Sunday Ride

Luckily the rain held off and I was able to get another ride today. To pay tribute to today's Giro state which finished on the infamous Zoncolan I thought maybe I would add a few of the local climbs to my ride. My original plan was to cut through the New Britain reservoir and take in the Hubbard Park climb on my way home. On the way, I had to go over this little bear of a climb on Shuttle Meadow Rd. Based on the Garmin output, it was only about 350 feet high, but the maximum grade was somewhere around 18%. I should have know it was steep since I was in my 25 and almost fell over from lack of speed. After that climb, I realized that I'm not ready for any serious climbing and found the easiest route home. That climb may have been a mistake and if I see any blood tomorrow I may know why. At about two hours, it was another good ride. I need to take things slowly and hopefully I can add some more miles in next week. I'll be in Rhode Island with the family, so hopefully I can find some good routes.

Saturday Ride

Today's ride was the longest ride time-wise I have done since my previous illness. I managed to get 2+ hours. I ended up doing a southern loop that took me to East Rock Park in East Haven. The climb into the park is short, but there is one short "steep" section that even has a switchback. The views of New Haven at the top are great. I'll have to take a camera next time.

Thursday Ride and Remicade

I thought I'd update the blog while I have a few minutes waiting for my loss prediction model to run.

I was able to sneak out for an early morning ride on Thursday before my visit to Yale-New Haven for my third Remicade infusion. This is the last of my "loading" infusions and now I only have to go back every eight weeks. It's not too bad - even though I'm stuck in this room full of nurses for about three hours. I was able to watch "The Time Traveler's Wife" on my IPod and the end of the Giro stage on the flat screen. I was surprised they had Universal Sports considering they didn't even have ESPN. It was actually kind of funny since I had to give an introductory course on racing to the entire nursing staff. Phillip, the other guy that's on the same infusion schedule as me, I think slept the whole time. He was even snoring at times. He was telling me that he doesn't sleep well thanks to his chrons, so I guess you might as well take advantage of the situation when you can. I've been feeling better so I hope this stuff is working. After that, I spent the afternoon planting pacysandra, having the septic tank pumped, and getting an estimate on a new fence for the yard. I even had the car serviced. I LOVE the Audi but they are VERY VERY expensive to service. It was a busy day to say the least.

As for the ride, I did one my typical loops. I usually refer to this as my ESPN loop since it takes me right by their campus.










Looks like my model is done. Time to get back to work!!!

Subway and Weekend Rides

With the great weather, I was able to get out this weekend for a couple rides. 1:50 on Saturday and 1:40 on Sunday. My Saturday ride is the longest ride I've done since March 7. Depending on my health, I hope to add some distance in the future. I've been feeling great the last few days, so hopefully the worse is behind me. But, as most people with UC know, things can go downhill quickly for no certain reason. So I will just keep my fingers crossed and move on with my life. I could definitely tell that my legs were coming back on Sunday. I just don't want to get too excited because it seems like every time I feel great, I usually end up taking a step backwards.

I was so bored that I google earthed my Saturday ride. Here is the image. I probably would have done the same with my Sunday ride, but the Garmin went out 5 minutes into the ride so all data was lost.










As for Subway, I'm not sure I will be eating there anytime soon. On Friday, I had to run some errands at lunch so I grabbed a sub while I was out. It was a "roasted chicken breast" with spinach, tomatoes, onions, pickles, and cucumbers. I've heard that the "roasted chicken breast" is not actually breast meat. Some people claim it's not even chicken. I'm sure it's chicken, but it just may not be the best part of the bird. If you're really bored, do a google search and you will find TONS of "experts" claiming it's not real. Anyway, I thought the sub did taste a little strange, but I was so hungry that I decided to finish it nonetheless. Well, at about 1am that night, I had my answer. There must have been something wrong because I blew that thing right out. At first I was worried that my UC was acting up, but luckily it was just the sub. I was back to normal by the next morning. I guess I should have known better than to buy from a Subway located in a Walmart. Ugh!!!

On the road again...

It was great to finally get in some road rides this weekend. The weather was perfect so I couldn't just sit around the house all day. I went out for about 1.5 hours each day. I know it's not much, but it was the 1st time I was on the road since Bethel #1 (3/7) and all the pancreatitis/UC issues that put me out of commission. I had to take it VERY easy since my health is still somewhat delicate at the moment. I was surprised how high my heart rate was considering how easy I rode. That must be due to multiple issues such as the prednisone (30 mg/day), my anemia, and my general lack of fitness. I just hope things improve as I get in better shape, taper off the roids, and my red blood cells multiply.

On a different subject, this would have been Jiminy Peak weekend. Unfortunately, it was cancelled because of rumble strips added to the shoulders of some of roads used for the course. Let's just hope there is some way this race can come back in the future. Maybe they could come up with a different loop. This has always been one of the most popular races each year and it would be sad to see it end forever.

Smartfood...not so smart!!!

Yesterday, the whole family went to the cabaret theater in Bridgeport for a show. The best part of the show is that you can bring your own food and chow during the show. The guy next to me was even cracking open some Corona's...I never though about bring beers, but I guess it makes sense. My mistake was that I chowed on a ton of Smartfood and Milano cookies - two things that someone with UC should avoid. Popcorn is too much for my digestive track (plus the high fat spray on cheese is not the best thing for you either) and chocolate is basically a laxative. Needless to say, I'm not feeling my best today. I assume those two things have irritated my colon. Things are still somewhat delicate, so anything can set me off. Maybe I'll be able to eat these things in the future when my body is working 100%, but I should definitely avoid them now. Will this UC hell ever end? ;)