Training Begins

What's the best way to start training for an event? Talk about starting to train for the event! Or, in my case, write about the event. That's what I have done with my second Tuckerman Inferno, and you can read what I had to say in the latest issue of Vermont Sports magazine (click here).

I've been talking about the Inferno for months now -- and all the training I'm going to do this year. And I actually got quite a jump on the training by bringing my bike up to the house two weeks ago. Did I ride my bike, you ask? Uh, no. But I have definitely thought about it! Anyway, I finally got on the bike; after a 6-mile run with Oscar this morning, I rode on the stationary trainer for 45 minutes. How can I ride for that long without going anywhere, you wonder? Well, I actually went all over the place, including central Mexico, Leadville, Colorado, and to the bottom of the Mogollon Rim in Arizona. Okay, I didn't physically go there, but I read about all of them in Born to Run by Christopher McDougall. Yes, Chris G, I'm finally into it. And it's good; I could have biked another hour, it was so good. But I stopped; it was time for pancakes. So, Inferno, Vermont City Marathon, watch out. My training has begun (and, PS, the pancakes were excellent).

Tailpipe, Anyone?

It was 1988. There I was, 17 years-old, driving up Route 7 in Colchester, Vermont in Old Betsy the 1977 red Jeep Wagoneer. On the roadside, was a dark, rusty pipe. "I wonder who lost their tailpipe," I wondered.

Upon closer inspection at home, however, I was alarmed to see that about 6 feet of tailpipe had rusted off of Betsy. The tailpipe was mine.

Fast forward 22 years. I am driving to the Dump with my dog. Over the sound of the radio, I hear a rattle -- the distinct sound of metal on asphalt. I pull over, and what is hanging off the truck? You guessed it!

Have I gone nowhere? Is there no escape? Will I forever be breaking down on roadsides, jump-starting my vehicles, and picking up car parts from curbs and shoulders? All I want is a little automotive stability in my life. And I really don't think that's asking so much.