Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Nice Spin in the Sandilands
It seems a few different muscle fibres are used for mtn biking than road biking as I'm feeling a little fatigue tonight after a quick 9km ride earlier this evening on the race trail in the Sandilands. Amazing how the climbs were so easy in the fall compared to spring. Good to have the trails in great shape - I just need to get back there more often it seems for my fitness to get back on track.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Getting Back Cycling Legs
I love escaping on my bike but I hate the process of getting back ones' legs. 47 kms today will have helped some - even though I'm wiped right now!
Exploring the Music of the Eighties
It almost feels like I'm confessing when I admit I grew up as a teenager in the 80s but clearly it has shaped my taste in music. Being born in the 70s & the influence of my Dad's listening tastes exposed me to Johnny Cash & Elvis which I am forever grateful - interestingly on 8-track. I still have that machine somewhere in a box in my house.
But it was in the 80s that I heard the sound of U2, R.E.M. & the Police - post-punk and the new rock of the era. Both bands remain on my playing lists along with a number of other lesser known bands of the 80s. The 80s also birthed a new type of hard rock or metal that some now refer to as glam rock or hair bands. So Van Halen, Giant, White Lion, Stryper, White Cross, the Scorpians, Def Leppard, Queensryche, & others influenced my love of screaming guitars. As I write this the fluid melodies of Joe Satriani provide me with an inspiring background of sound.
Thankfully - it wasn't all metal being played on my walkman or stereo. Some musician friends exposed me to Canadian folk rock artist Bruce Cockburn which led me to others more eclectic music like the 77s, the Choir, INXS, Mark Heard, Neil Young, Tom Petty, the Traveling Wilburys, Peter Gabriel, Dire Straits, Paul Simon, Larry Norman, and thank God - Bob Dylan! I think this balanced out my taste in music and I moved beyond one category of music.
Fast forward to the late 90s and the 00s and I realized I did miss a whole category of music from the 80s with my focus on hard rock/metal/americana. This category is in the same vein as early U2 & the Police - a post-punk that morphed into what some call new wave. Some examples that I consider favorites in this genre include: Echo & the Bunnymen, the 77s, the Cure, the Smiths, and interestingly just this last week I discovered the band The Feelies. These bands influenced so many bands of the 90s & the 00s and have impacted me as well.
Music for me is an ocean of sound that I love to swim in and occasionally just get lost in & dream. The soundtrack of my life is varied and includes more genres than I dare to list right now. A post for another time is how the 90s further blew wide open my tastes. I love rediscovering music either I'd forgotten about or haven't heard in awhile or music that somehow I missed. As a musician and an audiophile - it really is one of my escapes.
But it was in the 80s that I heard the sound of U2, R.E.M. & the Police - post-punk and the new rock of the era. Both bands remain on my playing lists along with a number of other lesser known bands of the 80s. The 80s also birthed a new type of hard rock or metal that some now refer to as glam rock or hair bands. So Van Halen, Giant, White Lion, Stryper, White Cross, the Scorpians, Def Leppard, Queensryche, & others influenced my love of screaming guitars. As I write this the fluid melodies of Joe Satriani provide me with an inspiring background of sound.
Thankfully - it wasn't all metal being played on my walkman or stereo. Some musician friends exposed me to Canadian folk rock artist Bruce Cockburn which led me to others more eclectic music like the 77s, the Choir, INXS, Mark Heard, Neil Young, Tom Petty, the Traveling Wilburys, Peter Gabriel, Dire Straits, Paul Simon, Larry Norman, and thank God - Bob Dylan! I think this balanced out my taste in music and I moved beyond one category of music.
Fast forward to the late 90s and the 00s and I realized I did miss a whole category of music from the 80s with my focus on hard rock/metal/americana. This category is in the same vein as early U2 & the Police - a post-punk that morphed into what some call new wave. Some examples that I consider favorites in this genre include: Echo & the Bunnymen, the 77s, the Cure, the Smiths, and interestingly just this last week I discovered the band The Feelies. These bands influenced so many bands of the 90s & the 00s and have impacted me as well.
Music for me is an ocean of sound that I love to swim in and occasionally just get lost in & dream. The soundtrack of my life is varied and includes more genres than I dare to list right now. A post for another time is how the 90s further blew wide open my tastes. I love rediscovering music either I'd forgotten about or haven't heard in awhile or music that somehow I missed. As a musician and an audiophile - it really is one of my escapes.
Monday, April 07, 2008
To Bike is To Explore
I'm super-stoked that my daughter Chelsea has finally mastered the art of cycling...she was really close to it clicking last fall and would go about 10 or so feet by herself. But now she is able to start on her own, safely do circuits and come to complete stop without wiping out! We've had a cold spring so far but we've taken advantage of plus temps.
I went for a nice 36km loop myself on the road bike with Pat & Paul - strong wind but it helped a bit on the stretch home. Gotta love two wheels for exploring this planet! I still remember my dad teaching me to bike on our front lawn and that feeling of freedom once I got the hang of it. I'm so proud of my daughter in how she is confident on her bike as well. The girl is fast - and I've taken up running apparently to keep up!
I went for a nice 36km loop myself on the road bike with Pat & Paul - strong wind but it helped a bit on the stretch home. Gotta love two wheels for exploring this planet! I still remember my dad teaching me to bike on our front lawn and that feeling of freedom once I got the hang of it. I'm so proud of my daughter in how she is confident on her bike as well. The girl is fast - and I've taken up running apparently to keep up!
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Bloodthirsty Loons...
So I read an article in the Free Press the other day that a Loon can actually be a pretty aggressive bird when another Loon encroaches their territory. I came across another article online that says the same thing - I had no idea! I'll never hear the call of a loon as being that of a cry out to a lost lover as has also been surmised. It may be in fact a call to war! Loons have been known to fight to the death - piercing another loon through the chest and into the heart. I'm not sure I can look at a Loonie the same way again either.
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