Basic_B

I’ve got a few days of leave time accrued to me at work that I’m trying to burn off before the end of the fiscal year, so I took Friday off.

One of my cycling buddies (Scott N.) was talking about doing a fairly substantial ride on Saturday so I wanted to get a few miles in my legs on Friday so that I didn’t get caught off guard. Not precisely a warm-up, but I do find that a ride on the first day can lead to a better ride on the second. As long as you don’t burn out on the first.

Anyway, I did a windy 15 miles with a 14.8 mph average speed. Not too much, but enough to let my legs know they might get called upon to work.

On Saturday I met Scott at SouthWest Park, which I had not yet checked out. I guess it only opened late last summer sometime. I cycle all around those roads, but I usually ride right past the one that is the way to the park. It’s good to know it’s there. They’ve got a nice restroom facility and water-fountains and a vending machine and so forth…just in case I ever get caught out in that area…like in a thunderstorm or with a mechanical problem or something.

So, Scott and I hit the road at a little before 12:30. It was a very nice day—sunshine and temperature in the 50’s. There was a little bit of a gusty wind, which I hoped would die down, but no worries other than that. I was wearing some of my winter gear, but not the full kit. Boy I can’t wait for warmer weather to ditch all the extra articles of gear.

There’s not a whole lot to recount about the ride itself, I guess. After approximately 17 miles we made it to the bottom of Caraway mountain which was our goal. It’s not a huge mountain, but from a cycling standpoint it’s got a nice sustained uphill grade for a little over a mile which makes it a good early season test. There may be other roads that branch off from it where you could continue the climb even further, but our stopping point is about a mile and a quarter up, and then it plateaus for a time.

Scott had a specific training regimen in mind for himself that involved doing multiple trips up the mountain. I just wanted to get some miles in. So I only did two ascents, and he did three. My first trip up took about eight minutes (avg 9.2 mph), and the second trip took almost nine (avg 8.7 mph). These figures are according to my Garmin cycling computer. There could be a little fuzziness around the edges if I didn’t push the lap button at exactly the same spot.

After the second lap up, I knew I was done. There was still the ride home which would be plenty hilly enough for me, I knew. Plus I was concerned that the headwind would be a bigger factor on the return route. I waited at the top, and ate some fig newtons, while Scott did his third lap up the mountain.

On the return I saw a hawk, and what I think was an eagle perched atop a telephone pole. And yes, the headwind was worse on the return.

At the end of the ride I had a total distance just over 41 miles and an average of only 14.3 mph. The fastest speed I hit during the ride on a good long straight descent was 38.3 mph. That was fun.

Overall, while I can’t say the average speed of the ride makes me happy, it is still early in the season. Speed increases quickly as soon as it starts to get warmer, and my climbing legs will come back quickly as soon as I start riding my commuting bike into work again.

Today, the day I usually get my riding in, I rest. I feel good about the mileage I’ve gotten in the past two days.

Back from a short ride on the single-speed. My original plan for going out on my new Fuji were squashed when I realized I hadn’t dried all my cycling clothing from the washing. So I got to work on finishing that bit of laundry this morning, and then shifted gears to take a shorter ride on the fixie.

I only went out for about 12 miles, but it was harsh—not from temperature, although it was a little chilly too, but from wind. I discovered, to my chagrin, that the longest and steepest hill on the route I chose was also headed directly into a terrible headwind. I think it’s the first time that I ever seriously considered walking my bike up that hill. I didn’t though. I made it, with my head down and just focusing on turning the pedals over.

At the end of things, given the wind, it’s probably a good thing that I took a short and hard ride, as opposed to having tried to do a longer one. I might have found myself in a spot of bother out on the rode and far from home.

We’ve had a very pleasant warm snap this weekend. I just got back from a bike ride and the conditions were sunny and around sixty degrees. I did about 29 miles, I think. I haven’t really looked at the stats yet from the computer.

I did stop one time to try and get some photos of some unbelievably cute baby goats, but they trotted off down the hillside when I got near. I’ll have to try again on a future ride if I’m over on that road, and there’s a good chance. Anyway, don’t expect baby goats for my photo of the day today. I don’t know what I’m going to do about that yet.

For now I’m just cooling off and jotting of this entry. See ya later.

79/365: first ride

Originally uploaded by BasicB

79/365
The first ride on my new bike—Fuji Team Pro 2009. This is at around 10 miles in, just a random corner with a convenient street sign for leaning against.

I did almost 24 miles, and averaged 14.7. That average is kind of sad, but I haven’t been riding hardly at all over the winter. Now with the new bike I’ll have to break that habit and put on the serious miles again, and the average will go back up as will ride distance.

I’m really impressed by the ride quality of this bike compared with my previous one. This is way smoother. It’s a carbon frame instead of aluminum. All the components are higher quality as well so everything just works smoother, faster, better…like shifting and braking. I think I’m going to have lots of good rides on this bike. The saddle may be the only thing that I’ll think about swapping out and sticking with the one I’ve been using.

It’s a beautiful North Carolina Sunday morning outside right now, and I just returned from my bike ride.

No particular roadside attractions to report other than some goats who talked to me as I rode past. I did notice a lot of construction equipment gathering alongside Groometown Road, and also the accumulation of large stacks of pipes and drainage control materials. I’m guessing that means I might need to watch out riding along that road in the near future, it might get messy with construction.

The stats this morning are 23.87 miles, averaging 15.8 mph. I was out for about exactly an hour and a half, and my max speed during the ride was 30.2 mph. All in all a fairly average sort of outing, but it was nice to be out and about.