Jan 28 - facebook

I finally did it. I setup a facebook account. Perhaps I overdid it ... did a search and added a bunch of friends (those who accepted me that is :) and now have more online blather to contend with.

So ... I spent a chunk of time on Facebook ... and a chunk of time going for a Harley ride. The Harley ride was planned; the Facebook account planned; the Facebook TIME, not. To round out the day I also did some mangrove trimming, so that we can continue to see those sunsets.

I'd planned on riding up to Ormond Beach, following much the same route as I cycle and as I got closer to my turnaround point, decided to continue through Tomoka Park and across Highbridge. Why don't I ever learn ? Although I was dressed warmly, I got chilled. Beyond that, if I don't keep my rides shorter I'm going to have to get a softer seat. The online forums acknowledge that the stock Sportster seat is not something on which you want to take long rides ... my phraseology, not theirs. At one point I slid backwards and upwards onto the passenger pillion, which is much softer, but that's too far back and high for me to sit comfortably. When you get right down to it, my bicycle seat is more comfortable, since I can more easily change positions or stand for a time, during a cycle ride.

It's an interesting route. Although I've ridden it many times, I don't tire of it. Heading north and south along the Intracoastal Waterway there is a lot to see, quiet homes, activity on the water, and little traffic. The ride through the park is peaceful. Visible wildlife in the park is usually limited to birds although I'm sure that there is much more invisible in that swamp. The area is tidal, so the salt water or brackish water doesn't support alligators. These days there are roadkill raccoons everywhere. I've never seen as many as are out there now.

I have not ridden A1A along the beach after Highbridge for quite a while, preferring the quiet along John Anderson by the ICW. I should take advantage of the cooler weather and get those ocean views at this time of year since it's hot along there due to full sun exposure once the winter's over. Yesterday would have been perfect, I suppose, on the Harley, since wind would not be a factor ... oh well, another day.

We skipped fish last night, opting for pork chops -- "the other white meat". We eat pork more than beef and chicken together. We never eat lamb -- Sandy doesn't like it and few meals are without fish or meat altogether. We should branch out and have the occasional vegetarian meal perhaps ...

Today I'm doing a 200k / 125 mile Permanent. When I looked last night the wind was going to be from the south, so I'll simply ride down U.S. 1 to Palm Shores and turn around. There are more interesting routes, but they add lots of bonus miles. The days are short now so I'll try and minimize, if not eliminate, my time riding in the dark. I've had these three Permanents -- north, south and west -- on the books for almost a year now and it's the first time that I've ridden anything other than north. That's not to say that in my daily rides I haven't gone south, just that those days have not coincided with days that I'm ridding a full Permanent.

With this Permanent and once I have all the documentation from last year's rides accumulated (Ontario stuff in the mail) I'll be qualified for my R12 Randonneur medal -- a ride in each of the preceding 12 months. In this case "a ride" means a brevet (200, 300, 400, 600 or 1000) or a Permanent (200) or a 1200 certified by Randonneurs Mondiaux (sp?). I already received my medals for the individual brevets in the U.S. -- 200, 300, 400, 600 plus the SR medal (having ridden each of the foregoing) plus the 5000km medal for 2009. I'll be getting a 1000k medal for the ride around Lake Ontario and I already received the CanAm medal for doing a 1200km ride in both Canada and the U.S. It was a busy year. My total mileage was around 10,000 miles / 16,000 km -- not all credited, since most of my day-to-day rides are not registered rides. Geoff Swarts rang up 17,000+ kms last year in RUSA rides, which would not count the Granite Anvil, so he's well over 18,000 ... way to go Geoff !

Speaking of which, it's time to get dressed. It's still dark out there but sunrise is at 7:15 and by the time I get ready to roll, it will be getting light.

Onward !