So all I have to say about the ride this morning is: ugh. Morning started off all fine and dandy: had a great hot breakfast at the Pi Kapp house…said goodbye to Tommy…and got underway with some guys in the front group. Thennn soon after getting off campus we hit some awful awful road conditions. Popped my first flat going over a bump…patched up and within about 10 miles popped another…turns out there was a tiny tiny burr in the tire. So I hop back with the sweeps and get it fixed, and as soon as we start rollin again it starts to rain! And this rain was coooold. Despite my slowing mishaps the team actually stayed pretty together and we trudged another 40 miles or so in the dirty wet conditions…only saving grace was a slight tailwind so we were actually moving at a good clip. At around mile 55 we had to rack up the bikes the rest of the way because of construction.
So we cruised into Indianapolis by Van, arriving at Marian College where we are staying. Our old cycling coach from waaaayy back in the beginning, Dean Peterson, coaches cycling here and apparently they are national champs…go Dean wooo! We all hopped out of the vans to do one of our patented faux arrivals….but low and behold my tire was flat yet again…nice. No fake arrival for this guy…afterwards we all got cleaned up for lunch.
David Shanklin, who recruits team members for Push America’s national events, grew up around Indianapolis and his parents sponsored us for a rockin lunch. Chowed on awesome pizza and salad at Bazbeaux, a local joint, while chatting with Mrs. Shanklin, her high-school age daughter Michelle, and family friend/exchange student Alba…a tall, striking French girl whom Brent quickly attempted to recruit for his budding modeling agency…apparently she gets the “you should be a model” line all the time though.
After lunch I headed to the bike shop to see what could be done about my flat-prone wheels. With one look they showed me that the back rim was badly dented and needed to be replaced…crap. So after realizing my price range was way below the $230 pair of wheels they wanted to sell me, the shop hooked it up with a modest $70 back wheel and some new super-sweet tires (they have orange tread, so my bike is Hokie colored now :-) All told I still spent $170…funds are hurtin.
Got in a little bike cleaning after getting back, then it was time for our friendship visit and dinner for the evening: playing power chair soccer! Such a blast…a lot like our quad rugby visit. In power chair soccer, electric motorized chairs are equipped with front bumpers you can use to “kick” the ball…either pushing it along in front of you or more often passing it by spinning the chair around (looks really cool). Anyone that uses a power chair can play…so the disabilities are broad. The sport is quite competitive: divisions based on skill level…an apparently they will be holding their first World Cup this year in Japan! Learned all about it from Dominic, President of the national organization, over some delicious Olive Garden…then it was time to play!! Jennie, Katie, Jordan, and Andrew were there to play with us (all teens) and man were they good. All the guys got a chance to try it out…and we got our butts whooped…Katie especially was like the Pele of power chair soccer. Granted the chairs we got to use were a bit slower than regulation…but even with sup-ed up models I think we would have gotten worked.
Day was pretty much done after the visit…I rolled with some guys over to Kinko’s and then Whitecastle (my first time…good stuff!). Bunch of guys are out at apparently a pretty nice club hooked up VIP style cuz Pops knows some of the bouncers from back home…should be a good time. I’m pretty beat though and it sounds like tomorrow’s a big day, so it’s time to catch some shut eye!
So we cruised into Indianapolis by Van, arriving at Marian College where we are staying. Our old cycling coach from waaaayy back in the beginning, Dean Peterson, coaches cycling here and apparently they are national champs…go Dean wooo! We all hopped out of the vans to do one of our patented faux arrivals….but low and behold my tire was flat yet again…nice. No fake arrival for this guy…afterwards we all got cleaned up for lunch.David Shanklin, who recruits team members for Push America’s national events, grew up around Indianapolis and his parents sponsored us for a rockin lunch. Chowed on awesome pizza and salad at Bazbeaux, a local joint, while chatting with Mrs. Shanklin, her high-school age daughter Michelle, and family friend/exchange student Alba…a tall, striking French girl whom Brent quickly attempted to recruit for his budding modeling agency…apparently she gets the “you should be a model” line all the time though.
After lunch I headed to the bike shop to see what could be done about my flat-prone wheels. With one look they showed me that the back rim was badly dented and needed to be replaced…crap. So after realizing my price range was way below the $230 pair of wheels they wanted to sell me, the shop hooked it up with a modest $70 back wheel and some new super-sweet tires (they have orange tread, so my bike is Hokie colored now :-) All told I still spent $170…funds are hurtin.
Got in a little bike cleaning after getting back, then it was time for our friendship visit and dinner for the evening: playing power chair soccer! Such a blast…a lot like our quad rugby visit. In power chair soccer, electric motorized chairs are equipped with front bumpers you can use to “kick” the ball…either pushing it along in front of you or more often passing it by spinning the chair around (looks really cool). Anyone that uses a power chair can play…so the disabilities are broad. The sport is quite competitive: divisions based on skill level…an apparently they will be holding their first World Cup this year in Japan! Learned all about it from Dominic, President of the national organization, over some delicious Olive Garden…then it was time to play!! Jennie, Katie, Jordan, and Andrew were there to play with us (all teens) and man were they good. All the guys got a chance to try it out…and we got our butts whooped…Katie especially was like the Pele of power chair soccer. Granted the chairs we got to use were a bit slower than regulation…but even with sup-ed up models I think we would have gotten worked.Day was pretty much done after the visit…I rolled with some guys over to Kinko’s and then Whitecastle (my first time…good stuff!). Bunch of guys are out at apparently a pretty nice club hooked up VIP style cuz Pops knows some of the bouncers from back home…should be a good time. I’m pretty beat though and it sounds like tomorrow’s a big day, so it’s time to catch some shut eye!
No comments:
Post a Comment