I didn’t know the off-season could be this busy!

So it is definitely the off-season. One way I know that is because of the number of projects that have managed to make it to the queue for processing. I am working on the development of two different websites in addition to creating a toolkit for monitoring Ajax performance as part of my academic research. I haven’t been riding a ton, but there a few things to note:

1. The 2008-2009 BBL season is underway! I am managing the website for the series, and we have really stepped it up this year with organization, prizes, etc… I rode the inaugural weekend but was then out of town last weekend for a conference, and this coming weekend we will be on our way back from Thanksgiving with family in Northern Indiana.
2. My Garmin Edge 705 bike computer / GPS unit arrived in the mail yesterday morning. I brought it with me here to Indiana where I am sitting in a coffee shop trying to get caught up on a few things while Kristine and the kids nap. I will write up a detailed review of my experience with the Garmin after my first few rides with it. On an interesting side note – I am writing from Rocky Mountain Cafe – a very cool coffee shop in La Porte, IN. My large mocha was a bit expensive ($4.50), but I have unlimited access to free wireless. This is compared to the other wifi hotspot that I tried – Temple News Agency – where I had the option of paying $4.25 for a large mocha and then paying not $1, not $2, not $3, but $4 for one hour of wireless connectivity. Hmmm, let’s see – $4.50 plus free wifi or $8.25 plus the opportunity to sit in a small cramped building with somebody smoking inside it. I’m glad I just smiled and said “thank you” and left the first spot!
3. Finally, it looks like I’ll be doing a couple days of cold-weather riding up here on snow-free roads surrounded by a beautiful snowy countryside up here in La Porte, IN! They had a lake effect snowstorm that dropped about 10 inches of snow a few days ago and all of it has melted from the roads which are completely dry and yet the fields are still covered in snow! It doesn’t get any better than that for a biking southerner who doesn’t get to see snow very often!