Welld,
Here it is. The face off between me and myself. I know I will likely be racing others this afternoon.
The real race however is between me and my fear of the unknown.and maybe a little self confidence issue. You see I had tried bike racing in my twenties. I was too big and didn't have the time to train. I had more important priorities other than cycling.
Well now is the day I will have to prove to myself that I can do it. I have prepared my body and equipment as best I can with the limited time frame I have had to work with.
I have logged just over 300 miles in training. There really is nothing left but getting packed up, get checked in on time and recon the courses. (The course is all on the same road so this will help me with not getting lost. This is a good thing.) Most importantly I will pray for safety of all.
I am not sure what else to do at this point. Better get some things ready.
I wonder what Eddie Merckx would do now?
This is going to be a blast!
jp
Friday, April 30, 2010
Monday, April 26, 2010
We are not in Kansas anymore...............
Saturday was a good workout albeit slightly wet and windy. The problem with wind is it blows me up before I can get very far down the road. I spend the remainder of the ride somewhere in no man's land between recovering and maxing out.
Maybe all the training in the wind will be a blessing come race day.
Sunday was just wierd. One of the best training rides I have had yet. It was so quiet..........as if no one was even about. I rode a hard first 6 miles then turned into the wind. It was like a wall and then I eventually began to settle into a more rhythmic pace. I wound up with about 26.5 miles when I decided to finish up.
It was raining but I stayed fairly dry. At least until the heavy downpours came. That is when even the very technical cycling clothes no longer kept me dry. I was soaked to the bone. Still I really didn't feel cold until I was closer to home. I had the pleasure of doing some hill work in the rain this time. Interesting. I feel like this ride did something for me that I can not fully explain.
I felt very alone out there Sunday. I saw only one other cyclist on a mountain bike heading back toward Washington before the rain started.
I am now in a place I have not ventured into often as a cyclist.........Never this far. To deliberately head out for a training ride knowing that I would be caught in a rain shower. A long rain shower. As I rode I thought of something I read that Lance Armstrong once said. " I rode when no one else would ride"
I am definitely now in a place I hve never been before........I don't think I am in Kansas anymore.
Forecast is possible showers, and windy for Race Day. Hmmmmm. I wonder.
later
jp
Maybe all the training in the wind will be a blessing come race day.
Sunday was just wierd. One of the best training rides I have had yet. It was so quiet..........as if no one was even about. I rode a hard first 6 miles then turned into the wind. It was like a wall and then I eventually began to settle into a more rhythmic pace. I wound up with about 26.5 miles when I decided to finish up.
It was raining but I stayed fairly dry. At least until the heavy downpours came. That is when even the very technical cycling clothes no longer kept me dry. I was soaked to the bone. Still I really didn't feel cold until I was closer to home. I had the pleasure of doing some hill work in the rain this time. Interesting. I feel like this ride did something for me that I can not fully explain.
I felt very alone out there Sunday. I saw only one other cyclist on a mountain bike heading back toward Washington before the rain started.
I am now in a place I have not ventured into often as a cyclist.........Never this far. To deliberately head out for a training ride knowing that I would be caught in a rain shower. A long rain shower. As I rode I thought of something I read that Lance Armstrong once said. " I rode when no one else would ride"
I am definitely now in a place I hve never been before........I don't think I am in Kansas anymore.
Forecast is possible showers, and windy for Race Day. Hmmmmm. I wonder.
later
jp
Thursday, April 22, 2010
I just hope the equipment holds up.
Good training the last few nights. Time trial is coming along and yesterday I actually felt quite strong for most of 10k. About half way I began to slow so I think I need to learn to meter out my effort more carefully. My unconventional "before the days of Greg Lemond's aero bars" position is getting a bit more comfortable to me........sort of. It is difficult to think of something as comfort while you are suffering.
Today I tried to ride a few hills and it was very hard. I just don't go very fast uphill. Must be my large physical size (even though I realized this evening that I haven't been this light since shortly after high school.) Still it is a challenge to haul 188 pounds up a steep hill on a bicycle. We shall see how it goes and whether I can "hang" with the boys or just plain get hanged.
I had been toying with the idea of tweaking my brake hood and handle bar position; maybe re-wrap my bars with prettier tape. But at this point in the game I am afraid too much tinkering might cause me a problem.
Only 7 days to race day.....................I just hope my equipment is race worthy and holds up.
As for my body.........I just hope the equipment holds up. So far so good.
later
jp
Today I tried to ride a few hills and it was very hard. I just don't go very fast uphill. Must be my large physical size (even though I realized this evening that I haven't been this light since shortly after high school.) Still it is a challenge to haul 188 pounds up a steep hill on a bicycle. We shall see how it goes and whether I can "hang" with the boys or just plain get hanged.
I had been toying with the idea of tweaking my brake hood and handle bar position; maybe re-wrap my bars with prettier tape. But at this point in the game I am afraid too much tinkering might cause me a problem.
Only 7 days to race day.....................I just hope my equipment is race worthy and holds up.
As for my body.........I just hope the equipment holds up. So far so good.
later
jp
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Twilight Training and Quad Cramps
As I stated in rather lengthy fashion in my previous post I did some training in Columbia, Missouri this past weekend. What I did not share was that I also went back out for more with Sarah's boyfriend Brandon.
Brandon is a Senior Journalism Major at the University of Missouri in Columbia. Besides being quite a talented writer Brandon is also a very strong mountain biker.
This time we headed East of town and found ourselves again in what I felt was pretty scary traffic. We stayed on the route though and ended up getting a pretty good workout with quite a few decent hill climbs throughout the ride. Brandon did very well I thought as his mountain bike was not designed for what we were doing.
I was glad to have Brandon along. I was surprised that we were able to get about 13 miles in before it began to get a little dark. That brought my total for the day to about 43 miles.
Man.....leg cramps really can be quite painful.
later
jp
Brandon is a Senior Journalism Major at the University of Missouri in Columbia. Besides being quite a talented writer Brandon is also a very strong mountain biker.
This time we headed East of town and found ourselves again in what I felt was pretty scary traffic. We stayed on the route though and ended up getting a pretty good workout with quite a few decent hill climbs throughout the ride. Brandon did very well I thought as his mountain bike was not designed for what we were doing.
I was glad to have Brandon along. I was surprised that we were able to get about 13 miles in before it began to get a little dark. That brought my total for the day to about 43 miles.
Man.....leg cramps really can be quite painful.
later
jp
What is ahead? Where am I going?
I traveled to Columbia, Missouri this weekend to vist my daughter and see her model in a fashion show. Interestingly enough she was modeling women's cycling apparel. She did awesome and looked great! We had a good though fairly brief visit with her as she was busy all day Saturday withthe show.
I took my bike with me at the urging of a friend and did some miles Saturday while Sarah was busy.I wrestled with whether or not to rent a bike or take mine as I am unfamiliar where good "safe" ride routes are in the area.
I set out Saturday morning after discussing a possible route with my wife Dawn. I was nervous about the traffic around town but I had to ride through it to get where I thought I might find some low traffic mileage.We had settled on a plan for me to ride a loop about the perimeter of Rock Bridge State Park.
The trip out was tricky but I made it unscathed and in spite of the road conditions I did not flat (which I fully expected to do once I saw the shulder condition of route 163) I had a pretty hefty climb just to get out of town.
Finally I broke into what appeared to be a clearing of traffic......a two lane newly paved state highway which headed toward the park. I felt uneasy because even though I had looked over the map and had the map stuffed in my jersey pocket; I wasnt sure what to expect ahead of me. Would there be poor roads? Heavy traffic again? Hills I might not be able to manage? Dogs?
Still I rode on trying to keep a good solid pace against the moderate headwind. I had worn my winter tights and long sleeve jersey over two base layers because the temp at my departure was only 43 degrees. Well...I was now beginning to seat pretty well. This was OK with me however because I will always prefer to be hot than cold. I hope it is warm on Race Day.
As I rode on I finally came to the park only to find no paved roads in the park proper. Only rout 163 which sort of skirted the outer boundaries. I decided to continue on and finally turned around after about 15 miles. It really seemed like I was about 30 miles out from town. The topography had changed and it reminded me of Colorado in a way. Rolling hills were bordered by thick woods. I had to climb a couple of pretty good hills which were very taxing and I had to drop to the small ring to maintain a fairly steady cadence up. Of course my speed dropped to about half of what I had been traveling at. I was worried about the hills going back.
At the turn around I began to get very hungry. I forgot to take any food with me. I was OK with water and just reminded myself I could stand to burn some body fat.
On the return trip I was surprised at my stamina on the last hill. Again , small ring though. The trip back through town was didey to say the least but I made it back in one piece for which I was thankful.
This ride reminded me of what I am experiencing right now with Senior Olympics.
I am prepping as best I know how. But still.....
What is ahead?
Where am I going?
jp
I took my bike with me at the urging of a friend and did some miles Saturday while Sarah was busy.I wrestled with whether or not to rent a bike or take mine as I am unfamiliar where good "safe" ride routes are in the area.
I set out Saturday morning after discussing a possible route with my wife Dawn. I was nervous about the traffic around town but I had to ride through it to get where I thought I might find some low traffic mileage.We had settled on a plan for me to ride a loop about the perimeter of Rock Bridge State Park.
The trip out was tricky but I made it unscathed and in spite of the road conditions I did not flat (which I fully expected to do once I saw the shulder condition of route 163) I had a pretty hefty climb just to get out of town.
Finally I broke into what appeared to be a clearing of traffic......a two lane newly paved state highway which headed toward the park. I felt uneasy because even though I had looked over the map and had the map stuffed in my jersey pocket; I wasnt sure what to expect ahead of me. Would there be poor roads? Heavy traffic again? Hills I might not be able to manage? Dogs?
Still I rode on trying to keep a good solid pace against the moderate headwind. I had worn my winter tights and long sleeve jersey over two base layers because the temp at my departure was only 43 degrees. Well...I was now beginning to seat pretty well. This was OK with me however because I will always prefer to be hot than cold. I hope it is warm on Race Day.
As I rode on I finally came to the park only to find no paved roads in the park proper. Only rout 163 which sort of skirted the outer boundaries. I decided to continue on and finally turned around after about 15 miles. It really seemed like I was about 30 miles out from town. The topography had changed and it reminded me of Colorado in a way. Rolling hills were bordered by thick woods. I had to climb a couple of pretty good hills which were very taxing and I had to drop to the small ring to maintain a fairly steady cadence up. Of course my speed dropped to about half of what I had been traveling at. I was worried about the hills going back.
At the turn around I began to get very hungry. I forgot to take any food with me. I was OK with water and just reminded myself I could stand to burn some body fat.
On the return trip I was surprised at my stamina on the last hill. Again , small ring though. The trip back through town was didey to say the least but I made it back in one piece for which I was thankful.
This ride reminded me of what I am experiencing right now with Senior Olympics.
I am prepping as best I know how. But still.....
What is ahead?
Where am I going?
jp
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
More............
Completed 1 hour and 36 minutes on the bike tonight. Pretty decent overall with the exception of the avg speed. Disappointing really.
I think it is the hills. I struggle there and even though I am far fitter than normal for April I feel short of power and stamina on the climbs. I know that the course will have hills.
I need to ride more hills.
jp
I think it is the hills. I struggle there and even though I am far fitter than normal for April I feel short of power and stamina on the climbs. I know that the course will have hills.
I need to ride more hills.
jp
Monday, April 12, 2010
I am getting scared.
Well I took another day off the bike again today. I am worried about that a little bit.
I know that I don't get paid to ride but I do want to be able to compete at my best in these races. I am planning to train hard tomorrow and hopefully Wednesday and Thursday as well.
I don't get paid to ride. I entered this to have fun and for the personal challenge of it................but I am getting scared.
jp
I know that I don't get paid to ride but I do want to be able to compete at my best in these races. I am planning to train hard tomorrow and hopefully Wednesday and Thursday as well.
I don't get paid to ride. I entered this to have fun and for the personal challenge of it................but I am getting scared.
jp
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)