Plan B and the Art of Thrifty Cycling.

Mother's Chicken Barley Soup.

1 pound cooked chicken.
Carrots, celery, onion, peas, corn, barley.
Chicken broth, and/or chicken bullion and water.
Sage, cumin, thyme, bay leaf.

Saute vegetables in a little olive oil.  Combine with chicken and broth.  Pour in barley. Add herbs. Simmer until vegetables are tender, and barley is plump.

(And nothing wiggles.)


 OK, so how thrifty are you?

Would you throw away an entire kettle of chicken barley soup, if say, after you poured the barley in, you picked up the box to put it away and there were weevils swarming the counter?

Now, you'd think growing up on a farm with thrifty parents during thrifty times, I would have been acquainted with weevils at an early age.  But no, never.  Maybe the old upstate New York farmhouse was always plenty cold enough to deter them.  Maybe it was because my mother was a fastidious cleaner.  Or maybe we just ate everything up as soon as we got it. 

But no, no weevils that I ever knew about.  At least no one ever screamed "Eeeewww!" and began frantically cleaning shelves. 

Now that I think about it though, thrifty pretty much always trumped sensitivity on the farm.  

I picture my ultra neat and tidy mother in front of the stove.  What would she have done if she discovered she had just poured half a box of weevil'ly barley into her soup? 

Would she have simply reached over and turned up the heat under the pot for a few extra minutes?  

Was "eeewww" even a word back then?  (Not that it's one now.)      


Unfortunately, thrifty times are here again.  Not the dire sort of thrifty where life hangs on the choice between weevil-barley soup or no soup at all.  (Thank goodness.  Because extreme cheapskating is just plain gross.) 

But doesn't the word budget - like the word diet - just make you want to go out and splurge? 

Personally, I require a more subtle sort of shift. 

A shift to thrift.  An artful, crafty sort of shift to thrift.  But, where to start?

Periodic competition is still the best motivator for staying fit, so we never once considered nixing all weekend races, just the really expensive greedy-promoter sort of events.  

For the last couple years we've been making a game of seeking out the less expensive and the free.  And if it's something we really want to do, we don't mind cutting a few travel corners, or skipping a few comforts.  As long as we don't have to skip the event.     

A couple weeks ago, we got up at 3:45 on a Saturday morning and drove to the Tour De Felasco.  This cut our usual two night hotel stay, and dining out costs, down to one night.  

Mike (no stranger to pre-dawn event driving), appeared in the driveway right on time.  Bikes loaded, travel mugs in hand, we piled in for the 3 hour predawn drive directly to the 8am start in Alachua.   

I kind of liked having the extra time. 

And the extra caffeine. 

Besides, the real fun of Felasco is staying at The Lodge and swapping stories after the rigors of  the Tour.  Hot showers, free cocktails by the fireplace, eating whatever we want for dinner.  And Sunday morning - no alarm.  Now that is true luxury.

This year we added a stop at Santos on the way home for a bonus freebie.  Test riding Niners and 'tweeners at Greenway Bicycles.  Something every mountain biker should check out for himself before investing in the next bike. 

The Croom 50 is coming up.  Here's a mountain bike event where you can really get your money's worth. 

Bring lights for bonus miles - there's a night ride on Friday. 

Then, on Saturday morning, say hi to The Oatmeal Man and chow down on the free breakfast.  You'll need it to fortify your 50 miles of famous Croom singletrack.  A full stomach isn't a bad thing either, since you can knock off as many jello shots and beers as you dare at the sags.

Top that off with a full lunch after the ride, and don't forget to pick up your SWAMP pint glass or tee shirt.  All for 50 smackers. 

But wait.  Don't leave yet.  

Since you're already right there at Croom, stay at the park campground for $20. 

Then on Sunday, get back out on your bike and ride the Withlacoochee Rail Trail.  The longest paved trail in Florida - absolutely free.  Even with stops for the bakery, lunch, or beers along the way, you'll still come out ahead.  Ahead on the money, anyway.  The calories are up to you. 

Last year, though, the temperature dipped to 30 degrees and we opted for a hotel.  I felt cheated.  Although Popeye and I each had some bonus miles on the ride, we went straight home afterward. 

The weather report is looking warmer this year, though.  If not, I see there's a chili cook-off in Orlando on the way home.  

Looking ahead for spring, I check up on a few old favorites and put them on the list. 

The Hammerhead 100 at Santos.  A nice morning drive.  Sign up for 25, 50, or 100 miles.  But you get the most for your money if you ride the full hundred. 

And right up there with $5 bike hashing, two of the best deals anywhere are right here at home in Melbourne. 

The 3.75 mile Bridge to Bridge Swim.   All splash, no cash.  (Plus pina coladas at the other end.) 

The Wickham Park Marathon, 50, 100, and 200 Mile Fun Run. One price fits all.  Whatever distance you choose - absolutely free. 

So - no free events around to suit you?  Start your own.  The B2B and the WPM have grown like crazy the last few years.  But they started with just a handful of folks getting together.

My advice is to offer something free.  Like free beer.  How about a  Beer Can Scramble?  Get your friends together for a local ride one night a week.  Everybody brings a beer.  Last one in gets last choice.  (Be nice.  The beer you get could be your own.)

Someday I think home grown events will be huge.  Did you know that ironman distance triathlon was born from a bet in a bar?  (At least, that's how I like to picture it.)

But meanwhile, I still have the original question to answer...

How thrifty are you, really?

Because I've got an awfully large pot of chicken barley soup here on the stove...