Donald's Daily Draft

Learning To Drive…

donald — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 21:21:06 +0000

Here’s a picture I took very carefully. You can just barely see the front of a white car over my shoulder about to pass me… see it there in the right of the photo. It’s a student driver… as in a young teenager learning to drive. Fortunately, they passed slowly and confidently. The good news is this particular student is not only learning how to safely navigate the roads but roads with cyclists on them.
Safe Driving… Safe Pedaling.

Now That’s A Cycling Family…

donald — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 12:49:08 +0000

You could call this a serious set of wheels. I was driving along and saw this family pedaling/rolling down the sidewalk (I think the dad was doing most of the pedaling). I had to take a picture. This dad gets a ”way to go” nod from me just for hooking up this cycling train. It’s looks fun… and the good news is all the kids get to go along and no one gets lost. I wonder if the child in the back passes up drinks and eats?

Happy Pedaling!

Holiday Look-alike?

donald — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 15:37:40 +0000

Well, my friendly (I think) coworkers have spoken up and sent me my Holiday Look-alike. For those familiar with the older animated Christmas TV specials… you should recognize the father from the show ”Twas The Night Before Christmas”. Well, at least I have comfy pajamas and a night cap.

So… what do you think?

Merry Christmas To All…

donald — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 13:31:53 +0000

Here’s to your hearts and homes being full of happiness this holiday!

This Kid Needs A White Jersey…

donald — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 13:51:02 +0000

Well… the old man (that’s me) went out for another ride with his best bud (the new Best Young Rider). I still haven’t made it out on my road bike. In fact, I think it’s been almost four weeks. Still, I would take a casual ride with my son any day over a training ride. He’s still so excited about riding the two wheeler. That’s all he talks about when he’s pedaling: “it’s so cool being on a two wheeler… watch what I can do on the two wheeler… I can make it up that hill on my two wheeler.” It’s so fun listening to him! The training wheels are such a distant memory. Now, he doesn’t know the meaning of slow. It’s all out… mashing the pedals… hammering it… even on the way to school. Check out this picture… I’m having to draft:

So, even though I’ve been off the road bike for a while, I believe I’m still getting a good workout.
Thanks little buddy!

Day Dreaming…

donald — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 13:18:24 +0000

I need to pedal. My legs need it… my head needs it!

Let’s Ride Little Buddy!

donald — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 16:01:45 +0000

I can’t begin to express how proud I am of my son. On Thanksgiving Day, he grabbed a wrench and took off his training wheels. He was all of a sudden ready to ride. I didn’t want to rush him earlier on. He gave it his best a few times but just wasn’t ready… so we put them back on. Now, he’s unleashed and ready to roll. He’s so excited and so am I. Yesterday, he was so pumped he asked if he could bike to school. So, mommy pedaled along with him and then I met him for the ride home.
It’s like I’m learning to ride all over again… getting just as much excitement as he is with this new found freedom. Good thing he isn’t any taller… I would be spending too much money this Christmas on his first road bike. Shhh… don’t tell his mommy I even thought about it!

Let’s ride my little buddy!
Here’s 52 seconds of how excited he’s been… I call it Wide Open:

Is The Euro Mullet Still In Style?

donald — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:34:46 +0000

Not to pick on my cycling pal but I have to ask this question.
Is the Euro Mullet still in style?
And if so… is there any difference between the Euro Mullet and the good old American Mullet? I know a couple of years back Tom Boonen was sporting the special style. He may still have a similar cut… I haven’t seen a recent picture.

But here’s my buddy Brian… sporting the Euro Mullet. I believe he has said it’s just enough curl to flutter in the wind as he cranks out the miles.

Brian says his girlfriend digs it so I guess that’s good enough. What do you think and have you ever had a mullet (Euro or Americana)? If you have… please send pictures. Maybe we can judge to see who had/has the best.

Egg-topia…

donald — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 12:49:50 +0000

In my last post, you saw my first attempt at the:
“Across The Pond, Chicken vs. Duck Egg, Cyclosportive Challenge.”
I look at it as an unsuccesful attempt rather than a failed attempt because the eggs I was supposed to pick up and get home uncracked were sold out. As you may remember, Tom, my challenger and cycling friend in England, made it home with a total of five duck eggs… no cracks! Congrats again Tom! It seems farmers in England have no trouble selling their goods as well.
But I couldn’t just let it go. I would have to take another crack at this challenge.
I would have to go above and beyond!

Shell Shocked!

donald — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 18:01:47 +0000

A few posts back, I mentioned “Fresh Organic Eggs” being sold on one of the routes I ride often. Well, I had mentioned it would be a good challenge for me to sometime try to make it home with a dozen… UNCRACKED!

It just so happens that a new cycling blogger buddy in England, “Easy Tom” rides past a farm that offers up eggs for sale as well. OK… the ones there are ducks eggs but my research staff Googled this and it seems they’re about the same size as chicken eggs. Anyway, Tom read my post and offered up a friendly challenge. Since we’ve talked a few times, the title of this challenge has evolved into the… “Across The Pond, Chicken vs. Duck Egg, Cyclosportive Challenge.”This past

Sunday… we both set off in our respective countries to fetch our eggs.
(Make sure you check out Tom’s post as well)

Here’s how I decided to tell my story of being… ”Shell Shocked!”