westcreek

Vetoing a Staff Meeting

Weekly Staff Meeting @ Endorphin Fitness Cycling Studio 

Weekly Staff Meeting @ Endorphin Fitness Cycling Studio 

One of the many great rights we have as an US citizen is the power of the veto. Vetoes cannot and should not be called for unless the end result is sure to provide benefit for all involved. Over the last few winters, Michael, Quinoa, Thin Mint and I have been doing our weekly trainer rides together. At one point, someone joked and asked if we were conducting a "staff meeting". The name has stuck ever since. ​

​As we were all preparing to meet for this week's meeting, the string of text messages started to get sent around that the staff meeting should be held outdoors this week as it was actually sunny and the tempurature wasn't cheek chilling cold. One of us voted for indoors while another voted to veto the indoor ruling. With the support of the final two of us, the veto passed and outside we went. 

​The adventures began straight away with Quinoa showing up with no clothes and Michael playing in traffic while he got his feet into his shoes. About half way down to West Creek, I about fell off my bike laughing as Michael and Thin Mint had this exchange 

  • Michael - "Is your powermeter installed on your bike?"
  • Thin Mint - "​Yes"
  • Michael - "What is your current power?"​
  • Thin Mint - He stated his power which I won't say​
  • Michael "WWWHHHHYYYYYYYYY ?!?!?!"​

After arriving to West Creek, we knocked out 3 of our 4 intervals without issue. As we were about to start our last one while turning back for the shop, a gun shot like noise came off of Thin Mint's rear wheel as a spoke broke which sent the wheel into a seizure bouncing from one side of his frame to the other before he could come to a stop. A quick inspection, we knew it wasn't rideable and the sag wag would need to be called to pick him up. 

Moments later I would join him in the sag wag as I suffered a puckering blowout at over 30mph as Michael, Quinoa and I were time trialing down Patterson to ensure we got back to the shop to open on time. Looking back, that was the most fun I have had on the bike in quite some time. Probably because we were all together and we were OUTSIDE. Now if only Spring would stop playing peek-a-boo with us so we can do it again without the need of a veto. 

Takin Laps

Everything was same ole Westcreek until my second lap where I came up on a slightly older than I gentleman. As I was I greeted him as I passed and I heard, "I am going to suck your wheel for a few minutes." I have no problem when people want to jump aboard. He hung with me for the length of one side of the parkway and then at the turn around he says to me,

Old guy: "Great pull, Glad to see someone can still do it on an antique bike."
Me: "It isn't old".
Old Guy: "That is what I always tell myself too"

I didn't take kindly to his comments and kept rolling on down the road thinking to myself, "I cannot believe he just called my bike an antique" and by the time the first little climb came, lets just say I didn't play very nice. Off my wheel he came and left to suffer the 18mph winds by himself.

Yesterday's ride was my Monday ride only because it was the first ride of the week for me. Everything after that went as uneventful as I hoped. All in all I was glad to this week's "Monday ride on Tuesday" didn't suck as bad as my normal "Monday ride on Monday".