My racing age is 40

Took the kids out to Vet's Park in Ann Arbor on Saturday to watch a bit of the cyclocross races. Some of the climbs on the course were pretty impressive -- esp. considering how skinny many of the racers were. Hard to believe those toothpick thighs would get them up the hills, but then they didn't have much weight to push! E didn't get too into the racing, though she did give it a decent look before retreating to the play structure. O, however, was quite intrigued -- esp. once he realized there was a kid course. I told him I'd be delighted to bring him out to race... as soon as he learns to ride on two wheels! Maybe that will lure him into trying a bit harder on leaving the training wheels behind.

Speaking of training wheels, I was wishing for some training wheels when trying my hand at bike polo on Sunday. Seriously, it wasn't that hard to stay upright, but it was tricky to actually engage other players with any semblance of intentionality/skill. I opted to focus most of my efforts on not hurting myself or others and then count on dumb luck to actually get and move the ball. The first game (3 on 3) was fun and my more experienced teammates were good sports while we all flailed about getting warmed up and used to the court. Noodling around with Andy and Dan(?) in between games was also nice, allowing actual opportunities to attempt goals... but then we re-grouped with 5 on each side and that was just a shit load of bikes. I fell back to focus mainly on defense since finding the ball and then getting oneself in any sort of alignment to get it from an opponent when one only has a mallet in the right hand was making my brain tired. Since my mallet handling sucked, I found I was more useful just getting my bike in between the opposing team and our goal. Somewhere in the middle of the third game (still 5 on 5), the switch in my head clicked and I was done -- a bit cold, a bit tired, and all too aware that I was keeping my kids out a bit too late considering E's homework load. After a graceful loss, I made a quick exit with the kids.

Just to round out my fairly bikey weekend, I should also mention the pleasant Bike Ypsi ride on Sunday afternoon. We were an amusing hodge podge of bikes and riders once again, but it was fun to pedal with new friends and, once we were warmed up, the day proved lovely. It is quite the trip to see some bike culture taking root in town.

So, all in all, I had a very social weekend, several outdoorsy adventures, a bit of bike time, a couple of naps, and a good time with my kids. I also learned -- in hunting for info on when cyclocross races started -- that my racing age is 40 (measured by the age you will be on Dec 31, 2008). Of course, it matters not, but it was still a little jarring to see!