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Not in a Teapot

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Not in a teapot, the current tempest out there! It\’s much bigger than that. We\’re now under hurricane warning. Tropical storm conditions, and possibly hurricane conditions, are expected tomorrow; with T-storms all day long. No outdoor riding tomorrow, I guess. Not if the lightning will be cracking all around! Even without lightning, heavy rain wreaks havoc on visibility; and by early afternoon, the wind will be quite strong. Power outage, anyone? My employer says, work remotely tomorrow. Since I don\’t anticipate being able to get my usual morning ride, I can sleep a little later! My \”commute\” will be a few steps, instead of 2.75 miles. Before I go to bed, I can set up my not in a teapot green tea: one green tea bag per pint of water; steeped in the fridge overnight. I\’m trying, admittedly not very successfully, to drink more of that tea and less Diet Coke. The latter isn\’t good for my teeth, for one thing. Being at home all day will make it easier for me to get my diet back on track. Yesterday I broke loose with candy; this evening I got Chinese takeout for supper. For several days I\’ve felt tired and light-headed no matter what I ate, and decided that it might help if I stuffed myself for once. If I\’m to fix proper meals I\’d better get in there and clean up the kitchen. It\’s no fun trying to cook when the kitchen is a mess.

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Big Mouth

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A \”big mouth\” is generally seen as an undesirable trait. We don\’t take it as a compliment if somebody tells us, \”You and your big mouth!\” When doing a long ride, such as a century, we really need our mouths, no matter what their size. We have to keep the food supply coming if we want to keep rolling! This, unfortunately, can cause problems in the form of mouth and gum discomfort. The Complete Book of Long-Distance Cycling goes into this matter on page 192-193. One legendary long-distance rider covered the Great Divide Mountain Bike Trail in only 18 days. Afterwards, he commented that, \”The sorest thing was my mouth.\” Part of this problem could be a dry mouth. Another is foods high in acid (such as fruit pies), or sweet/sugary foods. (Here\’s looking at you, GU-Gel). I suspect that rice cakes that stick all over the teeth are another culprit. How can we keep this problem at bay? I suppose one thing that could help is not to gulp a sip of water right down. Swish it around your mouth a little before swallowing. Some riders doing multi-day tours will bring along a small bottle of mouthwash to use if needed. Regular oral hygiene, aka flossing and brushing, are of course important. So many products are on the market that I\’m not going to recommend any particular one. The choice is yours. Ask your dentist for advice if needed. As for all the stories, reports, and so on going around about the current COVID-19 crisis: we\’d be wise to keep the big mouth shut.

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I Dood It!

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Yep, I dood it. In fact, I\’ve done two things. Last night I got to work and made the potato tikka masala. It was the same recipe as the cauliflower tikka masala; except, of course, with spuds instead of \”flower cabbage\”, as German calls it. Note to self: next time use the FIVE-quart pot. The two-quart one was barely big enough. Also, next time try some Old Bay Seasoning instead of curry powder. Maybe not a whole tablespoon of it, though. I find Old Bay to be strong stuff. I dood it this morning, too: I finally hitched up the trailer and rode to the salvage store. And did I find some good stuff! I must have hit it at just the right time; sometimes it happens. Lately I\’ve been experimenting with using various salsas on rice and beans.  One aisle in the salvage store always has some \”Hispanic\” grocery items, I guess you could call them. Today there were 10-oz cans of mild red enchilada sauce, three for a dollar! On the opposite side of the aisle were 5-oz cans of water-pack tuna, 69 cents each. I picked up six cans. Soon afterwards, four aisles over, I found a different brand of the same thing; but 59 cents each. I took eight cans, and put the other tuna back where I\’d gotten it. In effect, I got the seventh can of tuna for 58 cents; and the eighth one for free! Of course I visited the grab-bag bins, but this time most of the things I picked weren\’t candy. I\’ve got enough goodies to last me for months! And of course I got some \”luxury\” items, such as a can of black cherries in apple juice. There were 5-oz bags of NUT-rition squares, for $0.99 each. I bought three bags; I think they might make good ride food. Incidentally, one variety of those NUT-rition squares is \”digestive health\”. It makes me think of digestive biscuits!  

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Cooking

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Cooking up a storm? I should think not. The Southeast has had more than its share of storms in the last month. And in one more month, hurricane season begins! Leaving storms aside, I always seem to be cooking up something. Using a certain Feed Zone recipe as a starting point, I\’ve fixed hot dogs about half a dozen different ways. Then I made it with cauliflower! I bet it would be good with potatoes, too. A month or two ago I found Taco Complete in the salvage store. I added a can of it to a pot of cooked lentils. Success! I tried it in black beans, too, and finally ordered a six-pack of Taco Complete online. Then, day before yesterday, I stopped in the local Walgreens to get a few more Quest Bars. On my way to the checkout, I walked through the aisle where canned goods are. To my astonishment, I found Taco Complete there! I\’m sure it wasn\’t ever there before. I grabbed two cans, and now I can try \”TC\” in pinto beans! What about the aforementioned hurricane season? I\’ll have to watch things. Cooking up too much stuff to freeze could result in loss of a lot of frozen food! What if the power goes out for more than a day? It might not happen, though. Meanwhile, I\’ll keep on thinking up more things to cook.

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Wet and Wild

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Wet and Wild Singin’ in the Rain? (With apologies to Gene Kelly) Wet and Wild — not! As expected, it was raining this morning. The temperature was in the low 60s. It wasn’t raining particularly hard; but it still wouldn’t have been pleasant for a bicycle ride. So I’m glad I rode yesterday. No alarm clock this morning! I was very tired, and didn’t even get up until 9 am; very late for me. As I wasn’t trying to get out the door and onto the saddle, I did other things that too often get pushed aside. Cooking, for instance; although nothing à la Feed Zone. I made what I call “squashed sauce”; chopped squash (zucchini today), onions, and garlic cooked in canned tomatoes. I also threw in about a cupful of red enchilada sauce that I had in the fridge, and that needed to be used up. While the sauce was cooking, I washed out my new cycling shorts and a pair of leg warmers. After that I had to sally forth to pick up a refill from the drug store. I would have liked to ride the hybrid over there, just to get some movement into my legs; but the strip mall where the store is located is situated between two streets that flood when it rains. Thus I walked to the store. Sure enough, both streets were awash. Now, at 1 pm, the rain seems to be over. It’s still overcast, though, so I can’t be certain. There isn’t much wind, so it’s not exactly wet and wild, is it?

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Strategy

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Strategy is an important aspect of cycling. There\’s training strategy: when should training for an event begin? How soon should I begin interval work, and how intensely should I ride? And how often should I perform intervals? Once a week? What does any athlete need to do to prevent burnout? Racing has been called \”chess on wheels\”. It\’s about more than sheer speed; a rider must be able to \”read the race\”. I\’ll be the first to admit my illiteracy in this area. Whenever I see a brief video clip of a bicycle race, all I see is a lot of people in lycra outfits, riding fast. There are tactics besides the physical training aspect. There\’s proper nutrition and fueling. And getting enough sleep. And don\’t forget the mental side of things, such as developing confidence, and not berating yourself on those inevitable days when nothing seems to go right. Strategy isn\’t limited to competition. It applies to events such as century rides. Allow enough time before big-ride day to work up to the distance. Experiment with on-bike food, and learn what works for you. If you\’ve got a ride such as Tour de Cure on your calendar, and group training rides are offered, get to as many of those training rides as you can. That\’s especially important if you aren\’t used to group riding. I find starting scary when I\’m surrounded my other riders. No two people will use exactly the same strategy; but the important thing is to have that plan, and to implement it.    

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If Only I Could!

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If only I could retire, like those guys! Not to sit around on a beach, though. I wish I could retire primarily because of health issues. I\’m so tired of wearing filter masks all day every day because \”fragrances\” are everywhere, and I\’m so sensitive to them. The cost of those masks does add up, and I have some concerns about possible long-term adverse effects of inhaling filter mask for hours a day. Leaving that aside, being able to retire would mean more time for riding. First, I could sleep until my body is ready to wake up; not when an alarm clock says it\’s time to get up if I want to fit in a ride before going to work. I wouldn\’t have to keep an eye on the time as I rode. With no time clock to answer to, I could do longer daily rides. Maybe I could finally get in another century or two! Retirement would mean more time for my web site! I could work on it and still have time for things like cooking. Maybe I could even try some more Feed Zone recipes! I would have more time to listen to music, and to read…if only I could retire.

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In the Lab Again

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In the lab again? Since when did I turn scientist? Well, the kitchen is a laboratory of sorts, isn\’t it? It\’s a place to experiment with recipes: substitute this, omit that, etcetera. Last Saturday I went Feed Zone again, with yet another variation of Chicken Tikka Masala (pg. 229). Only I didn\’t use chicken; I used hot dogs. I also substituted medium buffalo wing sauce for the tomato sauce. By itself, the buffalo sauce was really too sharp for my palate; but mixing it with the yogurt toned it down very nicely. So here\’s the breakdown: 1 cup thinly sliced onions (mostly white onions this time); 1 cup plain low-fat yogurt; 1 cup buffalo sauce; 1 tsp salt; 1, 12-oz package beef hot dogs, thinly sliced crosswise. First I mixed everything but the hot dogs; it\’s a lot easier to stir without them! (BTW, the salt is optional). Then I stirred in the sliced hot dogs; put a cover on the pot (yes, I mixed the stuff right in the cook-pot!); and let the mixture marinate a couple of hours. Then I put the pot over medium heat; let it heat with an occasional stir; and when it was bubbly, I turned the heat way down and let it simmer for 15 minutes. That\’s all there is to it! I bet this would make a nice party dish. Something to think about, with the holiday season coming up.

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Dying to Ride

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We\’re all \”dying\” to ride sometimes. On a beautiful day with perfect riding weather, we might be stuck indoors at work; but dying to ride. We all know how frustrating that is, don\’t we? Thinking of that brings to mind cyclists who have met tragic ends while riding, especially those who died during major races. There\’s Tom Simpson, who collapsed and died while ascending Mont Ventoux during the 1967 Tour de France. Eighteen years later, Fabio Casartelli died after crashing on a descent and suffering massive head injuries. When I see footage of the pile-ups that sometimes occur during the Tour de France, I\’m amazed that there aren\’t more cases of serious injuries, such as broken legs and even broken necks. I\’m also amazed that such mass crashes don\’t occur more often, seeing how closely packed the peloton is, and how fast they\’re riding. One wrong move can cause disaster. Pro tour riders must be made of exceptionally tough stuff to participate in those races. Physically tough, naturally, but also mentally tough. They know what might happen! We mustn\’t forget that pro cyclists aren\’t immune to eating disorders. It seems hard to believe that. Cycling seems like a way to burn a ton of calories, so that the rider can eat whatever, whenever, and however much. Not so. Undiagnosed, untreated eating disorders can wreck a pro cyclist\’s career. Eating disorders can also lead to death. Let\’s keep our relationship with cycling ( and food) a healthy one, so we can enjoy the ride.  

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More Than Just Legs

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More Than Just Legs Cycling is about more than just legs. From browsing through Feed Zone cookbooks; and web sites such as this, I’m aware of the phenomenon called “flavor fatigue”. Flavor fatigue is real. After several hours of pedaling, my stomach starts to feel uncomfortable. I don’t want to eat any more. It’s amazing how tiresome a Clif Bar is when I eat 1/8 of a bar every 15 minutes, and it’s the same flavor every bite! But if I still have more than a very few miles to go, I need to keep fueling; even if I’m tired of eating.  If this happens to me on a ride of 50 miles or so, at a moderate (pokey?) pace of 12-13 mph, what must it be like for, let’s say, a Tour de France rider? They say that those guys burn up to 8000 calories per stage! They ride much faster than I can, and increased intensity increases stomach discomfort. (Hence the need to train your gut.) Yet the pro tour rider has to keep fueling and hydrating. They say that eating enough during a prolonged stage race is akin to force feeding. The teams’ chefs have quite a job finding a way to keep the peloton properly fed while providing enough variety to stave off flavor fatigue. I try not to bring along exactly the same foods on every long ride; and I usually have at least two flavors of GU-Gel on hand. It helps prevent boredom — I mean, flavor fatigue. Because as I know, cycling is about more than just legs.  

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