I had a busy day this past Saturday. In the morning, there being no nearby bike rally, I rode my bike alone from Mansfield Timberview High School. It was brutally hot. (The official high temperature for the day was 101º Fahrenheit.) I laid out a new route, thinking it would give me at least 63 miles. Ha! It was 54.52 miles. By the time I returned to my car, I didn't care. I was ready to get off the bike. Another problem with the route, besides its being short, is that it had over a mile of gravel. This slowed my pace to a crawl. My average speed was 16.40 miles per hour. (Elapsed time = 3:19:26.) I made no stops.
At 5:15 in the afternoon, Katherine and I headed for the Ballpark in Arlington for the 12th time this year. The Florida Marlins of the National League were in town. I was horrified when the Rangers' starting pitcher, Derek Holland, gave up a grand slam in the first inning. After two innings, we were down, 6-0. The crowd of 29,728 was chastened, if not despondent. The Rangers fought back to make it 6-4, but the relief pitchers didn't do their job. The Rangers lost, 9-5. This team is inconsistent, lackadaisical, and sloppy. Manager Ron Washington needs to lay down the law to the players, some of whom seem content merely to draw a salary.
Katherine and I (click the image in this post to enlarge it) are now 6-6 on the year, with eight games to go in our 20-game package. We can and will do better! (Actually, Katherine isn't responsible for one of the losses, since I went with my friend Hawk.)
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 