That's Gonna Hurt Tomorrow

For any of you who were worried, I did get the bike home from work the next day. Turns out that when I fell, I broke a rear spoke so it had to go to the shop. Seems like I should learn how to fix that and true up the wheel myself. The mechanic recommends replacing the rear wheel before too long.

Today was the Tour of the North Shore Half Century. My friend and I started early in a cold wind. It was about 50 degrees when we started. The ride is not what I would call a model of organization and parts were not well marked. One would think after doing this for 30 years, it would be old hat. We got off the route two or three times. I blame signage for that.

I did get through it for a total of 53 miles in 3:38:12. By no means fast. But, considering my level of conditioning, I am not complaining. The route took us along bike paths and suburban streets through some very affluent areas. So, there were nice houses to see along the way and the occasional glimpse of the lake. To see the route, look at the 30 and 50 mile maps here.

From about 18 to 23 miles, I was sure I would bonk. I ate a Powerbar and stayed hydrated on Powerbar fluid. I drank water at the rest stops. By the time we got to 30, I was feeling better and the last 20 were not too bad. Truth be told, I also relied on a potent cocktail of performance enhancing substances. First, I was legitimately on a 12-hour Sudafed to fight the end of a cold. This gives me a a buzz equivalent to a couple shots of espresso. Second, and more important, I was riding with a guy I know who rides a lot. That means that, as a male of the species, I was overcome by high dosage of testosterone and driven to keep up the pace. It helped that for a good chunk of the middle of the ride, we were joined by a guy who was at least ten years older than me and quite a bit faster. Finally, I swallowed a Gu pack at about the 30-mile mark.

All in all, I am glad I did it and relatively pleased with the result. I was hoping for closer to 3 hours, but given the weather and my level of training, I'll take it.

Comments

Anonymous said…
You're a nut.
May 16, 2005, 9:28:00 PM
Anonymous said…
Congratulations! By the end of the summer you'll be ready for a Century! Keep it up.
May 18, 2005, 6:43:00 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

CAFC Decision in Double Invoicing Case

The Federal Circuit has issued a decision on the merits in United States v. Inn Foods, Inc.  There had been a previous decision on jurisdiction, which was followed by a trial at the Court of International Trade and then this appeal on the substance. The initial issue is whether Inn Foods' invoicing practice amounts to fraud.  Inn Foods had been receiving an invoice from growers in Mexico that had a relatively low sales prices on it.  Subsequent to entry, Inn Foods created a second invoice at something more similar to market value, retaining the original invoice number, and paid at that higher amount.   Superficially, this looks like a standard-issue double-invoicing scheme.  But, in the age of reconciliation, is it really more like a provisional pricing mechanism?  It might have been possible to make that argument had Inn Foods adjusted its entries accordingly.  It didn't and the loss of revenue was approximately $624,000.  Based on testimony and evidence indicating both knowl
Read more

Ninestar and UFLPA Exhaustion

Image
Exhaustion is a key doctrine in administrative law. When applicable, it requires that a party unhappy with an agency’s determination complete the administrative appeal process before turning to the courts for judicial review. Requiring exhaustion typically promotes judicial efficiency by ensuring that disputes are resolved at the agency and, if they are not, that there is a complete record of the agency process. Exhaustion also ensures that the judiciary respects the executive agencies and their expertise.  There are, on the other hand, times when the courts will find that exhaustion is not necessary or appropriate. Such is the case in  Ninestar Corporation et al. v. United States  et al., a decision of the U.S. Court of International Trade.  Ninestar is also interesting because it is one of the first cases in the CIT involving the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, known as UFLPA. In my hiatus from active blogging, I missed the rise of UFLPA as a major compliance topic. So, let's
Read more

Precious Tritium

Image
One thing I have learned as a customs lawyer who does a lot of classification work is that there are millions of odd items moving in international trade the existence of which I am completely ignorant. Such is the case of the gaseous tritium light sources used in, among other things, firearm sights. These things use tritium sealed in a glass that has been coated in phosphor. The radioactive tritium decays, releasing beta particles, which interact with the phosphor causing it to emit light. In other words, it creates light with no external power source. Pretty cool.  Tritium is, of course, a real thing. It is an isotope of hydrogen. We know this from the excellent documentary "Spider-Man." This comes up in relation to the Court of International Trade decision in Trijicon, Inc. v. United States  in which the importer challenged the tariff classification of several versions of the gaseous tritium light sources ("GTLS"). The plaintiff uses them to make gun sights. The
Read more