transition time

It will be Halloween tomorrow, and both brain and body are ready to leave harvest mode and get back to what passes for normal life. Last week because of a poorly timed sales trip to Arizona was the only week of the year with zero athletic activity - a complete goose egg. I have sworn to myself to do better this week. Yesterday, Monday, I did a short lunch time ride and today I'll go to the gym and work of some core strength. Even more telling was that this morning instead of rushing into work I did some brick laying on the back patio and then played music for a half hour or so until I went to work. The music was unplanned. When I finished the masonry work I hopped on the Beemer to ride to work and a block later the clutch cable snapped. None the less it shows that the pressure of harvest is diminished. I managed to get all my work done by 3:00 even if I didn't get in till 10:00. I have been at the winery every day for 58 straight days and my brain more than anything needs a break. I bring in the last fruit tomorrow so in about 2 weeks it will be time for some serious relaxing.

Back in the saddle

I had coffee and breakfast this morning and instead of going to work I pulled on the Lycra and headed out for a couple hours on the bike. It was my first time in Lycra in more than 7 weeks. Harvest seems particularly drawn out this year, but maybe it's my advancing years that make it seems so. I think it is the day after dailiness of it. It is so relentless. You can't just walk away and take a real break. Every day the vines and the wines are moving along and you have to direct them and make sure they don't jump track.
We've got a mild Santa Ana condition going so it was short sleeve cycling. Unusual any time of year here in this cool coast, but particularly nice for a mid-October morning. I rode out to the coast itself which I haven't seen since harvest began. Even though I've been doing a good bit of bike commuting this year it was still all I could do to make the two hour loop. This Morro Bay Turri Road loop I consider a warm up or recovery loop during the heart of the season when I'm in shape, but it was all I could take today.
I've started my gym workouts as well so I'm a bit tweaky around the leg joints from them. This is always a challenging time of year as I attempt to force my body back to strength and fitness after the long exercise free zone of the harvest. Each year it seems to get harder and harder, but I still somehow force myself to do it knowing the rewards are more than worth the effort.