Knock one off the bucket list

Where to begin....

Let me just say that I'm not withering away on my mileage goals....I'm at roughly 75 miles for the month....I should be at 86 just to not lose ground.   So not tooo bad.  But not on target for the month and definitely not on target to make up the last of the deficit.  But hey...I'm holding on!!!

Food...my weekend wasn't spectacular with eating....at all.  My stomach felt it too...it reminded me exactly why the unhealthy food and quantities are bad!!!

My curveballs keep flying at me.   My original curve ball  was of Jason getting a job...which is spectacular news, it just changes my schedule and routine.   I made plans in my mind of how to fill up the time and still get my movement.   I would grab my road bike and keep that at the house full time and then I could leave my trek with Jason (he has had it much of the time recently..it's just been easier since we have ridden together most of the time) and only bring that home when I have need of it.  I spoke to my father about it in passing.   And was told that there is no room and he does not want my bike (s) in the garage.   Soooo....my plans were totally wiped off the books.  My first thought was I would just store them in my living area beside my bed...and try to not trip over them.   I have another idea.  But regardless...the bike thing on top of the other curveballs that have been lobbed my way has totally knocked me flat.   

So this weekend we decided to take it easy....we had lunch in town and hit up a few stores (he has to have his own tools for the job he got...so tool shopping we went!).

  We drove up to Cumberland.  We stopped at Sideling Hill to walk up the overlook...neither of us had done it in years.

 

And I just realized I took none of the cut through the mountain....but I got a couple of Jason!!!  (With a bit of the cut behind him!)

 

 

This weekend we also rented a tandem bike.    Or in easier terms to understand...we rode a bicycle built for two!

 

I have always wanted to try a tandem...and so has Jason.   We have talked about buying one some day in the future.  But we wanted/needed to try it out!!!

Jason was up front first and I rode behind.   Oh my word.....if your in the back you feel so totally out of control. It was a lesson (reminder) in learning to trust your partner 100%.  

When we swapped places and I was the 'driver' I figured out that as the front person you are totally fighting the bike the whole time!   Pretty much every breath that the other person takes causes the bike to sway and move.  (Ok maybe not every breath...but close!). 

It took communication because one person couldn't coast and adjust.  If one person stopped pedaling it stopped both people from pedaling.  So any adjustments on the seat or with a foot on the pedal had to be discussed before hand because otherwise the pedal stopped dead for them too...throwing the bike off kilter even more..  

We felt as if we were pedaling harder to move the bike also..... but then again we are used to riding better bikes...this one was a cheaper model...so that would play into it. 

All of that was workable.   But still the ride was miserable!!!  Why??  The seats were cheap and horrible.  We both suffered!!!!   For me...not only did it HURT...but my bits and pieces actually went numb!!!!!   It was not pleasant!!!!!

But hey...we checked something off the bucket list!!!!

We also picked up a new map of the canal.... I used a green highlighter and marked off the places we have biked /walked this year....:wow...we only have about 50 miles left to bike...we have done well over a half of the canal!  

I showed this to Jason and I'm pretty surethat  in a month or two (or more depending on how long it takes him to get back into the routine of his job) that we will have the whole thing colored in!!!    (And that not including the fact that we still want to complete the whole canal on a weekend long through trip!)