Biking In The Heat. Messing With The Subaru.

biking in the Heat.

Gnats and flies stick to me. 

 It has been very hot and humid the last few days.   So hot that when we ride our bikes, the flies stick to us like Flypaper!  We still manage to bike around 15 miles each day,  but that might come to a close soon enough.   We begin work at Pearson tomorrow.  With a little luck, we will pass qualification ( if there is one) and continue on until the next project.   Apparently,   we are scoring 5th grade Math.     If there are incentives and speed demon scorers..  the project may be scored out faster than first predicted.  We shall find out the real story tomorrow...

Let's visit Kewash.

No to bad.  A few improvements.

In the mean time,  Cheryl and I visited the Kewash Trail yesterday.   They have been making changes to the trail this summer.  And since were have not visited it since that day when Cheryl first got her bike,   we have missed many of the upgrades.  New parking, New signs,  Removal of those pesky gates that we were forced to ride around.

Except for the Trees.

However,  one thing that still puts this on our list of "last resort" trails,  is the gravel, bumpy trail and the low maintenance.

No more boy scouts to clear trails.

 Sometimes the boy scouts come out and fill the rabbit holes and trim the branches.  But since the Boy scouts are no longer,  the trees that fall over the path remain.   Cheryl had to pull her bike over the large Cherry branch that had fallen over the path.  It must have been brutally windy there last week.

Small rust spot, Easy right? 

Let's remove that rust.

With the last of our "free time" coming to a close, I took another stab at fixing up the Subaru.   This time on the other fender.   I knew it would be a challenge in the heat, but I thought it would be easier than the driver's side.

I was wrong...   Well, mostly anyway.

Ghaa!  It is worse than expected.

Rebuild the corner.  

The small connecting screw had, once again, rusted in place and had to be completely rebuilt.  I tried my best with the fiberglass filler,  but it remains a "patch job."  Even now,  I'm trying to come up with a better method of attachment.   Currently, it is being held on with a simple binder clip.  ( which is working far better than I had first even hoped!)

Strengthen with fiberglass.

Cover with Bondo.

For the most part,  I am "satisfied" with the results.  I could have done better.   If the heat and sun had not been so obtrusive.

Add Primer.

Patch it all up!  Waiting for Paint.

 But for now,  I await the paint and plan on sanding down the last small patch of rust near the front fender... Only when I find a free day that is pleasant.   At the very least, that small section does not require any Bondo.

At least no Bondo needed.

My last couple of spots.

So that is all for now.  I have been trying to keep my plants watered so the heat does not kill them.   And it rained a bit last night and this morning, so perhaps the heat wave has subsided for the moment.  Jun and July are still to come,  so I'm sure there will be more high temps.   Thanks for stopping in.

A Mad Run In The Madtown Half Marathon.

Early morning Wake up.

An Early start for us this morning...  and it was already hot!   Cheryl had plans to make the run more bearable with the help of a small canteen.   However,  after running a short distance with it,  she decided against it.

Cheryl secures some Fluids.

I could write a long and boring saga about the run,  but it is perhaps better to let the pictures do the talking on this one.   Besides, most people do not read this blog anyway.  And Pictures are worth thousands of words, right?   So here we go!

She has an Idea on how to bring the Diet Coke with her this time. 

But can she run with it?   not if she wants to keep her shorts up!

Cheryl runs by near the Start.  

And for those who love action shots!  

Cheryl runs by the lake near the five mile marker. 

She waves!  Looks like she it feeling pretty good in the heat. 

Running past.  Running FAST!

Cheryl rejects the water on the course.  

Water is for SISSIES!   She is so Hardcore...

Coming into the Finish.  More "Action " shots. 

Cheryl runs by...

Up towards the Capitol.

And towards the Finish line.  

Now let's put it all together. 

Celebrating with a BEER!  She is an ULTRA Runner...  Get it?  Ultra

Posing with a strange old man. 

Relaxing on the Capitol Lawn.  Drinking beer on the Capitol.  Is this Legal? 

And finally!  The PRIZE!

I should also note that she came in SECOND in her age group.   This means she will get an age group award/medal in addition to this one.  She is very excited and happy with the results.

Parting shot!  Cheryl at the Finish. 

The times were not her best..  But given the conditions,  there are no complaints.   EVERYONE had to lower their expectations today. ( Except the Kenyans!  5 minute miles!  Insane!)  She actually came in right when I expected her this time.  And best of all,  No melt downs or injuries!   Way to go! 

What a HAM!   I wonder what the Judges think.  

Hope everyone in enjoying the weekend.   The weather outside at the moment is just short of being a sauna!   So looks like we shall be spending the remainder of the day inside. I think we have already met out outdoor exposure quota for the day.   Time to lay back and enjoy that air conditioning we love and pay for.   Thanks for stopping in.
Oh!  And one last video.   Wait for it...  1:04:27.   Watch the HAM cross the Finish line.

Cheryl Ready To Run MadTown!

Putting the Crazy in Mad Town.

Greetings from Madison....  again!   Only this time we are from the Country Inn and Suites "Fiskars Scissors" hotel.   (The same one where Cheryl ran the New Year's Day Dash.)   We are in familiar territory without the locals knowing our names...  yet.

She seems Very Excited!

So what Brings us to Madison yet again?    Another Ethical festival that celebrates a different food or flag?  Nope!    It's the Run Mad Town  Half Marathon.   Cheryl is very excited.

Grabbing the Bib and Shirt.

Now what would possess us to return to the same area and run another race so soon after that 20 miler?   Insanity?  Possibly.    But Cheryl wanted to catch up on her long runs and, at the same time, fill in some of those missing medals from last year.

The Conditions for tomorrow:  "Awesome!"

   Since she had to cancel several runs because of injury last year,  this year she wants to sign up for races "on the go."   If that makes any sense.   ( No reason to sign up months in advance only to have to cancel because of injury. )  This allows her to kill two birds with one stone...  so to say.

We don't expect much.   After last week's performance,  there is nothing to prove.   She can run 20 miles at an 8 minute mile pace.   No reason to kill yourself on a short 13.1 miler.   Besides,  there is forecasted  to be a very high temp tomorrow.  (Around 89-97 degrees!)

When Survival is not assured.

What America was BUILT on. 

Given the high humidity and the direct sunlight and high temps,  there will be no records broken tomorrow.  Instead, it will be about pacing, pain tolerance, grit and survival.   Or what we called every field problem in the Army:  "Practice being Miserable."

Showing off the Shirt.

Practice for bad, Hope for the best.

Grandma's Marathon is in the middle of June.   And although it is in the Northern  parts of Minnesota,  it still can be unpredictable conditions.  So best to train for the worst scenario.

Her name should be here.  

In the mean time,  I know the course.   It is a loop and I will have a couple of opportunities to take her picture.   We like the town and there is a free Brat and Beer at the end.   Look forward to that Beer!   And since it is only 13.1 miles, I will not have to provide that life saving Diet Coke at the mid-point.  She will most likely be finished with the race before ever needing it.

What could be more American?

A weekend for Grillin'!

Hope everyone is having a fun and happy Memorial Day Weekend.   Grilling,  Visiting dead people, and enjoying the great outdoors with family and friends.   What more could anyone ask for? It's the American way that we soldiers all fought for.    Thanks for stopping in.

Doing Body Work On the Subaru

I think too positively. 

Subie showing rust sickness.

It has been pestering me for ages now.  My beautiful Subaru being eaten away by rust!   It's sad watching something you love slowly deteriorate.   So!   Time to play Mr. FIX IT!

Small sections here and there. 

After watching hours of Videos on YouTube,  I  waited for the moment I had an entire week off so I could tackle such a HUGE problem.   Subie has several spots all around his hubs where he needs attention before it gets really bad.    But the WORST part was the driver's side rear wheel hub.

And then there is this part...

Not only is it becoming worst,  I have to look at it every time I enter the car.  It reflects badly upon my love for Subaru.  Time to show everyone just how deep my love really is!

It is becoming structurally unsound.

Let's get that bumper off. 

To be fair,  I knew that this was going to be the most challenging part for the task.  I foolishly thought I may be able to finish it in one day.   WRONG!   It has taken me two FULL days just to get this far.

First,  I had to remove the fiberglass rear bumper to get to the area.   This was a challenge, since several of the plastic rivets were difficult to access.   I ended up taking the entire rear lights and extras off just to get to the bumper clips.

Using the Dremel to cut the bolt off.  

And then there was this small bolt that had rusted to the frame.   I ended up having to cut it off with the Dremel.  I would have to rebuild the small nub that the bolt connected to as well.

The cancer is worst than expected.

Imagine my dismay when I discovered that the corrosion was all the way behind the bumper as well.  This was turning into a serious job!  My hopes that it would be an afternoon project were quickly becoming dashed! 

Even on the other side! 

As with most things,  set the goal small and eat the elephant one bite at a time.  For day One, my goal was to get as much of the rust off as I could.   Thinking back that I originally wanted to stick only to hand sanding seems like a pipe dream!  It would have taken me forever!  Luckily, I purchased a couple attachments you could fix to a drill.  For the most part,  I think the mechanized tool helped.

I had to use screen to build structure

Fiberglass is as strong as metal. 

I would like to think that I got most of the rust off.   I simply do not want to think that I misses some small section and that will undo all of my hard labor.  But I was running out of sunlight.

End of day one.  Still need to attach bumper.

Day two!  Sanding!

I patched up several holes with some metal framing and pressed in some BONDO Fiberglass.  I guess this is supposed to be stronger than metal.  I let it dry overnight.

And then BONDO Gold.

And then MORE sanding.

Today,  I started again around 11:00 AM.  Let me sum up the last 8 hours...  Sand smooth, BONDO, Sand smooth, BONDO, Sand smooth...  you get the idea.  I had to build up several layers of BONDO each time to fill in the gaps.  I finally took a piece of cardboard and held it in place to allow the BONDO to dry where it needed to .  I wish I had thought of that sooner.  I would have saves several steps. 

Fan helps, but it is hot.  

Finally!  And cardboard Idea!

In addition to the Bondo woes,  I had to deal with bugs,  Humidity,  Heat, and the BONDO setting up too quickly.   I guess the heat is a factor... along with the hardening agent.  I was adding just a drop and it was still setting up in less than 5 minutes!  I was beginning
to run out of materials.

Beginning to take shape. 

But finally,  with the help of the cardboard idea,  I was able to get some traction and finish the BONDO part.   Time to get to sanding.   Again!  Very slow going.   I had to employ the drill several times to smooth out the hills in areas.

Final sanding,  500 grit sandpaper.

In the end,  I stopped at 500 grit sandpaper.   I figured the Primer

would fill in the small larks left by paper that fine. 

Finally,  Apply that Primer...

Finally!  The Primer.   I ended up putting two coats on.   And that was all I could muster before calling it .  It is currently 8:30 and I finished about an hour ago.   Now all I need is the final paint coat.

Time to reassemble the car.

Done! 

I had to reassemble the rear end of the Subaru.  All of the tail lights, bumper clips, and plastic snap sections.   I will end up removing all of that stuff again when I get to the paint part.  Oh the fun!

Let's get that Wheel back on.

Finished! Still needs paint though. 

Cheryl asks me why I did this project so extreme.  Maybe because I love my car.  Maybe because the neighbor has a similar problem with his van... and chose to simply spray white paint over the rust.   IT looks TERRIBLE!  He is young and his van is kinda crappy to begin with.   Probably not worth the effort to try too hard.  But I drive a SUBARU!   I have to reflect a little pride.

Before!

After!   2 days of effort!

So is it worth the effort.  Well,  I like it.   It was a LOT of HARD WORK.  The YouTube people fool you into thinking it is an easy task.  I wonder how many days it took them to do their little project.  Or maybe it was my lack of experience that slowed me down.   I would like to think that the remaining sections will not take as long to complete as this one did.   We shall see.

As for now,  I got a lot of sun,  lost a lot of water, and ache all over.  Time to relax with a cold beer.   I think I will tackle the remaining sections next week....  maybe.