Learning New Shifters

For the last month or so, I've been researching new bikes, in particular a road bike. I only want to drop money on a bike that fits me right and that I will enjoy riding for years to come. I don't want to buy a bike that I'm going to want to upgrade for next year's ride. I don't want to pay for the color of my bike, but I wouldn't complain if it was blue.

We've been stopping by Bike World and talking to Tom almost weekly. Tom has measured me for a bike and says the 47 cm bike is right for me. Because I've never ridden a road bike before, I don't know what the right fit feels like. I don't know what to tell him feels wrong for adjustments either. All I can do is rely on his training, knowledge and experience to look at the geometry of how I sit on the bike to determine that it's a scientifically right fit. But, some people find little adjustment from that geometry are more comfortable and work better for them. I don't know how to do this and I don't know that it's something that can be taught to you.

I've sat on a number of bikes and taken three of four out for a test drive. These test drives are just a quick four blocks out and four blocks back ride through a neighborhood behind the store. I don't know the neighborhood, so I don't wander far. I don't know the bike, so I'm careful where and how far I go. I don't know the traffic, so I'm nervous as I ride.

I have researched a number of brands of bikes and seem to keep coming back to the Trek bikes. On my last test ride, I rode an aluminum bike and one of the newer carbon fiber bikes. I quickly noticed a difference (which means I'm sold on the upgrade) between the two frames. Now I have to decide between different model numbers within the Madone series. In talking to Cindy last week, we learned that they have a demo version of one of the models in my size. She offered to let me ride it for my Thursday night ride this week. This means I'll be riding it for a route that I know and getting closer to the distance I would normally ride.

In preparation for this ride on the demo bike, I need to learn how to shift on these new shifters. The shifters are built into the brake handles, so you need to know what you're doing. You can shift both directions. There are no number indicators to tell you what gear you're in. You can even shift multiple gears at once. So, in an effort to learn, Pete volunteered to teach me on his bike.

Tonight he put his silver bike on the trainer. He put on his bike clothes and jumped on the bike. I held a GPS so I could see his speed and cadence and he showed me how he shifted. I watched how his cadence remained the same, but his speed changed. It sounds like a simple concept, but know which lever to push to get the gears you want took a little while to sink in. I finally decided on:

The longer lever,

puts you in a lower gear,

to go a lower speed,

up the long hills.

We'll see if that works for me on Thursday. For now, it's going to have to do. For tonight, Pete got a little bit of a workout just so I could play with the shifting on his bike. He sat there pedaling away as I shifted and moved gears back and forth multiple times.

Goals
Today's Miles: 0
Total Miles Achieved: 350.1
Financial Investment: $972.39
Total Weight Loss: +0.8

Monday Weigh-In

I took yesterday off from riding. I had thought I'd kick butt and do a 20 mile ride, at least, three days in a row, but when the alarm went off yesterday morning, there was no pulling these legs out of bed! It's Monday, so it's weigh-in day to see how my progress was this weekend.

I step on the scale not expecting much, but hoping for a fraction, at least. I'm sorry to report, but I am up a pound from the last change. I shake my head, but try not to get discouraged. My legs are still burning and aching from the rides this weekend, so I'm going to assume I've built more muscle.

I've been reading more on nutrition and trying to make smarter decisions in my eating. It's not portion control, and never has been. I still eat small amounts, but now with biking, when I eat, I'm usually starving. I heard a report (somewhere) recently that eating more often helps to boost your metabolism. Well, I lost weight once before where I had multiple small snacks throughout the day every few hours. Maybe it's time I try that again. I'll have to schedule my snacks, plan on the snacks and go shopping for said snacks. Yes, I'm just that list driven. If I get a reminder pop at work though, I won't lose track of time and forget to eat my snacks. I'll make that next week's goal.

Goals
Today's Miles: 0
Total Miles Achieved: 350.1
Financial Investment: $972.39
Total Weight Loss: +0.8

Bullis Park Stay Together Ride

The Wheelmen route today is the Bullis Park ride. I have yet to do this popular ride and have heard from a lot of people that it's one of their favorites (although Pete isn't fond of it) so I'm curious to try it. After the popularity of last week's stay together ride, J.D. decided to offer a stay together option for this ride also. Perfect!

We show up, sign in and I highlight my map for the 21 mile option. I assumed the stay together would be the shortest distance. Erica is there so we chat a bit and catch up. Becky, from the Thursday ride came up and said hello and confirmed we'd be doing the 21 mile route for our stay together. Keep in mind, my legs are still aching from yesterday's ride. A slow and steady short ride is about all I think I can do.

The ride leader gives the briefing and starts the ride based on distance rather than speed. This is the old way of starting the Wheelmen rides and I'm a bit confused. Sometimes I'm a bit more of a follower than a leader. J. D. rolls in and says "Stay together 34 mile route, follow me." So Pete and I begin to roll out. Becky says "Alison, you're doing 21 right?" I say, "Apparently not, no one rides slower than me though. You can do it. Come on."

I hear some confusion behind me, but I don't want to fall behind this early, so I keep rolling. Becky and group did not feel ready to try a 34 mile route. Erica stayed back and took the group on a 14 mile loop option.

As we hit the road, there are eight riders in front of us in two colums. J.D. and I are riding side-by-side and we're keeping up with the men in front of us. I look down and we're doing 16 mph and I'm keeping up with them. This is exciting (yes, it's a downhill, but don't tell that part). There is some debris on the shoulder and it's cool to watch the group point it out for everyone to see. This is my first time riding as part of a pack and I'm really enjoying it. J.D. coaches me as we approach a bend in the road that hides a short uphill and talks me through the shifting. It's nice riding with a personal coach and I'm lucky enough to have two!

Then we turn onto the next road and I slow down and see the other riders pulling ahead. Finally I turn to Pete, "why did I slow down so much as we got on this road?" He points out that it's a bit of a long, slow hill. Darn these hills and slowing me down! About then three riders pass us. I look and one of them is a kid, probably about nine or ten. Good grief! Now I'm getting smoked on the hills by a kid. Oh well, he has a road bike, he's a lot lighter than I, and he's probably been training longer too.

We get to the first meet-up point and J.D. and John are waiting for us. We talk through the rest of the route, and I'm not thrilled around the discussion of the big hill right after the next meet-up point. Apparently it's one you just have to motor up and you have no momentum to get you started. As we pedal on, I start to think through my options and my physical ability to motor up that kind of a hill today. We seem to be doing a non-stop slow and constant climb today and I'm getting worn out! I tell Pete I need another break, so we pause in some shade. I keep thinking we should get a downhill reward, but I don't know when or where! He talks me through the next few turns of the route and then gives me the option to cut the ride short and only do the 21 mile route. I truly think this is the smart option today.

J.D. and John waited for us at the next major turn. They had a much better pace than I did today and we tell them to go on and not worry about us, plus we think we're going to cut it short. Our route turns onto highway 46 at the bottom of a downhill. Sadly, that means you don't really get to enjoy the downhill and you have to watch as you come down and make it a tight right turn so you don't turn into a traffic lane, or cause an accident with a car that doesn't know what you're doing. There is little to no shoulder on this highway and there is a guardrail part of the way truly keeping our travel path narrow. Pete rides wide behind me to keep the cars a bit further from me so I don't get spooked by a car.

We turn onto Bulverde Road (or Bulvedeer as Mom calls it) and I'm beginning to enjoy the ride. It's flat and there are some nice yards and green scenery to enjoy. We've been passed by bikes and come across bikes going the other way almost all morning. The "morning!" and smiles and waves has been non-stop it seems. We pause for another break in the shade and some Gu and a couple cyclists pedal by and confirm we're okay as they pass. I tell you, it's a community. Everyone looks out for one another. It's the coolest thing.

We turn off Bulverde Road way too early, it seems to me and now we're on the dreaded Amman Road. I should mention this road is kind of fun to drive. You get to drive 50 mph and a couple of the hills feel like you're on a roller coaster as you leave your stomach at the top of the drop. That means it's a lot of rolling hills. Unfortunately, for a novice, exahusted cyclist like me, it's one giant uphill that just won't stop. I make it though and finally get to enjoy a bit of a downhill ride on the road that slowed me down earlier this morning.

As I enjoy this part of the trip, I know that I have to save some energy for the last bit of the ride. There is a bit of a climb to get back to the parking lot. Pete tells me to just maintain my cadence and I'll make it. Sure enough, it is a bit of a long hill, but watching my cadence, smarter shifting, and remembering to pull up on my pedals not just push them down, I make it. I maintain my cadence to catch my breath and make my way back to the parking lot.

We roll in and Erica is there waiting for us. We gab for a bit in the parking lot and then invite her over for lunch. I quickly call Mom to say there will be another mouth for lunch and let her know we finished a bit earlier than expected. Funny how that happens when you do a shorter route and the route is much closer to home.

I'd like to try this route again when I'm not so sore, tired, and exhausted from hills. But, it is close to work, so it's an easy evening ride.

Goals
Today's Miles: 21
Total Miles Achieved: 350.1
Financial Investment: $972.39
Total Weight Loss: -0.2

Annual Fourth of July Fredericksburg Ride (Holy Hills!)

At the beginning of June, Pete realized the Wheelmen were having their annual Fourth of July ride in Fredericksburg again this year. Everyone loved it last year, so he was excited to go again this year. When I asked him about the route, he carefully told me it was a very hilly route and I wasn’t ready for it yet. I don’t think either of us realized that I took that as a challenge.

I’ve been working on hills and really trying to get my mileage up and my shifting knowledge better, so I could ride this event with him. A week or so ago, he told me I might actually be able to ride the whole thing, or at least get far enough that he could reasonably come rescue me. I dared to hope, but didn't count on being totally ready yet. I really wanted to improve on the hills more, but I needed another week of training and that can't just get added to the calendar.

We packed our gear, including some extra water bottles, and headed out for Fredericksburg. An hour later, we arrived in the square and signed in with the ride leader. We get our gear on and gather for the pre-ride briefing. The ride leader tried to brief us on the hills by telling us there were three large uphills, but they are rewarding with three great downhills. I decide to keep the reward in mind if I'm struggling up a hill. I had no idea how hard that would be.

The group heads out. We're on a side street and have some struggles with the group at a couple of stop signs and dealing with traffic, but then we're on the shoulder of the highway and on our way. The group is already pulling ahead of us and I'm not moving very fast as we're already heading up a gradual hill. I start trying to psych myself up. I knew what I was in for when I started this ride, so I need to get ready for the real hills to come. We take a left turn off of the highway onto a quiet country road that struggles to be a two lane road. The sense of being out in the quiet country is amazing. The challenge is the slow and constant uphill pedaling. It's so gradual that it appears to be a flat road, but it's not.

At seven miles, I announce to Pete, "I have never been this exhausted after only seven miles." He chuckles and shows me the GPS elevation map that shows a constant uphill climb since we started out. I feel a little better, but begin to wonder where is that downhill reward that we were promised. Meanwhile, I've become a pro at riding across cattle guards. This part of the countryside is littered with one area after another of free roaming cattle areas. We'd even been warned to watch for random cattle in the middle of the road. It didn't take but a crossing or two to learn to lift my butt off the saddle for the crossing. Then I learned if I'm near a need to shift, I should do so before the crossing as the crossing will slow me down a beat or two. You have to be sure to cross a cattle guard square on so your wheel doesn't turn and get caught in between the rails. I'd hate to taco on a ride! Plus, we have a friend, who is quite the hammerhead and she cracked a vertebrae when she tacoed.

We cross the highway and head off on the next country road. Ten miles into the route, my right knee begins to ache. I tell Pete, but keep moving. Pete's a little concerned as this is new and we're not even a third of the way through the route which promises to get more difficult. Another mile and Pete tells me it's decision time. If I go much further, I won't want to turn around and I'll be committed to the full route. Or, I can turn around now and it'll be a fairly easy downhill all the way back to the truck. I tell Pete that I'd rather continue on as far as I can and wait for a rescue than turn back and not get as much mileage as I can. I wanted to push myself and not quit early.

There is a quarry on our right side and an active mine on our left. I can't actually explain why, but the scenery reminds me of a summer when I was growing up and visited my grandparents on the Olympic Peninsula. The road is flat and I take some time to enjoy the moment and take it in. I laugh at a sign in the quarry "This is a left hand quarry. Stay to the left." Pete explains the truck reasoning behind the sign and the functioning of the quarry. The mine surprisingly warns you of active explosive, but is lacking in the usual "no trespassing" signs. The road begins to go down a hill. I look ahead and I can't see the road as it disappears. It feels like I'm going to ride off the edge of a cliff. I tell Pete to go ahead of me and he nearly disappears over the edge. I follow his helmet down the hill to the road I cannot see. This is the downhill reward! I can't see the bottom of the hill. The road keeps going. It's steep and I'm glad we're going this direction. I follow Pete and watch his selected path and where the wheels wobble. I glance down at my computer and see 36 mph, then 40 mph. That's it! I can't look at that any longer. I have a death grip on my handlebars and I'm flying along.

Suddenly, I notice the chalk marks on the road for our ride. There's an arrow pointing straight for the 34 mile route and a left arrow for the 50 mile route. Pete blew past his turn for the loop to make his route longer. We come to the breakpoint about 16 miles in and see a group of riders just finishing their break and heading out. We refill our water bottles, catch our breath and stretch out a bit off of the bike. Then we head back out on the ride continuing along the mapped route. Besides the fact that the turn for the 50 mile loop was a nearly impossible turn, Pete has decided to stick with me.

As we pedal on, Pete announces a deer in the road. I look up and there is a deer standing square in the middle of the road staring us down. I chuckle at how the deer is just staring at us and Pete says "what else are you going to call out?" Just then, the deer dashes across the road and into the greenery on the left. As we approach the spot, a baby deer darts out, crosses the road and follows mom. I smile and say "Bambi!" Honestly, that's so much easier than "Look! A baby deer." As the baby disappears, another one comes into the road and follows the first two. I excited cheer, "Twins!" By this time, we're passed the spot and the deer had completely disappeared into the trees.

This next country road takes us past some old homes and school houses. I am really enjoying the ride again. The scenery is enjoyable and the road is reasonably flat. I tell Pete I like this part of the ride. He's surprised, but I enjoy the flat road with the occasional slight incline, the scenery is great and there is plenty of shade as we ride along. I decide it's time for a quick break, some Gu, and electrolyte replacements. We find a mailbox in the shade and stop. The mailbox says "Happy Trails" on it and there are two short decorative pillars that make perfect benches. As we take our break, two of the cyclists on the ride (who did the 50 mile route) pass us. Then the car from the breakpoint comes by. All check on us and leave us to our break with promises to catch up at lunch.

We pedal on and come to a grassy clearing at a bend in the road. Standing in the middle of the knee high grass is a deer and her twin babies. Mom is closely watching us as we pedal by. I wish I had a camera with us. We can come back in the car to capture the scenery, but the brilliant green grass with the three deer is a missed opportunity. It is amazing to me how close the deer allow you to pedal by without running off. We pass a neat fence. It's obviously made from the local branches of the trees on the property. I tell Pete to remember this because I want to come back and take some artistic photos of this fence. It seemed to just keep on going too.

It's apparently time for another uphill battle. This is truly only the second, and I suddenly remember there are supposed to be three of these sections and we're only 21 miles into the 34 mile route. Then my knee starts to hurt again. I try to struggle on, but now my bike won't shift into the small ring again. I start bargaining with myself to get to 25 miles. I get to 23.5 and wonder how I'll last another mile and a half, but I'm determined, so I just slow down a bit and try to take it easy. We head up another hill and I decide I can't make it to the 25 mile mark. We stop and talk through our options. Pete lays them out.

1. Continue on slow and steady with as many breaks as I need.
2. I stop and sit under a tree while he goes to get the truck.
3. I continue on at whatever pace I want, but send Pete ahead. He then doubles back when he gets to the truck and picks me up when we cross paths.

I think about it, stretch my knee and decide for option three. I tell him to go ahead and I'll pedal on at my pace. I promise to stop if I'm tired or it hurts too much and just wait for him to find me. I tell him if he gets to this point that he missed me and turn back. I manually put my bike into the small ring in an effort to help me through the uphills. We jump on the bikes and he takes off as I slowly make my way up the hill. I pass a few cows and he is out of sight. I pass a couple cows roaming the area and find myself talking to them. I'm getting tired and there's a hill. I decide to stop and take advantage of some shade. I'm not sure about my ability to make it up the hill. I try to get the cow to help convince me I can make it up the hill, but she just looks at me like I'm disturbing her lunch. I decide my knee doesn't have the climb in it, but I'm not ready to stop and sit under the tree until Pete gets there, so I put on my cleat covers and decide to walk up the hill. As I walk up the hill, a car passes me. I listen to how long he accelerates up the hill and realize that I'm nearly at the top and then I can jump on the bike.

Once I crest the hill, I jump back on. Surprisingly, the walk has done my knee some good and I feel fine as I pedal on. I begin to feel completely alone and enjoy the quiet, yet feel isolated from the world. I somehow have a weird feeling of calmness, yet uncertainty (not quite scared) at the isolation and aloneness. It was a weird sense of safety, yet total solitude. It's truly hard to explain, I enjoyed the moment, but was thankful that I knew it wouldn't last for more than an hour or so. I tried to take in the scenery and enjoy the time.

Then the road goes down hill. I'm afraid to take advantage of the speed and shift into my big ring, so I just coast along in the small ring. I find that I even gathered enough speed that I rolled up and over one incline without ever pedaling. That tells me I'm moving fast, even if the bike computers didn't. As I roll on, I notice the miles are beginning to tick by. When I'm not focusing on the distance, I seem to go a lot further. I've gone 27, now 28, now 29 miles! I'm now determined to go 30 miles. No problem! Now I'm doing the math, if it's a 34 mile route, I'm only four miles from the finish.

Then the next batch of hills appears. Oh no! This can make the last four miles a killer. And now I'm remembering that the three hill segments are supposedly fairly equivalent. This does not sound exciting, or doable to me. I head up the first incline and see the next bit of the hill. I know my knee doesn't have that much more climbing in it. I begin to look for a good, shady resting spot, but find it difficult as I'm closer to town and I'm getting into neighborhood now rather than random free range cattle areas. Just then, I see a Ford truck, but I can't make out the color of it because of how the sun is hitting it. I think, "it'd be great if this was Pete." Just then, the truck makes a left turn into the neighborhood and I see that it's a tan truck and not Pete. Deciding not to take my break in the beautiful grass of someone's front yard, I spot a dirt road with a tree and figure I can park my bike near the road so Pete will see it and go sit under the tree. As I pedal up to the side road, I see Pete in the Excursion crest the hill. As he rolls up, I get a huge grin and say "perfect timing!"

I look down and I've gone 30.75 miles. I'm happy with that, even though I haven't finished the route. Considering my sore knee and the fact that I couldn't have done this ride a month ago, I'm happy with completing all but four miles of the route this year. We load my bike on the truck and I take off my gear and grab some cold water. A big hug and we climb in the truck. We drive back into town and I get to see the route (from the inside of the cool truck doing the climbing) and I'm glad I didn't try to finish the route today. The hills are the steepest (or at least appear to be) of the route and it's a lot of one after another before you're at the end of the climbing. Yes, you have another great downhill that carries you into town, but I'll conquer this part of the route, next time. Pete tells me that one of the riders who passed us actually cramped on this section of hill. Proof that I made the right decision not trying to power through the pain.

We get back to Fredericksburg and meet the rest of the cyclists for lunch. Everyone is all smiles and glad to see that I made it. I learn that beyond the guy who cramped, someone had breathing troubles and called the ride leader for a pick-up along the route. I think I did well today. I didn't complete the ride, but I sure feel like I accomplished a lot. I know that I still have a lot of hill training to go, but now I know what hills are really like and what beautifully scenery I can see if I can conquer those hills. Pete tells me he's proud of me and that confirms my feelings of success. I'm thankful that he stuck with me for the route today, but I'm sorry that he didn't get his miles. He doesn't seem concerned, so I'll let it go for another ride. One of these days I'll be strong enough on the hills, a bit faster on the bike, and have more endurance for longer routes to be able to keep up with him so he gets a good training ride and workout in too.

We'll mark this down as a route to conquer at a later date, but it's a success today too! Also worth noting, I've now clocked more than 300 miles on my bike since I started this training adventure. That's an amazing number to me. I know it's nothing to those who can do 100 miles in a day, or even 100 miles in a week without thinking about it. But when you're still doing short distances like I am, 300 is quite the number!

Goals
Today's Miles: 30.7
Total Miles Achieved: 329.1
Financial Investment: $972.39
Total Weight Loss: -0.2

Women’s Weekly Ride

We’re having strange random rain sprinkles today. The ride is questionable if weather will allow us to get out or not tonight. I work so close to the bike shop where we start that it just makes sense to stop by to try and ride. Sure enough, J.D. says we’re on for the ride. I purchase my electrolyte replacement snacks (I don’t count the food and drink intake in my financial investment tracking) and head to the bathroom to change for the ride.

When I come out, Pete has arrived with our bikes and is talking to J.D. and Cindy, the owner of the shop. I walk over and discover they’re talking about my recent bike shopping and research. Cindy is my height, and J.D. is a couple inches taller. Pete mentions that although Tom has measured me as a 47cm bike fit, I think I want to try a 43 because the standover is shorter as is the reach.

These two women, who know a lot more about bikes and have been biking much longer than I, are convinced that I do not need a 43. They started explaining the challenges of a 43, the frustrations of a two different wheel size garage, the unimportance of standover, etc. J.D. told me to watch how she leans her bike on the ride today. Then Cindy mentions I should do a test ride of the demo bike they have in stock. That’s exactly what I’ve wanted to do! The shop let’s you take the bike out for a test ride, but you only go a few blocks and back. I’d rather truly get a feel for the bike on a ten mile ride. So, we agree that next Thursday I’ll set out right at six so I’m back before the store closes at seven and can return the bike. It’s too bad only Cindy (not J.D. or Tom) knew this demo bike was at the store or that I could take it out for a ride.

We ended up with only five women for the ride tonight. We took it slow and easy. We watched a near miss car accident and held our positions at the stop sign until that was over and the cars were out of the way. No one else seemed interested when J.D. offered some hill coaching, so she sent the other girls ahead and worked with me on shifting from the big ring (using downhill power to start me up a hill) and getting into the middle ring at the right time. I actually passed two of the girls as I went up the hill! When Pete met up with us, J.D. started telling him how awesome I did on the hill. Whoo-hoo! I felt great.

Then it was time for the false flat and the bigger hill. I did it. I just kept on the attack and watched my cadence on the false flat. J.D. stuck with me, coached me through it and picked up the conversation when I was out of breath. Going up the last hill, she told me to attack it with the big ring. “WHAT??? There’s not enough downhill momentum.” She says, “Yes there is, give it a shot. You can do it.” So off I go. I had some gear problems and missed a couple attacks in my cadence, so I ended up going up the hill super slow, but I made it. We stopped to catch our breath and meet up with the girls that took off for a bigger hill.

I wore my new shorts today and tried one of the pairs of low profile socks. I'm liking the shorts so far. Sadly, I think this pair of socks is too low. Thankfully, I wore these socks only for a ten mile ride. There is a spot on my left ankle that is red and irritated. I haven't looked closely enough to know if it's a blister yet, or if it was a blister that I developed and popped on the ride. I'll have to be sure to wear higher profile socks for the longer rides this weekend.

It was a great night for a ride. The weather was cooler and the rain stayed away. We had a small group, so we all gabbed a bit. J.D. stuck tight and coached me through all kinds of things tonight. Pete was there to cheer me on and celebrate in my success. I get so much out of these little ten mile rides on Thursday nights!

Goals
Today's Miles: 10
Total Miles Achieved: 298.4
Financial Investment: $972.39
Total Weight Loss: -0.2

Commuting to the Auto Shop

Today I’m discovering the freedom I have on the bike. My car needed to go in to the shop, so I made an appointment at the local mechanic’s for this morning. I load my bike into the back of my car (good thing I drive an SUV, or I’d have to purchase a bike rack too). I gear up and take off for the auto shop.

Once the car is dropped off, I pull the bike out of the back, change my shoes, fasten my helmet, pull on my gloves and off I go. I start the easy three mile commute down the access road home. I thought it was a cool morning for a ride, but I begin to realize it may be cooler, but it’s more humid after the brief rain that moved through last night.

I was in no hurry, but I didn’t make it a total leisure ride either. I made it home in just under twenty minutes. I don’t like the surface of access roads, and I really didn’t enjoy not being able to see the cars approaching behind me at 50 plus mph. I need to get one of the Wheelmen mirrors for my helmet. Time for a quick shower and then I plug in to work. I spent the day working from home. We had the pest guy and the sprinkler repair guy out to the house today and someone needed to be home. Talk about a productive day!

At 5:05 the mechanic calls to say my car is ready.

Me: “Great! What time do you close today?”
Anton (mechanic): “At 5:30”
Me: “Oh! Don’t leave! I’m jumping on my bike now, but
it’s going to take me that long to pedal there.”
Anton: “K. bye!”

I jump up, throw on my bike clothes, hop around from one foot to the other pulling on my shoes, push the bike out of the garage, and I’m off. Then I hit the access road! Sitting in the house all day, I hadn’t realized the wind had picked up. I have a good 15 mph headwind for the majority of my ride. I have to make it though. I pedal as hard as I can and just don’t stop. I try to keep my head down and just keep going. Thankfully, I’m not wearing my watch, so I’m not watching the minutes tick by, but the miles sure took awhile to achieve.

I pull in the parking lot, jump off my bike, grab my water bottle, pull the covers on my cleats and manage a quick hobble up the metal steps into the shop’s office. I take a deep breath and say, “I made it!” as I glance at the clock. It’s 5:28. Oh yeah! We talk about my car repairs, they ask about my ride, we talk about Seattle (since my license plate frame is still a Seattle frame) and the whole time I’m dripping sweat in their office. My hand shakes as I sign the credit card slip.

It may have only been a six mile ride today, and broken into two parts separated by eight hours, but it sure feels good! The freedom to drop off and pick up my car without anyone’s assistance is nice. The feeling from pushing myself in that kind of headwind and succeed at my goal is just awesome!

Goals
Today's Miles: 6.3
Total Miles Achieved: 288.4
Financial Investment: $972.39
Total Weight Loss: -0.2

Shorts Arrive!

I can hardly believe it when I check the mail tonight. My new shorts have arrived! Talk about instant gratification! I try on the shorts and they fit, or at least fit how I think super padded shorts should fit. They feel funny, but I know they’ll improve the comfort of my rides.

I haul the bike upstairs for the first time by myself (since Pete is in Dallas this week) and manage to get the bike onto the trainer. Remember, the last time I was on the trainer, I pulled the bike over on top of me and landed on the rollers, so I’m real excited about being on the trainer when I’m the only one home.

I ran errands on the way home tonight, so I’m home later than I’d like to be and have to eat first. That means I have to wait a bit for dinner to digest. It’s after 9:00 by the time I’m gearing up and climbing on the bike. I turn on the t.v. and don’t bother to pull up any of the recorded shows. I’m not really feeling like riding, but I know I need to. I decide to make it a short, but powerful, ride and call it a night.

Thirty minutes later, I’m drenched and truly tired now. I somehow manage to carefully hobble off of the bike on the trainer. I’ve discovered the challenge in getting off the bike on the trainer lately is the fact that I now wear bike shoes. I’m just short and it’s a challenge. The bike and trainer are still standing, so I gather my gear, haul the bike downstairs, and call it a night.

Goals
Today's Miles: 5
Total Miles Achieved: 282.1
Financial Investment: $972.39
Total Weight Loss: -0.2