Give a Flying Flip

Love the name, love the idea, and I love flip-flops.

The Plan

the hope movement

Women's Bike Blogs

Amazing hugely comprehensive list of women's bike blogs over @womensbikeblogs here. If you scroll down to....uh.....I don't know....the B's...you may find a little B-to-the-Betty-to-the-Mountain-Girl!!

PS I hope you are spinning some wheels!!

Ten Reasons Why Backpackers Will Survive a Zombie Apocalypse

1. You already have a stash of dehydrated, non-perishable, or freeze dried foods.
2. You know how to start a fire using at least three different methods
3. You can easily carry a heavy pack over difficult and strenuous terrain (did anyone catch that Doomsday Planners show where the girl couldn’t carry her pack six miles? Ha!)
4. You are well skilled in purifying water using a variety of methods.
5. You have a portable shelter (although it will only be helpful after the zombies have died of starvation)
6. You have a small first aid kit
7. You can survive a night in the elements
8. You probably already know a great- middle- of no-where camping spot to “bug out” to
9. You practice your “bug out” plan all summer long
10. After you survived that nasty giardia fluke last backpacking trip zombie viruses got nothing on you ;) ;)

Terry Cycling How-to Posts

Just had to share Terry Cycling's How-to videos section- because I think it is a huge home run. Have a friend new to cycling or need to brush up on a few basics like changing a tire?- check 'em out. (Although if you need help using a quick release you may need more than just a video to get started- wink wink!)

The Inverted Bike Shop

A bike shop for bike dreamers....

Getting Outside

Do you feel like you are constantly wagging a war between life and sport/outdoors? That each day you face the choices (or challenge) of work vs bike, meals vs hikes, or worse TV vs anything? I have to admit that I am completely guilty of participating in this war- a war that should flat out not exist.

The problem is cyclical. It starts with a long day at work, followed by "what should we eat for dinner?, followed by I'm too tired/too full/too hungry to (fill in the blank- hike, run, bike). And better yet, as a female-do-everything- the heck-herself- young lady I feel the need to be great at everything for everyone.

(that's me spending my time)

See it's not enough to just work and come home and call it a day. I want us to eat healthy so I take charge of that. The dog needs to be walked. The bills need to be paid. Blah Blah Blah. Are you catching the drift here? And for all my fellow mountain girls with small children you definitely feel the pull in a thousand directions and the guilt of taking a little "me" time outdoors.

I'd love to hear from everyone on any tips, tricks, or whatevers that help them just get the heck outside more. Here are some things that seem to help me:

• Meal planning- I am so not the organized person in daily life but I do try to do a little pre-planning in this area. For me, I've discovered that an evening meal makes or breaks my outdoor time. If I have nothing planned I will eat junk and then crash on the couch. Lately I've been cooking two large pots of different beans on Sundays and refrigerating or freezing them for the week. My typical meals look something like this: black bean soup, homemade bean dip, beans and rice, stir-fry, and eggs and spinach.
• Game planning for the week- I try to take a good hard look at my week and figure out where the outdoor time is. If every night I have a commitment- I find something to let go of. Do I really need to visit that client or can I reschedule them? Can I switch something to Saturday morning? etc. I say NO a lot. I squirm out of plans.
• Organizing- I'm feeling like this seems to be a theme in this post even though I feel like it is a definite area of weakness for me. What I do for organizing is simple- I have two small folding boxes with bike gear for the week and running gear for the week. I can literally grab that box and be outfitted head to toe in under five. I waste a lot of time looking for random pieces of apparel, remembering where the heck I put my running shoes, etc. So this seems to help.
• Keep it local- I would love to hit trails that are a thirty minute drive from me. Those trails are by far better, climbs are sweeter, and of course the downhills?- killer. But during the work week I have to make compromises. I walk to local trail systems and gain another thirty minutes to spend outdoors.
• Lastly consider where you spend your time. Last week I read an article about how we all have a lot more time in our day than we think and it really made my wheels spin with possibility. If you cut technology out of the equation- time really does become more plentiful.

The Outdoors and Your Brain

As if we all needed another reason to do the thing we truly love...

I was catching up on a few old issues of Outside magazine and was pleased to find this snippet that supports that idea that many of your brain's functions (attention, memory, processing, etc.) perform better with healthy doses of the outdoors.

Personally I am a very strong believer in the relationship between a healthy mind, body, and the outdoors. Coming off a very odd winter I just didn't get outside to extent that I like to. I also didn't exercise nearly enough. How did my brain feel? Like a big slushy mess.

Now that we are onto an early freakish spring up here in the Northeast- I've been trying to tip the balance towards more outside equals more happy. I will certainly let you know how that goes...

Glow in the Dark Bike

You may remember a recent post featuring the glow in the dark bike video for blackberry. At the time there were not very many how-to's for setting up your own rig. Luckily I came across a pretty good one the other day. I have been contemplating re-purposing my old Miyata for a fun night bike....

photo credit

Things That Make Me Smile

this...

Chicks on Bikes Radio

I recently learned over at Women's Adventure Magazine about a great podcast- Chicks on Bikes. It looks to be a nice mix of culture (can you say bike literature?!), women's specific topics, and just plain 'ol ridin'. I haven't listened to a whole show yet, but I am really intrigued. Let me what you think!

photo credit

PS this 'ol bum has been riding and let me tell you- it's a hurtin'!

Mild Winter

We have had the mildest winter here in New England. It started with a bang in October and a foot of snow that knocked out power for close to a week in some areas. Since that time we really haven't seen that much in the way of snow and temperatures have stayed relatively warm for long stretches at a time.

Even though I have been spoiled with a very mild winter, right now I all I can think about is mud season (my brother's favorite time of year!). I am ready to get my garden ready, my mountain bike tires muddy, and have to constantly wipe my dog's feet down.

Maddie the Coonhound

Misty asked me to share with you this very talented fellow coonhound. Maddie on Things a Super Serious Project about Dogs and Physics is a hilariously awesome site to look at and you are also able to order just about any print here.

Very very clever. I have to admit we did try to see if Misty could stand on things like Maddie does, but alas she does not. Perhaps I will share some outtakes with ya'll this weekend?