28 March 2009

Back on the tRAINer today, I think my neighbor is building an ark. It's been raining for a couple of days now, hopefully will clear out overnight tonight. I want to get some road time in tomorrow afternoon, even though it's supposed to be REALLY windy.
Watched the first hour of MIB II while doing some slogging. That's my term for what I do now: five minute intervals, first in an easier though still resistant gear at about 80-85rpm, then in the hardest gear I have just powering it out best as I can (40ish rpm). It really feels like climbing hwy. 80. Now I am going to a fish fry to get my calories back; it's a fundraiser for a 12-year-old boy with brain cancer. No one should have to struggle up a hill like that one. Pray for Chase.
Be blessed, and be safe.

27 March 2009

If I am not careful, I could fall short of this month's mileage goal. I am currently 146.76 miles shy of my 510 mile goal, with only four days left in the month. Looks like rain tomorrow (Saturday), becoming nice and sunny on Sunday but really windy. I guess wind just helps the workout, right?
Knocked out a few miles on the trainer today, nearly 25, while watching Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones in "Men in Black." I like these guys and it's an entertaining flick, so pedaling for an hour and a half wasn't too bad.
Talked with my brother today and got some good ideas for some hardware changes for my bike. See, this past Saturday when we were riding in the mountains, I did not have any kind of a low gear where I could keep a decent cadence. I was pedaling in the 40-50 rpm range and could not find my rhythm. I am a heavy guy and I am trying to lose weight (and slowly succeeding) but best case scenario says I will still be well over 200 pounds in May for the Assault. So, while I continue to seek to lose the lard, I need to think about bike mods in order to climb the hills to Mt. Mitchell. Currently, my large sprocket on the rear cassette is a 27 and the small chainring is a 30; I don't know if I can find a larger sprocket that will not max out the reach of the rear derailleur, like the 30 I have on my old 9-speed. We are thinking perhaps I can go with smaller chainrings to give me a better gear combination. I'll talk to my personal expert and see what I can work out. No matter what happens, I will get to the top.
Be blessed, be safe.

24 March 2009

I would much rather be outside on my bike any (above 50 degree) day, enjoying the sunshine and breeze. When that's not possible, for whatever reason, I go to my bike cave. It's a corner in my garage where I have my old aluminum bike set up on a trainer, in front of the TV, which has a built-in DVD player. Pop in a movie, or turn on Versus, and I am good to go. That's what I did today for 16+ miles. But because of my ride in the mountains the other day, I kept the bike in the highest gear I could stand for every other 5 minute period. It was a pretty good imitation of what I felt climbing up highway 80 to the Blue Ridge Parkway. I think doing this once a week in addition to my other riding workouts should help me get up the mountain. At least I hope so.
Be blessed, be safe.

23 March 2009

Wow, Saturday's ride in the mountains was such a butt-kicker I thought it'd be a while before I wanted to get back on the bike; not so. Yesterday (Sunday) afternoon I jumped on my off-road bike, which I mounted street tires on, and just tooled around a couple of close neighborhoods, a little over six miles and nearly an hour to do it. Just wanted to loosen up the old engines. Felt good.
That set me up today to attempt a metric century (100k = 63 miles). I was ready to go. I am taking a little more of a scientific approach to all this, calculating how many calories I'll need, and figuring out hydration/nutrition, etc., etc., etc. I mixed up my bottles and my gels and got the car loaded, but got a late start due to some unforeseen circumstances at the house. Finally got on the bike about 4pm, and off I went.
I live in a beautiful part of South Carolina; Lexington is big enough to have all you need, close enough to Columbia for those times that it doesn't, and it doesn't take long to "go rural." Farmland and forests are close enough that you can be there in a few minutes. There's climbing to be done, but not mountainous. Just rolling hills with the occasional flat stretch, where you can hammer your heart out and forget that you're not the breakaway and Lance and the others are far behind you. In the two short years I have been roadcycling, I have left much unseen litter along the highways; cobwebs, stressors, worries, all fall off when I am out there, and die a lonely death in the ditches. RIP.
I ran out of time and could not finish my metric before the sun started sinking so I called it a day, a good day, and headed home. Ended up with 43.6 miles, tired but satisfied. I was happy to get home, where my family is always waiting for me. Dinner was on the stove (spaghetti and meatballs!), and soon my behind was in my chair, relaxing. My family is a huge support to me, a big encouragement. They put up with me being gone on my bike, not all the time, just at some inconvenient times, and cheer me on. They know this is all and investment in my health and well-being.
The Assault on Mt. Mitchell is a mere 55 days away, so it's important that I ride, a lot. If I had to do it today, I don't think I could. So I am glad I don't have to. The climbing I did on Saturday, I will have to do again for Mitchell, but AFTER I have ridden nearly 75 miles. It is tough, but very satisfying. Less than a month after Mitchell, I will ride in the Tour de Cure, not a race, but a ride to raise awareness and funds for diabetes research. It'll be a metric in the Dutch Fork area, near Chapin, SC. I have a website for that which I am updating and will write more about it later.
Did I mention I was at my doctor's today? Turns out I have bronchitis. He checked me out, prescribed antibiotics, and off I went to Publix' pharmacy. Left there and went home to prep for my ride; don't let anything get between you and your goals except God, who knows way more than we do and loves us beyond reason. If He is between you and your goal, question the goal, not God.
Be blessed, be safe.

22 March 2009

Well, where does one start? At the beginning, of course. I took several days off this past week because I knew my brother and I were going to Marion, NC to ride the last (hardest!) leg of the Assault on Mt. Mitchell, which is in 57 days! What better way to train for the ride than to do the ride, right?
We left early yesterday morning after a good Cracker Barrel breakfast, and got to Marion about 11am. The weather was beautiful but cool, it's still a little early in the year to be riding on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Took the car up the mountain to take a look around and to talk strategy; even the car when up the hill groaning! Finally, we turned around and headed back to Marion to get started. This area has some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever enjoyed, especially around Lake Tahoma. Sorry I didn't get photos to post, it's hard to think about photography when you're hacking up a lung.
About 8 miles up Hwy. 80 is where the road turns up and the climbing begins. Lately, I have been trying to focus on my cadence and riding at a higher RPM, but that didn't last once the climbing started. I quickly ran out of gear and had to start working. My quads were on fire, and I don't mean that in a good way.
I was happy with the progress I had made since last year, I was able to reach the Parkway in an hour and a half; I think it took me two and a half, last year. I was hurting, though, my cadence had been as low as into the 40's and I couldn't find my rhythm. Still, I pressed on.
It was a good bit cooler on the Parkway, and the climbing had not let up much. Speeds were at 5 to 7 mph, giving plenty of time to take in some of the awesome scenery. Toughed it out best as I could, but finally had to call it a day about two miles from the entrance to Mt. Mitchell State Park; my leg were toast, and the temperature had dropped to 40 degrees with a wind chill of 32.3 degrees. Not good at all when you're sweaty from climbing.
Rested a little while in the grass beside the road, listening to icicles fall from the rock face across the road. Many, many cars passed by, but only one stopped to ask the fat guy laid out beside the road if he was okay. Our world is not as friendly as it once was. But to the young couple in the Camry, I would say "thanks."
After trying to no avail to warm a little in the sun, I decided to point my bike back down the mountain. My brother had returned after a similar experience of freezing, and off we went. You would think that going down was better, but 40 degrees at speeds up to 40mph is just painful. We were glad that after a mile or so, we had to climb back up a two mile grade. It was wonderful to be warm again. Didn't last, though, it was soon time to roll again. Down the mountain we went, like bats out of hell. Fortunately, the lower we got, the warmer the air got, and soon we were back in Marion.
We had climbed just over 5000 feet, saw speeds up to 40mph, and enjoyed God's beautiful Blue Ridge mountains. No one got hurt, best of all. My bike is dirty and I think I have an upper respiratory infection. I'll need to be better soon so I can go back in two weeks. Thank you Lord, for a fantastic day in your sunshine.
Be blessed, be safe.

15 March 2009

Got up this morning planning on a long, "take it easy, just get some miles in" ride on the trainer. Pop in a movie and pedal for a couple of hours before heading off to church. Huh-uh. Not how it happened. I made it an hour, but I couldn't get my heart rate up, couldn't keep my cadence up, just felt weak. I feel like my energy stores are empty, nothing on the shelves at all. I need to look more seriously at how and what I am eating if I am to succeed on Mt. Mitchell. Right now I am in need of my own "great escape" in order to get my endurance up to snuff.
Be blessed, be safe.

13 March 2009

Just a quick post today, not much time. Didn't ride yesterday, too tired, so I took the day off and took my son to get something fun to drink from Books-A-Million and to get his haircut. So today I got back on to finish watching "A Bridge Too Far." That's a long movie, about three hours. Good, but sad. Turns out I only had fifteen minutes to go, so I turned to the History Channel to see a part of a documentary on WWII in the Pacific. Riding along and at about 45 minutes, all of a sudden it got a lot easier to pedal- I had blown a tire. I guess it's the weird contact patch of a trainer that's really hard on the drive tire. Oh well, I'll fix it tomorrow and throw in another movie.
Be blessed, be safe.