New jersey, new link, new podcast
Just some random Friday updates before I bail out for the weekend...
I just ordered a
Bike Pure cycling jersey, designed and proffered by the fine folks at
BlackBottoms -- I'm excited to get it when it's released in July! :D
I
wholeheartedly support the cause of
Bike Pure, an organization dedicated to anti-doping efforts. I am STAUNCHLY anti-doping -- I think it brings down the sport of cycling and I find it unfortunate that it's something we have to deal with. But when I wear my
awesome new jersey everybody will know where I stand!
I've also added a link to the
Bike Pure site on my sidebar -- check 'em out!
I've been listening to
The Fredcast, which is a great cycling-based podcast out of Utah -- great stuff! I highly recommend the "Brush With Greatness" episode that includes a sweet anecdote involving a mangled tire, the Tour of California, and a famous European racing team! :)
What else...oohhhh yeah, MY NEW STATIONARY TRAINER! I snatched up a floor model Schwinn upright stationary bike from a local sporting-goods store that was going out of business for a cool $70. I conned my ex-boyfriend into soldering the electrics back together, added new batteries, and now it works like a charm -- unbelievably quiet! I can't even hear a faint whirring...it's awesome. So, bye-bye treadmill...hellooooo, Schwinn! :D
Labels: Bike Yak, Doping, Kit, Podcasts, Updates
Sewing update...
My beautiful fan fabric came in the mail yesterday, and it's waaay more gorgeous than in the picture @ eQuilter -- it's going to make an awesome bathrobe! I ended up doing some work on the pattern yesterday -- I shortened the sleeves by 2 inches and lengthened the main pieces by 2 inches each...the envelope picture shows it just above knee-length and I want it longer. So I did the ole slash-and-spread trick...I'm not worried about it, it's just length! :)
I hit JoAnn on Monday in search of a fabric for
New Look 6674 (I plan to make the view on the bottom right first), and came up with nothing. I took a friend to help me decide, and we couldn't find anything that jumped out at us. :( I'm trying to stay away from black and white, and anything that reminds me of curtains. I allllmost got a batik, but I'm not going for the hippie look either...I think I'm going to search for a really nice yet understated geometric print somewhere. It's time to branch out from florals!
Biking update -- haven't done much. Went for an awesome, awesome hike up Mountain Loop Road to an abandoned mining town for Memorial Day weekend -- pictures maybe later...no computer access is severely limiting in that aspect. :(
Labels: Crafty Exploits, Fabric, The Great Outdoors
Projects, projects, projects
Ohhhh, Memorial Day weekend already! I thought it was next week, but then I realized that the next Monday would be June (WTF?! JUNE?!?!), so this weekend it is.
I have tons of stuff to get done this weekend -- we're going camping somewhere in the woods of WA from Saturday to Sunday, but on Monday I am going to be busy! Currently on tap, in the works, and flowing down the pipeline are...
* Bookshelves. I bought these
Fabian shelves at IKEA a couple of months ago, and my plan is to sand them down a bit and spray-paint the wood and brackets black -- I'm going for a black/white/sage green/Asian motif in my pad. I
really need a place for my books too, they are currently in a big long row on my floor.
* Sewing! YAY! I just started a co-worker's apron (from
A is For Apron, a cute book she picked up at the
Seattle Public Library) -- I made the muslin last night and she needs to try it on and pick out fabric and trims.
Also, I'd been admiring a friend's Asian-styled bathrobe for a while (it's similar to a kimono but doesn't have the gigantic sleeves), so I decided I'd make myself one. I got
Kwik Sew 3177 online, and found
this gorgeous fan-print fabric at
E-Quilter in the clearance section (score!), so I'm good to go. I plan to lengthen the bathrobe to the knee, but that'll be the only alteration...so far. :)
I also want to finish my placemats -- I've got 3 of 4 done but I ran out of wide bias tape before the fourth. :( I also need to finish a pillow that was part of a set of 2 for a friend's housewarming...which was in December. Whoops.
Anyways, I'll also be biking on Sunday hopefully -- and I'm currently drooling over
this beaut of a machine -- many, MANY thanks to
Kerry Litka for the recommendation! WANT SO BAD.
Until Tuesday -- enjoy your long weekend if you have one! GO RIDE YOUR BIKE.
Labels: Bike Yak, Crafty Exploits, Fabric
My canyon for a birthday!
Sunday's bike ride was hands-down one of the best days I've EVER spent on a bike! The weather was insanely gorgeous in the Yakima River Canyon down WA-Hwy 821, and having 20 car-free miles of open blacktop was amazing. I felt great all thru the ride (thanks, Vanilla Bean GU!), and it was just a perfect, perfect birthday ride. My decked-out bike and party hat atop my helmet made people smile when they passed, and I got lots of random birthday shouts from start to finish. :D
The route itself was a winding, rolling road that had 3 hills -- nothing major, very gentle grades -- and absolutely gorgeous scenery. We saw lots of birds, pretty farmland and it was just really quaint and quiet. Average age of the riders (almost 1000 of us!) was probably 45ish...Matt and I were definitely in the minority as late-20s folks. Saw every kind of rider and every kind of bike: old, young, kids, trail-a-bikes, recumbents, balloon-tire bikes, and even one recumbent tandem. Great mix of bicycling folks. :)
If you live anywhere between Seattle and Yakima, you NEED to do this ride next year!! It has definitely moved to the top of my must-ride list, absolutely on the calendar for 2010!
Next up...
Race for the Cure (5K run), then
Tour de Blast! VIVA LE SUMMER!
Labels: Ride Reports
Drool-worthy!
It might surprise you to learn that I know how to sew. Yep, that's right -- I make some of my own clothes. :)
Sooo, imagine my utter surprise and delight when I came across
this beauty of a fabric!
Oh hell yes -- a dress out of bicycle fabric. To be worn mostly when riding, duh! :)
Labels: Crafty Exploits, Fabric
Tom Boonen out of TdF!
Breaking news from the cycling front: Tom Boonen, winner of the grueling cobblestone classic, aka Paris-Roubaix, was
barred from racing the Tour de France this year due to a positive test for cocaine.
Although coke is not on the UCI's list of banned substances (therefore making it "okay" to take it during times of non-competition...I guess), the Tour organizers have decided to bar Boonen from cycling's biggest and most prestigious race.
Motherfucker, Boonen! You win Paris-Roubaix (umm, good job?), and now you've gone and done something stupid like this. Tsk tsk tsk.
I was looking forward to seeing how Boonen fared during the first couple sprint stages of the Tour, but it looks like I'll be watching Cavendish, Millar and McEwen and whoever else is crazy enough to go all out battle for the green jersey.
Labels: Foolishness, Newsworthy, Tom Boonen, Tour de France
More of the about me crap...
In the interest of making myself sound at least interesting enough to blog and have people read it, here's some more about me...
I'm Sara. Born and raised in
Kenai, Alaska, a tiny Alaskan coastal town with a population of about 8K. Went to college
back east for a year before heading
North again where I graduated in '03 with a BA in History.
Now I live in
Seattle where I have a job, a cushy lil' apartment and a
lovely bike that I like to rip up singletrack on.
I am going to get a road bike this year (probably the Specialized Dolce Triple), and then I'll have lots more stories of rides. I unfortunately don't ride my MTB too much because I do live in the city and I am car-less...good and bad. :)
That's me in a nutshell.
Labels: Bike Yak, Introduction
So I'm back...
This blog domain used to be mine last year, but I'm back on the blogging wagon...
So here we go. This will be mostly about bikes, my thoughts on bikes, and probably random crapola thrown in for good measure...because really, what's a blog these days without a healthy dose of blogorrhea once in a while? :)
Sara Likes Bikes. She might like you too.
Labels: Bike Yak, Introduction
