Another day in the sun on a bike!

Let's get the numbers out of the way... shall we? 2:28:34, 18.3av/ 41.1mx MPH, 45.65mi, 74av/ 221mx RPM, 150av/ 175mx HR. I rode from my place up the coast to Solana Beach via Sorrento Valley and then headed back home via Torrey Pines. I won't pretend that I felt awesome, but I did feel better than I expected after the good two hours yesterday. Truthfully, I probably started the ride off a little harder than I shoulda, but I got into an early rhythm after my legs loosened up. The bulk of the ride North seemed almost exclusively headwind, while the return trip was more crosswind than tailwind (how is that possible).

I climbed Torrey with a good rhythm and actually felt pretty good, all things considered, but it was humbling to remember the days when I climbed the hill in my big ring at 17-20MPH instead of in the small ring and almost in the bailout gear, inching along at 10MPH. Granted, I was also 30+ lbs lighter when I climbed like that. But still...

The last 5 miles of the ride felt like pedalling through molasses, as my legs began to fade away quickly. I'm not sure if it was the cumulative effect of two days of riding hard or lack of proper fueling along the way... but I was riding on some pretty shaky fumes by the time I had to climb up the last mean climb, Washington, to get back home. I crested the climb in the granny gear and just short of wobbling... but I made it home with an exhausted smile.

I hope I can keep this momentum going as long as possible- I'm hoping to have a date with destiny June 12-13 for California State Master's Track Championships. I'd like to hallucinate that I could get fit enough to contend for a medal in one of my events... so I'll need a lot more wobbly days on the bike!

I admit that I am luckier than I deserve some days. Thanks to the connections I have through a good friend in Denver, I've gotten the chance to "meet" Alison Dunlap in the past few months. I'm not even a "real mountain biker" and getting to email with a former World Champion is pretty exciting to me. I mean... she IS Alison Dunlap after all! I watched a lot of her racing career, from the multiple national titles in cyclo-cross and MTB, all the way to those rainbow stripes. She's an amazing ambassador for the sport, as well as an incredibly nice person. Needless to say, each time I get an email from her, I get pretty excited when I see her name pop up in my email... I mean... Alison Dunlap!

Anyway, here's a part of the last email I got today;

"I'm doing my first live forum on mtbr.com on Tuesday from 11-2pm PST."

Alison is kinda new to jumping into the online world and Social Media- which is part of how we got introduced- so this forum is new and exciting for her. If you have the time and desire to ask a question or two of a World Champion, former Olympian and coach... you should swing by mtbr.com and drop her a note... tell'er the Masiguy sent you! (FYI... stay tuned here for a possible upcoming exclusive Masiguy interview/"funterview" with Alison...)

You've hopefully heard of this; if not, I suggest checking it out and joining to help stop hateful stupidity. I'm all for freedom of speech, but hate speech is kinda hard to defend. Take a second to join the group and leave a message of encouragement and support, if you're so inclined.

Big day tomorrow- my wife and I go to the doctor for her first US doctor visit and baby check up. Needless to say, we're both on pins and needles in anticipation. It's gonna be a big, exciting day... to say the least.

Alright, I'm beat... heading to bed. See you kids in the daylight.

Tim

It's another blog post!

Wow, this makes two days in a row of blogging... that's just sad. It's pretty comical to think that I used to be able to blog at least once a day and often even blogged 2 times or more in a day. How things have changed in the past year or so.

Part of the dilemma is Social Media Channel Overload- not only do I have this blog, but there is Facebook and Twitter... and the Kool-Aid blog that hasn't been touched since my declaration I was relaunching it back in October... and the neglected poetry blog... and the podcast I haven't touched in 6+ months... and the Plurk page. And that's just the stuff that's "mine"... I still have the company websites/ blogs, the Facebook and Twitter accounts for both Masi and Brev M...

Don't get me wrong- I love Social Media and I am not complaining that I have so many outlets for the many and diverse ideas that pop into my head... but it's lately difficult to juggle all of the channels with having a better life/ work balance and the sheer load of The Day Job. I'm not giving up and it isn't like the overall output has gone down... it's just been changing.

See, as much as I really hate to admit it, Twitter and Facebook have really had a much greater impact on the amount of traditional blogging I do these days. I was NOT a fan of Twitter or Facebook in the beginning (and I still think MySpace is terrible, even though I have multiple accounts that have not been touched in a very long time), but they both serve a great purpose of providing a convenient way to communicate very quickly and simply. The blog is my refuge for quality content that doesn't really require conversation (though I always hope there will be one) and Twitter/ Facebook serve as my new home for immediate dialog and conversation. This has come at the cost of more regular blogging, but the overall volume of dialog is actually increased... especially with the ease of being able to communicate from my iPhone so conveniently. So in actuality, it isn't that you're hearing from me any less... you're just hearing from me differently. Kinda.

I find it very intoxicating that while writing this post, I have been having a conversation on Twitter about writing this post. It's a common occurrence for many people who are Social Media nerds like me, but it never grows old to me. Many folks know that I speak on the topic of Social Media, especially with how it relates to small businesses. I write on the topic. I have consulted on it. I pretty much live my life online and breathe SM... and even I get tripped up on it. I've had the conversation with many of my SM peers, people who I really respect, and many have reported similar issues/ problems. One of the more interesting notes is that many of us use our blogs to write more in depth on a topic, with many links and other resources or images, and then use Twitter/ Facebook to have the more immediate dialogs or share news. Many of us who came into SM from the blogging side of things years ago still struggle with this adjustment... but I'm learning to adjust.

Oh yeah... and I rode at lunch today. Another day of riding and getting out of the office. My legs were still tired from the hard (hard-ish) miles over the weekend, but it felt good to be out riding... even if there was a headwind in every direction I rode and my legs felt like I was pedaling through molasses. Riding a bike is awesome and I love it... kinda like my love for Social Media.

Tim

Ever get that feeling...

This week was a week that left me drained and tired from all of the ups and downs. Most weeks are like that of course, but this one was a true "mixed bag".

Returning to racing on the track this week was an obvious highlight for me. Again, words fail to describe the feeling of being well enough to make a return to the oval that I enjoy so much. With my work and travel schedule, it could be the only race I get to do this year on the track, but I made it back- even if just once. That alone stands as an accomplishment that means more to me than I can tell you.

In the space of this week, we also put in an amazing amount of work in a very, very short period of time to create some very exciting new products that will not be what you expect "from a brand like Masi". I am not going to give any further details until something official is ready to be shared, but it's going to be something very cool and something I am personally very excited about and as a company we are collectively excited about. Something of this size never happens over night... except for this time. There's rarely a time when you get to create something from nothing and bring it to life in a matter of days- especially in this industry. Needless to say, it was fun, exciting and very draining to go through such a process in the span of just a few days.

As most of you know, I am a total Social Media geek. It's my thing- outside of cycling- and is something I get exceptionally passionate about. I have consulted on the topic, written on the topic, speak on the topic, participate in forums/ discussions on the topic and participate in the various forms of Social Media. It's something that I believe in both professionally and personally. SM holds so much power and levels the playing field in a way that truly makes my idealistic Pisces heart very happy. This week was full of SM happiness and excitement for me. We, as a company at Haro/ Masi, had our very first company meeting to map out and begin to fully integrate SM strategies for the various brands in the family. I can not begin to tell you how excited that made me- I have been a non-stop cheerleader for SM at the company since I dove headlong into it on March 4th 2005. Taking these first steps with any company is always exciting, but the fact that it is the company I work for makes it even more exciting.

Another, very exciting bit of news on the SM front and one of my proudest moments is that I confirmed this week that I will be speaking in Denver in September at Learn About Web on my return leg coming back from the Expo Cycle show in Montreal. I am over the moon about this chance to speak to the audience of business owners, PR professionals and marketing people wanting to learn more about SM and what it means and can do for them. My thanks has to be given to Craig Sutton, who is the creator of LAW and to Deb Robison, who is a great friend and is working with Craig to pull the event off. Deb and my friend Mack Collier are the ones who really got the ball rolling by recommending me to Craig for the event. On top of it all, since I am traveling back from Montreal, it means I will have my bike with me and I will be able to ride in Denver as well! I will only be in Denver for a couple days, since it is between Expo Cycle and Interbike, but I am hoping to get a ride or two in as well as hopefully see a Masi dealer or two while there. More details coming soon... I promise.

All of this news and excitement, coupled with stress and not feeling well the last few days has left me pretty wiped out. I haven't touched my bike since Wednesday but hopefully will today. Masidaughter and I are planning to ride around the neighborhood this afternoon and spend a little quality time together before we dive into some chores and cleaning, etc. I may or may not be around on the blog for a few more days as I get through some of these chores and life... but I'll be back soon... you know I will.

Here's to hoping you have an exciting and/ or relaxing weekend.

Tim