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Biking is hurting my golfing

12.26.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 4 Comments

The Bike Noob tees it up in Michigan last summer.
The Bike Noob tees it up in Michigan last summer.

In addition to biking, my other pastime is golfing. I’ve been at it for 20 years. I’m no good at it — but now I’m getting worse.

I go out most Saturday mornings with a regular group. Play often improves as the season goes on — I usually register the low net score in the group at least once during the summer — but this year, it didn’t happen. In fact, my handicap soared from a 14 to an 18.

Now, on the plus side, I get a stroke on each hole. But on the minus side, my actual play is a lot worse than that. I shot a 98 the other day, which is 10 strokes worse than my expected score on our par-70 course.

The reason for my poor play on the links is, of course, biking. I used to stop off at the driving range at least once a week, maybe twice, to practice my shots and hone my swing. Now, I head straight for home to change into cycling clothes and get out on the road for a quick pre-evening ride. Where a good weekend for me used to be two rounds of golf, now on Saturdays I won’t stick around the course after our round. I’ll head home to ride. On many Saturdays between August and October, I skipped golf entirely. I was training for my century, so I chose to ride instead. And my Sundays are dedicated to my weekly long ride, whether it be with the cycling club or on my own. A friend at the golf club recently asked me about my woeful game, and I replied, “If it’s a choice between biking and golf, I’ll take a bike ride.”

I really enjoy golf. It’s a skill, but to maintain that skill level, you must apply yourself. The great pianist Paderewski said, “If I miss a day of practice, I know. If I miss two days, my teacher knows. If I miss five days, the audience knows.” It’s just as true with golf. With some time off in the coming weeks, I will concentrate more on splitting my time between the saddle and the tee box. The weather here will be good for golf. As I write this, it’s 72F at 9 a.m., with a high forecast for 80F later today. Great golf weather. But then again, it’s great biking weather too…

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Categories // Odds 'n ends Tags // golf

What to get?

12.18.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 9 Comments

I’m terrible when it comes to giving Christmas presents.  It takes me forever to come up with a good idea.  Sometimes, I’ll receive hints, or even outright demands, but they’re for mundane things that don’t resonate with me.  So I skip getting the thing someone wants, and get them what I think is cool.  Sometimes it works.  Often, it backfires.

So this year, I’m turning to you, the patient and forgiving readers of Bike Noob.  I need some biking-related gift ideas.  Now, I’m not going to run out and buy my friend’s brother-in-law a Pinarello Prince, so keep your suggestions within a reasonable price threshold.

To help generate some ideas, I’ll just toss out the suggestion (demand?) I gave Mrs. Noob:

cageNot the seat, or the seat post, but the water bottle cages.  I know, not very imaginative, but I want one.  What do you want, or suggest that I buy as a gift for my biking friend(s)?

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Categories // Odds 'n ends Tags // bottle cage, Christmas

Bowling and biking don’t mix

12.13.2008 by Ray Niekamp // Leave a Comment

Went to a Happy Hour with my wife last night — one of the groups she belongs to had a holiday get together at local bowling alley.

I haven’t bowled in more than 15 years, and didn’t intend to last night, but things happen, and the next thing I knew, I was wriggling into some rental bowling shoes and picking a nicked and gouged ball off the rack.

When I was a little kid, I bowled a lot. My grandparents were bowling fanatics, and Grampa taught me a five-step approach to the line. Those five steps are short, mincing little steps, and as a grownup, I feel like an idiot when I roll a ball that way, so I decided three long steps would be the way to go.

I picked the spot on the lane where I intended to roll the ball, and began my approach. Left, right, left — rightleft! That five-step move I had learned so long ago wouldn’t go away! The additional two steps automatically happened. I sailed the ball down the lane as I tried to catch my left foot from crossing the foul line. BRAAP! The foul alarm blared. The newfangled electronic scoring thingy flashed FOUL! in big red letters. And I grabbed my left hamstring.

Holy cripes, did it hurt. I pulled something back there. The combination of trying to check the two added steps plus rolling a 16-pound ball and trying to look graceful while doing it (Who am I kidding? I never look graceful at anything) put my leg in an awkward position and caused the muscle pull.

It was still sore this morning when I got up.  Mrs. Noob wanted to go for a ride, so after some chores around the house, we saddled up for a jaunt to the Veloway.  Not too bad, except for a stiff wind that almost knocked us off our bikes a time or two.

At the Veloway, I took off for some quick laps.  Pat held back, fighting the wind.  I could feel the hamstring, but besides a little soreness, it seemed okay.  No doubt the exercise was warming the muscle and making it feel better.

Pat decided to do only one lap, and I caught up to her after I finished two.  We headed home with the wind mostly at our backs this time.  I stretched and showered, and wow! does that hamstring hurt.

I’m walking around the house like an old man, kind of hobbling.  I know it’ll work itself out in another day or two, but I really can do without this kind of strain.  I think I’ll avoid bowling from here on out.

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Categories // Odds 'n ends Tags // soreness

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