Ron (and Jackie) are BACK !

Like Jim I was feeling a little too sluggish to do Laura's Hill Slug ride. I wanted a very relaxed pace, a few more miles and less hills. Jack had emailed me earlier in the week looking for a slow flat ride so he joined me.

He met me at my house at 9am and the plan was to do a New Egypt run but when he got to my house he said that he had run into Jackie at the gym and that she and Ron were going to be riding out of MCP at 10am. I then changed the route and do a loop through Cranbury, where we ran into a couple of people Jack knew, and then headed back to the park .

We got to the boat house where Ron and Jackie were suppose to start just before 10am but didn't see them. Out of the corner of my eye I did see two bikers on the road heading towards the skating rink so Jack and I pursued them and once we got close enough we realized it was Ron and Jackie.

For various reasons they haven't been riding much for the past couple of years but are now getting back on the bike. This was the first ride of the year for them so they were taking it slow and were only doing a short ride. Jack and I hung out with them for about 10 miles. It was good to see them again and catch up. When we left them they said they were going to work on getting back to being able to ride with the club so we should seem them on our rides later in the season.

After Jack and I left them I improved a route that took us through Allentown and Clarksburg. We ended up with 51 miles and 1300 feet of climbing at a 15 mph average. It was about 5 miles more than my legs wanted to do but it felt good to be our on the road again and do some real miles. 

Pennypack 2017

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I had a ride planned for this Saturday but decided to move it to Sunday because of the light rain. Because of the snow this past week I didn't want to ride on the road and decided to go to Pennypack park. This is my go to place when it snows because they plow the bike trail and it is a scenic place to ride.

I got Chris to join me this year. When we got to the parking lot gate it was locked so we had to park on the street. I was concerned that the path might not had been plowed because the parking lot was still full of snow but after we crossed the street and walked over a mound of snow we found the cleaned path.

However as we got further in we found that parts of the path were still covered with snow mostly in the hills in the first couple of miles. The snow that fell Tuesday was mixed with a lot of ice so I guess the plows had a problem clearing parts of the trail. This meant we had to walk up a few hills. This and a problem with Chris's bike slowed us down a little but after the first few miles the path got clearer and Chris managed to ride through his problem.

We continued on until we got to a closed bridge about 7 mile into the ride. Last year we made our way over this bridge and kept going to the Delaware but because the condition of the paths we decided to turn around.

The way back was a little easier as the snow had gotten softer but we still have to walk over a few spots. Out of the 13 miles we did we probably walked at least 2 miles. I didn't really mind as the walking as it was warm and it made it easier to take pictures.

It ended up being a shorter ride than expected but a short ride is better than not riding at all.

Winter Get Away/Adventure

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My wife and I have been wanting to get away on a winter vacation for the past few years but each year one thing or another prevented us from going. This year we finally were able to arrange a 5 day vacation to a warm location as an escape from the winter. We wanted a warm place where we could relax and ended up choosing a resort in Jamaica because it has beautiful beaches, reasonable prices and we could get a direct flight from Newark. Unlike our last couple of vacations we were not planning doing any exploring or activities but just wanted to relax from the stresses of our day to day lives.

After the usually hassle involved with air travel we arrived at our resort in Jamaica. Once we got there we were happy to see that the resort was nicer than expected. Our room was a large suite with a comfortable sitting area and wonderful balcony that looked at over the beach which was only a few feet away. The resort we stayed at was an all inclusive resort so all the food and drinks are included for the price. This made for a very simple vacation as you don't have to worry about where to eat or drink. They have a couple of different buffets that are open all day as well as a couple of specialty restaurants for Italian, Asian, French, or Steak. This gave us a good variety of food to try including some local Jamaican dishes. There are bars and lounges around the resort with drinks and snacks so you will not go hungry or thirsty. Even the mini bar in the room fully stocked and free. They even offer a selection of rum, brandy, gin and vodka in a convenient dispenser.

The main attraction at the resort is the beach and we spent most of our time hanging out on the beach relaxing and reading ( I am working my way through the Game of Thrones series).  The weather was warm and sunny which was perfect for the beach and swimming in the ocean and pools. We did take one trip from the resort to snorkel on a reef just a couple of miles away. I used my waterproof camera I had to take some pictures. The coral is not as colorful as other reefs we have been at but there were some cool fans and brain coral.

Beside hanging out on the beach, the resort offers water sports like kayaks and sailboats so I spent a couple hours sailing around the bay we were in. I use to have a small sailboat so it was fun sailing again. All in all the inclusive resort was a good experience and a great way to relax. Not only was the resort nice but the people in Jamaica were very friendly, laid back and generally fun to be around. It was very good vacation until we had to make our way home.

The problem was that we planned to come home on Tuesday which happened to be the day of the big snow storm. Our flight got canceled on Monday so I spent Monday afternoon working on finding a way home. There are not a lot of flights from Jamaica to the US so getting on an alternative flight is not easy. When we checked with United Airlines they said they might be able to get us out on another flight on Saturday or Sunday which meant say in Jamaica for 3-4 more days. Its not a bad place to be stuck but it meant doubling our stay and spending more money to stay at the resort and taking more time off work.

I managed to get us on an American airlines flight to Charlotte NC on Tuesday afternoon so that got us back in the US where we rented a car and started the 600 mile drive back home. We got into Charlotte at 4pm and got the car then drove a few hours and got into Virginia where we got a crappy hotel room for the night before driving the rest of the way home.

The drive wasn't bad and the snow had all been cleared from the roads by the time we got home. The only problem was that the snow/ice that fell on Tuesday was just one solid block of ice covered in snow.  There was no way to clear the driveway of snow and ice. Luckily I was able to drive the car over it but had to spend an hour chopping out the ice/snow at the end of the driveway where the plow has walled me in.

It wasn't the best way to end a vacation but traveling can sometimes be a pain in the ass so when things go wrong you have to adapt and enjoy the adventure.