Fun, Fit and 60!

Product Review - Xtensor

If you remember, almost 2 years ago now, I injured my left hand in a a href="http://funfit50.blogspot.com/2008/04/endo.html" id="t4.e" title="bike spill"bike spill/a. I bent my fingers backwards the wrong way and I immediately thought "broken".br /br /Luckily, nothing iwas/i broken although I was in considerable pain for a couple of days and the swelling lasted for weeks, if not months.br /br /Today, although I would say I'm mostly recovered, I can still feel an occasional stiffness in those joints.br /br /Recently, my wife saw this "Xtensor" product in a href="http://www.herringtoncatalog.com/ws139.html" id="vvih" title="Herrington's catalog"Herrington's catalog/a and we decided to try it. The price was $39.95br /br /div id="fap9" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_201spt7htgc_b" style="height: 375px; width: 375px;" //divbr /The same model works on either hand so you only have to buy one even if you want to use it for both hands.br /br /As you can see from the picture, the device consists of a plastic frame with straps around the wrist and a series of latex bands that attach to your fingers and then to mounting slots in the palm.br /br /There are 3 rows of mounting slots to adjust the tension.br /br /I found that it works well, as advertised, and I do believe it has helped strengthen my injured fingers and relieved some of the stiffness.br /br /The biggest downside is that the latex bands tend to wear and break rather quickly. The Xtensor comes with lots of extra bands but eventually you will have to buy more if you continue to use it.br /br /I also found that the band for my middle finger tends to work it's way out of the mounting slot after several reps and I need to stop and reset it or it will eventually release and go flying across the room.br /br /The Xtensor comes with a DVD that provides a video demonstrating a variety of exercises as well as how to set up the device.br /br /I would say this is a worthwhile purchase for anyone recovering from a hand injury although I would check with a physical therapist first about your specific situation. In my case, the physical therapist gave me plenty of exercises that I could do without purchasing any special equipment.br /br /This would also probably be good for someone who uses a computer all day or plays a lot of video games.br /br /There is more competitive pricing available if you look around.div class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/7323354418986149123-3192113418823053056?l=funfit50.blogspot.com' alt='' //div

Filed under: Uncategorized  |  Digg! this story.  |  Leave a Comment

Product Review - Xtensor

If you remember, almost 2 years ago now, I injured my left hand in a a href="http://funfit50.blogspot.com/2008/04/endo.html" id="t4.e" title="bike spill"bike spill/a. I bent my fingers backwards the wrong way and I immediately thought "broken".br /br /Luckily, nothing iwas/i broken although I was in considerable pain for a couple of days and the swelling lasted for weeks, if not months.br /br /Today, although I would say I'm mostly recovered, I can still feel an occasional stiffness in those joints.br /br /Recently, my wife saw this "Xtensor" product in a href="http://www.herringtoncatalog.com/ws139.html" id="vvih" title="Herrington's catalog"Herrington's catalog/a and we decided to try it. The price was $39.95br /br /div id="fap9" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_201spt7htgc_b" style="height: 375px; width: 375px;" //divbr /The same model works on either hand so you only have to buy one even if you want to use it for both hands.br /br /As you can see from the picture, the device consists of a plastic frame with straps around the wrist and a series of latex bands that attach to your fingers and then to mounting slots in the palm.br /br /There are 3 rows of mounting slots to adjust the tension.br /br /I found that it works well, as advertised, and I do believe it has helped strengthen my injured fingers and relieved some of the stiffness.br /br /The biggest downside is that the latex bands tend to wear and break rather quickly. The Xtensor comes with lots of extra bands but eventually you will have to buy more if you continue to use it.br /br /I also found that the band for my middle finger tends to work it's way out of the mounting slot after several reps and I need to stop and reset it or it will eventually release and go flying across the room.br /br /The Xtensor comes with a DVD that provides a video demonstrating a variety of exercises as well as how to set up the device.br /br /I would say this is a worthwhile purchase for anyone recovering from a hand injury although I would check with a physical therapist first about your specific situation. In my case, the physical therapist gave me plenty of exercises that I could do without purchasing any special equipment.br /br /This would also probably be good for someone who uses a computer all day or plays a lot of video games.br /br /There is more competitive pricing available if you look around.div class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/7323354418986149123-3192113418823053056?l=funfit50.blogspot.com' alt='' //div

Filed under: Uncategorized  |  Digg! this story.  |  Leave a Comment

The Common Cold is Bad for Your Health!

Well, yeah.br /br /What I mean is, you're not supposed to exercise when you have a cold. So you're not working on your fitness ergo your health.br /br /At least according to this a href="http://www.drmirkin.com/fitness/exercise_with_flu_or_cold.html" id="d7db" title="should I exercise when I have a cold or flu?"article by Dr. Gabe Mirkin/a.br /br /He says "Most doctors allow their patients to exercise when they have a cold, as long as they don't have a fever and their muscles don't hurt when they exercise. However, it's probably better to stop exercising altogether when you have an infection."br /br /I have a cold. I started feeling it on Friday afternoon and today it's full blown.br /br /The last time I came down with a cold, not too long ago, I knocked it out completely in 2 days by totally vegging out. That was on a weekend. I was lucky.br /br /I did go out for a short and easy bike ride yesterday because it was so nice.br /br /The weather has got really sunny and warm. It's killing me to not go out on the bike. I was planning on a hammerfest on Sunday, but it was not to be. I skipped church and slept a good part of the day.br /br /Saturday, took a walk with wife and daughter in a local park. There was still snow on the ground in most places which made it challenging.br /br /Here are some pics:br /div id="hl4u" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_193ckv5d5gr_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /It was tempting me to come back on the x-c skis.br /div id="v_5h" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_194dxbnvhfq_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /Somebody had been out!br /br /div id="nup3" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_195dskwk5d2_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /A canopy of trees!br /div id="jpwa" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_196pwnmc6dc_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /Foot bridgebr /div id="pruk" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_197gbmf8pdj_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /The trail passes by an alpaca farm. Last time we were here, they came right up to us. Today we couldn't get them interested.br /div id="ae5m" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_198crdf2xcd_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /There's that blue sky!br /div id="ffd3" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_199gjrbgpc5_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /See ya later. I'm going back to bed!div class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/7323354418986149123-7008354641116229976?l=funfit50.blogspot.com' alt='' //div

Filed under: Uncategorized  |  Digg! this story.  |  Leave a Comment

The Common Cold is Bad for Your Health!

Well, yeah.br /br /What I mean is, you're not supposed to exercise when you have a cold. So you're not working on your fitness ergo your health.br /br /At least according to this a href="http://www.drmirkin.com/fitness/exercise_with_flu_or_cold.html" id="d7db" title="should I exercise when I have a cold or flu?"article by Dr. Gabe Mirkin/a.br /br /He says "Most doctors allow their patients to exercise when they have a cold, as long as they don't have a fever and their muscles don't hurt when they exercise. However, it's probably better to stop exercising altogether when you have an infection."br /br /I have a cold. I started feeling it on Friday afternoon and today it's full blown.br /br /The last time I came down with a cold, not too long ago, I knocked it out completely in 2 days by totally vegging out. That was on a weekend. I was lucky.br /br /I did go out for a short and easy bike ride yesterday because it was so nice.br /br /The weather has got really sunny and warm. It's killing me to not go out on the bike. I was planning on a hammerfest on Sunday, but it was not to be. I skipped church and slept a good part of the day.br /br /Saturday, took a walk with wife and daughter in a local park. There was still snow on the ground in most places which made it challenging.br /br /Here are some pics:br /div id="hl4u" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_193ckv5d5gr_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /It was tempting me to come back on the x-c skis.br /div id="v_5h" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_194dxbnvhfq_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /Somebody had been out!br /br /div id="nup3" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_195dskwk5d2_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /A canopy of trees!br /div id="jpwa" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_196pwnmc6dc_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /Foot bridgebr /div id="pruk" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_197gbmf8pdj_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /The trail passes by an alpaca farm. Last time we were here, they came right up to us. Today we couldn't get them interested.br /div id="ae5m" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_198crdf2xcd_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /There's that blue sky!br /div id="ffd3" style="text-align: left;"img src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_199gjrbgpc5_b" style="height: 486px; width: 648px;" //divbr /See ya later. I'm going back to bed!div class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/7323354418986149123-7008354641116229976?l=funfit50.blogspot.com' alt='' //div

Filed under: Uncategorized  |  Digg! this story.  |  Leave a Comment

First Flat of the Season

Took the road bike out on Thursday. It was to be an easy "recovery" ride cause all my muscles were still aching from skiing Whiteface on Tuesday.br /I also intended it to serve as a shakeout run for the bike. I think I had only ridden it once all winter and that because my car wouldn't start (it was 5० and my battery just quit). Also, this was after work and I wasn't sure how much daylight I would have to ride in.br /br /So, I only intended to take a short (1/2 hour) ride on flat terrain, spinning easily.br /br /It went OK until about 1/4 mile from home. I felt the thump, thump, thump for a few seconds before I realized it was something I needed to tend to ... flat tire.br /br /My fault really.br /br /I was pushing my luck with this tube. It was a slow leaker for most of last season. It was fine during rides but I always had to put 30 or 40 pounds into it the next day. I knew I shouldn't be riding it but hey, I carry a spare.br /br /But I didn't want to change a tube in 30० weather so after a few half-hearted attempts to pump some air into it, I gave up and walked the bike home. Fortunately I was that close.br /br /I changed out the tube next day and was quite pleased. I don't change enough tires to be able to do it without thinking but this went pretty well. I remember when I first bought those tires I was sure they were too small for the wheels. I was not able to get one on. I actually brought it back to a href="http://maddogbicycles.com/" id="nonr" title="Mad Dog Bicycles"Mad Dog/a, my LBS and Matt put it on quite easily for me. I was kind of embarrassed (especially since I had proposed to him at one time that he hire me as a trainee bike mechanic).br /br /So when I bought a second one of the same model, I toughed it out myself, and it iwas/i tough.br /br /This time, however it was a piece of cake. I was wondering why and thinking it was maybe because I had the replacement tube "soaking" in a zip-lock bag with tons of talcum powder but as I write this, I think it's just because the tire is well used and "stretched" out.br /br /Whatever the reason, I didn't even have to use the a href="http://www.crankbrothers.com/speedlever.php" id="k005" title="Crank Brothers speed lever"Crank Brothers speed lever/a img id="m5-q" src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_186g962zpcm_b" style="float: left; height: 250px; margin-left: 0pt; margin-right: 1em; width: 410px;" /that I bought to put it back on.br /br /I was also pleased putting the rear wheel back on the bike. I usually wrestle with getting the chain and gears right, getting my hands all greasy in the process but at a benefit ride last year, my friend Brad put my wheel on with one hand, never touching any of the greasy parts. He just kind of "snaked" the cogs into the chain in the right place and pulled the axle back into the dropouts with one fluid motion.br /br /Needless to say, I was impressed.br /br /So I tried it myself this time after a little intense study of the cog and chain and, while not quite as effortlessly as Brad, I did it! It worked!br /br /I was quite pleased and kind of amazed.br /br /While I was at it, I patched and tested 3 old tubes I had laying around so now I am all set for the season.br /br /This is a neat time of year. It's starting to get sunny and warm enough to try a few bike rides yet there's still enough snow in the mountains to go skiing.br /br /Best of both worlds.div class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/7323354418986149123-783140065076094302?l=funfit50.blogspot.com' alt='' //div

Filed under: Uncategorized  |  Digg! this story.  |  Leave a Comment

First Flat of the Season

Took the road bike out on Thursday. It was to be an easy "recovery" ride cause all my muscles were still aching from skiing Whiteface on Tuesday.br /I also intended it to serve as a shakeout run for the bike. I think I had only ridden it once all winter and that because my car wouldn't start (it was 5० and my battery just quit). Also, this was after work and I wasn't sure how much daylight I would have to ride in.br /br /So, I only intended to take a short (1/2 hour) ride on flat terrain, spinning easily.br /br /It went OK until about 1/4 mile from home. I felt the thump, thump, thump for a few seconds before I realized it was something I needed to tend to ... flat tire.br /br /My fault really.br /br /I was pushing my luck with this tube. It was a slow leaker for most of last season. It was fine during rides but I always had to put 30 or 40 pounds into it the next day. I knew I shouldn't be riding it but hey, I carry a spare.br /br /But I didn't want to change a tube in 30० weather so after a few half-hearted attempts to pump some air into it, I gave up and walked the bike home. Fortunately I was that close.br /br /I changed out the tube next day and was quite pleased. I don't change enough tires to be able to do it without thinking but this went pretty well. I remember when I first bought those tires I was sure they were too small for the wheels. I was not able to get one on. I actually brought it back to a href="http://maddogbicycles.com/" id="nonr" title="Mad Dog Bicycles"Mad Dog/a, my LBS and Matt put it on quite easily for me. I was kind of embarrassed (especially since I had proposed to him at one time that he hire me as a trainee bike mechanic).br /br /So when I bought a second one of the same model, I toughed it out myself, and it iwas/i tough.br /br /This time, however it was a piece of cake. I was wondering why and thinking it was maybe because I had the replacement tube "soaking" in a zip-lock bag with tons of talcum powder but as I write this, I think it's just because the tire is well used and "stretched" out.br /br /Whatever the reason, I didn't even have to use the a href="http://www.crankbrothers.com/speedlever.php" id="k005" title="Crank Brothers speed lever"Crank Brothers speed lever/a img id="m5-q" src="https://docs.google.com/File?id=dfjr448f_186g962zpcm_b" style="float: left; height: 250px; margin-left: 0pt; margin-right: 1em; width: 410px;" /that I bought to put it back on.br /br /I was also pleased putting the rear wheel back on the bike. I usually wrestle with getting the chain and gears right, getting my hands all greasy in the process but at a benefit ride last year, my friend Brad put my wheel on with one hand, never touching any of the greasy parts. He just kind of "snaked" the cogs into the chain in the right place and pulled the axle back into the dropouts with one fluid motion.br /br /Needless to say, I was impressed.br /br /So I tried it myself this time after a little intense study of the cog and chain and, while not quite as effortlessly as Brad, I did it! It worked!br /br /I was quite pleased and kind of amazed.br /br /While I was at it, I patched and tested 3 old tubes I had laying around so now I am all set for the season.br /br /This is a neat time of year. It's starting to get sunny and warm enough to try a few bike rides yet there's still enough snow in the mountains to go skiing.br /br /Best of both worlds.div class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/7323354418986149123-783140065076094302?l=funfit50.blogspot.com' alt='' //div

Filed under: Uncategorized  |  Digg! this story.  |  Leave a Comment

Fear

I have to admit it and I hate to admit it but Mrs. MTBMan1 is more brave than I.br /br /She's always the faster one on the ski hills and not just because of skill but because of her fearlessness.br /br /She relishes the thrill of the risk.br /br /I was confronted with this realization last Tuesday on the summit of Whiteface.a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DxdwGAtnI/AAAAAAAAEdY/OrrS360XKJo/s1600-h/whiteface+summit+best.jpg"img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DxdwGAtnI/AAAAAAAAEdY/OrrS360XKJo/s320/whiteface+summit+best.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445117442919544434" border="0" //abr /br /While she was enjoying the views and suggesting I take pictures of this and that, I was just annoyed because my attention was consumed by what looked like sheer drops on all sides. I wanted to get on with it and get it over with.br /br /For me, it's because of the unknown. We knew there were intermediate trails from the summit and we intended to take those but there's intermediate and INTERMEDIATE. These trail difficulty designations are somewhat subjective and vary quite a bit from mountain to mountain.br /br /Generally, on the bigger mountains, intermediate trails are going to be tougher and steeper than on the smaller resorts.br /br /Also, difficulty varies with the conditions. A trail that's icy or is slushy crud is going to be harder than first tracks on a groomed trail with soft, packed powder underneath.br /br /So anyhow, the trail was great. While it was late morning and the grooming was no longer pristine, the snow was soft and manageable.br /br /From the top we took Riva Ridge to Paron's Run a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DzNQ8bbEI/AAAAAAAAEdo/kp4CtyTnK1A/s1600-h/paron%27s+run.jpg"img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DzNQ8bbEI/AAAAAAAAEdo/kp4CtyTnK1A/s320/paron%27s+run.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445119358703201346" border="0" //athen John's Bypass to connector to Victoria. a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DtbH_6API/AAAAAAAAEdI/cEoY5LCg_mY/s1600-h/Whiteface+trails+summit.jpg"img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DtbH_6API/AAAAAAAAEdI/cEoY5LCg_mY/s320/Whiteface+trails+summit.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445112999750271218" border="0" //aOn Paron's Run I slid out once but no real problem. Victoria gave me my first trouble and faceplant. It was steep and bumpy. Not real moguls but enough of a challenge for me to take it cautiously. I'm getting better at picking out a line in this stuff but I think sometimes I'm a little too far forward of a skier and not light enough on my feet. Anyway I hit a pile of crud on a bump and clipped out of one ski. Face forward down the hill. Then it's a steep walk up hill carrying one ski and poles to retrieve my other ski.br /br /I suppose I could have left my ski and poles downhill. That would have made it easier climbing. Before I got to it, another skier on the way down picked up and brought me my ski. Thanks.br /br /While it's easier getting up on a steep slope I have trouble clipping back into my skis. I thought I had them clipped in but when I took off, the one ski fell right off again.br /br /I often marvel at other skiers how relaxed and natural they look sliding down a slope that has me white-knuckling. They look like they're going comfortably slow and not working hard.br /br /If I make turns often enough to maintain a comfortable speed, I find it very tiring and can't maintain it for too long. So I wind up either going too fast for comfort or doing wide traverses across the slope face which is even more unstable and tiring.br /br /I'm sure losing some weight will help. Less for gravity to pull and less for me to resist.br /br /Similarly, when we took The Wilmington Trail a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DtukNY8cI/AAAAAAAAEdQ/KNBxYHjyRFM/s1600-h/whiteface+lookout+mtn.jpg"img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DtukNY8cI/AAAAAAAAEdQ/KNBxYHjyRFM/s320/whiteface+lookout+mtn.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445113333740532162" border="0" //afrom the top of Lookout Mountain, it started out pretty flata onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5Dx9gRCHBI/AAAAAAAAEdg/nBB0TWt2o80/s1600-h/LookoutMtLR%281%29.jpg"img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5Dx9gRCHBI/AAAAAAAAEdg/nBB0TWt2o80/s320/LookoutMtLR%281%29.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445117988426619922" border="0" //a but then has 4 or 5 steep, narrow and bumpy sections that discouraged me to look at them. Also the left side of the trail was all drop off with an orange fence but the fence wouldn't hold you if you hit it head on.br /br /Mrs. MTBMan1 was still enjoying it though even though it was a challenge for her too.br /br /I enjoyed it too, in retrospect. I wish I could take another crack at it now that I know what to expect. But Whiteface is too expensive for us without free or heavily discounted tickets.br /br /So I'm cautious. I'm not saying I'm going to change or even want to change. As my skill improves, so will my confidence, so that part will change.br /br /Mrs. MTBMan1 is a risk taker and I'm not.br /br /That's just the way it is.div class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/7323354418986149123-1514125986972209837?l=funfit50.blogspot.com' alt='' //div

Filed under: Uncategorized  |  Digg! this story.  |  Leave a Comment

Fear

I have to admit it and I hate to admit it but Mrs. MTBMan1 is more brave than I.br /br /She's always the faster one on the ski hills and not just because of skill but because of her fearlessness.br /br /She relishes the thrill of the risk.br /br /I was confronted with this realization last Tuesday on the summit of Whiteface.a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DxdwGAtnI/AAAAAAAAEdY/OrrS360XKJo/s1600-h/whiteface+summit+best.jpg"img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DxdwGAtnI/AAAAAAAAEdY/OrrS360XKJo/s320/whiteface+summit+best.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445117442919544434" border="0" //abr /br /While she was enjoying the views and suggesting I take pictures of this and that, I was just annoyed because my attention was consumed by what looked like sheer drops on all sides. I wanted to get on with it and get it over with.br /br /For me, it's because of the unknown. We knew there were intermediate trails from the summit and we intended to take those but there's intermediate and INTERMEDIATE. These trail difficulty designations are somewhat subjective and vary quite a bit from mountain to mountain.br /br /Generally, on the bigger mountains, intermediate trails are going to be tougher and steeper than on the smaller resorts.br /br /Also, difficulty varies with the conditions. A trail that's icy or is slushy crud is going to be harder than first tracks on a groomed trail with soft, packed powder underneath.br /br /So anyhow, the trail was great. While it was late morning and the grooming was no longer pristine, the snow was soft and manageable.br /br /From the top we took Riva Ridge to Paron's Run a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DzNQ8bbEI/AAAAAAAAEdo/kp4CtyTnK1A/s1600-h/paron%27s+run.jpg"img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DzNQ8bbEI/AAAAAAAAEdo/kp4CtyTnK1A/s320/paron%27s+run.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445119358703201346" border="0" //athen John's Bypass to connector to Victoria. a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DtbH_6API/AAAAAAAAEdI/cEoY5LCg_mY/s1600-h/Whiteface+trails+summit.jpg"img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DtbH_6API/AAAAAAAAEdI/cEoY5LCg_mY/s320/Whiteface+trails+summit.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445112999750271218" border="0" //aOn Paron's Run I slid out once but no real problem. Victoria gave me my first trouble and faceplant. It was steep and bumpy. Not real moguls but enough of a challenge for me to take it cautiously. I'm getting better at picking out a line in this stuff but I think sometimes I'm a little too far forward of a skier and not light enough on my feet. Anyway I hit a pile of crud on a bump and clipped out of one ski. Face forward down the hill. Then it's a steep walk up hill carrying one ski and poles to retrieve my other ski.br /br /I suppose I could have left my ski and poles downhill. That would have made it easier climbing. Before I got to it, another skier on the way down picked up and brought me my ski. Thanks.br /br /While it's easier getting up on a steep slope I have trouble clipping back into my skis. I thought I had them clipped in but when I took off, the one ski fell right off again.br /br /I often marvel at other skiers how relaxed and natural they look sliding down a slope that has me white-knuckling. They look like they're going comfortably slow and not working hard.br /br /If I make turns often enough to maintain a comfortable speed, I find it very tiring and can't maintain it for too long. So I wind up either going too fast for comfort or doing wide traverses across the slope face which is even more unstable and tiring.br /br /I'm sure losing some weight will help. Less for gravity to pull and less for me to resist.br /br /Similarly, when we took The Wilmington Trail a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DtukNY8cI/AAAAAAAAEdQ/KNBxYHjyRFM/s1600-h/whiteface+lookout+mtn.jpg"img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5DtukNY8cI/AAAAAAAAEdQ/KNBxYHjyRFM/s320/whiteface+lookout+mtn.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445113333740532162" border="0" //afrom the top of Lookout Mountain, it started out pretty flata onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5Dx9gRCHBI/AAAAAAAAEdg/nBB0TWt2o80/s1600-h/LookoutMtLR%281%29.jpg"img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5Dx9gRCHBI/AAAAAAAAEdg/nBB0TWt2o80/s320/LookoutMtLR%281%29.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445117988426619922" border="0" //abr /but then has 4 or 5 steep, narrow and bumpy sections that discouraged me to look at them. Also the left side of the trail was all drop off with an orange fencebr /a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5D-Rq3YMrI/AAAAAAAAEdw/GBsmJe3xYjA/s1600-h/whiteface+wilmington+trail.jpg"img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 132px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S5D-Rq3YMrI/AAAAAAAAEdw/GBsmJe3xYjA/s320/whiteface+wilmington+trail.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445131529008722610" border="0" //abut the fence wouldn't hold you if you hit it head on.br /br /Mrs. MTBMan1 was still enjoying it though even though it was a challenge for her too.br /br /I enjoyed it too, in retrospect. I wish I could take another crack at it now that I know what to expect. But Whiteface is too expensive for us without free or heavily discounted tickets.br /br /So I'm cautious. I'm not saying I'm going to change or even want to change. As my skill improves, so will my confidence, so that part will change.br /br /Mrs. MTBMan1 is a risk taker and I'm not.br /br /That's just the way it is.div class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/7323354418986149123-1514125986972209837?l=funfit50.blogspot.com' alt='' //div

Filed under: Uncategorized  |  Digg! this story.  |  Leave a Comment

First Bluebird Day of the Season!

Alternate titles: "Motivation", "weight times gravity=work", "Ahm plum wore out!" Whiteface! Today was a ski day at Whiteface Mountain in the Adirondacks of New York.br /br /Warm, blue sky, soft snow, uncrowded. It couldn't get much better. Definitely a "10"!br /br /Plus, free tickets that Mrs. MTBMan1 won at the ski expo! Oh, yeah! Victory dance!br /br /For the first couple of runs, we took the "Face Lift" lift half way up the mountain and ran greens all the way down to warm up.br /br /Then we took the Summit Quad up to the breathtaking top. The views all over this mountain were fantastic.br /br /I'm kind of bonkers over my camera. Somehow it got set to manual so all the vistas and snow scenes are pretty washed out.br /br /We took an intermediate trail "Paron's Run" and then a connector over to Lower Cloudspin where I had a little trouble with the "steep and bumpies".br /br /But overall the snow was great and it was a great run.br /br /But boy was I tired!br /br /Mrs. MTBMan1 and I discussed it and decided it must be because I overdid it x-c skiing on Saturday. I think other factors may have been overheating (I was overdressed), lack of water and not enough carb intake. Not to mention that I'm overweight and out of shape! :-)br /br /Skiing is all about working with gravity. Weight times gravity=work and the more weight, the more work!br /br /After lunch we did an intermediate called "the Wilmington Trail". We wanted to check this out because it looked interesting. It is a long trail on Lookout Mountain that runs the entire length of the mountain. The views were great here too. But this run, our last of the day, was my undoing.br /br /It starts out innocently enough but has at least 4 steep, narrow sections with curves and the snow was starting to get pretty crudded up by this time. I've been doing much better skiing crud but I was just so darn tired!br /br /We made it through OK with lots of rest stops and a couple of low speed bails. :-)br /br /But that was it for both of us for the day.br /br /All in all I'd say it was a great day.br /br /However I am motivated to work on my weight and fitness even more. After all, it was 4 years ago when I first started to ski that it motivated me to get serious about getting in shape. That's why I started cycling which has become an enthusiasm of it's own.br /br /Here are the pics from the day. Again, I apologize for the quality. I tried to fix them up a little in Picassa but you can only do so much.br /br /Check out that blue sky!br /table style="width: auto;"tbodytrtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/QPaE-O5jsbPPK5Iiber9Sw?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43Fu9JvcTI/AAAAAAAAEcI/1vleu4YcarQ/s400/IMG_1991.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: right;"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tbody/tablebr /br /The Lift Linebr /table style="width: auto;"tbodytrtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/I5C42Lkw9Ggh4paJDFNoBQ?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43FvfppH5I/AAAAAAAAEcM/0xtIvwo9GUo/s400/IMG_1992.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: right;"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tbody/tablebr /br /View from the top of Summit Quadbr /table style="width: auto;"tbodytrtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/F6QKdXOsNm0HZZu_vJgkJA?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43Fv39FhKI/AAAAAAAAEcQ/Hb-y2qd3ZF4/s400/IMG_1993.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: right;"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tbody/tablebr /br /Another view from the topbr /table style="width:auto;"trtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ZBgSU81rdl8PBhu82y9Opg?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43FwgePCYI/AAAAAAAAEcY/E9-CLNL3qGk/s400/IMG_1995.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tablebr /br /And yet anotherbr /table style="width:auto;"trtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/pA34GxqB3NrlX4MLAUTSrA?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43FxcZJUII/AAAAAAAAEcc/SHulqvo2cwU/s400/IMG_1996.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tablebr /br /And anotherbr /table style="width:auto;"trtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/rJTFklOcV1liSWKLafQVng?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43Fzy5dQsI/AAAAAAAAEcs/D77of4EABdY/s400/IMG_1999.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tablebr /br /View down Upper Cloudspinbr /table style="width: auto;"tbodytrtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/Xq4bXfJZiF5KRanOql2MxQ?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43FyC_rhBI/AAAAAAAAEcg/knRlCYMUhr8/s400/IMG_1997.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: right;"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tbody/tablebr /br /Yours Truly!br /table style="width: auto;"tbodytrtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/rpjPqNI8II2CpXg5ou4zYg?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43FyiqZlQI/AAAAAAAAEck/4NlO3N-AbVs/s400/IMG_1998.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: right;"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tbody/tablebr /br /Can't wait until I'm 70. I can ski Whiteface for free!br /br /Next up ... Catamount, right on the NY/MA border. Tues. March 16th. $25 lift tickets.br /br /Pray for snow!div class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/7323354418986149123-7963072174814349317?l=funfit50.blogspot.com' alt='' //div

Filed under: Uncategorized  |  Digg! this story.  |  Leave a Comment

First Bluebird Day of the Season!

Alternate titles: "Motivation", "weight times gravity=work", "Ahm plum wore out!"br /br /Whiteface!br /br /Today was a ski day at Whiteface Mountain in the Adirondacks of New York.br /br /Warm, blue sky, soft snow, uncrowded. It couldn't get much better. Definitely a "10"!br /br /For the first couple of runs, we took the "Face Lift" lift half way up the mountain and ran greens all the way down to warm up.br /br /Then we took the Summit Quad up to the breathtaking top. The views all over this mountain were fantastic.br /br /I'm kind of bonkers over my camera. Somehow it got set to manual so all the vistas and snow scenes are pretty washed out.br /br /We took an intermediate trail "Paron's Run" and then a connector over to Lower Cloudspin where I had a little trouble with the "steep and bumpies".br /br /But overall the snow was great and it was a great run.br /br /But boy was I tired!br /br /Mrs. MTBMan1 and I discussed it and decided it must be because I overdid it x-c skiing on Saturday. I think other factors may have been overheating (I was overdressed), lack of water and not enough carb intake. Not to mention that I'm overweight and out of shape! :-)br /br /Skiing is all about working with gravity. Weight times gravity=work and the more weight, the more work!br /br /After lunch we did an intermediate called "the Wilmington Trail". We wanted to check this out because it looked interesting. It is a long trail on Lookout Mountain that runs the entire length of the mountain. The views were great here too. But this run, our last of the day, was my undoing.br /br /It starts out innocently enough but has at least 4 steep, narrow sections with curves and the snow was starting to get pretty crudded up by this time. I've been doing much better skiing crud but I was just so darn tired!br /br /We made it through OK with lots of rest stops and a couple of low speed bails. :-)br /br /But that was it for both of us for the day.br /br /All in all I'd say it was a great day.br /br /However I am motivated to work on my weight and fitness even more. After all, it was 4 years ago when I first started to ski that it motivated me to get serious about getting in shape. That's why I started cycling which has become an enthusiasm of it's own.br /br /Here are the pics from the day. Again, I apologize for the quality. I tried to fix them up a little in Picassa but you can only do so much.br /br /Check out that blue sky!br /table style="width: auto;"tbodytrtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/QPaE-O5jsbPPK5Iiber9Sw?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43Fu9JvcTI/AAAAAAAAEcI/1vleu4YcarQ/s400/IMG_1991.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: right;"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tbody/tablebr /br /The Lift Linebr /table style="width: auto;"tbodytrtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/I5C42Lkw9Ggh4paJDFNoBQ?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43FvfppH5I/AAAAAAAAEcM/0xtIvwo9GUo/s400/IMG_1992.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: right;"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tbody/tablebr /br /View from the top of Summit Quadbr /table style="width: auto;"tbodytrtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/F6QKdXOsNm0HZZu_vJgkJA?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43Fv39FhKI/AAAAAAAAEcQ/Hb-y2qd3ZF4/s400/IMG_1993.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: right;"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tbody/tablebr /br /Another view from the topbr /table style="width:auto;"trtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ZBgSU81rdl8PBhu82y9Opg?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43FwgePCYI/AAAAAAAAEcY/E9-CLNL3qGk/s400/IMG_1995.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tablebr /br /And yet anotherbr /table style="width:auto;"trtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/pA34GxqB3NrlX4MLAUTSrA?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43FxcZJUII/AAAAAAAAEcc/SHulqvo2cwU/s400/IMG_1996.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tablebr /br /And anotherbr /table style="width:auto;"trtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/rJTFklOcV1liSWKLafQVng?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43Fzy5dQsI/AAAAAAAAEcs/D77of4EABdY/s400/IMG_1999.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tablebr /br /View down Upper Cloudspinbr /table style="width: auto;"tbodytrtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/Xq4bXfJZiF5KRanOql2MxQ?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43FyC_rhBI/AAAAAAAAEcg/knRlCYMUhr8/s400/IMG_1997.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: right;"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tbody/tablebr /br /Yours Truly!br /table style="width: auto;"tbodytrtda href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/rpjPqNI8II2CpXg5ou4zYg?feat=embedwebsite"img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_ErSlrNP9QXQ/S43FyiqZlQI/AAAAAAAAEck/4NlO3N-AbVs/s400/IMG_1998.JPG" //a/td/trtrtd style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: right;"From a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/ghalbedel/2010_03_02WhiteFace?feat=embedwebsite"2010_03_02 WhiteFace/a/td/tr/tbody/tablebr /br /Next up ... Catamount, right on the NY/MA border. Tues. March 16th.br /br /Pray for snow!div class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/7323354418986149123-7963072174814349317?l=funfit50.blogspot.com' alt='' //div

Filed under: Uncategorized  |  Digg! this story.  |  Leave a Comment