The dictionary dictators amongst others define the word gobsmacked the following way…
1 ˈɡäbˌsmakt/
adjective BRITISH informal
adjective: gobsmacked
utterly astonished; astounded.
With reference to being shocked by a blow to the mouth, or to clapping a hand to one’s mouth in astonishment.
Not me, while I have no doubt that is the correct definition, I would amend it to include a second:
For the past couple of weeks, winter has slowly been poking its frozen nose into mid-Michigan. Thankfully, there has been no long-term success. Successful or not, the past week was gray, cold and windy. Christ, I literally hadn’t seen the sun since late last Tuesday afternoon and it was so windy Friday that riding was made impossible, with winds gusting anywhere from 10 to 50+ MPH at times! I am pretty sure I saw a small child blow by the kitchen window at one point.
For the most part, the week was real warm bath and razor blade type weather, and the two days I was able to ride, it took every ounce of mental will power I had to force my jiggling muffin top out the door for a ride. It’s not that conditions were THAT bad, it’s that I am that mentally weak and apathetic.
I once again found the will to get out into the various shades of gray and fecal brown that make up the landscape of a late fall in Michigan to ride my bike for a bit. Today was pretty much the same sort of day as yesterday, except I went a mile or two longer and did a slightly different loop. A good loop, with some nice punchy climbs on loose sand and gravel, but sadly, it was a short loop.
I blathered at length yesterday about the Michigan gray and forcing myself to ride my bike when I would have rather been holed up in bed, snuggled up to the warm, ample bosoms of a red-headed Jezebel and an IV hooked up to a bottle of gin, so I will avoid doing so again today and just post some pics. The photos–like the cattle pic above–pretty much sum up any ride I do on the dirt roads around Michiganderburgh and what I encounter on my rides.
Fall continues to fall and I continue my best efforts to get out and ride when I can. Today I opted for another dirt road ride aboard the Farley fatty since that’s the bike that’s been the most fun to ride on the dirt roads lately. As I mentioned the other day, all I am really riding for now is to maintain enough fitness to do a few fat bike races this winter and to avoid becoming a complete slob (which some might say I am one meatball away from becoming).
After Saturday’s less than good ride at Hanson Hills, I found myself off the bike for two days. Family stuff, an away soccer match for B-Man and a doctor’s appointment, amongst other things, got in the way. Oh well, the only thing I’m “training” for right now is to not be the fattest guy on my block.
Last week was sort of shit for riding. High wind and rain were the biggest factor, fallowed by family activities and ongoing general mental malaise. I did get out for a bit on Saturday up at Hanson Hills. It wasn’t quite what I was hoping for, but it was something, and something is better than nothing.
I knew this week wouldn’t bring much riding and I was right, until it did.
My plan on Friday was to drive a bit up north to ride some seasonal roads, snowmobile trails and ORV roads on the fat bike before hard core, shoot everything that moves, firearm deer season starts next month. As of now, all I have to worry about is an arrow hurling through the air and plunging into my chest, I can live with that (or die like that).
I’ve done this ride three or four times before and have been pushing a bit further in my exploration each time. I didn’t push as far distance wise this time, but I did explore a bit more.
At this time in my life, I would never dare say that what I do on a bike is “intense,” “epic,” or the most overused word in the modern day cyclist’s lexicon– “rad.” However, I do usually have a loose plan for what I want to do. Most of my rides are based on time in the saddle (but usually by how much time I have), while others are merely based on a desired loop or the amount of miles I want to cover. What I rarely do is just putz around. What I mean by “putz around” is to ride without a planned route or set goal. I also rarely ride the trails of Deerfield Park, a local county park just a few minutes by car from my house. Today though, I not only putzed around, I putzed around on a bike at Deerfield Park.
I was able to get out for a short ride in between the rain drops, hail stones and gusting winds on Saturday morning. Ma Nature, was throwing everything she had–short of snow–at Michiganderburgh and I really have no idea how I managed to ride for over an hour without getting soaked or blown across the lake to Wisconsin.
