I know....the saying goes 7 come 11, but in this case it represents a bike and the miles I ended up riding.

The plan was to get out and enjoy a little sunshine and road time. I was thinking perhaps a 35 miles or if I was enjoying it and liking the nice weather maybe go the longer 45 even.

No dice.

It seemed as though as soon as I left any bit of sinshine was gone. The sky actually grew dark with clouds. This wasn't the day I expected.

Early in the ride an older guy on a nice chrome-ish color Seven bike was ahead. I passed him even though I was only just warming up and going slow. A block later he passed me back. Now normally, that would have been a signal to jump on board and let the fun begin. But times are not normal for me. All I was trying to do with this ride was to get my feet back on the ground and take some time to concentrate on something other than landing my next gig instead of trying to collect unemployment!

But this guy was riding right at my pace. With a little tailwind we were going along at a steady 19 mph without any effort at all. I stayed on the road at one point while he took the MUP. I kind of figured we might meet again down the road a bit.

Sure enough...there he was later. Now I was warmed up and entering the Root River Parkway and told myself that I should drop a little hammer and try to catch up to him now.

After a short time I was huffing and puffing and feeling quite lousy thankyou when I had to laugh at myself as I said, "Drop the hammer? You idot, you have no hammer to drop." You see, hammers are earned through training, something I have not been doing.

That was the last of the chase. He turned into Whitnall and I decided that this crappy cloudy and somewhat chilly weather would mean a basic Loomis today and nothing more.

Maybe I will use this as a warmup to a better ride Saturday...IF the weather is OK. I need a little sunshine to get me going.

Hey, Phil -- I'm sorry I was out of the loop on the unemployment thing when I posted the comment on your 9/11 blog entry. I'm sorry the station made the decision it did. I'm not a rabid fan, nor am I the type to make disparaging remarks about your former employer or the show without you, but I will say that I think they made a mistake in letting you go. I also know that you are the type that will land on your feet and find a new, different, better situation than you had before. Here's hoping it comes real soon!

Jim

Hey Phil, I'm the gal that talked to you @ State Fair about Fort Myers. I'm so sorry about WTMJ's stupidity. They lost us as loyal listener of 15 years. Please let us know where you land. Remember when God closes a door, he opens a window. You'll be fine, you are so talented. Take care and keep enjoying the ride.
Sandi:):)