This Thing Sucks

…sucks dirt, that is. And various other pieces of sand, hair, grime, and home dander.

Yup, I got me a brand spankin’ new vacuum cleaner thanks to the fine people at Bissell! Truly, she’s a thing of beauty with unparalleled sucking power, a sleek comfortable ergonimical handle, a very stylish light blue color scheme accented with shades of gray, plus much more.

What really blows me away is how it compares to the previous Bissell that I found and adopted from my Grandmother’s house and took with me to Asheville. That previous model - probably about a decade old - got the job done just fine, but pales in comparison to the current Healthy Home Vacuum. Basically, it looks like they took the previous model, gave it a gym membership, and told it to get massive. It also has characteristics that make it look like the Terminator - kind of muscular and robotic looking. For in-home safety reasons, it obviously runs on electricity… but can you tell it really wants to be a diesel.

Here they are head to head:

The new one’s on the right. It’s easy to pick out between the two, being that it’s taller, wider, has smoother lines, and some wicked features, like the TurboBrush, Multi-Cyclonic System, a Telescoping Crevice Tool, and the Microban Anti-Microbial Protection. Sweet!

Check out the rims on this beast. They’re sixes, yo! Makes the older model’s threes look just plain sad. I definitely like the wheels a lot, but I might take it to the shop and put some spinners on for extra bling.

No comparison shot of both vacuums here, but that’s a 15 inch wide sucking path. Really gives you a sense of power. I’ve never driven a bulldozer, but I imagine it’s the same sort of feeling.

It arrived the day after I’d used the older model to clean the apartment. I could hardly contain my excitement and had to immediately take the new one out for a whirl. What’s crazy is that I took an already clean apartment, and was still able to yank two inches of dirt out of the rug. No lie.

-Ted King

Indoor Training

Well, due to the specific nature of the region I live., ie we get lots of snow and whatnot, well, I've been spending quite a bit of time on the indoor trainer.

Surprisingly, I've been able to surpass my fitness level of past winter's where I spent more time on the actual pavement.

Specifically, I've taken the "quality vs. quantity approach" and have been focusing on addressing each training zone rather than limiting myself as in years past to the much heralded "base" approach.

The only drawback I can see at this point is that I'm carrying around a little more weight in the ol' mid-section due to overall reduction in energy expenditure that you achieve riding for shorter durations inside.

Looks like I've got some dieting to do in the next month.

-Burke Swindlehurst

SSPSTYNBLTIM

With all the talk of illegal substances in the sport, it's wise be wise to avoid speaking of LSD in this first sentence. Thankfully, in this instance, LSD refers to Long Slow Distance rather than lysergic acid diethylamide. Duh.

This time of year is definitely chalk full of these sorts of rides. It's typical to be on your bike for a third of your waking hours! In fact, I just finished a week of training where my shortest ride was four hours, and the week's total was just shy of 30! LSD is a slight misnomer though. "Long" and "Distance" are fairly accurate, but "Slow" isn't necessary the exact truth. Now don't get me wrong, I'm definitely not going out and trying to crush it with tons of sprints, TTs, huge power outputs, hill climbs, and the like. When the weather is cool and the race season is bobbing just out there on the horizon ( i.e. now), I simply like to find a strong, steady pace that I can maintain for a whole bunch of hours, yet still know that I'm pretty darn worked when I pedal into my driveway. If slow were the operative word, I'd be leaving too much in the tank and not making enough gains for my base. For me and the majority of other riders out there, this time of year is all about boosting our base endurance. With a race season that kicks off in full force with the Tour of California in mid-February and runs through September or even October, it's vital to get in this base training so that we're not burnt like toast in May.

In fact, that's maybe what it should be called. Steady Strong Pace So That You're Not Burnt Like Toast In May… or that well known acronym: SSPSTYNBLTIM

-Teddy King

Family Heirloom

I was unaware of my family’s long history with BISSELL until a recent trip to my Grandmother’s house. While I was visiting, I relayed to my Grandmother how excited I was to be racing for my new team, BISSELL. After several hours of explaining my excitement, my Grandmother told me to wait where I was…I did…On her return, she presented me with one of my family’s most prized heirlooms. Now, I am a proud owner of a (not sure what year?) BISSELL product. Check it out.

-Burke Swindlehurst