Monday, November 3, 2008

Election Day Profile and Playlist

Thanks to a post on Pedal-On, I was inspired to create an election day playlist. SloSpin started the thread with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek, and then Katie Sweeney came up with a fun theme of Road to the White House. So I am totally stealing their idea (with permission) and giving it to my two classes tomorrow (I'm subbing at 6 am and have my regular class at 5:30 pm). If you go to the Pedal-On post, you'll see a variety of other song suggestions. Although I am pretty passionate about this election and the need for some serious change in our country, my goal was to keep it as non-partisan as possible (admittedly a bit difficult at times), so I decided to not use some of the more, er, judgmental songs... 

So, here's my rendition of the Rocky Road to the Whitehouse!

Warm-up:
1. Mission Impossible, U2 version (3:27)
2. I've Been Everywhere, Johnny Cash (3:17)
We're on the flats, checking out the political climate. Is it a Mission Impossible? Or is change possible? Remember in the show Mission Impossible - waaaaay back when, they always accomplished their missions, so I believe this mission IS possible with the right person! But as a candidate, get ready to travel non-stop, day-in, day-out, everywhere in this country! 
3. Closer to Free, Bodeans (3:11) 
4. I Can't Get No Satisfaction, Rolling Stones (3:44)
A fast flat first down the path of good intentions, that for just about every politician, seems to turn into the path of least resistance. Several surges, with cadence increases to 100 -105 rpm.
5. A Change Would do You Good, Sheryl Crow (3:50)
6. Get Off This, Cracker (4:11)
7. Rescue Me, The Alarm (3:23)
Jumping over all the mudslinging, and slogging through the media onslaught and misrepresentation. Jump through Sheryl Crow, followed by some 30-second runs with resistance during Cracker (very appropriate lyrics to this song). Back to surges on a flat during The Alarm (which is in honor of our "rescue package" that the new president will have to deal with).
22-minutes of climbing up the Slippery Slope (the next 6 songs):
8. The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song, The Flaming Lips (4:55)
Very powerful words in this song. "What would you do with all your power?" Power is very intoxicating to some. I guess that's why they go into politics! We have to be grateful there are some out there willing to take on these challenges.
Begin with an easy hill, gradually loading on the Power! What will YOU do with all that power under your legs? Stay seated throughout this song as you load it on.
9. I Won't Back Down, Tom Petty (2:58)
A few jumps on a hill. Time to stick to your guns, to your promises,
10. I Heard it Through the Grapevine (LDM101 Remix Radio Edit), Marvin Gaye (4:38)
Sometimes the media is like one big Grapevine! What are you listening to? Where does it come from? Where's the truth, and how do we really know? C'mon, just the facts, ma'am! Dancing with the media and the misleading political ads, let's continue to jump, much slower this time (16-32 counts if using the beat, or about 20-30 second transitions)
11. The Rising, Bruce Springsteen (4:47)
This is one of the songs Obama uses at his rallies. 
Strong and steady, sit most of this climb, and transition to a standing climb when he sings "Come on up for the rising" (he does it twice, at minute 1:10 and 3:45).  After the first one, sit back down after 30-seconds or so and continue to climb seated; after the second one, stay standing until the end.
12. Thunderstruck, AC/DC (5:01)
This is a song used by Sarah Palin at her rallies - you gotta hand it to her, she sure has a lot of gumption! A Great Hockey Mom!  
It's important voters aren't "thunderstruck" by their candidates, and instead base their choice on the facts and on more than one issue, issues that will help our country in the long run.
Powerful climb, allow yourself to get "thunderstruck" for a moment as you go a bit over your threshold, to the point of breathless, pushing it out in a standing climb on the most energetic parts of the song, then sitting back down to catch your breath. Watch your intensity, it's easy to get overly caught up in this one!
13. Spiritual High Part III, Moodswings (5:14)
This song speaks for itself. Riders can choose their own hill, but settling back into a manageable intensity. No matter your preference, think of the significance of the speech in the song, of the significance that an African-American is a candidate for president of the USA. Martin Luther King Jr is beeming! I only wish my mother could have lived long enough to experience this, she would have been so joyful! Whether he becomes president or not, just the fact that he came this far is indicative of the positive changes in our country.
Be grateful for how far we've come as a nation, how much more tolerance we have, how much more opportunity is available to everyone, than 40, or even 20-30 years ago. ...But we've still got a long way to go!
14. Time to Move On, Tom Petty (3:15)
Back to a flat road after our climb, bring the heart rate down.  The road to the Whitehouse is coming to an end. One president will move on, another will move in. We'll know who by the end of the day!
15. Strong Enough (to Be My Man), Sheryl Crow (3:10)
16. Waiting on the World to Change, John Mayer (3:21)
Cool down and stretch.

10 comments:

Unknown said...

Jennifer, thanks for the great profile. I teach at 5:15 a.m tomorrow!. I'll also throw in the theme from Rocky, "Gonna Fly now."

Patrick said...

I would like to know how this goes over. Ever since a terribly unsuccessful Halloween ride some few years ago, I shy away more often than not.

Good luck.

Patrick

Jennifer Sage said...

I'll let you know. My two Halloween rides went great, and I have avoided most theme classes in the past, but am now finding them rather fun. For this one, I worked on my playlist waaaaay too long, adding a song here, then later taking it out thinking it might offend someone (like "Stupid Girl" by Garbage). I am hoping the ones I have chosen are more fun, or thought provoking without being directly partisan. We'll see!!

billyinomaha said...

Also led a 'strength to the end' election day ride tonight, and opened with 'spiritual high' (absolute great find!). Set a perfect tone. Most had already voted - and most could probably decipher my leanings from music selections! BTW, new to instructing - and it's going great. I got into SPINNING at the Vail Athletic Club almost 10 years ago, and finally got my certification this past August. Every new instructor should be directed to your site. It's inspirational, smart, concise, and full of great ideas to help lead your own pack. THANK YOU!

Jennifer Sage said...

Thanks for the kind words Billy. Did I know you in Vail? I never taught at VAC but have been at the Vail Cascade for 15 years and taught skiing at Golden Peak for 7 yeas. BTW, how did you find my blog?

billyinomaha said...

Jennifer - I don't remember mtg, but surely we did. I worked out some at Cascade Club - but never did SPINNING there. Found your blog through google search. Glad your state went our way! (At least our county - where Omaha is, swung as well, even tho the state of NE did not.) Feel free to email at billy.coburn@cox.net. Thanks again for such a great site.

jeffdav said...

Nice job putting together an election day playlist. I thought about making one but shy-ed away because it looked like too tough an assignment.

I'm glad to see someone else out there who thinks a lot about the music in their Spinning Playlists! I also blog about mine - at jeffdav.blogspot.com.

Keep up the great work!
- Jeff Davis, Fairfax, VA

Jennifer Sage said...

Jeff, I checked out your blog. You'll have to tell me how to post the lyrics like you do - nice touch!

I'll be working on a Thanksgiving theme as well as a Holiday theme (of course), and maybe a plain-ole winter/snow theme (since i live in a ski resort). Once a month is plenty for theme rides (although I had Halloween and Election themes a few days apart)

But otherwise, I'm more partial to electronic music.

jeffdav said...

Jennifer -

I stumbled across this site when doing searches for song lyrics:

http://www.metrolyrics.com

When you search on that site, it will bring up the lyrics scroller that you see on my blog, and just below it is the HTML for embedding it into your blog. All you do is cut and paste the ENTIRE HTML from that field and put it into your Blogspot entry.

Here's one example to look at:
http://www.metrolyrics.com/stay-far-away-so-close-lyrics-u2.html

A word of caution - embedding the lyrics scroller does slow down your blog somewhat.

Hey - would you mind if I added "FunhogSpins" to my blogroll?

Jennifer Sage said...

Hi Jeff,
thanks for the tip - I think I'll use that if i post a song with lyrics I enjoy!
And I'd be thrilled if you added me to your blogroll!
Cheers,

Jennifer