Ok, so Boston parks lack some of the fun equipment I'd like them to have. Like, say, rails in all kinds of crazy configurations to practice balance, vaulting, flips, cat-balancing, etc.
But what if some shady group of construction ninjas were to buy some cheap iron pipes and quick-dry cement? Parks are pretty dark, and narrow holes can be dug and filled with cement pretty fast. Imagine...one day there's an empty patch of land. The next day, there's a set of parallel bars! I'm sure nobody could possibly prove that the group of upright citizens happily playing on them by day were the same shady characters who installed them by night.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Parkour!
It may not be spring quite yet, but it will be soon. That means more daylight, warmer temperatures and (most importantly) less restrictive clothing! So I'd like to re-start the vaguely parkour-ish activities that we sadly had to halt in the fall. To start, here are my suggestions:
1. Recruit people! One person jumping and climbing all over the place looks crazy. Two people jumping and climbing look cool, but not approachable. Three or more and we might pick up new recruits who see us doing awesome things. (Or who want to help after one of us has fallen off a rail and can't move their toes, I suppose.)
2. Scout out fun spots! Anything with benches, rails, random beams/obstacles, fences, trees, etc. We had some trouble last year finding places with enough obstacles and few enough fatal drops to make practicing fun. So far we've got the park near Kristina's, the pedestrian underpass on Somerville Ave, and to some extent Powderhouse Park.
3. Get ready! Do flexibility exercises and generally get out of winter mode. Practice jumping, rolling, and all those other things that make muscles angry if you don't ease into them.
Finally, we should keep an eye out for a nice weekend where things won't be too wet or cold and mess around for a couple hours to get back into the spirit of things. So, who's in?
1. Recruit people! One person jumping and climbing all over the place looks crazy. Two people jumping and climbing look cool, but not approachable. Three or more and we might pick up new recruits who see us doing awesome things. (Or who want to help after one of us has fallen off a rail and can't move their toes, I suppose.)
2. Scout out fun spots! Anything with benches, rails, random beams/obstacles, fences, trees, etc. We had some trouble last year finding places with enough obstacles and few enough fatal drops to make practicing fun. So far we've got the park near Kristina's, the pedestrian underpass on Somerville Ave, and to some extent Powderhouse Park.
3. Get ready! Do flexibility exercises and generally get out of winter mode. Practice jumping, rolling, and all those other things that make muscles angry if you don't ease into them.
Finally, we should keep an eye out for a nice weekend where things won't be too wet or cold and mess around for a couple hours to get back into the spirit of things. So, who's in?
The Antithesis of Boston
I recently returned from a trip to Tequesta, FL. There may be no place in the country quite so dramatically different from Boston:
In Tequesta, everyone is old(I mean really, death's-door old). In Boston, almost everyone is under 35.
In Tequesta, roads are six lanes and ruler-straight. In Boston, you're lucky to get two lanes and roads turn at random, just because.
In Tequesta, you can't walk to anything and have to drive everything. In Boston, you can walk/bike to everything and should never drive to anything.
In Tequesta, U-turns are a standard procedure. In Boston, U-turns are suicidal.
In Tequesta, its sunny and warm. In Boston, its rainy and cold.
The list could probably go on, but that's a quick summary.
In Tequesta, everyone is old(I mean really, death's-door old). In Boston, almost everyone is under 35.
In Tequesta, roads are six lanes and ruler-straight. In Boston, you're lucky to get two lanes and roads turn at random, just because.
In Tequesta, you can't walk to anything and have to drive everything. In Boston, you can walk/bike to everything and should never drive to anything.
In Tequesta, U-turns are a standard procedure. In Boston, U-turns are suicidal.
In Tequesta, its sunny and warm. In Boston, its rainy and cold.
The list could probably go on, but that's a quick summary.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Rhythm
Today I went for the first longish ride of the Late Winter, to the end of the Minuteman trail and return. This involves some rough city riding before reaching the head of the trail. In the first miles after the transition I found it difficult to keep a consistent cadence. I had become accustomed to the irregular pacing, starting and stopping of city riding. Gradually though, as potholes turned to divots, head wind to cross wind, stubbornly unaware pedestrians to blissfully unaware pedestrians, something happened. Mile markers sped up. From occurring every 4+ minutes, to 3:50, to 3:30, and bottomed out at sub 3 (hmmm, that seems fast, especially considering the choice of only one gear).
I turned 3:30 per mile with little deviation on the return ride.
I turned 3:30 per mile with little deviation on the return ride.
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