My Review of Novara Strada Road Bike Shorts - Men's

REI

The Novara Strada bike shorts feature non-chafing, 10-panel construction that delivers low drag and high performance for weekend races and group rides.

Novara Strada Road Bike Shorts - Men's

Good short at a good price

D Road Novice Ann Arbor, MI 4/19/2009

 

5 5

Gift: No

Waist: Feels true to size

Length: Feels true to length

Pros: Comfortable, Great Fit, Good Padding

Cons: Not Enough Pockets

Best Uses: Long Rides, Road Biking, Warm Weather

Describe Yourself: Casual/ Recreational

The 10-panel construction is great. I am comparing it to Cannondale Classic shorts, an Adidas bib, and a Novara Trionfo II bibs. I love my bibs and am less enamored with the Cannondale (my first pair of shorts). These function like the bibs. Very comfortable, good chamois, they move with me, and the elastic in the back of the waist compensated for the lack of a drawstring. They do not have a pocket but my shirt has pockets. I think a comparable non-REI brand short would run $90-100. Note about sizing: according to the chart, my waist measurement put me in a large but my thighs required XL.

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The End of the Innocence

I used to be the office cheerleader. I would get upset about failure and lack of follow through mine more than that of others but I never really gave up. However, recently I have noticed it is harder and harder to believe. I never thought myself a person who really needs to believe that much. To a certain degree, I enjoy the middle ground and the gray area but sometimes it is not middle ground just unadulterated craziness.

Today was a hard day but it really should not have been a hard day. Nothing out of the ordinary really happened except I realized that I let my personal feelings get in the way of progress. I knew what I was doing on some level but all I could hold on to was my displeasure with how things were progressing. I knew there was something wrong but I could not get my voice heard so much like a petulant child I acted out. How very sad it is when a grown man acts out. That being said, I am becoming increasingly disillusioned with my current life situation. For clarification, I am not talking about my personal life. I see instances where a simple conversation could solve an issue and instead a mountain is made out of a mole hill. I see people being manipulated not for some greater good or even a lesser personal glory but just because someone does not want to deal with certain issues. I find it hard to deal with because I see great potential in what we do and what we are. I just need to figure out a way to get past my own issues and help lead the way.

I apologize that is not my best work but at least it is honest.

Something's Got to Give

Top Note (it is not on the side): You cannot tell someone who suffers from anxiety, despite their laid back nature (hmmm, I wonder who this is?), to just sit back relax and not be anxious about a change. That is like putting a fish in water and telling it not to swim. It cannot be done, it is in its nature.

Now for something completely different...

I love ellipses. :)

In about four and a half weeks, we celebrate the births of Salvador Dali, Martha Graham, and Irving Berlin all artists (painter, dancer, musician, respectively). Other people were born on that day as well. As I approach the completion of my 35th year and embark on my 36th, I have come to the realization that I have to make some changes in my life if I am going to make it to 40 with a modicum of sanity. I just need a little bit of sanity, too much would throw me off.

Two or three or four years ago I came to the assisted realization that I needed to build my friendship circle and interact more with like-minded people. That worked out well enough for a while, I found some people I liked. We went to trivia and we built routines. I love routines they make me feel secure and happy. We even worked out together. It was nice. Well, my routine was changed last year and I am still, yes, still trying to build new routines. I think overall I am doing better at keeping in touch with people. Blogging and Facebook have allowed me to stay in touch with the day-to-day of people's lives and for me that is some semblance of a routine in which I can feel comfortable. Did I mention I like routines? Hell, I like Unix/Linux and scripting. I love routines.

I need to ride more. I like cycling. My goal is to improve my duathlon performances from last year. If I can show myself that I am serious, I will start saving for a triathlon-specific bike. I already know which bike I want. This bike has a carbon frame (very light), a high-end set of gears, and a shorter tube which is good for people with low-to-moderate flexibility of which I have none. However, I have started taking a pilates class to improve my flexibility and my core. I am going back to Tai-Ji as well. I had a routine with a certain group of people I saw everyday Saturday and then I stopped going because I felt like I was progressing faster than the group. I was not upset that the group was not on my level but that I was set apart from the group. I think in some ways I sabotaged my own progress but that is for another time. I think that once I start Tai-Ji and maybe take off an afternoon or two in order to ride about 20 miles or so I will bring balance to my life and be much happier.

This is not really profound just more writing my mental chatter.

Pilates

Today I had my first matwork pilates class. I knew pilates were no joke but goodness sakes. First thing, I come to the class after a 1.5 hour massage. Big mistake. Massages bring out toxins and hour and a half massages bring out a bunch of toxins. After a massage, one is instructed to drink lots of water to flush out the toxins. So, right after bringing out toxins and drinking lots of water I walk in to the class and it looks like the instructor is doing yoga. I stood for a while and then asked a fellow participant if I was in the right class. I find a spot and follow the instructor and then fifty minutes of hell begins.

The instructor looked so nice. She recently had a baby and teaches high school math. She keeps talking and informs us of "Calculus: The Musical" being performed by her high school students. Nothing in the beginning would lead one to believe she is a smiling, well-toned uber sadist. She asks us to lay on our backs and engage our abdominal muscles, constantly engage our abdominal muscles. We put our legs in the air and do scissors. At one point, post-pilate, she asks us to do this stretch where I end of unsuccessfully placing my elbow behind my knee while sitting on the floor. I did not go well.

After the class, I am trying to put my shoes on being so close to death. (A bit melodramatic but only a little). I talk with the instructor who I could not really focus on because I was close to blacking out. She tells me that people like me (people who work out, I guess) would really benefit from pilates. She says that it is good for my core and for my flexibility but will give me a good aerobic workout. I beg to differ as I breathe heavier than when I finish a run. Anyway, I finally leave and then try to get home before my eventual demise. I get home fall face first on our new red couch and say my goodbyes to the Mrs.

Post-mortem: After an hour on the red couch, I rejoin the living and go to Borders to take advantage of the 40% off sale on CDs. :)