The man working in the booth at the Pleasant Hill BART station yesterday morning was writing in a composition notebook.  His hand, which gripped a pen, was twisted in a way that suggested he suffered from some kind of palsy.  He wrote in clear, non-cursive print.  The man had white hair and seemed kindly — … Read more

We were warned, leading up to last Saturday’s training ride out of Sunol, that we would encounter the “infamous Wall.”  I didn’t like the sound of “infamous” and I didn’t like the sound (and initial Cap) of “Wall” — but as it turns out the Wall was optional.  Which was great, because even without experiencing … Read more

Wow — a really challenging training ride yesterday!  I took my bike on BART to the Orinda station, where everyone was meeting in the parking lot.  I heard an experienced rider say that there were two bike rides out of there — an easier one to the east, and a difficult run to the west.  … Read more

To a leftist, the stationary bike is a revelation: you’re not going backwards! I rediscovered this last week, when I took my first “spin” class at the local Y — part of my training for the 100 miles I’ll be cycling on March 10, as a member of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Team In … Read more

Went on my second training ride yesterday, at 8:30 a.m. in Danville.  I think I have now reached critical mass in biking accoutrements: I was wearing my bike jersey, padded bike shorts (with baggy non-bike shorts over them, to maintain my street cred and preserve a certain mystery regarding my genitals), riding gloves, elbow and … Read more