I need a better weather predicter.

The day has been misty and soggy, but certainly no freezing rain, and no snow. So I could have gone to Brown County and put some miles on Phebes.

Started an exercise program today. Doug took the truck to Greenburg and brought home the exercise bike. I rode about 7 miles on it. I'm going to try to do that daily, and on days when I have a little more time, maybe bump it up to 10. I just know that my fitness is a true problem area in the over all plan. I'm not going to worry over my weight. It would mess me up on my weight division, so I'm focusing on getting my heart rate down (kind of like an endurance horse). My current resting rate is close to 105 per minute, so you couple that with physical stress/exercise and pretty soon I'm breathless. I had an echocardiagram on my heart and it did not indicate a problem with my valves (though I've carried a diagnosis of mitral valve prolapse for fifteen years). So either the doc who diagnosed me was wrong, or the echo was wrong. Whatever! The bike seems like a good compromise as I'll be using my arms, and big leg muscles which are the same as when riding.

Since I called the weather wrong today and missed out on a perfectly fine, though misty ride day, rather than make the day a total loss we worked on schooling lessons out in the woods here at home. She was pretty balky about crossing a small creek because it is usually dry, and the water was running about four inches deep in it making that lovely babbling sound. We worked through that and crossed it twice very sanely. Next we worked muddy downhills on a loose rein. It has not been so long ago that we'd have a fight all the way down a hill because she wanted to rush down and fought my rein cues to slow down. One little correction today and she shimmied down really nice, and this was a hill that I'd never been able to get her down previously. Our final agenda was to go through a dead fall of logs and trees. I've spaced things so that it is relatively safe, but it "looks" challenging. She took that real well without knocking against anything or getting panicky. She did break gait about three times and I quickly corrected her and she was fine. Riding alone does have some benefits as she pays more attention to me. We worked and slogged along for an hour or so and rode back to the road, where I dismounted and walked her the rest of the way in.

Chris, David, I'm sorry for the bad call on the weather. If it is any consolation I have been morose all day from missing my ride.
~E.G.