Recovery ride - Sunday, 29 May

Today the KSR went on the Atlanta Beltline Loop, which was simultaneously neat and frustrating.

Neat: got to see parts of Atlanta I didn't know existed (sometimes a good thing)
Frustrating: like any intown ride, there were lots of stops and turns.

In the end, I'm glad I went, but it isn't a route I would want to do often. We had some new-to-me cyclists on the ride, and lunch after was a lot of fun. Good folks, all of them.

Stats:

Maximum speed: 28.7 mph
Average speed: 10.8 mph
Distance: 30.39 mi
Time: 2.46.59

The bike was being a bitch again, so I've resolved to take it to the shop after payday this week. I refuse to have a pissy bike in Fletcher for the big day. My legs were tired and tight still, but that made the necessarily slow pace more tolerable.

Training ride - Saturday, 28 May

Today was an unofficial GTR for the Fletcher team, as the Tahoe team shipped their bikes yesterday. Seven of us showed up and rode a half today at Silk Sheets, and it was, in the end, a good ride. Our two stops were at Roscoe's store, which we pass at mile 16 and 30, so it was a good day to practice self-support.

Stats:

Maximum speed: 32.8 mph
Average speed: 15.0 mph
Distance: 49.63 mi
Time: 3.16.27

That's not bad, I think it's the fastest I've ridden Silk Sheets this season. This surprises me, because I thought that today's ride sucked. The entire freaking time. From the beginning, my quads were dead. I thought maybe I would work it out after warming up, but such was not the case. At the end of the ride, walking up the stairs to my apartment, my legs hurt: the muscles above my knees (quads, I guess) felt as if someone had taken a bat and hit me across the legs. I seriously just feel dead. I didn't ride last weekend, and all week I've totaled maybe 15 miles before today. I don't know if it was the swimming on Wednesday, the decrease in riding, or the riding of the Fuji and not the Felt. Whatever it was, I felt the whole ride as if I had already blown it out over 50 miles. just dead tired. I was incredibly surprised at the numbers.

Thanks to A and C, especially, for sufficiently distracting me such that I didn't pay attention to the length of the ride.

Weekday ride - Thursday, 19 May

I didn't feel great tonight. I didn't work too hard the first loop, and the second time around my legs felt like lead, though I did at least try. A and I also almost got taken out by a hawk, on the second time in the switchbacks. Like, it was less than a foot away.

What's with the real life angry birds?

Stats:
Maximum speed: 28.5 mph
Average speed: 14.4 mph
Distance: 20.34 mi
Time: 1.24.33

Waaaaay slower than I've been doing this ride. Just was not feeling it.

Recovery ride - Sunday, 15 May

Today I broke from the usual Sunday program and rode in the inaugural Sandy Springs Bike and Brunch, coordinated by C. He asked the team to come out and support newer riders and to generate a larger presence, both for TNT and for cycling.

I rode the longer, hillier 20 mile loop with L and C. We all busted our balls yesterday and wanted to take it nice and easy, which we did.

Stats:
Maximum speed: 40.2 mph
Average speed: 11.9 mph
Distance: 22.16 mi
Time: 1.50.34

Note: that max was achieved by gravity alone: I did not pedal at all on the way down, I merely tucked. It is a screamingly fast hill, and I loved it.

Training Ride - Saturday, 15 May

Rather than our usual GTR, today we rode the Up the Creek Without a Pedal (metric) Century in Rome, GA. It was amazing: the support and SAG were great, the route was fast and pretty and safe and well-marked and police-blocked, the food was fantastic, and it was just generally incredibly well-organized. The free massage at the end was welcomed, too.


I rode mostly with D, D, and J, and we really put the hammer down. We averaged 18.4 by the first SAG (which we skipped), and then 17.7 by the second. Rolling into the finish, I achieved a PR. Like EVER ever. I can't believe I estimated (admittedly conservatively) a 5-6 hour completion time.

Stats:

Maximum speed: 36.8 mph
Average speed: 17.0 mph
Distance: 60.00 mi
Time: 3.30.59

The precision in those numbers blows my mind. And, had we been riding in a pace line and not 2x2, we really could have done some damage. I had a truly fabulous time with the guys, and am sad that they aren't doing Fletcher with me. The weather started off cool (mid-sixties), drizzled exactly the right amount, and then the cloud cover broke about half and hour or so from the end. The one drawback was the continuing problem with my front derailleur, which is, of course, my own fault for not having fixed it yet. I intend to do that very soon, certainly before Fletcher, and I hope before next weekend. Really a GREAT ride.

Weekday ride - Thursday, 12 May

I was surprised at this ride for two reasons:
1. That I actually went
2. That I felt so good

After a bit too much celebrating my nearing 40, in the form of an extra shot of jaeger, I showed up no worse for wear for the Brookhaven loops like the trooper I am. I wasnt sure I would want to do two full loops, or even one, but I manned up and went out.

I started the ride slowly enough, but when I turned off of Windsor into whatever the hell name of the rough road, I picked up steam and realized that I felt GREAT and that two loops were in order.

The first five mile jaunt still had a slow average, of 14.8 or something, but I found my legs and stomach and brought that up to something more respectable by the end. I just felt really good. And, of course, having V there was incredibly helpful.

Stats:

Maximum speed: 29.6 mph
Average speed: 15.2 mph
Distance: 20.37 mi
Time: 1.19.48

Weekday ride - Tuesday, 10 May

Tonight I went to Buckhead to ride hills. The only other person to show up was G, and he very patiently waited at all of the turns for me.

My legs felt like rubber going to and from school, and I felt no better getting there. I was pleased that the hills weren't as bad as I expected, which isn't to say I wasn't super pokey: it just could have been a lot worse. And, the stats weren't as bad as I expected, either.

Stats:

Maximum speed: 35.9 mph
Average speed: 14.5 mph
Distance: 17.68 mi
Time: 1.12.46

I won't lie, I started counting down the miles starting around mile 5. Gotta keep doing it until I stop hating it. It's gonna be a while.

Recovery ride - Sunday, 8 May

Today we rode to Stone Mountain again, and again I decided to skip out on the loop around. I could have done it, and probably should have done it, and I'm kicking myself for not having done it, but it is what it is. I'll just have to do it next week, no two ways about it.

We really took our time going out and back, and it was nice.

Maximum speed: I'm guessing 27ish... more on that in a moment.
Average speed: 12.4 mph
Distance: 27.25 mi
Time: 2.13.00

I figured out the mystery of the wild stats... if the cyclocomputer gets too close to my laptop (or, maybe, the phone too), it hears the wireless signal and goes nuts. Lesson learned... wireless computer aren't so amazing afterall. Annoyance!

Training ride - Saturday, 7 May

Today was a long ride, both in distance and in time. We ride 70 miles at Silk Sheets, which is getting a little old. It was a toughie. I didn't sweep, but I did ride in the back today. As always, the ladies there were a joy and a pleasure. It was pretty enjoyable until about mile 63 or so, when D bonked and got sick, at which point we pulled over and waited for SAG to get her. That half hour wait, plus another at the SAG for the last two riders out, killed my legs and momentum.

Still, it was a good ride, and I had a great time riding up and back with new and different people today.

Stats:
Maximum speed: my computer says 101.7 mph, which I suspect is incorrect. I think it registered the wheel spinning on the car or something.

Average speed: 14.1 mph
Distance: 71.3 mi
Time: 5.03.08

After the ride, we had a picnic for (different) D, who just had a clean PET scan and has beaten his cancer. Much the same way I beat him up hills. It's all positive.

I do wish I would pick non-picnic days to have to finish so much later than everyone else.

Weekday ride - Thursday, 5 May

Tonight was just a really good ride. My legs and arms were hungry by the end (fatigue), but I felt good the whole time. Started out feeling like I was positively flying, and it didn't seem like the speed matched the sensation. Oh, but it did. I did two loops, because once on the bike, I just felt amazing.

Stats:
Maximum speed: 30.1 mph
Average speed: 15.4 mph
Distance: 20.19 mi
Time: 1.18.40

So good ride. When I get to the end of rides like this, I wonder if, since I feel so good, if I should have pushed it harder. If I'm finishing with energy at the end, that means I could have used more earlier on. I don't know, but I often feel like a slacker when I come in feeling better than expected.

Still, a good ride.

Recovery Ride - Sunday, 1 May

It's May! It's May, the lusty month of May!

And what a glorious May Day it has been! We rode out to Stone Mountain and back, happily foregoing the loop around, for a pretty mellow recovery ride. After yesterday's lumps, the relative smoothness of today's ride along the path was quite welcome. V and I promised not to push it, and then she took off on the ride back. I was very tired, and so I did *not* push it at all.

Stats:

Maximum speed: 31.7 mph
Average speed: 12.4 mph
Distance: 28.36 mi
Time: 2.16.16

It was a great ride and still a lovely day. I love May!