Hugh Lambert

Well, I have not ridden (or posted) much for this month, and I’m sorry. I had a death in the family which made me unavailable to some extent to ride, post or train the team. It is so hard on the family, especially when a parent dies. I have way to much experience with that sort of thing. It was devastating of course,

I think they like me!

but as time passes healing does occur. Now, as things return to normal, I am taking a greater interest once again in life, riding and the wellbeing of the team- my little lambs. I think they like me! They have all worked so hard.

Soon it will be time to travel to GA and start the ride. I am proud I will be able to travel with them for at least the first 9 days. I will be driving the SAG Wagon (Support and Gear) till we get to Cape Girardeau, MO. Everyone asks why I’m not riding this year and I tell them we want new people to have the opportunity to experience the ride. The truth is, of course I’d love to make the ride again!!!

Of course, with the beginning of the ride just about two weeks away we are all training like crazy. We still don’t have our trailer to haul gear in, but it should be here soon. When it gets here I have to build the racks to mount the bikes in for safe transport and gear storage. The Emergency Management office is lending us one of their new trailers, and it’s not here yet. I should not worry, right?

Maybe I should. I found out yesterday that the ride coordinator for the Cherokee Nation resigned Wednesday. It seems he had not yet ordered the team jerseys or made any motel reservations. Okay, now I’m worried.

The first RTR Riders. Taken in Cherokee after the first Joint Council at Red Clay in 1984.

There is a silver lining though- the new ride manager is one of the first people to actually make the ride. In 1984 Taylor Alsenay was one of the fifteen or so people from OK who rode back to Tahlequah after the first Joint Council was held at Red Clay, TN. The did it on the road bikes of the time (yikes!) and camped out the whole way. That’s old school, baby! Taylor’s daughter CJ Alsenay was one of the 2011 riders, and Taylor and his family supported the ride the last three days. He and the paramedic from last year, Justin Leatherwood, will be in Cherokee next week to go over plans for the ride.

I don’t know what we’re going to do about jerseys…. Probably we’ll get plain jerseys for the first two weeks while the actual jerseys are being printed. The company that has been doing them for the last three years is now out of business, so that’s another hurdle to overcome. It’s a good thing that Cherokees are “the Pheonix People”. Here’s another chance to rise from the ashes!

I’ll keep you posted.

 

It’s been a pretty good week cycling-wise. It’s rained every day this week except Monday and today, but I still got in 55 miles so far and

My new mule- Son of Pepe???

hope to get in another 20 tomorrow. I also got in 10 of those miles on my new triathlon bike, a 2007 Trek Madone 5.0 that I found on Craigslist. It’s always been my dream bike (because my hero Andy has one!!!!). It is a great upgrade to my beloved Lil’Mule Pepe (a 2003 Trek 5900). The biggest problem is the fellow I got it from just got done converting it to a triathlon bike (go fast). Now I need to turn it back into a road bike. Those “long-horn” handle bars got to go!

I also bought a frame that needs a “groupo” installed on it. It is an awesome frame that cost almost $3k by itself five years ago.

My "new" used frame. It will be excellent!

I’m torn between putting the cheap “group set” from my team bike on it, or breaking down and buying a really good group for it (brakes, shifter/brake levers/ derailleurs, the crank and pedals, etc.). Using the group of my team bike is cheaper…. Come on percaptia!!!

Anyway, Tuesday evening I went on a great ride with the Jackson County/WCU bike club. Their Tuesday night ride goes from Sylva up to Balsam Mountain and back, about 25 miles (12 up, 12 down). It’s a hard ride but what a blast! The wild thing is it rained as soon as we got to the top and it rained all the way back to Sylva (it was cold too). There was a good sized group- about 15 people. I kept up with them all for about 8

My new pal Jarod and I ride down in the rain....

miles, then it was adios muchachos! That  gives me something to aim for! I did my Job Corps loop tonight at a personal best average speed of 17mph. Some day I’ll be able to keep on Tuesday night!

On the home front things with Nadia’s mom continue to improve slowly. It’s awfully hard to watch that nice lady struggle so much with pain as she tries to recover her mobility. That’s about all for now.

I’ll keep you posted!

Wow- where to begin…..

Two years ago today I was being prepped for brain surgery. It was thefirst time I ever had to go into the hospital myself….. maybe I overdid it… That was just two years after my late wife’s brain tumor surgery. I must confess, her eventual outcome was not far from my mind. Still, the tumor was removed as easily as hoped and with the support of my friends and loved ones recovery went very well.

One year ago I was preparing for “the ride”. Since then I completed “the ride”, got engaged to the girl of my dreams, found myself back in the hospital needing surgery and then got married. Now I am training the 2012 RTR ride….. It’s been a busy couple of years.

It sure has been an interesting time. I am very grateful to my friends and family who with their love and care have helped me through these interesting times. I can hardly wait for the next two years!

Thanks for checking in. I’ll keep you posted.

I am doing great, and I hope you are also. My weight seems to have leveled out at 205. That is so much better than 295, and better even than the 225 I carried last year on the RTR ride. I’d be more pleased if I could get it down to 195. I bet I could if I ate more plain yogurt (like ant every meal!) but I’ll settle for 205 for now.

My mother in law is slowly improving after her terrible traffic accident and then emergency spinal surgery one week later. Last Friday she was transferred out of the trauma unit at the hospital and into the rehabilitation hospital nearby. She continues to improve and I am so very glad (as is Nadia). This Saturday will be her birthday. I was scheduled to compete in my first bike race, but decided instead to spend the day with my family. There will be other bike races.

Coach Andy Applegate explains "Paceline" techniques to the 2012 RTR team....

I am having such a blast coaching the 2012 RTR team. We had an excellent training camp in Brevard on Saturday!!!! We were all up early Saturday morning and met at my office before 7:30am. 90 minutes later we were at the Carmichael Training Systems office in Brevard, NC.

Carmichael Training Systems was founded by Chris Carmichael, the man who coached Lance Armstrong, and they have a facility in Brevard. Last year the tribe hired them to provide each of us (the 2011 RTR Riders from NC) with a personal trainer. We could not afford that this year, but we were able to afford a day-long training “camp”. Andy Applegate was my coach, and I really believe I would have failed last year if it was not for him. I was so excited that he was going to be the one to coach “my guys” (gals too), and proud that our 2012 team could get world-class coaching.

Jeremy Hyatt, Coach Andy Applegate, Chi Sawyer, Jeremy Wilson, Judy Castorena, Skye Littledave, Tatsi Nelson and Coach Steve Brandes at Carmichael Training Systems- April 2012.

We did a lot of drills- slow riding, pacelines (following in single file very close), climbing, descending, riding as a group, safety, nutrition and so much more. I was so proud of how we “my” team performed- they made me look good! I probably got more out of the lessons than they did. “Track Stands”- being able to stop and stand still on a bike (like at a traffic light) without “unclipping” your feet from the pedals. It is a very difficult maneuver and I had never been able to demonstrate it very well….mostly because I could never do it right. Now I can do it right! Thanks Andy!!!

I guess the best thing about the

Me and my team- Myself, Jeremy Hyatt, Chi Sawyer, Jeremy Wilson, Judy Castorena, Skye Littledave, Tatsi Nelson at Carmichael Training Systems- April 7,2012.

weekend was the sense of confidence I now feel in “my riders”. They did everything they were asked to do, and they did it well and without complaint. Today I have to step up the training a notch, but I know they are ready. Today we are climbing the mountain- we will ride several miles up the Blue Ridge Parkway and down again, then we’ll do it again and again. We’re going to be fine.

There’s also a silver lining to not being able to ride in the race on Friday. My old coach Andy (my cycling hero) invited me to ride in the “warm-up ride” on Friday with he and Chris Carmichael. What a blast! It’s kind of funny- every says “Wow- you get to ride with Chris Carmichael”. I just laugh and say “@#$! Chris Carmichael- I get to ride with Andy Applegate! I had better start eating plain yogurt!!!!

I’ll keep you posted.

I hope not! How are you? So far, so good. Nadia’s mom is out of danger. I was in central SC last Wednesday when she phoned me. She had noticed her mom could not move her legs, and a full-body MRI showed a serious spinal misalignment of her cervical vertebrae where her spinal cord was already contused. She was being prepped for emergency spinal surgery and could I come to the hospital? I mad the trip in record time (but safely I assure you). Since then she (mom) has begun to, at long last, improve. I don’t know if they missed it during the initial assessment or if it suddenly happened, but she had been going downhill for five days ever since they started physical therapy. Now she is well enough to me transferred to a rehabilitation facility and we are very grateful.

Last weekend I was able to get in

The three planers full of vegies I built for our deck. Think "raised beds" gone too far!

a bit of gardening. I had already built several planters to go on our deck. I also made one for Nadia’s mom for her Birthday later this month. Last weekend I finished a third one for our deck and got all three planted. We even got some lettuce for a salad on Sunday already!

Cycling continues. I continue to

Monday's ride with some of my riders.

coach the 2012 RTR riders. Yesterday Casey and I rode 15 miles at lunch, and then I rode 21 miles with the team after work. On the trip back a dog ran in front of one of the riders bike and he hit the dog. This cause him to wreck and go over the handle bars just about 20 yards from where I broke my ribs wrecking last year. Fortunately he (Jeremy) was not seriously hurt, just bruised and scraped up. His helmet however was cracked (better that than his skull). It was a rather extreme way to drive home a point I had been trying to make for weeks- stay together.

This weekend I get to take the team to Brevard, NC to train with my old cycling coach Andy Applegate at Carmichael Training Systems. I am really looking forward to that! This week I’ll be eating a lot of plain yogurt so I can be in “fighting weight” for the weekend!

I’ll keep you posted.

I remember once I heard a wise man say “The perversity of the universe tends towards maximum.” It’s a variation on Murphy’s law, and is also known as known as O’Toole’s Corollary of Finagle’s Law. It’s a lot like “stuff happens.” Last Thursday a member of the family had a bad traffic accident and ended up in the hospital one floor above Aunt Mary. It was very ironic to me that Aunt Mary ended up four doors down from the room Bobbi was in when she had her brain tumor removed, and three doors down from where I was just two years ago having my brain tumor removed. I thought of that from time to time as I spent the last four days one floor up in the trauma ward sitting with another family member.

Now, Finagle’s Law not withstanding it is a huge blessing that our beloved was not hurt any worse. Even though the airbag failed, the injuries could have been so much worse. The recovery will take some time, but family is a wonderful safety net, don’t you think? I love my family!

Today I’m back to work. Work is going well….for work. I managed a great bike ride at lunch. A little over 18 miles in 58 minutes worked out to 17.8mph- a new Personal Best (PB) for that particular ride, and nearly a half a mile an hour faster than last week. This week I stretched like crazy and my hamstring does not hurt so bad. I’m hoping for as good a ride next month on the 100k ride I’m doing- http://www.assaultonthecarolinas.com/ride.html

So, that’s what’s up. I’m getting the garden in and taking care of those I love. Nadia remains ever a delight, as do those wonderful kids of mine. Life is good. I hope yours is as well. Thanks for checking in.

I’ll keep you posted.

I guess riding is like fishing. When is the best time to go fishing? When you can! Well, today I could so I went for a ride. Just about one month ago I was pretty pleased to get my personal best time and average speed up. I had raised my average speed for one ride from 14mph to 16mph. Well, today I tried to improve again and I did- my new personal best for the “Toestring Ride” was 17.4mph. I like improving. The downside was I began to feel my right hamstring and knee complain a little. I’ll have to watch that.

I have a big big ride next month- two of them actually. On the 7th of April I take my team to Carmichael for an all day cycling “camp”. The next weekend I am riding in a 100km race called the Assault on the Carolinas. That’s a 67 mile ride down into SC and back to Brevard, NC. It’s all mountains and it’s all hard. Sounds like Fun!!!!!!

The sad thing is my 97 year old aunt had a stroke Monday afternoon. My brother David has been sitting with her during the day and I have been sitting with her after work. After Friday we hope to transfer her to an “extended care facility”. She may be there a long time.

I’ll keep you posted.

I hope this post finds you all well. I am doing very well, very well indeed. Last week I had my 3 month diabetic checkup. I must be the healthiest diabetic person at the clinic. They asked me to stop wasting testing supplies (doing daily blood glucose checks) and to start coming back for checkups once every six months, not three months. My Cholesterol was 108, my A1C is 4.5 and my BP is 125/75. I guess I’m going to have to “behave” for the rest of my life!

Coaching my team to ride a "paceline"....

As I may have mentioned, I am coaching the 2012 RTR team for the 2012 ride along the Trail of Tears. I am enjoying the role very much. It’s sort of like being a Scoutmaster goping 20 mph. The weather has just been nearly perfect. I guess that’s the up-side of climate change (for now anyway). Yes, we have had plenty of wild storms, but in between we have also had beautiful warm spring-like days. Yesterday was one such day. Four of us rode for an hour and a half (20 miles) practicing riding as a group. Riding close together single file is called a “paceline”. It is a difficult skill to learn, but one they must all master. For a first attempt, they all did great. We (the team and I) have been riding together several times a week. They are all riding a lot on their own, and I ride with them when I can. Lately it’s been Mondays and Fridays, but I won’t be able to ride with them this Friday because Thursday is Nadia’s birthday! Happy Birthday Sweet Cheeks! I hope to take her to the Titanic attraction in Pigeon Forge, TN.

So I am great. Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts are a challenge. The number of scouts participating always drops in the spring as the kids start playing sports. This year it seems worse than usual. Since I live in Waynesville now it is hard for me to do any recruiting. I’m learning to give myself a pass. There are lots of other folks who could participate, so I’ll let them step up and hope they do. Keep us in your thoughts.

That’s about it for now. Last week I got in 60 miles of riding. This week it looks like I’ll only manage half of that, but there’s always next week! I’ll see you on the road. In the meantime- keep the greasy side down.

I’ll keep you posted.

Well, it was three weeks later than I had hoped, but the team finally got their bikes issued and training has begun. I am humbled by the responsibility of being esentially the head coach of the 2012 RTR team. They are all great, and I am completely confident that each of them will have no problem completing “the ride.”

Five of the seven 2012 RTR Riders.

On Monday we had our first official training session. This was to coach the riders how to use clip-less pedals without falling down. It’s a lot like teaching people how to get out of their snow skies by willing the bindings to come loose. It involves a very unnatural rotation of the foot out and away from the pedal. You need to do that each time you stop. If you fail to do so you will fall down (as you know from my many videos of myself falling over). Now they can all do it and we are riding!

Next Monday we all get to go on our first team ride. I expect almost everyone to go on the ride except for the rider who lives on the other side of Asheville. Two of the riders went on a club ride last Thursday after work. They had not gotten their road bikes yes and had to ride mountain bikes. Mountain bikes are great for going up and down hills- slowly. It’s hard to get much over 12-15mph. They are just not geared that way, so our 20 mile ride took 1 hour and 40 minutes. Still, they toughed it out and made it the whole way. Next week will be better.

The bad news is I have to suspend my “Monday with Kim and the Kids” nights until the ride in June. It was just the only evening I had to give. I hate it, but I console myself that it is for the greater good. It’s only for three more months, right? Nadia is very supportive of me and that helps. I also think she’s a little relieved I am not riding a bike again to OK. Personally, I’d love to go again. My dream is to send 100 people a year, or as many as want to go. It’s kind of funny- one of the donors to the ride did not see “the ride” as a cultural event, they saw it as a health event. That’s an easy mistake to make I suppose, but it is so very wrong.

In the mean time I have been getting lots of riding in. In fact, today I didn’t get to ride because I was at the dentist’s office. Otherwise it would have been another “ride at lunch” day. I didn’t ride last Friday because I was off cutting up trees that fell during last week’s weather. Saturday I finished that and rebuilt the damaged fence (so our little dogs could go outside and do whatever it is they do). I did get to ride Monday and Tuesday. This has been a great winter for bike riding, and that is an oxymoron!

That’s about all, except that I am grateful for you checking on me. I always fight the urge to weigh in on current events, and I’ve fought it off again. All I can say is I find these times very odd. I can’t believe we (the public) are talking about some of the things we are talking about. I can’t believe some of the old vampires are back. I thought those guys had a wooden stake in their heart- did it fall out? Sheesh. I am a member of the party that can’t shoot straight. Oh well, all Gods creatures, right?

Thanks so much. By the way, my health is excellent! I just had my semi-annual diabetic blood work and I’m about perfect. My A1C is 4.5 and my combined cholesterol is 110 (except that my LDL good cholesterol is a little low). My BP was 120/75 and my weight remains 205, much of which is leg muscle. I guess I have to keep up this healthy life style! No more KFC for me!

Keep the greasy side down! I’ll keep you posted.

I had a great ride yesterday!

Our Modified Wallenback Loop.

One of the 2012 RTR Riders, Jeremy Hyatt and I rode 20 miles in 1hr 20 minutes. We did this at an average speed of 13.7mph and had 1,400 feet of climbing thrown in. It was almost 2mph faster than my last time, so that’s a new PB for me. Because we started after 5pm and it’s pretty dark by 6:30pm we didn’t do the regular Wallenback Loop. Staying on Highway 19 and riding to the Jenkins Grocery Bridge instead of coming back via Coopers Creek saved us nearly 20 minutes and at least a mile. The down-side was we rode back on Highway 19, which isn’t usually very busy, but there still was some traffic. At the Teddy Bear Motel a guy in a truck decided not to pass us in spite of us waving him around.

A really unpleasent person decided to blast their horn at us in a failed attempt at intimidation.

That was fine with us I guess, but not the shmuck behind him who also had to wait. This guy decided to sit on his horn as he passed too close. Maybe he didn’t know he was on candid camera! LOL  I knew somebody owned the road, I just didn’t expect them to drive a 10 year old Taurus wagon!

We are still waiting on the bike shops to receive and assemble the team bikes. I was pretty jazzed thinking we would start training a month earlier than we did last year. Now it looks like maybe we’ll start a week earlier. Ah well, at least we don’t live in Syria.

I’ll keep you posted.