We (my brother and I) did a metric last Saturday in Camden, the Tour de Camden, which was a fundraiser for the local Habitat for Humanity and an organization that cares for retired racehorses. Camden is the Steeplechase Capital of South Carolina, they take their horses pretty seriously!
A couple of weeks ago we were out preparing for this, had some goals such as 1)finish in a timely manner, and 2)not stop at all; well, turns out my brother bumped my back wheel and went down pretty hard. He's been nursing what's probably a broken rib since then and it's had him in no small amount of pain. He's not one to let things slow him down too much, so we rolled!
Because he was injured, he had some difficulty breathing deeply and could not ride his ride. He is significantly lighter and faster than I, though I am working on that, and would probably average 19-20mph on this course. Instead, we rode together and pulled each other through and finished with a 17.3mph average. For me, that is good. Lately, I have been working to improve my average speed and have been seeing 17mph pretty consistently.
I was please with myself, finished a metric in 3:37, only stopping twice, once to shed water and once to take on water. Right now, everything I ride is considered by me to be a training exercise for 2010 Assault on Mt. Mitchell. I want to make it to the top on May 17th, and getting up there is only part of the equation; I have to make the cutoff at the Hwy 80 and Parkway juncture. That means getting the first 86 miles out of the way as quickly as possible. And then still having the legs to finish. God help me.
No matter what though, I want to enjoy my riding. If I can't enjoy it, then to me it is pointless.
Be blessed, be safe.
No comments:
Post a Comment