Great America
August 10th, 2008Wysz already wrote about going to Great America, so I thought I would bring the rides to you. Here are some pictures and a video of the wooden rollercoaster, The Grizzly:
Steven Canyon Road Ride
August 10th, 2008I recorded my ride today on GPS and uploaded it to Motionbased. I biked the same route last week, but did it solo this time and took Pierce Road north instead of south back home. That cut down on the ride significantly:
Funny E-mail Spam
August 7th, 2008I just checked my Gmail Spam folder to see if I had any false positives (nope, go Google!) and had a good laugh at some of the subject lines. I think the spammers are using the most absurd headlines so I’ll be interested in clicking through to the actual email. I’m tempted…not. Some highlights:
“Japan announces nuclear capability, China alarmed”
“Beijing bans US athletes from Olympics”
“Britney Spears Pregnant with Antichrist”
“Horse kicks Harrison Ford in stomach”
“Female gangs found robbing guys”
In order to write these absurd headlines, spammers might be more in touch with current events than some people I know.
My New Bike Commute to Work
August 6th, 2008Quite the day today. After some hesitation, I went ahead and biked to work from my new place. It’s not bad at all - mostly flat on Lawrence and Central Expressway, but the intersections are a little tricky. I left early in the morning to try and beat out most cars, which turned out to be a good choice. But, I’m not sure if I’m up to 20.1 miles roundtrip each day. Perhaps I’ll at least try to ride a full length once a week, and take the shuttle, which drops off at Valco (<2 miles from my place), in the evenings. You can see a more detailed view of my ride on MotionBased.
One thing I know I’ll need in the future is a rack to place my bag. It’s heavy on my shoulder and extended riding is probably going to cause some pain. I’ll also need a nicer bike jacket - probably arond $75 to $100 for that. And I thought I was saving money by biking =p
3 Pieces of Advice
August 4th, 2008- The 5th and Mission parking garage in SF does not subsidize parking, even if you see a movie at the nearby Metreon. Expect to pay around $9 to park if you see a movie. Do not arrive 5 minutes before the start of a sold-out showing of the Dark Knight in IMAX, as almost all the good seats will be taken.
- The string for the Google Kite provided at Friday’s picnic is not attached to the plastic grip. Make sure you unwind the string, tie it to the plastic grip, and then attempt to fly the kite. Otherwise it might end up like this:
- Jack ‘n the Box is offering a Sourdough Jack combo with fries and a small drink for $3.99. Del.icio.us!
Arastradero
August 3rd, 2008Went mountain biking at Arastradero Nature Preserve this afternoon. The trail has changed a whole bunch since the last time I rode it, and I wouldn’t say it’s for the beter. A few of the hills you could bomb down are now turned into slower switchbacks. But, other portions are closed for restoration, which is always nice to see. They recently put in bathrooms and water fountains near the parking lot, so that’s a nice touch. One thing my GPS revealed, was that the ride is a lot shorter (4.15 miles), than I’d always thought:
A penny for your thoughts…
August 3rd, 2008A nickel for a donation?
Wysz already mentioned the marketing letter he received from the ADA, but it seems they have another template letter to send out. Check out the set of address labels I got the other day:
Yes, they send me a nickel — to remind me that every nickel counts for finding a cure for diabetes. So - why don’t I donate $20 $15, or $12 (which seems to be very arbitrary). I guess I should read the letter:
Things that aren’t helping their cause:
- Writing “About” a nickel’s worth. Nope, it’s not every nickel, it’s about a nickel’s worth
- All the unnecessary underlining
- Using …but twice in the letter
- Writing YOU in caps
- Telling me $15 = 300 nickels, $25 = 500 nickels. Too bad they didn’t list $25 or $50 on the donation card.
- Telling me (over, please)
- President, Medicine & Science - is that a company for which you can be president?
- Telling me to send the nickel back. You know, I would have also had to place a stamp on the return envelope…
I guess what their tactic here is to try and guilt you into sending money because they sent you address labels. This would ALMOST work, except I just moved so the address labels are pointless. Nice try. Just hold another charity bike ride and I’ll get you $500.
Steven Canyon Spin
August 2nd, 2008Damn, today was a scorcher outside for a bike ride. Steven Canyon Road was also an ill advised choice, since a majority of the road isn’t shaded by trees. Wilmot and I headed out with some of his high school friends - it was a leisurely ride of 22 miles, with some short bursts of climbing. As my GPS saw it:
Riding around the Cupertino/San Jose/Saratoga area is nice since they’ve marked off bike lanes, but with all the cars and frequent stop signs, it’s a bit of hassle to keep a constant pace. But, it’s something you have to deal with if you want to bike out from where you live to get to the open areas south of 280/85. Tomorrow, it’s time for a post about mountain biking. Stay tuned.
EPA One Last Time
August 2nd, 2008I had packed away my GPS uploader-cabler-thinger during my move to Santa Clara, so I wasn’t able to upload my final ride from EPA to work. But, here it is, in all its glory:
I’ll continue to bike to work as much as possible from Santa Clara, but I certainly will miss the speed and flatness of my old ride. East Bayshore was a nice straight shot to work, allowing me to handle 5.31 miles in around 20 minutes. Well - my new ride will allow me to get more exercise. Stay tuned!
