obligitory year-end post

i've had better years, but don't know if i've had much worse. not that it couldn't have been. 2 surgeries were not fun. lots of good riding though. teaching has been great. we had a cycling race in sioux falls. the wife's health is better. my dogs have been healthy and enjoyable. monk's, of course. fab is running strong. parents/inlaws had surgeries of their own, but are healed now.

here's to a CiTyBiLLy nEW YeAR!!

May 30: Bunyan's to Bob's CiTyBiLLy NorTh EvEnT!

to gator bowl or not to gator bowl

thE kErnEl has never been to a husker bowl game. that is sad, but true. the opportunity has arisen this year, a couple of times, to go to the gator bowl on 1/1. my partners in crime and i are now looking at the weather forecast as we don't want to spend 4 hours in the rain. it would be warm rain though. the gator bowl is in jacksonville, fl for those of you who don't know and actually care. i'd put the odds right at 50/50 now. go big red.

HoLLy JoLLy

HaVe a CiTyBiLLy ChrIsTMaS!

and a FAB New Year!

Happy Birthday to Monk's

Since I moved to SF in the early 90's, thE kErnEl has searched for a place to drink good beer. A year ago, the search ended. Monk's House of Ale Repute has earned many a distinction in it's first year of serving fine beers & thE kErnEl has created some great memories there.

Beginning Monday 12/22 Monk's will be celebrating it's 1st birthday party. thE kErnEl will be there - maybe for 2 straight weeks! So come join me in the festivities.

not don draper, but thE kErnEl

who could have possibly done this?

image was taken moments before the start of the 11aa sd State hs tackle football championship game held at the dakota dome located in vermillion, sd

i wish i was like don draper

i love mad men. if you're not watching it, don't bother -- you're probably not smart enough to get it ;-)

it's the most wonderful time of the year

schnotobeerfest is saturday oct. 11

bad news for schnotobeerfest - thE MuSCle will not be attending due to the fact he'd rather kill helpless birds.

see this post

Bunyan's to Bob's

visit a spot that is truly vintage thE kErnEl

too good not to post

	Make your own at MoreCowbell.dj

Schnoctobeerfest 2008

http://citybillyrides.blogspot.com/2008/09/schnoctobeerfest-2008_15.html

Be there or be square. Yes, all are invited. You just need to email eDLoNNiE.

thE kErnEl invites all the CityBiLLy NoRTh bloggers to post the Schnoctobeerfest info. Let's see if we can get 10 BillIEs and WanNAbe BiLLiEs there!

What the heck. . .

September post: Schnoctobeerfest 2008 is October 18th. Gene went down during the breast cancer ride today - hope he's OK. thE MusCLe is going to watch the big red with me tonight. Dirk is a great president. I'm thirsty. I'm hungry. I've got to get back to grading papers. Who took the Vuelta stage today? I love my wife! See ya next month.

August Post

goes to K-Billy - Get Well Soon.

DOPERS SUCK

NFM

Is it True?

that there will be naked cyclists in Seattle this week? I'll let you know.

In other news, thE kErnEl is very disappointed that no one pointed out that I misspelled Eddy in the previous post.

You all lose points!

RiDe wiTH thE kErnEl DaY

Eddie gave us a truly Begian day. Cold, rain and head winds greeted about 20 would-be BiLLys as we left Highmore (a very patriotic little burg I must say). By the time we reached our first stop in Miller we were covered in muck. Some banging on the door by Patrick got us in and we enjoyed some Blue Moon on tap and popcorn.

thE weather improved and we headed out once more. A tail wind pushed us to another town where the bar was closed. In true BiLLy fashion, beer was located at a convenience store. The cashier told me that I couldn't open it in the store. She evidently wasn't aware of the rules of the day. We all opened and drank whilst she rang up our purchases.

MorE tail wind and we were on a detour that missed a town. Eric led us into HuROn and to the ScoreCaRD, or something like that. We had more beer and food and called eDLoNNiE. Unfortunately, thE kErnEl's phone was running out of minutes and eDBiLLy could not be reached.

MusCLe called the day epic. I'd have to agree. Our group swelled to about 30 at one point and dwindled down to a fiting 8.

Great day and thanks for RiDiNG wiTH thE kErnEl!

You AskeD FoR iT.

MySpace Countdowns

19 Days until RiDe WiTh thE kErnEl Day

see the title. highmore, sd leaving about 8ish. stopping for adult beverages, watching spiderman race ahead, listening to johnny cash, drinking adult beverages, ect . . .

sunny, but . . .

a very cold north wind greeted thE MuScLE, Kluck and Wind in his shorts. I got in about 35 miles with the single speed and felt pretty good.

good enough for lbl? we'll see . . .

also, notice russ' new bike. it looks very fast.

last doctor visit

was today - bad news, he said i have to go under the knife again.

it seems as if some fat tire beer soaked into the titanium rod in my arm and started to corrode the pins.

he said the only cure was to drink more belgian beer. anyone up for a trip to monk's? for medicinal purposes only, of course.

short break

the mayor was right. today was the second day over 60, but the forecast looks gloomy.

great to ride outside today. a short 30 mile ride was just was doctor dope ordered.

'bout 10 of us took off and 'bout 7 finished as a group.

the wrist swelled a bit, but not much pain. one bump sent me yelping, but it didn't kill me.

lbl is in two weeks, so the citybilly north boys/girls need a couple more rides in before d-day.

the death of this blog

well, at least until 1. we have two consecutive days over 60 degrees and 2. i get rid of this cold.

one bit of good news to end on is that i'll be taking a trip somewhere for AP training this summer.

bye bye

friday night update

we'll go to monk's when the bowling is finished.

i'm not going bowling, but maybe someone will call and tell us when they're done?

too much loafing and paperwork this week.

i work part-time at eros and we've gone through a contract negotiation. so now i have to apply for my job with the new company which was my old company about 8 months ago.

ah - federal government in action.

the former prez

of fab and former neighbor will be in town friday night.

plans are to meet at monk's.

no time yet.

the best-laid plans of mice and men

often go awry.

or in south dakota they go to the wind. so much for my first outside bike ride today. 25-35 mph winds turn me off.

it looks like FAB is going to have a great year two. lots of rides. fabrad will have catering and a band. a time trial series. a M.U.S.T. ride, coffee, donuts, a spring kickoff on april 26 and 27. oops, did i let the cat out of the bag ;-) and tez is a member this year! what more could we ask for?

braceless

today is the first day my wrist has spent free of devices since january 12.

it's feeling pretty good. still some stiffness - insert joke here.

looking forward to milan - san remo tomorrow.

gonna miss the starlight ride tonight - still fighting this cold/sore throat crud.

lbl update

word from lincoln is that lbl could be pretty special this year.

special guest riders . . . a tour of spilker's brewery . . . some great commemorative gear

if you're reading this and are interested in participating . . . april 19th, lincoln, ne

see the details.

in other news, i'm going to try to ride outside this weekend! wish me luck.

keeping with the theme

thanks snakebite! i got lucky on a couple of them. and all the dude wanted was his rug back.

89%DRUNKARD

vote for your favorite

during Beer Madness.

the second round is going on now!

it looks as if thE kErnEl has some tasting to do!

ode to guinness

eDLoNNiE introduced me to mother's milk in 1982? 81? i don't remember exactly, but i do remember him coming from the bar to the table in chesterfields with two for himself and two for everyone else. those were the days.

so on this day of celebration keep this irish quote in mind:

When we drink, we get drunk. When we get drunk, we fall asleep. When we fall asleep, we commit no sin. When we commit no sin, we go to Heaven. So, let's all get drunk and go to heaven.

to take a line from big johnny

biker down . . .

david feherty was run down by a truck. see the link.

henry rollins

will be in sioux falls tomorrow's eve. if you don't know who he is, you probably grew up in south dakota ~insert winking smiley here

many a weird night in omaha/fremont/lincoln were spent listening to black flag. dude, i'm so damaged.

sign up for tour de kota before 3/15 and ride with thE kErnEl.

i'll play along

i'm dr. doom - whoever that is.

blessed with smarts and power but burdened by vanity.

uh oh

someone at my place of work is now calling me thE kErnEl.

she's killing thE independent kErnEl.

worlds are colliding.

testing darwin

i referenced this article a few days/weeks ago. the report covers the use of computer software as an evolutionary device.

good luck to the WHS Girls Hoops team this weekend.

words to live by: you've eaten a balanced meal if you've had something living, something dead and something rotten. ~ john landegent

still standing

tonight was the first night i've ridden the trainer and stood on the pedals w/o feeling any pain. still, i rode gingerly (insert joke here).

the image is a preview of the official RiDe WiTH thE kErnEl dAy.

if you'd like to ride like a BiLLy then join thE kErnEl on the Tour de Kota. June 11th from Highmore to Huron.

the ride will not begin before 8:30, nor after 12 noon.

warning: riders participate at their own risk

still stitches?

just got back from the physician and he said the wrist is looking well. there are still some stitches that need to dissolve.

he said to wear the brace for another 3 weeks - i'm getting tired of it. flexibility is good- only trouble is bending the wrist down towards the arm.

hopefully, just one more doctor visit in april.

now off to the bike summit

leap day

leap day is tomorrow. why isn't it a national holiday? really, it comes every four years and should be celebrated.

leaning

actually put some weight on the wrist whilst on the trainer this eve.

i signed this petition.

like pace lines? thE kErnEl does.

java

worked this morning with a computer programming team at Washington High School.

great kids getting ready for a contest at sdsu. if anyone out there is a java expert, give me a holla, we'd love to get some help.

wriststrong

update: i can now squeeze and lift heavier objects with my left hand. the progress has been fairly steady and i'm really pointing at the end of the month to be at 85-90%. swelling is down and range of movement is at about 70%.

big ups to Cipo for his 3rd place finish at the toc. 41 years young - wow.

still in the construction phase is www.centralplainscycling.com i'm doing this work pro bono only if the racers join fab.

another big ups to CycleSD for joining fab at the yellow jersey level.

also thanks to all the bloggers for their well wishes and support during 'rehab'.

team livestrong

with encouragement from spiderman, i joined team livestrong. you know the fund-raising group fighting cancer with the help of some bike racer.

i need to raise $1500 by july, so if you can help me, please visit my donation page . Any donation will help.


i don't usually talk about it, but in my family you are either a cancer survivor or a cancer not-a-survivor. my mother once told me that if you live long enough in our family you'll die of cancer. and that's been the case. my siblings and i are now getting to the age where we'll probably start to see the big C in us.

now to get back on the trainer, so i can pass that supposed bike racer that i'll be riding with.

ice movement

iced down the wound today for about 20 minutes and it felt much better the rest of the day.

LBL is april 19 and you can register at CiTyBiLLyRiDes

i've got to ride with the vermillion crew to bob's in martinsburg. most likely will run into relative i don't know there.

winter sucks

FAB meeting

went off well today with about 40 present. we welcomed some new members too and some renewals too.

the triplets of belleville is one funky movie.

i enjoyed better the second time.

gonna really start training again this weekend . . . and work on the FAB web site while i'm thinking of it . . . and grade some papers . . . and start working on the central plains cycling web site . . . no, i won't tell you anything about it yet.

cast on, cast off

got the splint from the operation off yesterday. the xray showed the wrist was healing nicely, but the doctor didn't tell me i was to have an alien living inside my arm. really, the metal plate looks just like that alien thing that clings to your face and impregnates you.

the scar is about 3.5 inches in length.

i give myself 2 weeks to get it back into shape. that may be pushing it, but lbl is coming soon!

RIP

Sheldon Brown.
Biking Guru.

i'm enthralled by lost

i fell for LOST hook, line and sinker the moment it hit the airwaves. out of all the characters on the show, i think the quiz nailed it, unless there was a charlie or desmond.

Which Lost Character Are You?

Created by BuddyTV

. . . and honestly, i think this is the only possible answer for the simpsons.

Which Character on The Simpsons Are You?

Created by BuddyTV

thanks

thank you for all the well wishes i've received.

if all goes well, i should be back on the bike in march. until then, i'd better get back on the trainer. when i hopped on the scale before surgery i noticed their scale was 5 pounds on the heavy side.

hope they get that fixed.

noticed today the the lincoln plating series spring classic has changed it's name.

my wife is so great

plate

surgery went well.

i'll put more on later, but no pins were needed.

a metal plate was inserted, so i'll get to set of the metal detectors at airports.

more to come . . .

verdict

followed up with the doc today.

is it bad when the first word out of your doctor's mouth is "shoot"?

in my case yes. even i could look at the ct and see a wrist bone, or what is left of it, in the wrong place.

surgery is wed. morning.

hopefully, all goes well.

details

left wrist broken and grotesquely dislocated, thought thE mUsCLe wa going to pass out.

CT scan today, doctor on thursday. no cast, but hard splint.

bike helmet cracked on right side. right knee scraped. left shoulder muscle sore.

thanks to jeff and russ for calling jaci and thank jaci for everything else!

jeff says the SS needs new brake levers.

so the lesson is wear your helmet.

back on the bike ETA is 6-8 weeks.

broken

yes, i did break my wrist on sat. also, dislocated it. pretty gruesome if you ask thE MusCLe. typing pretty slowly. hopefully, no surgery will be necessary.

big baby

myeyereallyhurtsandisswollentoobuticomplaintoomuch anywaynoonegivesacrapsoiwillputsomewarmmoiststuffonit

i saw into the wild tonight. the movie did a wonderful job of bringing the books feeling to the screen.

bike trail ride saturday jan. 12th at 1:00. meet at mckennan park

Low Expectations

If you came here to read something, reread the title.

Really?

bikingbrady said he noticed i put something on this blog - why?