Double Fun

We're delighted to report that August in Georgia doesn't have to be unbearable. Last year we endured day after day of temperatures in the 100's. So far August 2008 has been amazingly tolerable. For the past few weeks we've had temperatures in the 70's and 80's with low humidity, which has provided spectacular cycling weather. Occasional rain has kept the air clear and the temperatures down. Fortunately those storms have occurred during the week, so the weekends are clear for great riding.

We took full advantage of the weather to hook up with the Georgia Peaches, a group of tandem riders from in and around Atlanta. The group gets together for one ride each month and we've enjoyed joining them several times during the past year. They generally ride outside of Atlanta to get away from city traffic. Rural Georgia is truly beautiful, with many tall trees, frequent rivers and lakes, rolling hills and scenic vistas. The only down side is the dogs. Although there is a leash law, it doesn't appear to be enforced in the rural areas, It's not uncommon to get chased by packs of dogs determined to protect their homesteads. Fortunately we learned last summer that a loud whistle seems to confuse them enough to allow for a quick getaway.

Being a control freak, one of the challenges for Nancy has been learning to be a good stoker (the person who rides on the back of the tandem). As the captain, Michael has control of the steering, brakes and choice of gears. In other words -- total control! To appease Nancy, we mounted a bell on the back handle bar which she can ding as a friendly greeting or to alert clueless pedestrians of our presence. Now, she also has control over the dog whistle! So as we're spinning madly to escape the drooling beasts, she is also in charge of madly blowing the whistle.

Our Georgia Peaches ride began in Moreland, Georgia, about an hour south of Atlanta. The terraine south of Atlanta has gently rolling hills, which is ideal for a tandem ride. It is much flatter than the extremely hilly portions of metro Atlanta as you approach the Georgia mountains to the north of us. It was a delightfully cool start for August (low 70's). Nine tandems showed up for the ride and we enjoyed joking that our group was the equivalent of an 18-wheeler on the country roads.

Riding with a group of tandems is very much like being in a parade. We definitely create a sensation everywhere we go. Kids always get excited to see us and adults smile and wave as we go by. Even the drivers of passing cars seem more courteous and friendly. As our group approached one small town, we passed a sheriff who immediately flipped on his flashing lights and gave us an escort through every intersection, allowing us to blow through the stop signs! We waved our appreciation as we headed out of town and continued down the road.

After the ride we enjoyed celebrating the birthday of one of the women who was turning 40. As you know, the secret to feeling young is to hang out with older people, so Michael and I definitely were an asset to the birthday girl in that regard! Looking at the photo of the post-ride feast makes us realize that bike clubs all over the country (and the world) are very much the same. It reminds us of our frequent visits to Taco Pablos with all our wonderful friends from the North County Cycle Club in San Diego.

So we're rolling along and enjoying another Summer in Georgia.

Rocky Mountain High

It's amazing to realize that we haven't blogged since the tornado. Apologies to any who check this site periodically. I guess it means that we've settled into life in Georgia and need to get out and have more adventures! We'll try to do better in the future.

We recently returned from a wonderful 10 days in Colorado with some of Nancy's family. Michael felt really tall the entire time. After spending a couple of days in Fort Collins with Nancy's parents, we kidnapped her Mom and headed off to Estes Park for a week at a timeshare with Nancy's sister, Kathy, and her daughter, Lee. We were also joined by Nancy's brother, Phil, and his wife, Jeanee. Mom loved every minute of the trip, and Dad joined us for a couple of overnights and/or day trips from Fort Collins. Estes Park is deep in the Rocky Mountains, just outside of Rocky Mountain National Park, and about an hour's drive West of Fort Collins.

The week couldn't have been better. The weather was spectacular, with blue skies and warm weather only briefly interrupted by an occasional afternoon thunderstorm. We made frequent trips into Rocky Mountain National Park, and saw elk regularly. We were amazed at the large herds in and around the Park, and even at the higher altitudes along the top of Trail Ridge Road. A couple of times we even found elk wandering along the river that ran right in front of our condo. Another evening we were thrilled to come across a large herd of elk that included several small calves. It was a delight to watch their antics and aggressive nursing. Elk mothers have a lot of patience!

We had so much fun together and often split into smaller groups to enjoy different activities. In addition to relaxing and gabbing around the condo, we found time to enjoy the famous tram ride up the side of a mountain outside Estes Park, have fun in the novelty and gift shops around town and take in a miniature horse show competition. Think "Best in Show" with tiny horses instead of dogs and you'll get the idea. There was also a hootenanny at nearby MacGregor Ranch, the most beautiful ranch in the world, complete with hay rides, cowboy singers and a yoedeler and cowboy poet. We also enjoyed hikes in the Park and of course quality sister time.

Nancy's father joined us for a special luncheon to celebrate her parents' 60th wedding anniversary. Bettye and Ed have been blessed to enjoy such a long and truly happy marriage. They have set a wonderful example for each of their children who are all fortunate to be in long-term loving relationships with their own spouses.

During our trip Michael enjoyed spending a day with a few of his college buddies who still live in and around Denver. George and Michael have been best friends since before Nancy came into the picture. Speaking of pictures, they both hate posing for photos, so this shot of the two of them together is a rare treat.

The time with family was so special and we all felt particularly honored that Lee didn't mind hanging out with the old folks! We all missed Kenny and Jeanette, and David, and hope that they can join us for a future adventure.

Now we're back into the heat and humidity of Summer in Atlanta and yearning for that cool, dry mountain air. But it's good to be home -- and especially good to be back with Lucy!

Atlanta Tornado

If you've seen the news over the last few days, I'm sure you heard that downtown Atlanta took a direct hit from a tornado last night. It was an EF-2 tornado with 135 mph winds which left a path of destruction 200 yards wide and 6 miles long. Less than 1% of tornados hit major downtown areas. Just our luck.




Our condo is about 7 miles north of the downtown area. We had severe lightening and thunder around the time of the tornado, which hit at approximately 9:40 p.m. The lightening and thunder were nearly simultaneous at our place and the severity of the storm sent Nancy and Lucy (our cat) under the covers, while Michael chided them for being wimps. Today we rethought our disaster plan and realized that the master bath, which has no windows and is located in the most central part of our 4-story condo building, might be a safer alternative than under the covers . . .



We didn't learn about the tornado until we checked the weather this morning to see if we would be able to get in a bike ride. Since it was too wet to ride, and more severe weather was predicted for today, we grabbed the camera and took the train downtown to survey the damage. Although the television coverage was impressive, the full impact of seeing the area of devastation in person was powerful.


Windows from many buildings were blown out. Broken glass and debris covered the sidewalks. Insulation hung from the trees. Many of the streets were blocked to traffic. Police, barriers and crime scene tape were everywhere. Trees were uprooted. Cars were smashed. Large steel billboards were tweaked like toothpicks. Older buildings had completely collapsed. Utility poles and street lamps were broken in half. News helicopters circled the sky, while camera crews, news vans and reporters from all the major networks covered the streets. Several of the huge columns erected in Centennial Olympic Park for the 1996 Olympics were knocked over.



As we were walking down the street, a huge plate glass window fell about 20 stories from one of the big hotels and crashed onto a mini van about a half block away from us. At that point the police began yelling for everyone to get off the street. They didn’t have to tell us twice!



Many tourists were in the downtown area for the SEC basketball championships at the Georgia Dome. Just before the tornado hit one of the games had gone into a double overtime. If not for the fact that all of the fans were still in their seats to watch the exciting conclusion, thousands would have been filing out of the arena and into the streets just before the storm. That had to contribute to the amazing statistic that there were no deaths or serious injuries as a result of the tornado.


We spoke with a Tennessee fan who had been in the Dome. He reported that the fiberglass roof was undulating, and the catwalk and scoreboard which are suspended from the ceiling began to sway dramatically. Some people were screaming, but most made a hasty but organized exit into the concourse area. Officials kept them there for several hours. Today we saw many tourists dragging their luggage from one hotel to another looking for undamaged rooms for the night.

Additional photos can be viewed at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/tandembikers/AtlantaTornado

Toward the end of the Picasa album you'll see some of the beautiful trees and bushes that have begun blooming around town this week. Springtime in Atlanta (despite the devastating weather) is truly incredible.


We're happy to report that we are safe and sound. Thanks to all for the phone calls and e-mails today. It’s been a joy to hear from so many friends and family.

S N O W ! ! !

Apparently snow is a rare occurrence in Atlanta, so we felt fortunate to experience two snow events this week. It started snowing late Wednesday afternoon and the local media immediately began posting "Severe Weather Alerts!!" By early evening about 1/4 inch had accumulated on the ground and the local media started reporting school closings. After growing up in the Midwest and living for several years in Colorado, we were chuckling at the overreaction, especially since all the snow was melted by the next morning. But it was beautiful and fun, and I'm sure the school kids were thrilled.

A more substantial storm came through our area late Friday night and most of the day on Saturday. We woke to a cold steady rain on Saturday, but by late morning it had changed over to snow and was absolutely beautiful as the large flakes blanketed the city. Thanks to the cold weather the snow quickly accumulated and before long there were about 2-3 inches on the ground. How fun that this occurred on a Saturday, so the kids (and adults) had a chance to spend a rare day playing in the snow. In that regard, we both had to smile when we noticed a prominent article in the Atlanta Journal Constitution with detailed instructions and illustrations on how to build a snowman! (Step One: work quickly . . .)

Knowing that the snow wouldn't last long, I grabbed a camera, bundled up and went walking in a Winter Wonderland. Quite a contrast to the 100+ temperatures of last August. The soft flakes continued to drift down, blanketing trees, bushes and a few early blooms, as well as the garden gnomes which are so popular in the south. It doesn't take much snow to have fun, and several of the neighborhood kids were building snowmen, having snowball fights and sledding.

Later that afternoon I drove to a John Edwards campaign stop at a Union Hall in downtown Atlanta. Atlanta is famous for its horrible traffic, and the speed limit on the local Interstate Highways seems to be as fast as you're able to drive until you run into a slower vehicle in front of you. The snowy conditions and freezing cold weather, combined with the weekend, kept the traffic very light on the Interstate, and most drivers had slowed to around 55 or 60. That made for an easy drive despite the conditions.

Considering the weather, I was pleasantly surprised to see a large crowd at the event. I'm still deciding who to vote for in the Georgia Primary on Super Tuesday. Obviously Edwards doesn't have the money and momentum of the Obama and Clinton campaigns, but I do like his message. It's exciting to live in Atlanta where we have access to all the major candidates. Obama is making a stop at Ebenezer Baptist Church today as part of the Martin Luther King Jr. birthday celebration. Incidentally, nowhere else do they celebrate the MLK holiday like they do in Atlanta. There have been events all week long and the entire city will be closed down for the parades and celebrations on Monday. Truly a great man and an inspirational leader.

Today's very cold temperatures make it easy to stay inside and watch football. Of course we'll be rooting for the Chargers, although they will surely have their hands full against New England. We would both love to see the Chargers play the Packers in the Super Bowl . . . but I'm probably dreaming!

Happy Brrrrrr Year!

All cyclists know that the best day of the year to ride is on New Years Day. Traffic is practically nonexistent, and as a result bikes can take to the streets with abandon. Perhaps it has something to do with old age, but we've realized that it's much more fun to celebrate New Year Day than New Years Eve. While living in California our routine was to watch the ball drop in NYC (which was 9:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time), and then get to bed so we could get up early on New Years Day to meet the group for a ride. Unfortunately, since Atlanta is in the same time zone as New York, that plan didn't work this year. Still, we got to bed by 10:00 so we could hit the road early for our first New Years Day ride in Atlanta.

We had a blast! We joined a group of about 100 other cyclists for a New Year Day ride that has been ongoing in Atlanta for 30 years and has followed the same route every year. In contrast to the downtown areas of most major cities which are built on a grid system, Atlanta's high rises are essentially stretched out in a line along Peachtree Street, which follows the highest natural ridgeline through the city. On any other day of the year, Peachtree is the most congested route through Atlanta, a city famous for its horrible traffic, and it would be suicidal to ride a bike down that street. However, on New Years Day there were more bikes than cars on Peachtree and we reveled in the experience of riding through the concrete canyons from Five Points in the heart of Downtown Atlanta, through Midtown (where Michael works), past the exploding metropolis of Buckhead and beyond. The experience was also memorable for the wind gusts of up to 30 mph that day. We were well protected by the highrises, but were buffeted by crosswinds at the intersections and had to fight to not get blown off the bikes. All in all, a fun and exciting start to the New Year.

Obviously the weather conditions in Atlanta in January are a bit more extreme than in Encinitas. As the temperatures have been dropping lower and lower throughout the winter, we have been adding to our cycling wardrobe. Fingers, toes and faces seem to take the brunt of the icy weather. We had booties and toe covers that we used occasionally in California, but have discovered the added warmth of wool socks. I'm even considering placing plastic baggies over my socks to help block the wind and cold. We both now wear two pairs of gloves at the beginning of the ride when the temperatures are lowest. I'm not talking about a pair of cycling gloves (with no fingers) and a pair of liner gloves with fingers. I'm talking about a pair of winter full-finger gloves with a pair of liner gloves. On a cold day we'll keep both pair on throughout the entire ride.

One of the greatest inventions is the face mask! When the temperatures dip really low, merely inhaling can freeze your teeth and nostrils. It also keeps your head and neck warm. Thanks to the lycra fabric, you can cover every part of your head except for your eyes, pull it below your nose, or even below your chin. Very versatile! They also come in handy if you want to rob a bank. Another favorite piece of new clothing is fleece lined tights. Very cozy on a cold morning.

Despite all the new winter clothing, there are still limits to how cold it gets before we decide to stay in our TWB (toasty warm bed) and blow off the ride. Since women have much more sense than men, Nancy's limit is about 10 degrees higher than Michael's. She will not start a ride if the temperature is 35 or below. If the temperature is between 35 and 40, she'll start the ride only if predictions are for sunshine and warmer temperatures throughout the remaining hours of the morning. Naturally these parameters exclude rain or gale-force winds, in which case the TWB wins. Michael is still testing his limits. Last week he started a ride in 28-degree weather. Out of our usual group of about 20 riders, only one other fool showed up for the ride, and around mile 10 they both began to question their sanity. Immediately following the ride, Michael (after first spending about 20 minutes thawing out in a hot shower) drove to the bike shop and purchased his full face mask and a new pair of booties.

Fortunately Atlanta never stays too hot or too cold for too long. After a week of temperatures ranging from 15 to 35 degrees, this week we're back in the mild 60's. But winter is not over yet, so our new warm clothing will be put to good use again soon. We are both excited about the vibrant cycling community in Atlanta and the fact that with a few exceptions, we will be able to ride year-round in our new home.

Happy New Year to y'all. Hope you're staying cozy and warm!

Fall Colors

After spending 25 years in Southern California, we had both forgotten how incredible autumn can be. Despite the current drought situation in Georgia, which many say has dampened the fall colors, we were totally blown away by the brilliance of the season. Atlanta is a beautiful city literally built in the middle of a forest. Soon after we arrived and were awed by all the trees and foliage, we began to look forward to autumn. We were not disappointed.

We used the fall colors as an excuse to make our first visit to the North Georgia mountains. Within an easy hour's drive of Atlanta we were in the Appalacian Mountains which stretch from Canada to central Alabama. We just happened to stumble across the beginning of the famous Appalacian Trail and enjoyed talking with two young backpackers who were setting out to do a small stretch of that trail on a very cold and windy day.

Of course we couldn't visit this area of the state without making the climb to the top of Brasstown Bald. At 4,784 feet, it is the tallest peak in Georgia. From the top of the mountain you can see four states: Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina. The view was indeed magnificent, especially with the yellows, oranges and reds of the hillsides.

Brasstown Bald is also a classic climbing stage during the annual Tour of Georgia bicycle race. The year that Lance Armstrong raced, he said that Brasstown Bald was one of the most difficult climbs he'd ever done. We walked the final mile to the top of the mountain and were both confident that it would have been impossible for either of us to pedal up such a steep grade. We tried to capture the pitch on film, but none of our photos do justice to the steepness of the climb. You'll just have to settle for some leftover paint from a previous race.

We were also treated to nature's autumn spectacular during our drive from Atlanta to Champaign, Illinois, for Thanksgiving. It was bright and sunny during our 9-hour drive and the colors were amazing the entire distance. We had a good week in Champaign with Michael's Mom and our cat, Lucy, who has become a seasoned traveler. During our visit we celebrated Mom's 79th birthday, Thanksgiving (vegetarian lasagne) and our 33rd anniversary. While we were in Champaign we had a few days of rain, some very cold weather and high winds. As a result, the trees were nearly bare on our return trip to Atlanta.

Oh yes, on Thanksgiving morning Michael and I braved 30-degree weather to take part in the 40th annual Urbana Park District Turket Trot. Fortunately for us the course was only 1 mile. We're not runners, but the cold temperatures assured that we did, in fact, trot rather than walk. The free hot chocolate at the finish line tasted great!

Street Performers and Enlightenment

Another fun weekend in Atlanta. We took the train downtown to Woodruff Park to attend the first annual (we hope!) Street Performers Fair. We were entertained by some of the best street performers in the country, including jugglers, clowns, acrobats and break dancers. We've always enjoyed encountering street performers during our visits to other cities, particularly San Francisco, so the opportunity to see the best in one place was irresistable.

The heat and humidity of the summer has given way to beautiful fall weather and the temperatures were perfect under a clear blue sky. Michael had just returned from a business trip to St. Louis and was a little annoyed when he got off the plane and I announced that we were going to attend a street fair. But the day was spectacular, the acts were entertaining, and I treated him to a burrito at Moe's, so he soon perked up and had a great time.

The admission was only $1, but of course tipping was encouraged as each act passed the hat after their performance. The crowd was enthusiastic and responded generously, so hopefully these talented performers (who often sleep in their cars as they travel around the country) were well paid for their efforts.

Monday afternoon the rain and drizzle that we desperately need in our area moved in, but I didn't let it discourage me from attending an amazing event at Centennial Olympic Park. The Dalai Lama, who was recently in Washington DC to accept a Congressional Gold Medal, was in Atlanta. After 15 years of effort on the part of Emory University, His Holiness was formally installed as a visiting professor at that great institution. There were three days of events at Emory, culminating with the free public event on Monday.

Despite the weather, thousands of people streamed into the park for an afternoon of Tibetan music and a talk by the Dalai Lama. Understandably, security was very high. No purses, backpacks or chairs (although they did allow umbrellas), and everyone was patted down before entering. The rain held off during the afternoon and early evening, but low clouds hung over the park and surrounding skyscrapers.

The atmosphere was literally a love in. The amicable crowd included tatooed and pierced kids with green hair, Buddhist monks and nuns in traditional maroon and yellow robes, workers in business attire, tourists, curious onlookers and senior citizens in wheelchairs. When the Dalai Lama walked on stage, following a fascinating chanting performance by a group of monks accompanied by traditional Tibetan longhorns, an electric vibe shot through the crowd. So much has been written about this truly genuine compassionate leader of the Buddhist faith, and seeing him in the home city of Martin Luther King, Jr., was poignant.

His message, delivered in fairly good English with occasional assistance from his interpreter, focused on inner disarmament -- letting go of anger, hatred and jealousy and cultivating compassion and service to others. For a religious "rock star" he was amazingly down to earth, and his joy and sense of humor shone through every sentence. It was a delight to be a part of the event and now that he has an association with Emory University, hopefully there will be other opportunities to hear him speak in the future.

A lot of our attention has been focused on San Diego this week in lieu of the devastating fires. As I write this the situation seems to be stabilizing and hopefully the fires will be contained soon. On the positive side, it has been good to reconnect with many friends in that area through phone calls and e-mails. Our thoughts and good wishes are with you all.