Met-RX Variety MET-Rx Variety is the latest addition to the SpokEasy shop. This package lets you try three delicious flavors: Vanilla Caramel Churro; Super Cookie Crunch; and Crispy Apple Pie. Each bar packs in 30 or more grams of protein; and supplies zinc; vitamin A; and vitamin C. They make great ride food; and serve as a light meal, too! Total of one dozen bars. $44.99
Combos! Combos were once one of my go-to foods for long rides. I like the combination of crunchy and salty; and with low blood pressure, I actually need the salt. The cheese pizza-pretzel hybrid seen here is interesting — Italy and Bavaria pairing up, you could say. I tried other varieties of Combos, too — Baked and Pepperoni Pizza. Along with this snack, I tried miniature gumdrops; and even pieces of various candy bars. As time went on, however, I discovered that Combos don’t have the sustenance I need for long rides. Then I began to drift towards Clif Bars; and currently rely on Gatorade Whey Protein bars and Clif Builder’s Protein bars. Anything with chocolate is a problem on a sunny day, even in cold weather. I learned that years ago; but a number of the bars I use have chocolate coating. All I can do is put up with the messiness. Speaking of cold weather, ours is a ways off yet. Our high temperature today reached 95 degrees; and the heat is going to stick around a while. On top of that, there’s a potential hurricane threat in the making. Last I knew, the most likely track took the storm to the western coast of Florida; but it’s too soon to say where that thing will go in the end.
Keep Cool Keep cool with the Arctic Zone Cooler! I have something similar to this; and it’s handy for taking lunch to work. In hot weather, I often take it to the salvage store with me. That means using the trailer, because the cooler takes up most of the space in a pannier. The Arctic Zone Cooler comes with four reusable freeze-packs for keeping your lunch or drinks cool. The cooler can fold for easier storage. Today I rode to the salvage store; but I left the trailer home. I had an appointment to get the latest Covid booster at 11:00; and didn’t want the extra weight dragging along to slow me down. Instead of a cooler, I brought along an insulated bubble envelope with a “blue ice” in it. As it turned out, I didn’t get much that I needed to keep cool. As the morning went on, the wind seemed to strengthen; and of course I had a headwind on the way home from the store. The clouds were gathering, too; and the forecast is for scattered T-storms by 4:00 pm. So I’m glad I got in my riding this morning. Another way to keep cool is to wear sun sleeves. My favorite thing about them is that I need to use less sunblock! Sun sleeves feel hot when you first put them on; but after you get moving and start to sweat a bit, your arms feel cooler. Convection? So far I haven’t tried leg sleeves; but they work the same way as arm sleeves. Maybe I’ll get some one of these days. In the meantime, I have to plan tomorrow’s long ride. I found some Gatorade Whey Protein bars at the salvage store; and got five of them. I won’t eat all of them during one ride; but the rest will keep for later rides. My pass through the store also yielded a can of Sport Shake that I can use as a recovery drink. It wasn’t a bad haul; and now I’m just trying to keep cool.
I Miss These! I miss these Breakfast Ovals! I found them at the salvage store a few times; but that was long ago. Breakfast Ovals became an instant addition to my Shop once I tried them. I like berries; and as I remember, there’s some cinnamon in these, too. Thankfully, I don’t have any food allergies; but for those who do, these ovals contain no tree nuts or gluten. Breakfast Ovals are easy to carry along for a healthful snack; or they make a quick pre-ride meal. Oh, how I miss these things! I hope the salvage store has them again sometime. By the way, it looks like the weather will probably be OK for this coming Saturday’s ride to the salvage store. This time though, I think I’ll leave the trailer home. Sunday’s forecast is a bit more uncertain. I certainly hope I get to ride; but if I can’t, I must remember that it’s not a disaster. Sure, I want to keep working towards my Love to Ride goal; but after all I hit the 4000 mile mark yesterday. After today’s miles, I have about 988 to go. All I need to do is keep riding as usual; and I’m going to make it!
Comin’ up a Cloud It’s comin’ up a cloud, as a Southern saying goes. Here comes a T-storm! At 7:00 am it was quite cloudy, but not completely overcast. The sun was in and out of the clouds; but it didn’t look like it would rain soon. So I hitched up the trailer and rode to the salvage store. Of course I kept an eye on the sky. There were already thunderheads building up when I left home; and bad weather can develop quickly. On the way back home, there were more clouds; but I got home dry. The sky looked quite stormy, but it wasn’t raining yet; so I took a chance and rode over to the drug store. I wanted more masks; and I was delighted to discover that they were on sale. That was a good chance to stock up! Just as I got home, I heard thunder. Yep — it was comin’ up a cloud. It was about 10:45 am by then; and I was rather surprised when it didn’t begin to pour within a short time. But maybe it’s still coming. I ran up my bill at the salvage store by buying paper towels. There goes my stock-up-while-I-can mentality; and it might not even be necessary now. I also had to buy sunblock, because I forgot to bring mine with me. The ride back home was going to have me out for too long to not wear sunblock. As always, I watched for things that I can use for ride food; and I wasn’t disappointed. The store still had something called Pro Bar Meal Bar; and for only 50¢ apiece. I got eight of them; and I also found Gatorade Whey Protein bars. They cost only 90¢ each. Gee, what’ll I do if that store goes out of business? Tomorrow’s rain chances are greatest from early afternoon; so maybe I’ll be OK for my long ride. I want to get in my miles for Love to Ride, after all! My total for 2022 is up to 3742.2; and I have 1257.8 more to go. As of 12:30 pm, the thunder was more frequent. Good thing I’m not starting a ride right now!
Sardines When I see pics of the Tour de France peloton, I think of sardines in a can. That’s how closely packed those riders are! One wrong move, and the result is a big pile-up. This morning I went to the salvage store; and sometimes I see sardines there. I’ve never bought any, though. I remember when an uncle visited us when I was about twelve; and he was eating anchovies. I thought they smelled horrible; and that turned me off to anchovies and sardines! Today I brought home a pretty light load; but even so, I took the trailer so I could bring the cooler along. It’s too hot now to take home things like yogurt without a bit of refrigeration. Can you believe I got only three small cans? I got two cans of Vienna sausages; and one of smoked ham. I want a break from chicken and tuna sometimes; and the sausages went into my box of hurricane supplies. Tomorrow’s forecast isn’t favorable for cycling; and I considered going for a short spin on the road bike today. But after I got home from my trip to the salvage store, I headed for the bike shop to get Chamois Butt’r; and then made a stop at the drug store to get masks. With the talk of another [!] COVID spike, I thought it was a good idea to stock up. As it happens, I chose my time well. The store had a special: buy one pack of masks; get the second pack of the same or a lower price half off! By the time I was home from all those errands, it was 11:00 am; getting rather too hot to be starting a ride; and I was hungry. About noon it got drizzly; so I decided to stay home. As to tomorrow, I’ll have to hope for the best.
With Flying Colors? Want to come through the kitchen with flying colors? I thought of flying colors when I named this dish, Go Red. It’s my umpteenth variation on Hoppin’ John; and it uses red lentils and red bell pepper. The funny thing about red lentils is that they turn yellow during cooking! Maybe I should have named this Go Yellow? And after all, today the Tour de France began; and that brings to mind the yellow jersey! It’s a wonderful feeling to get to the end of a big ride with flying colors — as in reaching the end of a century. Nothing matches that elation; but it’s about nine years since I last got to experience it. For several years I’ve worked up century training plans; and something always derails those plans. Last year it was Hurricane Ida; and I have persistent problems with fatigue, anyway. Maybe I need to forget about doing a century for the time being; namely, to strike the colors! I did my century rides mostly to see whether I could; and I found out than I can! Flying colors also makes me think of a hummingbird. Once I saw one when the sunlight was shining on it; and that bird positively glittered! Hummingbirds are amazing; and I wish I saw more of them. But back to the kitchen. I have to plan some cooking to do over the weekend. Garbage Soup might not seem exotic — and in fact, it isn’t — but the freezer is getting too crowded again.
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Bananas! Bananas are a popular food with cyclists! Today I finally got to the supermarket; and picked up some bananas. A favorite pre-ride snack of mine is a banana with peanut butter; and I was without bananas for something like two weeks! I didn’t have grapes, either; and grapes are another pre-ride favorite. They’re good with peanut butter; and also with — can you believe it? — hummus! This morning I discovered that there will be no more pre-work runs to the supermarket. I thought about going there first; then feeding the cat; and then heading out on the road bike. I decided to go take care of the kitty first; and when I got home from that, I changed into cycling shorts for the ride to the store. When I got there, I saw a sign posted at the entrance announcing new hours; and that new schedule began several days ago. They now open at 7:00 am; not 6:00 am. It’s a good thing I didn’t go to the store first thing! When I got home from the store, I put the groceries away; and got ready to go out on the road bike. The bananas I got aren’t as ripe as I like; but it was great to have one again. Then I filled the Camel-Bak; cut up a protein bar; and changed my blouse for a cycling jersey. It felt weird to start a ride so late: it was at least 8:30 by the time I got rolling. Maybe that’s why it seemed so hot; and that, in turn, was why the Propel tasted weird. I made this short for a Sunday ride; largely because I started so late; and because it was already getting hot. Besides, tomorrow is a holiday; and I can put in some more miles!
Ancient History Ancient history isn’t limited to Rome. The tricycle is ancient history, you might say. It seems like an eternity since the day I ordered it from the bike shop; and I didn’t expect to get into cycling as much as I did. I hope I never have to give up riding; and there are ways to keep riding even if you have trouble pedaling! Something to keep in mind in case my legs give out. The trike rode off into the sunset almost nine years ago; and I did my best to give it a second life. It was about worn out by then; but I figured somebody could use it for something. Some ride foods are ancient history, too. I’m always watching for new things to try; and sometimes I don’t find a certain product again. That’s a drawback to shopping at the salvage store. They have what they have; and the merchandise is unpredictable. I love chocolate; and I love cherries! I remember my early days with the hybrid. At first it seemed like I’d never get going; and that, too, seems like an eon ago. If I might say so, I wish I had had something like this to help me through that frustrating beginning on two wheels. History repeats itself; and I had to adjust all over again when I got the road bike. At first the road bike felt very twitchy. It’s much lighter than the hybrid; and even the riding posture is very different. But it wasn’t long before the hybrid began to feel slow and heavy; and I realized that the road bike had spoiled me for the hybrid! All that is ancient history now; and I can’t imagine not being able to ride a bicycle!
What the Doctor Ordered Is this what the doctor ordered? Pills might be just what the doctor ordered. Or increased exercise; or maybe a change in diet. Helpful if you’ve got prediabetes hanging over your head I’m not elated at having to take any medication long-term; but if an ℞ is what the doctor ordered, what else can I do? But today I rode to the salvage store; and to my delight, the grab-bag bins were well stocked. It took some digging; but I found a dozen — yes, that’s right, twelve — RXBars! I found me some ride food today! Some were Peanut Butter Chocolate; some were Chocolate Sea Salt; and some were Blueberry. If this is what the doctor ordered, then the doc should be very happy with me! I also found a half-dozen Special K Protein bars; and five or six junky snack items. I sat down after I was home to calculate my savings; and the grab bag meant major savings: it boiled down to about 13¢ per item; and at the drug store RXBars are usually 2/$5.00. Multiplied by 12, I saved over $26 right there! I don’t want to bore my readers by elaborating on what I saved on everything I got at the salvage store; but suffice it to say that I saved something on just about every item, even if was only three pennies. Pennies add up, though! Today I took the trailer; and what a welcome relief it was to have almost no wind! Even so I stayed on my granny gear most of the time. I just didn’t feel like working hard; and I didn’t need to. There was no need to hurry; and why not take it easy now and then? Sometimes rest is just what the doctor ordered!
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