First Ride with the Jersey Shore Touring Society

I took my first ride with the Jersey Shore Touring Society (JSTS)today. The course started at Brookdale Community College and went south through Tinton Falls and then around the Manasquan Reservoir. The return trip took us through Howell, Freehold and Colts Neck. The route was listed at 48.1 miles. Since one of my Live Earth pledges is to not drive any place I can ride I rode from my house in Holmdel to the route start at Brookdale. I suspect I might have added about 6 or 7 miles to the ride. It was hot today. I am not sure how I feel about organized rides so I am not sure if I am going to join the club.

I got home in time to watch the end of today's stage of the Tour. However, I ended falling asleep on the couch. I had a feeling the Robbie McEwen was going to win even after the accident. I wish I could have stayed awake to watch the ending. I will look at the replay later on.

If I ride at all tomorrow it is going to be a short one in the evening. I have rode everyday for the last 9 days. Almost all of them have been hard rides and I think my body needs a rest. Especially now that the summer heat is here. I should probably take the day off but even though I know that days off are just as important as workout days I always feel like a slacker. Especially when I see others out getting things done.

I watched a show about hotdogs and now I am craving a Chicago-Style Hotdog. I have been craving pancakes all week. I think all the riding has increased my bodies need for carbs. According to my bathroom scale I have lost about 15 pounds (185 down to 170) since I got the Langster. Of course I will not rule out that the scale is not reading correctly.

Just in case you are interested here is the list of things I have started doing to help out the environment.

1. Not using bottled water. I purchased two Nalgene 1 Liter Bottles last summer at the Eastern Mountain Sports (EMS) Store in Eatontown, NJ. I usually carry one around with me everywhere I go. I refill it from water fountains. The only problem is it always seems like the water fountains are always broken (I think it is a plot to force the purchase of bottle water) and I do not like to refill from the sinks in the restrooms. The last time I went to Six Flags Great Adventure I tried every fountain with no success. I finally found a working fountain only after I had bought to bottles of water to refill my Nalgene Bottle. Of course not everyone in my household is following my example.


2. Not buying a new car. I am not sure if this is because I am environmentally conscious or I just cannot afford a new car at the moment. I have been disappointed at the gas mileage of the new cars. I keep hoping that Honda will put a Hybrid engine in the Ridgeline (I would like to have a truck that I can use to cart around bikes, kayaks, skies and other things). However, I do like the Toyota Camry as well and it has a hybrid model as well. I think I can get a couple more years out of my current car and I can use the money to buy a Specialized Tarmac.


3. Batching out my errands. I am trying to cut down on the number of trips I take to the same place. If I go to the grocery store I want to make sure I get everything I need and not have to run back for other items (I am not doing very good with this). Since the Dry Cleaner and GNC are located in the same plaze as the grocery store I am trying to make sure only make one trip when I need to hit all three places.


4. Buying a bike. Instead of getting in the car and driving around when I need to get out of the house I plan a bike ride to go to the places I want go. I usually like to get to Red Bank at least once in the weekend. I usually plan at least one ride to go through the town of Red Bank or head down along the shoreline. This usually gets it out of my system. However, if I want to go to the beach I still need to bring the car. The idea of riding home with sand in my shorts does not seem all that appealling.

All of the above was started before the Live Earth aired. I am not sure I am as much Evironmentally conscious as I am cheap. Having my gasoline bill triple over the last couple of years has given me fits. Here in NJ we still have some of the cheapest fuel in the country but it is still tough to swallow. I know that is much worse in other countries. Of course bottled water is much more expensive than fuel.

One of the things missing from the list above is recycling. I try to recycling but sometimes I throw recyclables into the regular garbage.