Wonderful Wind

Yesterday the Wind Gods smiled on my wife and I hugely serving up about 2 hours of strong northerly winds. While a monohull sailboat took shelter along the leeward shore and fishermen scurried for the safety of the boat ramp, we rode the strong winds on our Gorge Gear (small sinker boards and small sails) until the wind deteriorated into simply sailing winds.

Any wind this time of year typically associates with thunderstorms; however, yesterday's outstanding wind followed a stronger-than-expected cold front sweeping down out of NoDak. And, sweep down it did blowing hard, the kind of wind we used to take for granted when we lived in the Pacific Northwest and sailed Da Gorge frequently. You know, the kind that you can hook in, sit back and enjoy the ride.

Recorded at the local airport the NWS reported yesterday's wind:

Pierre Regional Airport
2pm N 20 G 25
3pm N 31 G 40
4pm N 36 G 44
5pm N 25 G 33

Since we live on Okobojo Creek, an arm of Lake Oahe, a quick glance out our picture window confirms sailable conditions and a short drive to Cow Creek, a couple miles as the crow flies, puts us in excellent rigging and sailing conditions. It doesn't get any better than this, sailing strong winds right in your own backyard.

Strong Gorge-worthy winds in central SoDak in the middle of the summer are nearly as rare as a 60 degree day in the middle of winter -- it can happen but not very often. However, this July alone I've sailed my little 8 foot Open Ocean Trifin board 4 times and might get another day tomorrow if the forecast holds.

Thursday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny and hot, with a high near 93. Breezy, with a southeast wind 11 to 14 mph increasing to between 20 and 23 mph. Winds could gust as high as 32 mph.

If it does I'll let you know all the details and might even shoot some video.

Contador Claims Tour de France

Today Alberto Contador's individual time trial performance in the last stage of the Tour de France concisely chiseled his name in cycling's history books. Contador bested rival and friend Andy Schleck by 31 seconds, or, 39 seconds overall following nearly 3 weeks of bicycle racing through mountains and rain and fans.

Andy Schleck quoted in Cycling News stated the following regarding his performance in the most grueling sporting event in the world.

“I never had doubts about how I’d go in the time trial," Schleck said.

"My team had faith in me and I went out there today and did what I could. It was not a battle between me and Contador. In a time trial you fight with yourself, you’ve got to push yourself to the limits and I tried to do that. When I finished I could barely get off my bike. I gave it everything and I think I did a pretty good time trial. I’m satisfied with today and the whole Tour."

“I believe in everything that we do – in the race and in life. We do it because we want to do it. I made no mistakes… ah, well, I do regret that I dropped my chain the other day but he would still have won by two seconds and anyway, I can’t change that. I’ve won another white jersey, two stages and I believe it’s been pretty successful Tour for the whole team."

With Contador winning the TdF but not a single stage he joins two other recent TdF winners Greg LeMond and Oscar Pereiro.

Many say that 25-year old Schleck is heir apparent to the crown; and, perhaps, just perhaps, if his brother Frank hadn't crashed and fractured his collarbone on the cobbles early in the Tour things might have turned out differently this year.

Lake Oahe is My Gym

Just back from a quick paddle down Okobojo Creek from Highway 1804 to the private access road below our house. Total distance likely 3-4 miles, elapsed time about 1.5h of interval paddling. For me interval paddling involves a lengthy warmup spanning 10-15 minutes followed by increasing tempo of 50 paddle strokes followed by a rest period and repeat.

Water so smooth it could be glass greeted my initial run down Okobojo Creek past Okobojo Estates (North) and on into the Lake Oahe, backed-up Okobojo Creek proper. Numerous birds, some geese, a few fish and one deer dazzled my gaze as I re-set my priorities in accordance with my current condition.

Last Thursday, during a 73 miler, achilles tendonitis re-flared for the second time with the first flare-up occurring during Day 3 of the Tour de Kota in early June. Dang. Though extensive physical therapy sessions and gradual ramping up the distance and intensity of successive rides seemed to be doing their magic, all bets were off at about mile 64-65 of last Thursday's ride. I thought I was healed.

According to RoadBikeRider.com's Fred Metheny, likely my bike seat was too high and my pedal cleats too far forward. Remedy: lower bike seat so that at bottom of pedal stroke bend in knee approximates 25-30 degrees and move cleats as far back as possible.

Now, it's back to PT and the healing/rehabilitation period needs to be done right this time. Prescription involving rest, PT, recovery and rehab of the calf muscle should allow me to be back on the bike, albeit at a much decreased level, soon. Maybe even tomorrow.

Meanwhile, windsurfing excellent wind twice last week on Lake Oahe and kayaking several times convinces me that a guy could do a lot worse than having Lake Oahe as his gym.

Hot & Windy

Yesterday Pierre reached 106 degrees, breaking 100 degrees for the first time in 2 years. As the temperature climbed so did the wind, creating windblown ripples on the primary indicator ponds as I drove back home from town. Excited exchanges accompanied us as my wife and I quickly loaded the windsurfing gear into the van and drove the 4 odd miles to Okobojo Pt.

The wind gods smiled on us and a stiff north breeze greeted us when we drove onto the north side (i.e., Okobojo Creek) of the point. Ah, swimsuit windsurfing on a small Gorge-sized board in my own backyard. It doesn't get any better than that.

Flatwater Kayaking

As summer temperatures continue to soar and the bike-challenging wind finally begins to subside, thoughts turn to water sports of the non-motorized variety. Last year I picked up a couple inflatable kayaks from Pedal & Paddle Bike Shop, conveniently located on main street in downtown Pierre, SD. Manufactured by Advanced Elements, Inc. the kayaks provide a good approximation of a hard shell but with the added feature of being stowable - a trait hardshell models, except for much more expensive foldups, can never mimic.

Both kayaks, a solo and a convertible one-or-two-person model, inflate quickly, easily and hassle-free using just a handpump. Military grade valves allow precise inflation pressure and set-up time is usually 10 minutes or less.

Both kayaks far outperform a canoe, not only stability-wise but also efficiency-wise. And, talking about stability, the bow of the convertible forms a stable dive platform for cooling off on those hot summer days.

Weighing in at around 25 pounds and 55 pounds for the solo and convertible, respectively, creates a package that is as easy to cart around as it is to paddle. What more could a serious recreational specialist ask for?

I have paddled these kayaks on rivers - including the Missouri and Columbia - as well as lakes, on flat water and wind driven chop, and am impressed by how well they handle the conditions.

Recently my wife and niece took the kayaks for a spin on Sylvan Lake in the heart of the Black Hills of South Dakota. Following their paddle session I deflated, packed the kayaks in their traveling bags and stowed them conveniently in our van. With the kayaks safely placed inside the vehicle, no worries about loose or broken tie-downs entered my mind as we cruised back to Pierre.

As opposed to tying the kayaks on the roof of the van or pulling them behind on a trailer, my gas mileage didn't decrease. Although the mileage doesn't matter much on short trips to The Hills, on longer trips, like the one we have planned for northern Minnesota, the difference will likely be enough to treat ourselves to some fine micros hidden away in the northern woods.

1806 Road Re-surfacing Project Ongoing

While riding yesterday my route back home took a slight detour up the 4 hills on the west side of the dam. Just before the last hill, AKA Big Ass Kicker -- the closest true 10 percenter to Pierre, and starting at Oahe Dam's Emergency Spillway new blacktop awaits the hill-hungry self-reliant rider. Eventually, the smooth black ribbon will stretch another 27 miles before transitioning to gravel. Undoubtedly, many future workouts await us on this soon-to-be newly-surfaced road.

Bike Rush Hour in Europe

For everyone who rides a bike check out this video and count the number of helmets you see riders wearing.