Friday, November 21, 2008

A Breath of Fresh Air

Written by felix

Felix Wong is an outdoor enthusiast living in Fort Collins. A mechanical engineer by day, he is especially passionate about bicycling, running, and backpacking.

6. A Tale of Two Marathons

Monday, 08 October 2007

Last weekend there were at least two preeminent long-distance running races going on in the United States -- the Chicago Marathon and St. George Marathon.

Having run in the former last year already, I did the marathon in St. George, Utah, a short distance away from Zion National Park. Approximately 6,000 runners participated in ideal running conditions (50-60 degrees with no wind) on a beautiful, downhill course flanked by red sandstone cliffs. With 2,500' of elevation drop, I easily ran a personal best and -- finally! -- qualified for the Boston Marathon. (I needed to run a 3:10:xx; my time was 3:03:24.) Afterwards, not only did I celebrate by having an ice cream bar, but I got a wonderful, free massage by a cute young woman to help my sore legs loosen up.

In contrast -- 12 hours later and 1,630 miles away -- I think the participants of the Chicago Marathon had things a little tougher.

Apparently, the weather was so hot in Chicago that hundreds of runners had to be treated for heat exhaustion, fire hydrants were turned on to douse overheating participants with water, and the race was called off by noon. 10,000 runners didn't finish -- which, incidentally was how many registered runners who did not even start the race (ok, so they were smart) -- and most of the others who did finish were much slower the usual. Tragically, one person even died! (The death turned out to be from a preexisting heart condition, however, and not the heat.)

Actually, aside from the death, the race seemed very exciting. On top of the extreme heat, the men's race came down to a photo finish, and the female winner came from behind in the last 800 meters to pass the very surprised second-place finisher. The woman who won passed the runner-up so far on the right-hand side of the road that she didn't even get to run through the finishing banner, but still won anyways.

Despite the excitement of the Chicago race, I think I picked the right race to do. Even if I did not get to run through water spray from fire hydrants.
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7. Chaos and Cartoon Characters in the Streets

Monday, 24 September 2007

Try as I might, I just could not catch up to him. Who? Bugs Bunny.

It’s not that Bugs was fast — in fact, he was rolling along so slowly on the back of a bike that even a girl on a tricycle was able to keep up with little effort. But Vikings, gladiators, and the Teletubbies (among others) blocked my approach and prevented me from talking with one of my favorite cartoon characters.

Yes, last Saturday was that time of year again -- the Tour de Fat -- when navigating the streets of downtown Fort Collins felt eerily like being in the two-wheeled chaos that defines traffic in, say, Vietnam. Well, almost. The people here were dressed more colorfully, everyone was cheering and happy, and there were plenty of opportunities to ask, “What’s that?”

I busted out my red recumbent for this event, met up with some friends at the start of the tour (New Belgium), and then took over the streets along with 4,000 other folks. Despite rolling along usually at no more than three or four miles an hour, we all had silly grins on our faces. Judging by endless whoops and cheers we heard, the spectators lining the streets and even the motorists who patiently waiting for eons at intersections also enjoyed the parade.

Below are some photos. I'm already starting to think of things I could dress up as next year, since this year, I was lame and just dressed up as a cyclist!

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9. Dark Angel, 2007

Monday, 17 September 2007

Do you remember the FOX TV show that ran in 2000-2002 that featured Jessica Alba as a genetically enhanced supersoldier? One background element for that futuristic program was that in 2009, an electromagnetic pulse weapon was detonated by terrorists over the U.S., destroying computer and communication systems and throwing our country into utter chaos.

I was reminded of that scenario at both the Driver's License Office and the Post Office one morning last week.

I went to the former to add a motorcycle endorsement to my license, only to be greeted by signs that proclaimed, "Computer systems are down in the entire state of Colorado." Still, I was cheerily handed a number and I sat down among at least a few dozen other patrons waiting their turn.

My number was 962 and a red LED display on the wall indicated that number 934 was being served. I waited for 15 minutes, but the LED display did not increment the number by even one. Hence, I left the office, ran an errand on the other side of town, and came back one hour later.

To my disbelief and utter dismay, the LED display was still reading 934! "Computers are still down," another patron confirmed.

I resigned that getting a motorcycle endorsement would have to wait another day, and then proceeded to the Post Office.

Over there, only two other people were in line. Yet, it took 15 minutes to reach the register. "My computer is really slow," complained the postman behind the counter, shaking his head numerous times.

It was a glum reminder of how dependent our society is on computers today. The scary thing is these computer shutdowns and malfunctions seem all too common (e.g., the laptop I am typing this on already crashed once today), even in the absence of terrorist or viral activity. Throw in some rogue elements like Al Qaida or computer-hacking miscreants, and a "Dark Angel" scenario seems very plausible. Heck, I just experienced one last week.
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10. Message to the Texters

Saturday, 08 September 2007

A few months ago, a law was passed in Washington state making it illegal for a person to text message while driving. Big deal, you might think. Whom do you know is sending text messages on a phone all the time anyhow, and who would do it behind the wheel of a car aside from hormone-laden adolescents that are still in high school?

As it turns out, I had a very personal experience of someone doing just that throughout my trip to and from British Columbia a couple of weeks ago.

I am almost ashamed to admit the offender is one of my best friends, a woman who is 36. Not being content to send people text messages while sitting in the passenger seat or while (ugh) eating, she frequently typed away on her cell phone behind the wheel -- while steering with one hand, or, worse, her knee.

On the straightaways, she did this aptly enough, even if it was unnerving to see her looking up and down at her phone every second.

In the twisties, it was simply terrifying, and on more than one occasion did I brace myself for impending doom by grasping the door handle for my dear life.

Aside from the immediate (and obvious) dangers, another problem I had with her incessant texting was that it was simply rude. We'd be having a conversation, and all of a sudden her phone would start beeping. Even if I was in mid-sentence, she'd instantly grab her phone, read the message, and reply back as if it was urgent.

I don't know if a law like Washington's will ever make it to a ballot in Colorado. But if it does, I am all for it even if my 36-year-old friend would be just as disappointed as the teeny-boppers.
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