mbsbike2002

J - Sorry to hear you're sore (and about the biscuits & gravy ). I'm glad though, that you're happy with your workout and that your trainer is helping you be more comfortable & confident with your workout routine! B

Nope. Will run by tonight to pick them up. B

That is great! Somebody had way too much time on their hands. And what better way to start the day than a princess in a bikini ... B

Hey J - If you mostly want spinning at the gym (you have other workout facilities at work), check out the LBS. Many of them around here have spinning studios, where you bring your bike and use the training stands in the studio. The place I bought my bent has spinning for $7 a class if you use their stands and $3 a class if you bring your own stand. They have different things on different nights - a beginners class, interval training, hill training, endurance, etc. The cool thing about it is that you get used to spinning on your own bike, and you can use your shoes and pedals. And, it's cheap... B

Too funny. There are two songs that will always be associated with skating - Brick House - I think every other song at the Hurst Skateland was Brick House, and Blondie's Heart of Glass. Can't hear either of them without being instantly placed at the skating rink. And you're right, who the hell knew that there was that much demand for popcorn stores? I remember when the Poppin' Place opened; my old man would bellow "who the hell would pay that much for some popcorn???" And I should mention that my dad was a Popcorn fiend. Well, the answer is, we did. With the cheese popcorn, and the chili popcorn, and the carmel corn and the honey corn, oh my... It's entirely possible that WE kept that place in business for the first few years... We compared those notes via PM a while back. We went to different schools, but we do know some of the same people. B

We have, but that's okay. Yep that bank - everybody banked there - it was also the swankiest place in Hurst - my mother's bridal shower was there, my baby shower was there. People partied at the bank I played with Google Street view - it's possible to actually take a virtual trip down memory lane. Sad to see the Baskin Robbins is gone (although that goddamned place has a lot to do with how and when I first started gaining weight (along with the poppin' place & the carmel corn). It also looks like the old skating rink is gone. Many pre-pubescent angst-filled memories along with it... I used to get totally effed up by the reverse-skate - I only went one way . And from time to time I will still break out into the "hokey pokey". The wife, who is ten years younger, looks at me like I'm from another planet... It was a great place. I don't know how many times the guys at the Arco station that turned into the Poppin' Place helped me get the chain back on my old Schwinn banana seat bike, or helped air up the tires. I still miss the old Buddie's Grocery store at precinct - it's now the office furniture place, i think. They had Cookie Monster cookies that I used to beg my mom to buy. They even had a cookie monster cake one time (I didn't see the logical inconsistency at the time), and she got that for me for my birthday once. That much blue icing is a very, very, very bad thing. I still have a thing for Cookie Monster... There was a couple who walked across the country in the late 70's. They walked down Cedar street - stopped at my house, rang the doorbell and asked for a glass of water. I didn't believe them until I read the book. I guess I should go to bed. Will have dreams of mid-70s Hurst & lollipop pedals... G'night chicas... B

I used to love Winnie's! The barber shop where my grandfather used to threaten me with buzz cuts was there was well. You've seen my pics - I must have been a very bad boy over the years... It's amazing that the poppin' place is still going strong after all these years - it's been there for at least 30 years. Do you remember when Santa used to be in front of the bank, and he would come in by helicopter and land in the parking lot? For the first time in forever, I have actual giddy nostalgia for my young childhood B

OMG - We lived at 645, so not quite the same house, but very close. I drove down there a few months ago, and that neighborhood has stayed very nice. The house we had looks almost the same as it did when we moved 27 years ago, but with better landscaping! I used to ride to the 7-11, and there was a bike shop in the Val Oaks shopping center on the other side of Hurstview. That's where I got my first 10-speed as a teenager. There was also a popcorn place at the corner of Ridgecrest and pipeline that i used to ride to as well. God I loved their popcorn. It is a very, very small world. B

Seems to be Kellog's only - Did a quick search for Cap'n Crunch and Sugar Bear (Super Sugar Crisp), and didn't come up with anything relevant (although you find some interesting things under sugar bear - who knew???) B

Thank you, ma'am. I figured they were different enough to warrant posting. That thread is such an inspiration, I figured I should give back some. Besides, there are too few men posting pics there. B

I grew up on cedar street behind what used to be the Bellview Baptist Church... We moved from there to the north part of Hurst in '79. That is too funny, though. B

J - I do insist, as should you Jenn - The pedals that come with most bikes today are called "platform" pedals. They're basically what we had on bikes as a kid. The good thing about them is that (1) They're free, (2) They're easy to use - just step on them and go. If things start to get out of hand, take your feet off, stick your feet out and stop. You'll end up landing on your feet. The not so good things about them are (1) You can, at most get power out of slightly more than half a turn of the pedal crank. You can push forward and down, but you can't pull back or up, and (2) your foot and your pedals can become separated at really inconvenient times. When this happens, the pedals might come up & smite your legs or you can start to lose control of the bike. Fortunately, you're not connected to your bike, so you stick your feet out, apply some brakes and hope for the best. Also, it's difficult to consistently put your feet in the right position to apply maximum pressure while preventing injury to your joints (especially knees). To solve some of these problems, they came up with toe straps & cages, which became popular in the 80s. You slide your feet into toe cages at the front of the pedals and start going. This solves some of the problems - your feet are consistently positioned on the pedals, and you can pull up. This didn't solve all of the problems - you still cannot pull back on the pedal, and under some circumstances, you and your pedals can still become separated at inopportune moments. Along the way, they came up with "clipless" pedals, which have a mechanism on the pedal that clips to a special cleat on a pair of shoes. These solve almost all of the problems associated with the platform pedals - once the cleats are adjusted on the shoe, you will always have your foot in the optimal position, and you will almost never slip off (out of) the pedal accidentally. They do, however, have some drawbacks. It will take some time to get used to putting your foot in the right place for the pedal and cleat to engage, and in an emergency, you are attached to your bike, and can't just put your foot down. These take only a short while to get past. Once clipped in to your (clipless) pedals, you can now exert force across the entire pedal stroke - forward & down and back & up. Now, the problem with all of this is that there are multiple pedal manufacturers and multiple standards on how the cleats should mount to the shoes. For many people, pedals are like religion, though - there are the speedplay types, who in general seem very happy with their choice. Then there are the shimano, crank brothers, and look types, many of whom seem restless and always trying something new. Anyway - hope that helps more than confuses... B

Of course, there's ... ... and ... ... and ... I'm gonna be such a jersey whore... B

Then, of course, I need one of these... B

Oh yeah... I dig them smacks! More of a Tony the Tiger guy, myself: IIIIII'mmmmmmmmmmmm Gggrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaatttttttttttttt! Or something like that B

alright - off to check on some shoes... B

I love fun jerseys. I'm so glad that I'm getting small enough to wear them now. This is also on the list - Reminds me of when I was a kid, I'd ride to the 7-11 on Pipeline and Hurstview and get a moon pie and an RC. At the end of the day, I bet I end up spending more on jerseys than bikes B

RBM and Plano Cycling only have black. Bicycles Inc does have one pair, and they're going to hold them for me! I'll swing by there tomorrow afternoon to pick them up. Thanks Stephanie!! B

Thanks TX, I will give them a ring. And, for after I'm no longer quite so large - I think the irony is a little too much for now... B

Hard to look all manly in the full spandex kit with pretty pink pedals. Other than that, they're golden. I just looked at performance bike and they carry them in black & pink. Might end up going with the black if I can't find yellow. B

MMmmmm.... Lollipop (pedal) baby, here I come... I get hot for a pedal that can use the word "luxurious" in the description ... If I go with the chrome-molys, I can get yellow pedals to match the bike. I'm gonna head up to REI in a while; they have road shoes on sale. B

Hey Stephanie - Hope you had a good weekend in Houston with Robbie. I appreciate the offer on the toe cages. I think I'm going to go ahead and get some good pedals. The Frogs were designed for mountain bikes, but they can be used on any bike (in theory). They appealed to me, since they have SPD-compatible cleats. I figured I could use the shoes I already have. After looking into it, though, I think the reason they don't work well with recumbents is that the cleat engages from the back of the pedal, which becomes the bottom on a recumbent. Gravity works against keeping clipped in. Looks like the best approach is a pair of road Speedplays and a new pair of shoes. Which Speedplays do you have? Looks to me that there are some esoteric differences between the Light Actions/Zeros/X-series. Based on what I've read, it looks like stainless Light Actions are probably what I should go with... B

The one where our intrepid bacchetta bitch tries again... Okay, for those who were paying attention last week, our hero got his shoe laces wrapped in the chain ring, took a header off of a recumbent bicycle (no small feat), and was caused to suffer a spectacular crash. To avoid this fate again, I decided to wear my spiffy bike shoes, which are secured by velcro, not laces. Seemed like a wonderful idea. Unfortunately, our hero forgot one thing: As you will notice, the tread does not have slots that go all the way across the shoe. How then, can they engage with a standard platform pedal? The short answer is, they don't. Proof that an Ivy-league education ain't worth shit these days... I noticed this problem about 5 minutes into my ride (quick study, huh?) when the only way I could keep my feet on the pedals was to put them way out at the edge and keep them at funky angles. But - with JFK's words "We do these things not because they are easy, but because they are hard" going through my head, I pressed on. After another 25-30 minutes, though, I called it a day. My knees hurt from having to hold my feet at bad angles, and I was frustrated because even at bad angles, my feet still slipped off the pedals with the ease and regularity usually reserved for Phillips' Milk of Magnesia commercials. I am now in a quandry, though. There is no doubt but that I will have to suck it up, buy clipless pedals and understand that I will fall on a frequent basis for a few rides. The problem, though, is that I have a nice paid of SPD shoes, and I want Speedplay pedals. Speedplay makes an SPD-compatible set of pedals (the Frogs), but some recumbent riders report problems staying clipped in to them - not sure if its a bike geometry issue, or what. The same problem doesn't exist with their road pedals. The road pedals, of course, will not work with my SPD shoes. Might just have to go with egg-beaters... I'll sort that out in the next week or so. For my next ride, I intend to be a complete Fred (or a really old-school guy) wearing street shoes with the laces taped to avoid chain-suck. Bike on, B

Pictures from four months out - August 12, 2007 - 295 pounds. December 16, 2007 - 254 pounds And finally, these pants fit properly when I had my surgery. Now, not so much... B

HP - Glad to hear that you got a day for some rest and to spend time with the family. Also glad to hear that you've been doing well with the food, even though there hasn't been time for exercise. We've had cold (not Indiana cold) and rain here most of the last week. It's sunny out, still in the 30's, so I'll go for a ride in about an hour or so... Enjoy your day off. Hope that things calm down soon for you. B