Luck-ky

Today was one of those days when nothing really went right, but everything was alright.

It all started with me thinking I would get up early so that I could chalk up the roads before work. Yeah. Noble intentions. I actually forgot this morning that I wanted to leave early and didn't remember until I had already arrived at work. How I even make it to work everyday on such an addled brain is beyond me.

Only choice left now is to sneak away from work and go chalk up before they close the roads.

Once at the roads I realize that all the blue and pink stuff I bought doesn't show up at all. Only white and neon. So I use up all the white and neon, but it only gets me 3 Bens and a heart. Pretty paltry chalking for all the hubbub I created around it.

And it was beautiful up there in the morning light. And the angel was there in her hair rollers and without her wings. But did I remember to bring my camera? Of course not.

I zoom back to work to try and get actual work done. So that I can zoom back out to the race during my lunch "hour". But the server at work is down and I can't get much done. It comes back up at about the time I need to leave for lunch.

I go to my car to change into my bike clothes because I am hoping to mix in some suffervals with the trip to the race. (Again with the noble intentions). I start to gather my bike clothes when I realize that I have forgotten my bike shorts. I only have cover tights. Lovely. Not one to miss a ride, or a race, I put on the tights, sans chamois. Oy.

(At least its not like wearing loafers when you forget your bike shoes for a ride with the Discovery Channel team or anything. )

So now I am off to the race. Oops. Forgot the camera. Back to the car, grab camera, and now I am off to the race.

I notice that the tights have a giant hole in the thigh and my bare thigh skin is poking out. Again, lovely.

By the time I make it to the course, the race has already started and I cannot ride to the top. None of the marshalls cared that I really really wanted to take a picture of my silly sidewalk chalk art. So I walk up to the S turn at the bottom of Willow. This was actually a pretty groovy spot to watch and take pics.

S = sexy

All those boys hitting the lean-shift-lean of the s turn, while disk wheels made that rolling train noise. Sexy.

I whip out the camera to take some pics of that action. Ugh, I have a love hate thing going on with my camera. Its a funky little $300 autodigipic thingie. I've learned to trick its automatic settings and squish a little magic out of it, but sometimes you need the real deal. And when the pro boys are hitting an S-exy turn at max speed, only the real deal will do.

I keep getting pics of trees and motocops in focus, while riders remain blurried. Crappy.

I had some serious lens envy.

Of course, that envy didn't last long, because my batteries died after about 15 crappy blurry pictures.

So I put the camera away and just hang out and cheer. Practically went hoarse screaming for Ben. Watched Floyd come ripping through the S-exy turn twice as fast as anyone else. He used every damn inch of that country road.

Race is done and I start to head back. I notice a big group of guys coming back from the turn up the road. The group of guys are some of my favorite riding buds from back in the day. I haven't seen them in ages. And here they were just up the road the whole time, but I missed them for all the fun stuff. We hug and trade quick how are yous and now I really really am late for work.

My nine 2 minute suffervals turns into one 18 minute sufferval.

Rush to get changed, rush back to work. Work late to make up for lost time. Walk out to empy parking lot at night at the end of the day. Turn key in ignition. Turn key again. Try one more time because this can't be happening.

Battery is dead.
And so is parking lot.

I walk back to my office, look up towing joints, and call for a jump. I wait around for a really long time in cold empty parking lot because the driver will be "right there".

The truck finally shows and I suddenly can't find my keys. I scramble to look for them and realize they are back in my office. Tow truck driver says he can't wait and that he'll be back after another call. Nooooooo.

I go back, get keys, and decide to clean out my car while waiting.

Tow truck guy comes back, gets the car running and I finally drive home.

Whew.

A quick phone call with my favorite person in the whole world resets me. Ahhhh...thats better. Nothing else has gone squirrely so far, so I think the run is done.

And as I kick back with some wine and reflect to spit out this quick blog, I can't help but smile and think what a damn fun day I had.

Lucky.