Weak 20-Miler / New Baseline

[pancom]

I got out for a 20-miler yesterday afternoon, in 90+° heat, after mowing the lawn and repacking the camping gear, and running on a sleep debt. The numbers don't show it, but unlike last week this ride was all open road; no puttering around on narrow little mixed-use trails. I'm going to consider these numbers my new training baseline (as in, the

Comments

[janh1]

Those stats don't seem bad to me. I can't imagine cycling in that heat, though.

A mere nuisance headwind on yesterday's ride caused my numbers to nosedive a bit - but there was a satisfying ache in my thighs for the rest of the evening, so it must have been some kind of workout.

[pancom]

Around here in the summer, you ride in the heat or you ride in the dark (or you don't ride at all). Back when I was really training in '07, I remember heading out for a pre-dawn ride at 5:00 am, and it was 80° and humid. Our nights are getting cooler this time of year though, and I'm thinking I may take a dawn patrol tomorrow morning and see if I can pump those numbers up a bit.

It really is amazing how much a headwind can slow you down - and the inverse, how much a tailwind can turbocharge you. It does make sense though, when you consider how much of a road bike's total resistance is aerodynamic and how little is road friction.

Here's to the satisfying ache in the thighs. 'Tis a good feeling.

[mamapeanut]

But the question is do you wave at my neighborhood when you ride by? :)

[pancom]

Of course I do! And this last time there was even someone there, waiting to turn left out of Peach Orchard. She could have made the turn with plenty of time before I got to the intersection, but instead she waited for me to pass. That always gets a friendly wave from me!

Funny thing about LJ notifications and Gmail...at first I thought that question was from janh1, who lives in England. It was kind of a surreal moment … though I do like the idea of being able to hop on my bike and magically teleport to the English countryside.