Weekend Update: Polo vs. Polo, and Why it is a poor idea to ride a bike in the mountains with no sleep
Oops… looks like I didn’t update my blog last week. Sorry guys. Truthfully, I have an excuse. I wasn’t lounging about by my (non-existent) pool, drinking (calorie filled) pina coladas, and (okay maybe a little) napping all day. In fact, this week I actually took the opportunity to get hardcore about my job search. I sent out a bunch of resumes. On the writing side, I’ve had a million story ideas and I’m trying to put them all into words these days. So its been a busy week. But fear not, I’m back…for now.
Thursday, August 13th – Bike Polo
(c) Alaina Morgan, 2009
So lets start with Thursday. Its not really part of the weekend, but in some parts active bar hopping does start on Thursday nights so I suppose its an honorary weekend day.
I met my friend Marci in Chinatown (and as an aside, why is it that EVERY time you get out of the subway at Grand Street and Broome Street it just smells like something crawled into a corner and died? I just don’t understand it) to go see my very first game of hardcourt (or urban) bike polo. Hardcourt bike polo you say? What the hell is that? Well, its actually pretty cool. There are two teams each with three players. Each player has a beat up bike with short handlebars, and a homemade mallet consisting of a ski-pole stuffed into some kind of open ended tubing. The goal is to get a street hockey ball through the “goals” – really traffic cones – on either side of the court. Protective headwear is optional. Rules are minimal.
Pile-up. (c) Alaina Morgan, 2009.
The game is rowdy, with a hefty scent of testosterone (or man-sweat, whatever you want to call it) in the air, but it was good natured. Body-to-body, mallet-to-mallet, and bike-crashing into-bike contact are both expected and welcomed.
It was really kind of cool. Especially since I heard that even though it only street messengers used to play urban bike polo, now, all kinds of cyclists are getting into the sport. That includes long distance touring cyclists like yours truly. Hm.. will you see me out on the bike polo court? Perhaps, but frankly I think my shins are a little weak to get wonked with a homemade bike mallet, and I like my trusty steed way too much.
Saturday, August 15th – Why it is a Poor Idea to Ride in the Mountains After Not Sleeping
Bear Mountain. (c) Alaina Morgan, 2009.
I have ridden my bike with a hangover before, and that is why I have never done it since. On a 90 degree day it causes jelly legs, dehydration, dizziness, and skin tingling about 10 miles into a hilly ride. I did it once on a ride with my friends Sharon and Robin last year and I learned my lesson. Lots of sleep and water for me before a ride, especially a hilly one.
After cycling for three years, you’d think I would know better, but apparently not sleeping at all, whether or not one has imbibed any liquor apparently has the same exact effects. As Sharon wisely pointed out yesterday, I might as well have just gone out and had fun since the net effect is apparently exactly the same.
Anyway, I planned to go on a ride with my old cycling team up to Bear Mountain. I’ve never done that ride before, but its supposed to be beautiful, but very very hilly (more on that later). Our plan was to ride our bikes up to Garrison or Cold Spring, NY.
Enormous Hill. (c) Alaina Morgan, 2009.
When I got out of bed (note I didn’t say “woke up”), I had qualms about going. My heart rate was a little erratic and I was a bit dehydrated, but my major concern was that Sharon was going to make fun of me for not showing up, so I felt like I had to go. So I got on my bike, and before I even got over the bridge to meet everyone I already felt terrible. My legs weren’t cooperating, it was already incredibly hot and humid, and I took it as a bad sign that by the time I got the approximately 9 miles from my house to the bike shop I had already drank one entire bottle of Cytomax.
So we rode on, and I was just so far behind. I just couldn’t keep up. My friend Joe stayed back with me for the first 20 miles, until we met our teammates at the Runcible Spoon Bakery in Nyack, NY (which by the way, is constantly recommended by various cycling magazines as “the place to go” in Nyack, but frankly, I think it is completely overplayed. It takes a million hours to use the bathroom there, and the only benefit is that they have their free water outside in Gatorade jugs so that you don’t have to bother them for it behind the counter).
Anyway, I should have turned back at 20 miles. Had I frankly understood how hilly the next 20 miles were, I probably would have gone sprinting back home the way I came. But no, because I am an idiot I thought to myself, “well, I can go the 20 miles back home, or I can just keep riding for 20 miles and take the train back…what’s the difference really.” Well the difference was that I basically felt like dying at several points throughout the day after that 20 mile mark. Just to put this in perspective. I just did a triathlon with a moderately hilly bike course, and I felt like I rocked it, I have done four century rides, two of which were in Lake Tahoe (and included a 8 mile long and steady climb).
View of the Hudson from Garrison. (c) Alaina Morgan, 2009.
Anyway, the moral of the story is — don’t get on your bike to a place with limited bail out points, especially if said place is in the mountains, if you have gotten zero sleep. The end.
Sunday, August 16th – Horse Polo
Colts Neck Polo. (c) Alaina Morgan, 2009.
I suppose this weekend has been a sport filled one for me, because on Sunday Kelly and I went to see the Colts Neck Polo game, in none other than Colts Neck, NJ. Here’s where the title of this blog entry — Polo vs. Polo becomes evident. I went to Bike Polo on Thursday and Horse Polo on Sunday.
I really never knew that there was even polo in Monmouth County, but apparently there are five teams in New Jersey. This weekend Colts Neck played Tinicum Park, and unfortunately lost. Tinicum is allegedly rated higher so I suppose its not a surprise, but one likes to see ones “team” win. At any rate, I think Kelly and I were good sports considering that it was 95 degrees outside, and we were ill prepared. Apparently people tailgate for these things and bring drinks and chairs and what have you. Here’s a tip – do not try to go searching for a beach chair in rural New Jersey minutes before your polo match starts because you will not find one. Anyway, we have found a new favorite sport, which I will add to joining the circus, playing bike polo, cycling, and training for triathlons.
Weekend Update: The NYC Triathlon, The NYC Triathlon, and oh…. The NYC Triathlonson
Me crossing the finish line. (c) Kelly Murphy, 2009.
Hear ye, hear ye. Litigatrix has completed her first triathlon. And yes, I said first. For all of my bitching and moaning about how I can’t wait for the season to be over so that I can reclaim my summer (which will from henceforth include Red Nosed Mexican Bulldogs and Happy Hours) I actually really enjoyed the sense of accomplishment that I got from finishing. It was physically the hardest thing that I’ve had to do in my life, but for some sick reason I want to do it again. This time I have my eye on the prize for a Half Ironman. Crazy, yes… but you would expect nothing less from me.
My time was pretty paltry: approximately 4 hours and 30 minutes, although I stopped on the side of the road for about 20 minutes to help a woman from Seattle who didn’t know how to change her own tire. If I subtract the 20 minutes for the bike, my swim and bike times were pretty good, and better than expected. My run time was pretty pathetic, but what are you going to do… its not my sport. Anyway, I figure stopping to help that woman was good karma (its pretty awful to be on the side of the road waiting for the SAG wagon), and it wasn’t like I was going to win or anything.
Anyhoo, my friends brought me these sweet cupcakes at the finish line, and then proceeded to devour 3/4s of them. I did get my hands on the Carrot Cake Cupcake, which I’m sad to say (or happy to say?) is no more.
(c) Kelly Murphy, 2009
So What’s on the Agenda for this Week?
Circus class tonight, of course. Catching up on movies that I’ve been wanting to see. Although, what gives with Harry Potter in 3D not playing at Lincoln Square anymore? Its playing in freaking Sheepshead Bay, but I’m not trekking all the way out there for it. This is extremely depressing.
Abby and I are also going to the Green Day concert tomorrow which I am ridiculously excited from. Green Day’s new album “21st Century Breakdown” is not as good as “American Idiot”, but really I doubt they’ll come up with an album that is.
I also plan on catching the second half of the Transit Museum’s “The Future Beneath Us” exhibit which details six projects which are currently going on in New York (the web page for the exhibit says that the exhibit closes on July 5th, but it has actually been extended through November per the Transit Museum). I saw the first half while trying to kill time at Grand Central Station and it was actually really fascinating. A bit infuriating, but fascinating. The second half is at the New York Public Library’s Science, Industry, and Business Library (188 Madison Avenue at 34th Street ).
Weekend Update: Coney Island, Pasties, and Harry Potter Thwarted
Ahhhh…and the countdown to my jump into the Hudson begins.
Hudson River from Bear Mountain Bridge, courtesy of Wikipedia
Saturday I dived into the frigid waters of the Atlantic Ocean at Coney Island to prepare for the open water swim portion of my upcoming triathlon. As you should know by now, I’m participating in the Nautica New York City Triathlon as a member of the Leukemia Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training. Click here to make a donation.
The swim was pretty decent, but I don’t know how I am going to deal with a million people being on top of me at the race start. I had a brilliant idea to just hang back a little bit, but I am afraid that is going to be everyone else’s brilliant idea too and that more undesired congestion will ensue. I guess we’ll have to just play this one by ear.
I then skipped the run portion of our workout to go home and get ready for my trip to the NEW Yankee Stadium!!! I have mixed feelings about how necessary it was to spend all of that money on the new stadium. Undeniably, it was a minimum of bad timing on the City’s part, oh with the economic crisis and all. But enough of my political ramblings, and onto my observations regarding Alex Rodriguez’s bum… I mean, the new Stadium.
We first took a quick browse through the Yankee’s Museum before heading over to the concessions stand. My feelings on the museum are generally ambivalent. While some of the older memorabilia was interesting, like the jerseys of Babe Ruth and Lou Gherig, for example, the newer memorabilia was frankly redundant. As my friend Lauren appropriately pointed out — why do I need to see Mariano Rivera’s mitt in the Yankee’s Museum, when I can see it on the field. Indeed.
Ugh, $6 hot dog
Now onto the concessions. According to a Yankee’s press release, they were keeping their $3 hot dogs and soft drinks as a commitment to “affordability”. Well after going to the Hebrew National stand, the Johnny Rocket’s stand, and standing in line at the Nathan’s Hot Dogs stand for about 15 minutes, said $3 hot dogs were nowhere to be found. It took about that long for me to realize that they were actually the “kid’s hot dogs”, which by the way were not available at that time. Outrageous!! Now if anyone knows if there are actual adult sized $3 hot dogs to be found at Yankees Stadium, please correct me. Similarly outrageous was the $10 I paid for a Miller Lite draft (albeit in a souvenir cup), and the $9 I paid for a BOTTLE of Miller Lite in the stands (remedied only by the fact that I didn’t have to get out of my seat to get it. I did, however, have to practically give the guy next to me a lap dance trying to get my IDs over to the vendor. Score for him.)
All in all, it was worth it to see A-Rod’s bum … I mean…. the Yankees beat Detroit (although it did take until about the Sixth inning for anyone to score).
Me & Abby @ Yankee Stadium
Joshua Dean in Action
Saturday night, my friend Abby, myself, and a bunch of my coupley friends went to the Galapagos Art Space for the Floating Kabarette (Main Street at Water Street, Brooklyn, NY). The Floating Kabarette is hosted by a pair of interesting characters who call themselves Olga and Bjorn, who sport a wardrobe consisting mostly of leotards and bathing suits from American Apparel. Olga was so thin I think I saw her internal organs. Over the course of approximately three hours, they introduced various acts including Burlesque dancers (one of whom had a wardrobe malfunction and exposed her nipple Janet Jackson style), aerial acrobatics, a magician, and a trapeze artist.
Olga and Bjorn left nothing to the imagination in their sexually charged dialogue, disposing of innuendo and going for the obvious. At one point, Olga, who sports a faux Eastern European accent slipped into a Midwestern accent.
Although it was generally entertaining, the best parts of the show were for one the space (Galapagos Art Space’s bottom level is a pool over which banquettes are suspended, making several “islands”), and second the aerial acrobatics performer, Joshua Dean who incredibly talented. After taking an aerial acrobatics class, I truly appreciate how difficult it is to accomplish those feats (and painful the next day). Joshua Dean is performing again on August 14th in his show Suspended Cirque: Urbanopolis at the Galapagos Art Space, and while I probably would not return for the Floating Kabarette, I would go back to see him.
A free drink, either the signature apricot lemonade or a draft beer, was included with the admission price ($10). The apricot lemonade, served in a martini glass, was too cloying, and although it purported to have alcohol in it, I didn’t feel a thing. It was a waste of calories.
Sunday was a lazy day. Abby and I had planned on seeing Harry Potter in IMAX 3D, but we failed to plan ahead and by the time we went to buy tickets the morning of the performance, they were already sold out.
Yesterday (Monday) I had my first aerial acrobatics class at the New York Circus Arts Academy. Its ridiculously fun, but ridiculously hard. We climbed up the silks, and did some inversions. My entire body (especially my crotchal muscles and my hands), is in pain. The most significant pain is in my inner thigh muscles and my hands. I am just hoping I get better at this soon, because otherwise I’m going to essentially be torturing myself every week.
What’s on the Agenda for this Week?
Tomorrow (Wednesday, July 22nd) I am going to the Restless Legs Reading at Lolita Bar (266 Broome Street @ Allen Street, 212.966.7223). Restless Legs brings travelers, travel writers, and the like together for book readings which focus on sharing tales from the road.
Tomorrow’s reading is called: the Holy Foreskin vs. Amazon. One of the readings will be from David Gann, a staff writer at The New Yorker, who’s new book, The Lost City of Z, is an account of exploring the Amazon. From the New York Times: ”The Lost City of Z is at once a biography, a detective story, and a wonderfully vivid piece of travel writing that combines Bruce Chatwinesque powers of observation with a Waugh-like sense of the absurd.” The second reading will be from David Farley (the creator of Restless Legs), who’s book An Irreverent Curiosity: In Search of the Church’s Strangest Relic in Italy’s Oddest Town which is about his search to find the foreskin of Jesus.
And for the rest of the week? A whole lot of nothing quite frankly. Since Sunday is the New York City Triathlon, I’m going to be resting a lot and attending various pre-race meetings as it gets closer to Sunday. I might try to catch up on some movies that I have been meaning to see (i.e., Year One, The Hangover, &c.).
If anyone wants to come and watch me to swim you can go to these locations. My swim wave goes off at either 6:20 and 6:23 AM (Yes, that’s AM):
Swim Start – Riverside Park & 98th Street on the Hudson River.
Swim Exit - Riverside Park & 79th Street on the Hudson River.
Run Course - along 72nd Street from Henry Hudson Parkway to Central Park West
Race Finish – Dead Road in Central Park near the band shell off the 72nd Street Transverse
I’m just hoping that my experience wont be like this guy’s.
Free-ing your Mind: Free Yoga in New York City
Living in New York, between weaving through tourists staring blankly at the Empire State Buiding, cabs almost running you over on a regular basis, and everyone trying to sell you something, even just to get from point A to point B, it can become easy to lose a connection between your mind and body.
The natural, trendy, and obvious solution is yoga. But, of course, these days, even regaining your sanity costs money (ask any New Yorker’s therapist). Even cutting out the fluff — you don’t really need those fancy Lululemon yoga pants, do you? — you’re still stuck with the cost of paying either per class at a yoga studio, or buying a pricey membership, and hoping that six months from now you’re still going to be as enthusiastic about that Yin Yoga class as you are today.
Fortunately, re-balancing your mind and body connection doesn’t have to be expensive. In fact, it doesn’t have to cost anything at all. Here are two free yoga options, one ongoing, and one temporary.
1. Lululemon Athletica (yes, they of the adorable yoga pant) offers complimentary open level yoga classes in varying styles on either Saturday or Sunday mornings depending on their location:
- Upper East Side (1127 Third Avenue @ 66th Street)- The series is (very adorably) called Sun(day) Salutations, and takes place (guess when), every Sunday from 9:30-10:30 am
- Lincoln Square (1928 Broadway @ 64th Street)- This store has Lulunights which take place from 8:00 -9:00 pm every Sunday night.
- Union Square (15 Union Square West)- Their series takes place on Saturdays and is called Sunshine Yoga. It takes place from 9:00 – 10:00 am.
On Tuesdays (9:30-10:30 am) and Thursdays (6-7 pm) all of the Lululemon New York City stores offer open level outdoor yoga classes in Bryant Park (40th-42nd Streets b/n 5th and 6th Avenues). For all of these classes you can bring your own mat or borrow one of theirs.
2. PURE Yoga, which recently opened its first United States branch on the Upper East Side (203 E. 86th Street, between 3rd and 2nd Avenues), is offering complimentary yoga classes for the week of June 14 only to celebrate their One Year Anniversary. The schedule is here, and there are classes and special events going on every day from Sunday, June 14 until Friday, June 19.
Pure Yoga is AMAZING. I had a free pass to go here once, and I was almost convinced to sign on for $150 a month. I thankfully came to my senses (I couldn’t afford that and my gym membership), but it will woo you. Be warned. And they will probably try to make a sale, but stay strong. Do the yoga, which is done in well-built, sound-proof rooms with new, clean, sturdy equipment, and only give in if you want to.
I, personally, will be going to the Sun(day) Salutations class at Lululemon, and the Tuesday morning yoga in Bryant park on a regular basis. I’m also going to be taking advantage of the classes at Pure, although I haven’t decided which best fit into my schedule (with all of the scouting I’m doing for you guys!)
I will report back on Sun(day) Salutations next time I go, which I am anticipating will be this Sunday.
