And Drinking On Sunday

By Jim Calder

As I am writing this I just watched the completion of the Pro Cycling Tour TD Bank North Philadelphia International Cycling Championship. This year I was a little busy with some other projects and didn’t make it out to Manayunk nor a quick walk down the the Ben Franklin Parkway art museum circle to watch this race. But I had it on in the background of the house for the last six hours plus. I have been following/attending this race since 2002 when I first moved to Philadelphia. My appreciation for this race has changed greatly over the years. Years ago it was just a great excuse to drink all day on a Sunday and it still is for many!

The race is known as one of the most difficult one-day events in the US. The course is 156 miles long starting and the art museum down Kelly Drive through East Falls, Manayunk and Roxborough. According to Wikipedia, top cyclists have participated including Eric Heiden, Gred Lemond and Lance Armstrong. Armstrong actually stared his professional career when he won this race in 1993. Nine American cyclists have won the men’s portion of this race since its inception in 1985, even though this year an Australian took it home.

One of the best places to see the action (because it is the slowest part) is the Manayunk Wall. This also make for the best party and drinking spot. The steepest section of the wall boasts a 17-percent grade. This race represents the best of the city that we call home. In days past we would fill up water bottles, Gatorade bottles, etc with the liquor of our choice add some soda or juice throw it in a book bag full of us, which also worked as a self cooler on hot race days.
We would show up late and sometimes only able to catch one lap up the the wall, and end up drinking till it got dark. Sure back then I appreciated that these riders were doing something that I wouldn’t be able to do on my best day, but it was more like wow, where are we drinking next. Ah the memories come rushing back. I remember one year my future wife and some friends were trying to get on an outgoing Septa train that was too crowded. A friend to remain nameless and I jimmied a door to the train open an lifted the ladies onto the train until we got yelled at by Septa.

Today, watching it from a distance with the temperature at 87 degrees I feel real respect for these racers. Screw this respecting the race crap, next year I am going to refill the soda bottles with booze and join back in the Par-T.

Jim Calder is the brand architect and co-founder of ProLong Magazine. Jim was born with the perfect combination of cockiness and self consciousness. He has over 10 years of publishing industry experience and lives and works in Philadelphia, Pa. He currently can be found on the greatest adventure of his life as a newlywed with his wife Melissa. Jim can be contacted via email at jim@prolongmagazine.com

by Kyle Funk

It’s almost November and while most of my cycling buddies are right in the thick of cross season I sometimes struggle with a major lack of motivation. The days are getting shorter and the air is cooler. The couch looks better than ever and I begin to develop visions of Italian hoagies, porters and IPA. I lie around for weeks and go out for a ride here and there. The hair on the legs slowly grows back and eventually, I get to a place where I feel terrible and start complaining to my wife. (Which I’m sure she loves to hear.)

A lack of exercise combined with cravings for hoagies and beer don’t sit well together. So what can one do when faced with such obstacles? Stop complaining; get off your ass and exercise!

I find that writing down some goals and creating a training plan helps me get through the winter months of riding the trainer and the rollers. I’m new to the racing scene and don’t have a good grasp on the annual races, so I usually plan to peak for the Livestrong Challenge down in Philly. With a date set sometime in August I can at least get something down on paper and edit it as more info becomes available for upcoming races. The training plan will officially begin in January so during the months of October, November and December I typically just try and maintain my personal fitness.

I’ll usually avoid any kind of set schedule and exercise at least 4 days per week when I can. Over the past few weeks I’ve gone to the gym once a week and mainly focused on my legs with leg presses, leg extensions, leg curls and step-ups to get myself acclimated again to weightlifting. At home the exercise has consisted of a couple of trainer rides (mainly endurance type workouts with some spin-ups) with at least one day of getting out on the road for a good 2 to 3 hours which usually includes some good climbs of at least 2 miles or so.  I throw in some good P90X core workouts and that’s about it. If you haven’t tried P90X yet, I highly recommend it! The core and ab ripper portion of that workout are awesome. It’s one of those cry for mommy workouts that gives you a warm fuzzy feeling.

So with all that being said and the thousands of calories burned it clearly justifies the visions of hoagies and beer becoming a reality.  It’s 5 o’clock somewhere, isn’t it?

Kyle is a simple man in his early 30’s, married with a young son.  He has always been an athlete, and over the past few years has developed a passion for cycling which has led to more of a focus on overall health and well being.  In addition to cycling and all the healthy stuff, Kyle also enjoys hanging with the guys, college football and drinking beer.