Readin' Some Poetry, And Drinkin' Some Beer

Morning weigh-in: 165#, 9% BF

 

Ride Report: Hit the 'burg with Joe G last night. We started around 6:30 and rode until dark, then went back to the cars, put our lights on and went out for another hour or two -- we got in almost exactly 18 miles in total, with maybe two and a half hours total riding time. It was good to get out on real trails, even though they were a little beat up from the winter (we were also worried about mud, but it wasn't bad). The temperature was a little higher than our recent rides, and Joe's lungs were a little more thawed out -- and his technical skills neutralized any fitness advantage I may still have -- so I was huffing and puffing to keep up. Funny how I've been working on the indoor training, the strength, cross-training & cardio, the spinning and the road rides, and thought I was pretty awesome, but when the rubber finally hit the offroad for real, I saw how much work I still have to do.

 

Like I said, it was good to be out; that was probably my first real offroad ride of the season. Bike performed well too, except for a few minor and not-unexpected "brand new rear derailleur cable" issues.

 

Tavern Report: After that I went to dinner at the Christian's Spring Hotel. Pretty nice place, but I'll get my three negative observations out of the way first: they need more parking, Thursday night is "cigar night" in the bar room, and they only take cash -- other than that the place is awesome. There are other rooms in the place (pool room, library, and dining room -- the last two of which are non-smoking) if the cigars bother you, and I believe they are working on solving the other two. The food is very good, ditto the beer selection and the jukebox, and any bar with a library is going to get my seal of approval...

 

The basic setup is this: you walk in the front door, and you're in the (relatively small) bar, which is like a public room circa 1880 or so; off to the right is a hallway opening up to the dining room and, in the back, a pool room and a library. I sat at the bar and got a Vanilla Java Porter -- luckily I had the cash, because I asked "you take Visa?" only after my first sip... I finished my beer and hit a nearby ATM, then came back and got dinner, a roast beef sandwich. (The cook told me that he roasted the beef himself that day, from midnight until about 11:30 AM, and the potatoes came from Padula's potato farm, a place I've been driving past fro about two decades on the way to Jim Thorpe.)

 

I wandered around the rest of the place, library, pool room etc, while waiting for my food, but ate at the bar. (Good book selection, by the way; I sat and read some poetry while sipping my Anderson Valley Double White and waiting for dinner.) Had a good conversation with Lynne, the bartender/owner, about their place and their philosophy of what they're trying to achieve there, the renovations they did, and their future plans, and all the while while their jukebox played "Honky Tonk Blues," "Jambalaya," and "Blitzkrieg Bop." That place is just too cool for skool... It probably won't be on a Thursday, but I am definitely going back.

 

Tonight is Which Brew (St Patty's Day informal party with the Skulldiggers), after one, or maybe two towpath rides. Tomorrow is a busy day for me, since I want to get a haircut and new sneakers (both must happen in Bethlehem) besides all my other stuff.