Better

Saturday's ride almost killed me...but Sunday's ride was fantastic!

The starting temperature was 30° warmer than it had been when I left home on Saturday morning...but I still carried all my frostbite protection supplies. It was quickly obvious that I wouldn't even need long sleeves, and by the time we reached Highgrade Road, the sweat was beginning to pour.

Ain't Colorado grand? One day I'm colder than Bredo Morstøl, and the next day I'm Johnny Storm. Geez.

John (pictured above with his daughter Erin) set the pace for the climb. I tried my best to keep up with him, but he reached the Pleasant Park schoolhouse well ahead of me. As always, I enjoyed some cookies and Gatorade (and much-needed rest) while our group reconnected. Then we headed back to Deer Creek Canyon via CityView, where I discovered that my legs were pretty well shot. I did great on the downhills, but had to go full granny on any remaining climbs. Even though the others were riding another several miles, I peeled off at South Valley Park and headed home for a nice healthy pizza and an afternoon of chores.

But man, it was good to be back on the bike without freezing my kneecaps off. And speaking of which, how did we do on the puzzle?


The answer is "Wyn". My first urge was to assemble a "winter" montage, but I got a little freaked out by the images I found of Edgar Winter, so I took another angle. You see, the connection is the Winter Warlock (the chilling fellow pictured at the top of the previous post.) Not only does he perfectly represent the idea of frozen apocalypse, but his voice is provided by the talented Keenan Wynn. So, I guess you could call him the "Wynn-ter Warlock", right?

Anyway, Mr. Wynn's real face is featured in the first panel of the puzzle, as he appeared in the role of "Bat" Guano in Dr. Strangelove (see clip below.) Next to him is Wynona Judd, who is apparently a mildly popular country singer (though personally I find her nearly as creepy as Edgar Winter). The fellow with the trumpet is jazz artist Wynton Marsalis, and the building on the right is the Wynkoop Brewery. The Wynkoop was the former stomping grounds of Colorado's current governor, and has the distinction of being one of the few places in LoDo in which I've actually had a beer. As for my connection with Marsalis, well, I played trumpet in my high school marching band, and once performed the theme from Hawaii Five-O, which isn't really jazz, but hey -- you try hitting all the notes while counting off eight steps for every five yards, OK?

In any case, the riding season is well underway, and I am expecting to be able to forego parkas and mittens for the remainder of my Triple Bypass training. At least I hope so. But however it goes, I'll be sure to share it with you. For now, sit back, grab a refreshing bottle of Coke, and enjoy the Guano clip below. Have a great day!