Customer Service

I am very appreciative when I get good customer service. And when the service is everything that one could dream of when dreaming of customer service, then I want everybody to know about it.

I bought a wool hoodie from Patagonia about one year ago. I wore it to work, and around town. I took care of it and expected it to last.

When the temps dropped this fall I pulled it out of storage and wore it. I was disappointing to see a couple of small holed forming in the fabric. Not realizing that the company might do something I continued to wear the sweater.

One day at work a co-worker told me about his Patagonia product. He told me that his had worn out too. He wrote the company a letter asking if there was anything that could be done. In response they sent him a brand new replacement.

I didn't hesitate and contacted the company. I sent the sweater 2nd day air via UPS as they requested. It went in the mail on Tuesday, arrived in Utah on Thursday. Then the waiting began. The website advertises a 6 week waiting period. I expected to have to call several times to check on the progress.

One week later, on the following Tuesday, I got home to find a box on the doorstep. Hmmm. I didn't get excited. I opened the box, expecting to see my old sweater in there with a note saying "too bad", in customer service wording.

I was really surprised, when I opened the box, and found a brand new edition of a wool hoodie, that was actually is a higher retail value than the old one.

Great company, great service. More companies should pay attention!!


Have a great day.

It's not over!!!

Saturday, November 21st, 1pm:

I'm inviting all of my friends for a 40 ish mile, mellow ride from Swannanoah, through Old Fort, back up the Point Lookout Greenway, through Black Mtn, and back to Swannanoah. Then we are going to head over to Okie Dokies Smokehouse for some BBQ and fried pickles!!! Let me know if you want to join us!!

Bring your change!!! I am bringing some water bottles to collect spare change. Let's see if we can get enough spare change to purchase 1 bicycle for World Bicycle Relief!!

Have a great day!

Red Wolf vs Coyote

My gut told me that it was too good to be true. I was convinced on Monday that we had seen a red wolf. I have seen coyotes, and they tend to look a little slinky, like they have done something wrong and they are trying to slink away:
The animal we saw was not slinking. It was standing proud, head up, like it dared us to come mess with it. That's what a wolf should look like.

I wanted to report my finding to the Wildlife commission. I have yet to talk to a person who studies the wolves but I'll keep trying. In the meantime, I found a lot of info about Red Wolves.

There is an on-going Red Wolf Recovery Project, sponsored by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Apparently the population of wild wolves dwindled in the 80's to 17. Some very wise people captured those wolves and bred them in captivity, with the goal of re-introducing them to the wild. The Red Wolf, before we greedily decimated their population, were the top predator in the Appalachians. Now, there are none. The only known (key word) population is in NE North Carolina, where little more than 150 wolves have been release into the wild and appear to be doing well.

Cool stuff.

So, while I was initially disappointed that we had not, in all probability, seen a Red Wolf, I then realised that we did get to see a coyote. Another animal that is not easy to spot in the Appalachians.

Let's take care of our resources people!!!

Have a great day.

Balance

I posted a couple of days ago about imbalance. When something is hurting in the body, there is usually an imbalance. A muscle on one side of the body pulling everything off kilter.

Core strengthening is a great way to create balance in the body. I have tried different routines for years to get my core strong. Sit-ups, push ups, pull ups etc. But my problem is that exercise has to be interesting, and fun.

A couple of years ago, we purchase a Pilates DVD and attempted that. For some reason, the exercises hurt, not a good hurt, but painful and uncomfortable. So, on to more crunches....boring repetitive crunches.

Cue Yoga. I have never done yoga. I have heard about it, and friends have done it. I have friends who are instructors. I have been told that it is great etc. I decided to try it for myself.
I purchased this "Yoga For Cyclists" DVD and gave it a try.

I was surprised to find a workout, 30 minutes in length, that was fairly easy. The stretches are working parts of my body that I knew I needed to stretch, but did not know how. The strengthening exercises are subtle but thorough. The routine is challenging yet relaxing.

I can tell that my posture has improved, as has my position on the bike. I feel better, and look forward to what this routine will do for me over the next couple of months!!

If you have having imbalances, check out YogaFit.com for a whole slew of different Yoga DVD's. Or if you have the cash flow, join a local Yoga class.

Have a great day.

Great Weekend

The weekend was great, even though I didn't get on the bike one time. I talked to my bikes, and reminded them that there will be other weekends, but I didn't even touch them.

Saturday, the kid and I headed out to Pisgah to do some trail work. We reconstructed (?) a section of trail that runs on an old road bed. The trail ran down the middle of the road bed, which also fills with water from rain and a nearby creek. We did some rock work and zig zagged the trail a bit to keep it on high ground and out of the water.

Saturday evening, we previewed Klunkerz for the upcoming showing at the Pisgah Area Sorba Holiday Party: December 12th 7pm. Stay tuned for location and other details. They have offered to sponsor a used gear silent auction to benefit World Bicycle Relief. So, bring some old gear and have some fun.

Sunday, I told my kid that I needed to do some work on the house. He reminded me that it was Daddy/son day and that if I did that, he would not have anything to do, and I would be working all day.

Lesson of the weekend: Listen to your kids.

A light bulb flashed on in my head and I ran with the idea. I decided that progress on the project was less important than teaching him valuable life lessons. I proceeded to enlist his help with the project, giving him the important roll of measuring and remembering the measurements so I could make the proper cuts. Then he did some nailing for me. I can proudly say that he understands the concepts of fractions of an inch.

After my sweet wife got home from work, I decided to forgo my evening ride. Partially because I am not ready to ride for extended periods in the dark, and partially because I wanted to hang with the fam.

We loaded up and headed to the parkway with a picnic dinner to watch the sun set. I didn't even think about riding while we were up there chilling.

On the way back down we saw a large, dog looking animal that at first I thought was a red fox. We pulled over and watched it for a few minutes before it wandered into the woods. As we were driving again, I was thinking back to college days. I and some friends had a camp fire up in the woods. We made some chicken fajitas and tossed the leftover chicken bits in the woods, just outside of the firelight. Later, a red fox approached quietly, eating the scraps. It was then I realized that we had not seen red fox, but what I believe be a red wolf!!!

A great end to a great weekend. We all took a moment to thank our creator for the animals.

Have a great day.

Light

For the past 3 years I have been using a handle bar mounted Nite Rider MiNewt dual for my night rides. It has worked for me. When I got them, the price was good and I was satisfied knowing that I could not afford more expensive, brighter lights.

I rode those through dark, rain, snow. On long night rides. Their beams casting light, enough to see what was about10-20 feet in front of me. It is a little like riding through a tunnel. A very long tunnel.

This summer a good friend hooked me up with the Nite Rider Rage. I mounted it on my helmet for my ride home last night. As it started to get dark I switched on the MiNewt on my handle bars. I rode like that so that oncoming traffic could see me. When it got even darker I turned on the Rage that was mounted on my helmet.

That moment (and all the ones that led to it) will change my nite rides from here on out. I could see the light. Not only could I see what was 20 feet ahead of me, I could see 50 feet ahead. And I could see to the sides, down up and back. Wild. It was such a liberating moment for me. And when I passed through the little dark, spooky, wooded section, I was not nearly as spooked as I have been for the past 3 years of night rides. I'm looking forward to an extended ride in the woods to see if the fear creeps back in, or if I have found the answer to my unexplained, frustrating and inhibiting fear of the boogie man!!!


There is a trail workday tomorrow in Pisgah. Meet at the Daniel Ridge parking area at 9am. Todd Branham is heading this one up.

Have a great day!!

Not Much

Not much going on right now in the life of the Asheville Janes. The racing is over, the training is mellow. It is dark, a lot. Kind of depressing, but knowing that our bodies are intended to slow down makes it more bearable.

Interestingly, it has affected the kid too. He is grumpier and more irritable. I imagine that for the little ones, the time change and season change is somewhat confusing. After all, kids ( and some adults ) tend to see the world in about a 10 foot radius. Anything outside that boundary is something of another world. It is so important not to lose that childish point of view.

Last night I came home and found a spaceship in my living room. The futon and chairs had blankets thrown over them and were converted into a Mars landing vehicle. There was a pod on the outside for the pilot and a compartment inside for the passengers. He had even picked up some aliens which were inside the compartment. He let me ride in the compartment, and my job was to take care of the aliens: a green rubber bouncy ball, and my old Super Gonzo doll. Then the kid let me take it for a spin. That was fun.

I haven't mentioned World Bicycle Relief in a while, so don't forget to check out the cool things that are happening with bicycles in Africa.

Have a great day.