Bill Walton's wife

God, the NBA is still locked out and I can hardly remember the euphoria of last year's post season. I seem to remember it being full of close games, incredible upsets and moments of glory. Sometimes I wonder if I would have ever taken up cycling if the NBA season started on time. Quite possibly, instead of sweating up and down Daang Hari, I would be where I am now - sitting in front of my computer, figuring out my fantasy league draft strategy.

Anyway, I miss you NBA. I hope you gaziillionaires figure it out and let us fans in on the fun. In the meantime, and even when the lockout ends, I will be enjoying my time on the bike.

This morning, I woke up to a bleak, rainy morning. But by noon, the weather settled down to being cloudy witha light drizzle here and there. I suited up and went on my JP Rizal to Heritage Park route. That takes me through Kalayaan, the Fort, Lawton, and McKinley Hills on the way back. The road was wet, but not so tricky, and the weather was cool. It was a nice workout, right up until that Lawton - McKinley Hills intersection where traffic is usually backed up.

Bill Walton has said that when he comes home from his frequent bike rides, his wife has to remind him that she wasn't part of that six-hour conversation he had with himself. This traffic jam, along with jeepneys abruptly stopping in front of me, were interrupting my conversation with myself.

I like that Mrs. Walton likened bike rides to conversations with oneself. I've had a bit of trouble explaining to friends the appeal of waking up at ungodly hours to make it to a stretch of pavement so that I can pedal far before pedaling back, getting badly tanned and sweating like a pig on a spit in the process. But there it is, elegantly said by an NBA player's sharp wife - it's my way of conversing with myself, figuring out what I'm made of, and figuring out what I really want in life.

It's also my way of lowering my cholesterol level. But, yes, a conversation.

I made it past that traffic jam and on to Heritage Park. I turned around, went through the same jam and jeepneys, to pedal home.

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1. Those photos are from my route along JP Rizal, but were taken last weekend on the way to a Livestrong event that prompted my retirement from charity rides. I'll pay the money, get the jersey, raise awareness for the cause in my own way, but I'll try to avoid these rides. They're too crowded, and too slow which is a recipe for annoying accidents.

2. See what I did there? Basketball AND cycling. Read the Bill Walton on Bicycling.com HERE.

tear sheets: Ely Buendia's home for Dwell Asia

I lucked out and got to shoot one of my favorite musicians for my one of my favorite magazines.

Ely Buendia home for Dwell Asia September/October 2011 issue.

Story by Chinggay Labrador
Photography by Miguel Nacianceno

September tear sheets

I should have been uploading tear sheets years ago but I haven't. So I don't know how to do it right, and sorry for the scanning job. It occurred to me, after scanning these, that I should have just asked the art director for the digital files.

Yummy, September 2011.
Recipes and food styling by Jun Jun de Guzman.
Prop styling by Elaine Lim.

Real Living, September 2011.
Shoot direction by Issa Villar.
Words by Michaela Abrera.
Photography by Miguel Nacianceno.

I was reading my dad's back issues of Bicycling magazine and I found a funny list of the author's cycling milestones. Items included shaving his legs, choosing which car to buy by the ease of installing a bike rack on it, and his first tumble.

I found it funny because I sort of kept a mental list of milestones myself, but didn't think other people did it too. My first tumble is certainly on it. But in this past week, I've marked three milestones:

#1. I did my first solo long-ish distance ride a few days ago. My car was in the shop in Quezon City, and instead of cabbing to the shop, I decided to bike it. That's from Rockwell to Tomas Morato, through the congested streets of Mandaluyong and the hilly parts of San Juan and New Manila.

All of that came under the distance of just 15 kilometers. I thought it would be around 9 to 10 km, and ignorance was bliss. But that's not really the point. I did it alone, going around potholes the size of manholes, and mixing it up with jeeps, trikes, and delivery trucks. I don't want to be that guy who has to drive to where he bikes, and it felt good knowing I could take on the streets of Manila. But let's hear me say that again when I've biked to Rizal or Tagaytay.

#2. On that trip, I was able to pull my water bottle out from the downtube cage, take a few gulps, and return it, without falling off or having to dismount. And at the risk of embellishing, I think I was going slightly up hill too.

# 3. Last night, I changed my own tires. Granted it wasn't on some deserted trail with the light quickly fading, I changed my own tires, in my living room, with only YouTube to help me out. I had gotten new, road-friendly tires, and wanted to put them on them myself. It took me almost two hours of for two tires. That's about 1 hour and 50 minutes more than how long it took the guy on YouTube. It was like wrestling with rubber and I kept getting trapped in a half nelson.

Anyway, milestones mark progress.

and more cycling...

all images above © John Watson

I found John Watson's blog, Prolly is Not Probably, a couple of weeks ago. I found it just in time to catch his almost-daily posts from his epic trip from Portland to San Franciso. That's just under 1300 kilometers by his estimate, which he covered in around two weeks.

When I got into biking (just a few weeks ahead of finding Watson's blog - noob), this was the sort of trip I imagined. And even if I'm long ways off from having the strength, the know-how, and even the courage to pull off a trip like that, I've been really enjoying the process of getting there.

Last weekend I biked around U.P. and ran into my dad and his bike buddies hanging out at a sari-sari store in front of the AS building. I swung off the pavement to say hi and hit a bump. My bike fell from under me and I shot my arms out to catch myself from falling flat on the dirt. I gingerly picked myself and my bike up and sheepishly walked to the stands, and then said hi to my dad.

Me: Hey! Did you see me fall over there?
My dad: Nope, but I'm sure all these people did.

This was the day right after I rode along Daang Hari with Dino, and did 20 kilometers biking from Alabang to Cavite and back. That's the farthest and longest I've ever biked, and I was feeling a bit confident.

Last night, my friend Jun invited to ride around the ULTRA/St. Paul's area. It's a bit of a steep inclined loop and it's supposed to be good training for climbs. I managed three rounds before giving up. There were parts where I just walked the bike up. I still haven't gotten this granny gear thing down pat, apparently.

Anyway, Watson's blog is really encouraging and great. Check out his "A Day In 10 Photos" section where you can see photos from his trip. He's also on twitter: johnprolly.

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So that nobody thinks I've totally given up my day job and sold my work cameras - it has crossed my mind - here's an outtake from the shoot of Jun's band. I wanted to shoot at night and in ambient lighting.

I eventually brought another car around with headlights on around for fill. I still know how to do this. Haha.