anyway, the weekend is here and it's time to get the bike out and do a little riding! I have been aimlessly shopping for my exhaust system and the best price, I could almost buy a new tri bike for the same amount! And who said owning a motorcycle was not expensive. It's like starting triathloning without any equipment, no shoes, shorts, bike, helmet, water bottles, etc... you get the point. Once you get most of everything you change things every now and then and it's about the same for a new motorcycle, gotta buy new exhaust and make it louder (loud pipes save lives), back rest for passengers, and some new chrome parts.

As for the rest of thing in life, why is it that when you really think things are moving along they are either really passing you by or not going anywhere? Make sense? As I get older I look to see where I am in my life and where I wanted to be at this age and realize that I either got passed by or never moved. Now most things in life are based on your choices and decisions and those lead to achievements and/or accomplishments. I love life in general and feel we are all very blessed in one way or another and always look to the next chapter, but I wonder if letting life just glide along and write it's own chapter with you in the middle or write the chapter with your life in the middle. OK, so no, I am not going through this mid life crises thing, heck, I'm only 35 and plan on living to a 100 so not even close to mid-life, just things to think about for the future.

As the new year approaches I remember some of the goals I set out for in 2006 and it's sad to say but most were not accomplished. I ask myself why and it only leads to the answer of "lack of follow through" I just plain didn't do what I said I was going to do or started and just didn't finish. So thinking about 2007 I am already going to be planning and working harder to stick to my goals and dreams. I think sometimes our goals/dreams are watered down by the ones closest to us without the realization that they just squashed something you really had in your heart to do, now we can say not to let them get to us but come on, we all now that our loved ones are our harshest critics and we take that criticism very personally and hard. But what about the goals/dreams that I want that can effect others close to use either in a good or bad way. Now good ways are easy because there is no retribution or effect but the bad ones can have all adverse reactions and cause an up roar, so does that mean not to do them? Don't get me wrong I am not trying to be selfish here but just saying for example to all us Triathloners that your spouse said NO MORE TRI's! No swimming, no biking, no running. Then what would you do? (not that this has happened to me just an example, my wife say knock your self out with all that tri stuff) I guess you would need to determine the out come if you didn't stop and then determine if that out come was worth continuing or giving it up, but my point here is, How can you give up something you have always wanted or have been doing or it's been a part of your life or you wanted to start doing? Just don't make sense for one person to not support another in something that is so passionate to them even if you don't agree with it. OK, I could go on and on but just wanted to get that out there and off my chest. I guess I have just been thinking, what else do you do on those long runs and bike rides? Rockon`

Updating a Slackers Blog

Hey all, sorry I have been slacking the last few days, wait, since last Wednesday but since then I have finally got a picture of my new ride, Honda VTX1300C. It's all stock right now but will be adding a back rest, new louder exhaust system (loud pipes save lives) and a new seat. Of course will add more chrome and little things like that. So if Triathloning is not expensive enough I now have something else to help keep me BROKE! Haha. Thank you Lord for providing me with blessings! As for training, I got my long 10 mile run in thanks to some fine tuning from Steven, thanxs bro. As for swimming, I have been totally slacking. Today was a short 3.5 mile run with tomorrow's run planned at 6.5 and Saturdays planned at 12. A big thank you to Jill for the Christina Aguilera music and manning the water station on the route for TNT'ers. The weather is getting ready to turn colder the next few days so it will be interesting as far as runs go. My daughter is going out of town with her fathers grandparents over the Thanksgiving holiday so we are planning an early turkey day this weekend so that should be nice and looking forward to it. Happy Birthday to my brother in-law, Gerado, turning a young 46. This guy is full of life and loves to ride his Honda 750 Aero in heat, cold, snow, rain or shine! Sorry to the UT fans who lost to K-State this past weekend (your just lucky the other boys played so poor or else the score would have been worse) And a BIG Congrads to the Husker for tipping out the Aggies in a 28-27 shoot out. Good thing that 12th man couldn't get the best of the Huskers! Also sorry Steve about your Ducks, what happened? My thoughts and prayers are with you Allez and your Grandpa to recover. Rockon`

Swimming wowes...

So my swim class starts at 7:30 pm M, W, Th. Here's the problem so far. I get off work between 5:30 - 6:00pm, so what the heck do I do for an hour and half. I have been sitting here at the office watching TV, eat dinner and then go but now it has become a bothersome and I find myself not wanting to go. I have learned the swim sets that the coach has me swimming and it has definitely increased my endurance so I know I can continue to swim those on my own. The other thing I noticed is that the Coach has not really worked on my stroke mechanics all that much. I don't really think I am perfect but he said that I would get better with it over time while also learning to increase my endurance, humm. OK, he's the coach. He has given me some corrections but I thought I may have needed more, maybe just my self critique. So if any one has any pointers give me comment. Oh, it only costs $40/month, so it's cheap, but when adding my gym dues of $32/month which has a swimming pool as well it gets costly. I even thought about ending the gym payment but then that means no free weights, cardio equip, and all the stuff 24 hour Sport Fitness's have so that's probably not a great option. Maybe an every other month swimming would be good. The swim class pool is also outdoors, burrr, heated but none the less out doors.

Tomorrow morning its a 6 mile run so gotta get up early and out the door by 4:30 am.

Also got my new bike 2006 Honda VTX1300! Yeah.. needs some accessories and new louder exhaust but all in due time.

Rockon`

Blow your shoes...and new PR's!

Ok, how many of you have gotten caught in the rain and then wet home to blow dry your shoes so you could run the next day? That was me last night. As I got to the park it wasn't even looking like it was going to rain. I changed and hit the trail and about half way through the run it started to rain. As I was running I caught up to this lady named Rachel and her running partner Willie, a toy poodle. Turns out Willie does not like the rain and thinks he is going to melt and began to hold back on the leash. As I got close to them I yelled out "Tell mom to bring you rain gear next time!" Rachel said that he did not like the rain one bit as she picked him up and began to run. I was like wow, running with your poodle, maybe this should be a new event or something. As the rain really began to come down she continued to run next to me and began talking and asking questions about running. As I answered she then put Willie back down and he began to run being as he was already wet and I'm sure his brain was spinning from being jarred up and down as she ran with him. As we continued to run the pace seemed to quicken, not sure it was due to the rain or just talking. At mile 2 I ran a 10:45 and said that was a fast mile for me. Rachel had said that it was amazing how many people were running before it started raining and then all of a sudden the park was cleared with only the few that couldn't make it to there cars fast enough (me) or the diehards (me). I thought about that for a moment and realized that she was right, where the hell was everyone at! Continuing on down the trail loop we were nearing the parking and Rachel said that she was parked on the end and she and Willie were turning off, Thanks for the conversation she shouted, yeah, I replied back, have a great evening. As I continued on I hit mile 3 at 10:05! Which meant my overall time for 3 miles was 31:30! Sweet a PR and in the Rain! Got back to the car, changed and then talked to Coach Lionel who told me that swim class was canceled due to the weather (outside pool).

Got home watched the CMA's and grabbed the blow dryer to begin drying my shoes and inserts so I could run in the morning. Ok, as I am drying me shoes I'm thinking how many others have done this just so they could run again in the morning. I thought, some probably have 2 or more shoes and can let the wet ones dry off, some won't run in the morning cuz there only shoes are wet and others, like me, are blow drying or throwing them in the dryer. Finally, they were dry and off to be I went. At 5am I was up and out the door back to the park. I started running and was feeling really good so my planned run was 6 miles and arriving later than planned I knew I did not have time for the full 6 because I had to get back home, shower, change, and go Vote! All before taking daughter to school. So as I was running my first mile came in 11 mins and thought hey that was quick lets pick up the pace. Mile 2 at 10:39 and mile 3 at 10:09 with a totally of 3 miles in 30:44! WHAT, NO WAY!! another PR!!!!!! Two days in a row! I guess that lay off of two weeks helped.

What a great day! New PR for 3 miles, Voted, and it's sunny! and Picking up my new Motorcycle tonight! Rockon`

LoneStar Rally 2006 Pictures

Family getting ready to leave from Renagades

Raccoon Eyes

Sweet Bikes!

Night Pictures on The Strand.

Day Pictures from The Strand.

Me and Penelope

Rockon`

Training..lows

Ok, people. I have been in a little slump here due to the last weeks food upset stomach problems and then the week before was the cold/sinus thingy so my workouts have been few and slow/low. So this week I am looking to pick things back up as the Las Vegas 1/2 Marathon is only getting closer! I have 5 weeks till race day and although my long run so far has been 11 miles it was about 3 weeks ago and since then my long run has only been 6 miles. Over the next 4 weeks I look to put in an 8, 10, 12, and 10 milers. As for my swimming I am back on for swimming tonight! Awesome!

Have a great Monday!!!

End of the Long Weekend!

I'm actually glad the weekend is over. I need to go back to work to get some rest, whew! The LoneStar Rally Galveston was a total blast. Will post some pics and my recap later, and my new sunburn racoon eyes look! I'm off to bed. Later..

LoneStar Bike Rally Galveston

Yesterday the official start of the Lone Star Rally in Galveston kicked off. It was windy and a little cool out but that didn't stop 10,000+ motorcyclists to start heading that way. There are expecting 300,000 motorcycles this weekend which makes it larger than Galveston Mardi Gra or any other event they hold in G-town. I will take pictures and post next week. But I must admit something that I didn't think would ever happen. I met this lady yesterday and something about her sparked my eye. As I looked at her I was very aroused by her shape. I mean, it wasn't something that most of us haven't seen before but it was something new and she just stood out. I tried not to stare but just couldn't help myself and knew that if looks were words, I would be in trouble. I thought my wife would totally kill me if she saw me looking at another women the way I was and I wouldn't blame her but I couldn't help it. As she looked back at me she smiled and just kinda blew me off as she knew her personality was in control. I mean, what was I supposed to do, it was like I was in a trance or something. Anyway, after my friend, Tony, introduced me to Penelope, I was a little more nervous than not knowing who she was but as my friend said, hey, get to know her because she is fun to be with and can take care of you if you watch out for her. I kinda thought he was talking about something else the way he said it but didn't let it bother me. After standing there and talking with Tony while Penelope was being quite he told me to go ahead and touch her, that it would be ok. Now wait a minute! I thought. You don't go and ask a married man to be touching another lady unless theres trouble to be getting into and I was not looking for trouble but also knew I could not resist touching her as she just looked so smooth, her skin shinned in the sun and was there just acting like she was inviting me. I wanted to touch all over but knew touching around the rear would get me in trouble very fast but what the Hell, If your gonna go down, Go Down Swinging! I leaned over and touched her back, she just stood there, no movement or noises as I expected but being as she was sitting there quietly I understood her response. As I walked around to the other side of her Tony leaned over and said go ahead as me pointed towards her. I said again to myself, damn it, I can't believe this is her and he's so open and trusting me, let alone her. As I finally talked myself out of being nervous and decided this was it, I was going to make my move but it had to be quick and without hesitation. BAM! I did it! I swung my leg over her as she sat there and sat down quickly! AGGHHHH! She felt nice, warm, comfortable and fit me just like you want a lady to. I was finally sitting with Penelope, Tony's 2002 Harley Davidson Road King Custom! And it felt great! ( Hey, what were all you thinkn`!!) This is the beautiful bike Tony, aka, TIDO, is lending me for the Rally as my new bike is not ready. After a few details about Penelope we started her up, let her warm up and we rode off together. I was still nervous but I was able to take control after a while and as 2 became 1 we felt great together. I rode home and tucked her away and this morning we were back out in the 50* cold running down the highway! As the weekend goes we will share many miles together and will take pictures of her. Have a great super weekend!!! Rockon

My IronStar Race Re-Cap.

OK, Finally up and working at the house so here is my race recap. The IronStar Triathlon was held in Conroe, TX at the Del Lago Resort. Its a nice place with a beach area, sand volleyball, kids area, and just plain nice. As I headed out from my house at 5am to be there by 6:30am it was a great cool morning. As I approached Conroe I began to see several cars carrying tri bikes so it was easy to follow and find the place. Arriving there it was still dark and many athletes were getting there bikes, equipment and inflating tires. I headed over to the volunteer check in area, got my cool t-shirt which said IronStar Crew. I met with Greg, super busy guy, he was all over the race area the whole day never standing still for one second, Great Job Grey! I was then whisked over to help with chip timing hand out. It was pretty cool, ask athletes for there race number, find it on the board, tell them to check it in at the table. There was a line about 25 yards and about 4 other crew vols helping out. Next thing I know the race director rolled by and said 30 mins till race start and there was about a 100 yard line! Holy crap I thought. I surly did not want to be the one to cause an athlete to miss the start because we couldn't hand out some chips. Then about 4 nice ladies showed up to help, I explained to them what to do and we started rockin` it! I think I even totally surprised some racers as I saw there body markings and pulled there chip before they even got there, sweet! OK, so we got everyone finished and then headed over to the starting line to watch the gun go off. Different age groups are marked with different colored swim caps. After the swim start I was told that I would be helping with wet suit stripping and the racers would be coming through in about 25 mins so be ready. I staged myself with the other fun ladies that were helping with the chips and 2 other guys, there was 6 of us. One of the guys had done this before and instructed us on what to do. Easy. Grab the suit from the waist and pull down past the hips, have racer sit down on there butt, lay back and lift there hips and legs in the air; grab the wet suit and pull really hard and fast!! Wham, it comes flying right off! Most of the time. I really felt like a cowboy performing the calf roping! As the racers started to come in it was yell and shout for wet suits!, need help with your wet suits! During this time you become totally wet. My jeans and shirts were totally wet! It's a really cool part to do and would highly recommended if you get the chance, it does take a little pulling but its so worth it! I think people watching have a great time watching us Strippers! After that and everyone was on the bike course it was just hanging around, change clothes (yes, take some extra clothes, esp, if your a stripper) get something to eat and wait. I asked if anything else needed help with and was told everything was good. I then just watched as the leaders came in from the bike and headed out to the run. I took some pictures and then after everyone was out on the run course I headed home. As I rode out of the resort the run course is on the local road. Oops, sorry to the 3 runners I scared as I allowed to make my turn but was not really directed which lane to proceed to and drove right on to the RUN Course! Yikes! I immediately saw 3 runners and I darted in between the cones but was stopped by a road director because a car was behind me, hey, I saw the other car but HELLO, I WAS ON THE COURSE! I was more worried about the runners than the other car as I figured they would see what I did and stop. Anyway, got back on the road and took some pictures as I road by. Overall, it was a great day and was happy to volunteer! I actually forward to participating in the race next year and special thanks to Jill and Trey for the shout outs at the race. (Trey was actually next to me in the wet suit stripping arena when he saw me and said Johnny, hey, its Trey! I yelled back, Trey, good job, have a great bike!) I even took a fun picture of my at the end of while I was driving (I was far away from the course by this time, fyi..) Rockon`...

A Day above the Rest.

Its nice to be alive. After going through a day of totally feeling bad from eating something not cooked so well, (to my own fault) I have recovered and am feeling good today. Its amazing how our bodies work and don't work with certain foods. As IM Able stated in the comments, "our bodies are so very good at reminding us who is boss."

As I realize its nice to alive no matter how you feel. I deal with certain patients throughout the day that are really down because of there injuries and there lack of abilities to perform daily activities and I always have to comment to them that things could be worse. Living and enjoying family and friends despite the injury to these patients is something to look forward to every day. Most are optimistic and do realize that things in there lives are better than what they give it credit for.

Today, I will attempt to go swimming tonight being as I feel much better. The weekend is coming and this weekend's plans include my daughters homecoming dance on Saturday and the start of the LoneStar Motorcycle weekend. It looks as if I will be getting my new two wheeled motorcycle to be picked up on Saturday but I will also be borrowing a friend/patent's motorcycle for a couple of days as well. Tido, is a great guy and will post more on him and his out standing personality and motorcycle once I get some pictures.

I have received information from AT&T that my house phone is working and that means I can now post the pictures for the Ironstar wet suit stripping fiasco!

Have a great day all!!

Rockon`