Flatter than a pancake....

I pulled my mountain bike out of the mothballs a couple of weeks ago and was amazed that my tires still held air. Yesterday, the little situation above put a halt to my amazement. John and I were on the way to hook up with the Smoky Mountain Wheelman for their Monday night greenway ride when the flat occurred. We were about 8 miles from John's house and neither of us had a tube to replace the flat...shame, shame.

Since we were already on the greenway, we pushed our bikes to the nearest "exit" and called John's son to pick us up. Nothing more embarrassing than having a child bail you out of a situation caused by your own stupidity. Whoops!

Greenway ride #2

While most of the US was abuzz about "The Dark Knight", last night John and I went to see "Momma Mia". I expected this to be a chick flick but we found the audience pretty evenly split between chicks and couples. The audience was bawdy, prone to clapping, loud laughing and cheering. We had a great time. Meryl Streep sings a lot better than expected and Pierce Brasnon sings, well, not as good as Meryl but he is just so great to look at, you know, James Bond singing Abba. I love musicals so this was a real treat. John seemed to enjoy the movie too, he laughed a lot!

This evening we received an email from Will and Kim, who are currently in Bergen, Norway. They wanted to let us know that they are having a great time (given) and that the sticker shock is shocking! A meal from Burger King (Whopper, french fries and coke) is about $20 US, a Coca Cola is going for about $5 US AND a Pizza Hut type large pizza is going for $40 US....cough, cough. Anyone for a trip to Scandinavia??!!

Finally, we took another bike ride today. We returned to the greenway but decided to go from the old BiLo in Bearden (again) to the UT Trial Gardens (on the Ag Campus) and back. Photos from our ride are below. By the way, I will be back to running tomorrow.

Me in the Trial Gardens. That is one big Elephant Ear!

The gardens were started by the University of TN Plant Sciences department and function as an outdoor laboratory . Over the years, they have become a much loved part of the Knoxville landscape. John and I have met at the gardens for more than one summer evening stroll.
John enjoying the shade while I walk around in the sun, looking at flowers.

A quiet walkway in the herb section of the garden.
Sunflowers in the UT Gardens are still in bloom!

After a visit to the Trial Gardens, we rode across the new Alcoa Highway pedestrian bridge over the Tennessee River and to the UT AG Farm. Most of the AG Farm will be moved and replaced with a research center but for right now, the grounds remain a beautiful green space just minutes from downtown. The above photo is from the Farm, looking toward the Tennessee River. Directly across the river is Cherokee Blvd, the road I often use for my short runs.

Me on the pedestrian bridge, looking toward the river. The UT AG Farm is on both sides of the highway behind me.

Greenway bicycle ride

After a dismal running week (3 miles on Monday, 3 miles on Thursday), I am officially burned out! John has been a little concerned about my lack of enthusiasm, so last night, while we were on Market Square watching the outdoor stage presentation of The Merchant of Venice, he suggested we pass on the Saturday Farmer's Market and go for a bicycle ride on greenway. Good idea!

This morning we climbed on our mountain bikes. Our final destination was John's house but we planned to ride out to the sunflower fields on the Will Skelton greenway first. The entire trip starting at the old BiLo in Bearden, approximately 19.0 miles. We rode at a comfortable pace, stopping on occasion to take photos and drink water. In the 90+* heat, we generated enough breeze on our bikes to keep us comfortable. It was just the run break I needed.

Below are a few photos from our ride:

John getting ready to go under Neyland Drive. This is a great place to cross a really busy 4 lane highway and it looks like the Canadian geese have discovered it too. We had to pause while they crossed from 2nd Creek to a feeding spot near the greenway. These guys cross in single file formation, no hurry here! Note the first goose popping up just above the concrete bricks.

The sunflower field is spectacular even though many flowers are "on the way out." About 50% have already lost their petals and the birds have begun to pick at the maturing seeds in the center. We are about 1 week too late for full bloom.

The flowers in the above 2 pictures are different but, well, with the exception of the flower size, every sunflower in this field looks about the same as the next. The flowers are covered in bees so the whole field hums.

John on a dirt road in front of the sunflower field. The sunflowers are planted by TWRA (TN Wildlife Resources Agency) who manages the fields and East TN Wildlife Management Area adjacent to the greenway. John has biked extensively through the wildlife management area we decided to turn off the greenway and follow the dirt-gravel road back to the main road.
Yep, that's me with my 1990's helmet and shirt. Maybe I will get a new helmet for Christmas....hint, hint, hint.

We followed the dirt road to this gravel road, which led out. This was my first effort on my mountain bike since a memorable wreck in Panther Creek State Park in 2001. Needless to say, I took things nice and easy...I can still remember the pain!
On the way home, we detoured to Island Home Airport, bicycling to the security fence to watch a couple of planes take off. Island Home is the "private" airport in Knoxville. Most of the planes are quite small, but as we rode to a gate at the back of the airport, we saw this hanger with the Remote Area Medical planes. You may have seen the 60 Minutes piece on RAM, if not, check check out this link http://www.ramusa.org/index.html They do good things for the needy here and abroad.
Photo from a bridge near Island Home Airport. The photo looks directly toward Knoxville. Tennessee School for the Deaf and the greenway are to the left (behind the trees), the runway for the airport is to the right.
Finally we made it to John's for a quick, healthy lunch. On the menu for John, whole wheat bread and natural peanut butter with cucumbers, tomatoes and a side of pear. John says this is a good combination, a refreshingly summer version of a peanut butter sandwich. I am not so sure. On the other hand, I had a salad with lettuce, squash, onion, mushrooms, tomatoes and pears topped with light blue cheese. I also had a grilled cheese (no butter). Yummy!

Catch up post

I have been negligent on posting this month. We have been busy, I have other things on my mind and mostly, I just haven't much felt like writing.

Running is going okay. Three weeks ago I had a long run of 6 miles (with a couple of miles of walking), two weeks ago my long run covered 6.5 miles (with less walking) and last week my long run equaled 7 miles with no walking. Shorter runs continue about 4 days a week and are either 3 or 4 miles each. The dog days of summer are here! With warm temperatures, high humidity and toxic air, I am beginning to feel a bit burned out. Oh how I long for cool, fall weather!

John and I have had a great July so far. Below are a couple of photos that have been lurking in my camera.

These are the first tomatoes from my patio garden. They are small with a high concentration of acid. Most of the tomatoes still developing on the vine are small. I think I am expecting too much from my little potted plants. Next year we may try a raised bed garden in the yard.

This gathering of Smiths is a celebration to be sure! On July 6th, our parents celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary. We partied with a bucket of KFC (my mother's favorite) and some yummy sides. While I have been trying to avoid such food, I gladly scarfed down a greasy chicken breast and mashed potatoes..... seconds anyone?

From left: me, Mother, Leslie, Mike (Leslie's husband), Daddy, Carol and the empty chair belongs to John, who is taking the photo (thanks sweetie)!

We love having dinner with friends. Last Friday, we had dinner with Will and Kim at El Mezcal in Bearden. The food is decent, the margaritas excellent (just ask Will) and the service great.

John and me, drinking iced tea and water. B-o-r-i-n-g! Nevertheless, we had a great time and are total envious that they are leaving for Norway later this week (didn't you just get back from Russia??!!), where it is cooooool!

4th of July Weekend

As it turns out, this

plus this

plus this

equals a mighty fine pre-run breakfast.

For the past couple of weeks, I have been struggling with my longer runs, my energy runs out before my run is complete. Pre-run breakfast is usually something to drink (Diet Coke) so I can get out the door before the sun gets too warm. Obviously this strategy is not working for me.

Friday, July 4th I decided to ditch the planned run and break out the "Saturday" morning fixins. Actually I usually eat oatmeal, soy sausage and orange juice but on an occasional weekend, sweet potato pancakes are on the menu. Sometime later, maybe an hour and a half, I found myself with a lot of energy. The temperature was still in the 70's, the sky was overcast, perfect for an attempt to rescue the planned run. The plan called for 3-miles but in the back of my mind, I was rolling around the goal of 4.

I arrived on Cherokee Boulevard, parked my car and started toward the running path. A couple of people were starting at the same time so I fiddled with the wires on my iPod to give them a chance to get comfortably ahead of me. I wasn't in the frame of mind to be passed at less than .2-mile.

The run started out well and stayed that way. When the the 1/2 turnaround for 3-miles appeared, I passed the people who had started ahead of me, they were walking. I kept running, up the 1/2 mile hill and to the 2.0-mile marker. I expected to have my energy zapped but I didn't. I turned around at the 2.-mile marker and ran back.The run back to the parking lot was comfortable. The best part occurred when the parking lot came in sight and I still had energy to burn.

We had a rocky start to our long 3-day weekend, John had another bicycle mishap Thursday night. This time he was on his mountain bike on the greenway. He was jumping things....cracks in the greenway, railroad tracks and such. At one point, he grabbed his brakes when he pulled up on the handle bars. You can imagine what happened when his front tire hit the pavement...a forward flip over the handle bars. Luckily no breaks, he only lost 1/4 of the skin off his back (it wasn't pretty) and bruised his calf and back. He won't be getting on his bike again for a few days!

Friday evening, the 4th of July, we headed downtown for dinner and 4th festivities with our friends Will and Kim. After dinner at LaCosta, we spent the evening at the World's Fair Park, listening to the Knoxville Symphony and watching fireworks. Aside from a 30 minute interruption for wind and lightening, the evening went off flawlessly and we had a great time!

Beverly and John

Will and Kim
Celebrating the 4th at the World's Fair Park