That rainbow and clouds also made for some really great sunset pictures. It was nice to be able to end the day in such a beautiful note!
I’m not sure Gabby appreciates the views as much as I did, but she’s always game for another walk!
The wake up on Day 2 of RAGBRAI is always a little rough. You’re tired from the first day but still excited to get going. Today was no different here in Muncie! I was able to get out and on my bike fairly early this morning. The sunrise was nice and clouds were rolling in. I was hoping I wouldn’t get wet! Snapped this nice bike silhouette picture against a bean field as I got started!
I headed out for a quick ride and decided to test out a couple new roads. This is always a bit of a crap shoot because you can come across some terrible roads and major potholes! To my surprise one of the roads that has been really bad in the past was paved with new black top....hallelujah! Nothing better than zooming along on a nice new road. It was early so few cars and just my bike and smooth pavement. You really can’t get any better!! On my ride I saw goats, cows, and 5 yellow gold finch at different points during the ride. This is of note because I’ve never seen them on a ride before, and it’s the state bird of Iowa, so I think they wanted me to feel like I was actually on RAGBRAI! Once on got on the new roads I hadn’t ridden before I was pleasantly surprised that they were relatively smooth and well maintained. That was until they weren’t...lol. I hit one road that was not great. It looks like they had milled the asphalt about 3 years ago and then didn’t replace it...ugh talk about a teeth rattler! Thankfully that only lasted a mile or two! I wore my Iowa Hawkeye jersey today...which was a risk because every RAGBRAI in the past four years it has rained on the day I planned to wear that jersey. Would I get rained on today...I didn’t think so, but who knows! After a nice roll through the Indiana countryside I saw it...the elusive water tower...that means you’re getting close to town. Well this meant today that my ride was almost over. It wasn’t a RAGBRAI length day but still nice to get out!
Why was my ride so short you ask? Because unfortunately this isn’t really RAGBRAI and I had to get home in order to be able to join a online conference. A very different kind of Zoom. Don’t get me wrong Zoom has allowed many people to stay connected and teach during a pandemic, but it’s exhausting. I’d rather be zooming around on my bike!!
Now this “colloquium” is geared towards athletic training education and moving our profession forward. The first talk was very honest and sobering about the state of higher education, especially given the pandemic. I think it’s safe to say that everyone felt the weight of our futures during this talk but also were energized about how we can work together to get athletic training better positioned in healthcare. Our problems won’t be solved overnight but collectively we can make positive change!
So this Zoom colloquium lasted 8 hours with a few short breaks. I’ve been on my bike for 8 hours but staring at a screen and engaging in discussion is exhausting. The concept of Zoom fatigue is real and honestly I’m fatigued out! I’m thankful for good work development opportunities but man did it highlight how much I also like unplugging for the week of RAGBRAI. I think after this colloquium is over I’ll need to unplug regardless! Gabby is not a huge fan of Zoom meetings either! She has zoom fatigue too and couldn’t even manage to put her head on the bed this afternoon!
There were no church ladies or Bobs to cook for me today so I had to take that on myself. I threw some chicken and sweet potatoes on the grill and had my first non-ragbrai grill session. It wasn’t as good as Mr. Pork Chop but it was the best Muncie had to offer today.
Unfortunately the long day of meetings meant that there was no pie too. Total bummer. But I did have this nice rhubarb bar that was pretty tasty. Gotta love when mom sends home some treats for the freezer! Iowa grown rhubarb and a bar made with love was a perfect way to cap off the night.
There could be another great sunset tonight, but I’m so tired I don’t know if I’ll catch it. Gabby is currently getting in her exercise by running back and forth with the neighbor dog on the other side of the fence! She didn’t ride her bike this morning so I guess she needs some exercise too!! It’s hard work to man the camp site while I’m out riding!
I just realized (it’s 9 pm) that today was college jersey day on Ragbrai . :( How did I miss this?!? At least I wore my Hawkeye jersey this morning so I kind of played along. Don’t worry I’ll rep my Central College gear later in the week to make up for. Wow that was a rookie mistake! Shoot! I always like college jersey day because it’s fun to see how many other Central jerseys I can find. And it’s always great to have a little CUI fight song break out during the ride. I’ll also miss my annual picture with my buddy Ray in his Villanova jersey. I guess there’s always next year!
Zoom meetings all day don’t make for great blogs but thanks for tuning in. We’ll see if I can get Gabs to write tomorrow while I’m working!!
No comments:
Post a Comment