Family Affair

This past Wednesday and Thursday Larissa and Easton paid a visit to the country. With Brady gone for two days on "business" in Texas (that's just what Larissa tells us but I think he's there as a coyote) she decided to take time to come up and see a few people before their move from DC back down to NC.

She wanted to meet up with both Bec and me, but Bec didn't want to. She used the excuse that she had workshops and curriculum planning with the other language teachers. It turns out that was true, however, I didn't have a way out so I ended up having to meet with her and cute little Easton.
We originally planned (planned as in the night before) that we would meet up for a late breakfast somewhere close and then Larissa would leave to meet up with Pappy, a dear old gent, for a quick visit. Well I couldn't find anything close for Larissa and me so we decided to meet a little later and closer to pappy's house so we could all meet. In my infinite wisdom I thought it would be a great idea to ride in to Mifflintown to meet everyone. Of course there is a long, fairly steep mountain between home and there. With a soccer game later that day, I figured it would be best if I drove to the top of the mountain and started there. That couldn't have been a better idea because after riding 22 miles I could have only ridden that 3 mile 1300 vertical climb once. It actually wasn't too terribly bad, but the last quarter mile or so got really steep and after 2.75 miles it rendered my legs nearly useless.

After I got to the top and I could feel my legs again, I thought back on the memorable, thrilling, and timeless 30 minute lunch I had with Larissa and Easton and realized it was all worth it! Although it was short, I'm still glad that we were able to get together and that I could see Easton. It's nice to have family back on the east coast!

Getting stuck in construction traffic

Juniata River outside Mifflintown

My max speed going down the mountain

El Futbol!

So this past weekend Bec and I had the fantastic opportunity to attend a Gold Cup quarterfinal match down in Philly. It started a few weeks ago when I noticed that Financial field was going to be one of the venues for the Gold Cup, so I thought with it being so close I would just do a little browsing to see how much tickets were. Well... I will just say I found good seats for $60... $60!! I stood up, did an Irish joy jig, sat back down, and bought 2. I just couldn't believe that I could get quarterfinal tickets that cheap, and for 2 games, it was awesome! I realize soccer isn't as wildly popular in the US as it is throughout the world, and that this cup isn't necessarily a top tournament, but I certainly didn't expect the tickets to be as cheap as they were.

The games were exciting, but not more exciting than all the Honduran fans, they were CRAZY! It was such a site to see and it really made me want to attend a match south of the border. Honduras was matched up against Canada and was a great game. Both teams were evenly matched but Canada would be penalized in the box setting Honduras up for a PK and the only goal of the match, which gave them the win.
The second match of the night was the US vs. Panama. The US started out slow and sloppy giving up a goal at the end of the first half, but a different US team would start the second. In the first few minutes of the second half a goal by Kyle Beckerman would tie it up and would stay that way through the end of regulation time. Entering extra time I was confident that the US would finish the game on top. They had controlled the ball almost exclusively since the beginning of the second half and had a number of shots on goal so it was just a matter of time. But none of that mattered because a Panamanian defender would give a gut check with the bottom of his boot to Kyle Cooper in the penalty box setting Cooper up for a PK and giving the US the lead and in time the W!
As I walked out of the stadium with the excitement of the games still fresh in my mind, the blue and red police lights flashing around me, and the cops chasing down civilians/breaking up fights, I felt like I was walking on air. All in all... not a bad first professional soccer match!

A short video of the game

Gold Cup from Jesse McDonald on Vimeo.

Bec and me outside the stadium

The pitch Bec and I FINALLY get to blow one of the horns!US and Panama entering the stadium

photos courtesy of Rebecca Sior

Scuola Vecchio

So apparently good things do come to those who wait, or in my case, are forced to wait. Back on the 4th of July weekend Bec and I had gone to see fireworks in Harrisburg. I had been pretty excited to see them because it's a fairly large display (well in comparison to New Bloomfield) and who doesn't like fireworks? As expected they were great and Bec and I enjoyed watching and taking pictures of them, but that was only half the fun that night.
On our way home I decided to take a back road for a change, and to avoid a little traffic, and along the way out of the corner of my eye in the dark I saw what looked like the faint red twinkling of a bicycle reflector reflecting the light from my headlights on the side of the road. I zipped passed and began to think "hmmm was that a bike someone was trying to get rid of or throw away?"
Having been keeping my eye out for 80's era bicycles and curious as to what that reflection was I quickly asked Bec if she would mind me turning around to see what it was. Of course Bec being the sweetheart she is didn't mind at all.
As I pulled up to the bottom of this driveway I could see some things laying in the yard of this home. Positioned for abandonment I knew the items were being discarded. I saw one bike lying there, but could tell that it was just a junkie mountain bike, and behind that a piled mess of stuff. I figured it couldn't hurt to stop and see what it was so I did. As I walked up to it I could make out the faint outline of a bike, as I got closer I realized it was a road bike. Not until I picked it up could I tell that it was definitely an 80's bike. With the little glee of a school girl I ran the frame over to the car to see what kind of condition it was in and then the best news of the night... it was a BIANCHI! I about sharted there on the spot. An extremely well known brand having been around since 1885 producing some the finest bicycles in the sport. I of course was not going to let this bike go and I promptly threw the frame and two wheels into the back of the car.

I couldn't believe that someone would just throw this bike away! It may not have been brand new and was in need of a little fixing up, but to throw away such a great bike! But as Bec then stated on the way home, as I was giddy with joy, "one man's trash is another man's treasure." At no other point has that phrase pertained to me as much as it did right then.

Since that glorious night I've been working on cleaning it up and replacing some of the parts to get it in working order again. I think I have to thank the person who owned it not only for getting rid of it, but for keeping it in such great condition over the past 22 years.

The Original

Cleaned Up

I tore everything apart to give it a real good cleaning All the components off the bike for cleaning All cleaned up and put back together

A complete nearly restored 1987 Bianchi Strada

Morning Ride

With the summer break coming to it's half way point I realized that my summer "resolution" to accumulate 1000 miles is FAR off in the distance, about 800 miles off! That being the case I got my self up this morning to do a quick 22 mile ride and work toward that goal, as far off as it may be.


View Morning Ride in a larger map

I decided I would ride out toward Blain on the back roads for some nice scenery and then ride the main road (274) back in for some speed, since Bec and I had to meet a friend in Carlisle at noon.
This particular loop is one of my favorites to do because of the great sights. It takes me on tree covered roads, passed farms and fields, crossing paths with Amish families out working or traveling, and the best part, having the road nearly all to myself (except on the main road). Generally I like to extend this loop out Rt. 17 and through Ickesburg for additional sights and ride time, but today I didn't have the time so I kept to this relatively short loop.
As always the ride was great, the sun was shining, the breeze was warm, and the muscle burn is still being felt!

Around Town

Yesterday, Bec and Hope had decided to get together to hang out and do some cooking and Hope was kind enough to extend the invitation to me. I gladly accepted, because who's gonna say no to some good cookin', and then made the decision that I would ride in instead of in the car with Bec. Bec probably would have accompanied me but it got a little too late and she knew that she couldn't ride to Hope's in the 20 minutes she had so I rode it alone. Riding into New Bloomfield alone, however, meant that I could extend my ride to get a few more miles.
I decided to go by way of back roads, as I usually do for safety and scenery, and I was not disappointed! Getting to see the green rolling mountains and the vast corn fields by bike is very soothing, and getting to see some wildlife along with that is gravy on the waffle!


View Around Town in a larger map

About halfway through my ride two fawn walked right out in front of me, about 20 yards, and as they spotted me froze in place and didn't move, so I was able to get a shot of them. Then their mother sprinted back into the woods which sent the fawn in a nervous sprint as well, which I was able to get a shot of as well. After that it was just landscape and the sweet summer breeze in my face!
Total I rode 18 miles in 70 min.s which wasn't too bad for me so I was pleased. But all in all it was a nice ride and even nicer to ride on the road again after the bouncy, muddy, and uneven C&O. Thank goodness for pavement!

C & uhh-O Canal

This past week Bec and I had set out to bike the whole C&O Canal... all 185 miles of it! What we hadn't planned on was the cart carrying all our stuff to break... TWICE! At mile 26 the axle broke and left us stranded 7 miles from the nearest town. After some deliberation we decided to ride in and hope that the town's single hardware store was open. We rolled up about 25 minutes later to find out we made it, with 2 minutes to spare. After getting the parts we needed we grabbed some dinner and rushed back to our campsite before dark set in. Having done some early back tracking, rough riding, and unexpected detours we finally could sit and rest around the fire, and after 43 miles we needed it! The following morning we fixed the cart and set out to get to our next destination. Since we had to stop at mile 26, 9 miles from where we were supposed to stop, we had to try to ride more miles than we had planned for the second day. We pushed all day trying to keep our spirits up but it was clear we weren't enjoying it as much as we should have been. The thought of having to ride 50 miles on the rough rutted terrain was draining in and of it's self. Around mile 50 and with 25 to go we stopped for lunch and a well needed rest. At this point it seemed as though we might just make it to our next stop even though our bodies were saying we were done. We pushed through the next 21 miles and had to force ourselves to keep going when again the axle broke! Looking back and watching the wheel roll freely into the weeds peaked my frustration on the ride. We were tired, sore, and frustrated and this was the straw that broke the camels back! The only lucky thing was that I had bought some extra axles so I was able to replace the broken one on the spot and make it the last 4 miles to our campsite. However, I knew at that point the cart was not going to make it the next 70 miles to where Bec's parents were camping and waiting for us, so unfortunately we had to call them and have them pick us up. So we didn't get to ride the whole entire thing but we did get to ride some extra with Bec's parents bringing our total miles on the C&O to 80 and our grand total to 133. Aside from the mishaps the trip was pretty good and we got to see some history, although that wasn't Bec's highlight. Perhaps we'll ride it in it's entirety some time later but for now we'll have to be happy with 80 miles and prepare for our next journey, the Erie canal!