yesterday i took care of the details that made this morning's long ride possible. i begged off on the 7:00 swim team practice and had a fellow EMT cover for me from 4:00-6:00. i woke at 4:20 and drug myself out of bed by 4:30. i honestly didn't feel like getting on a bike this morning, but i had "work" to do. with 45.08 miles to go to my year's goal of 4020 miles, i had miles to go and no time to sleep.
i didn't want to blow up and have to cut my ride short, so i started off pretty easy. my first five miles or so were under 16mph. i saw a deer and a raccoon along side the road. they turned and ran back into the trees when they saw me. probably saved the deer's life since there was a truck coming the other direction.
when i reached milan road, i felt better and my legs were warm, so i picked up the pace a bit. a mile or two later, i was briefly accompanited by one of eric m's friends, an elanoides forficatus. at least that's what i think it was. the crazy bird flew about 10-15 feet ahead of me and only about 3-4 feet above my head. a truck passed going the other direction and scared it off. glad the nutty thing wasn't in the mood to attack. they're nasty things sometimes.
as i rode closer and closer to wellington, i felt better and better. i was able to push my average up and over 17mph long before i reached the bridge the crosses sand creek and enters the city.
my ride through the city was pretty uneventful. i had to stop briefly at two of highway 160's six traffic lights. two in a row, of course. i passed by wal-mart and rode up and over the railroad overpass then passed the toll booths for the kansas turnpike. i rode on just a bit further so that i would have a full 50 miles at ride's end.
i turned around at countryside and headed back toward home. the wind was at my back, so my pace was considerably higher. as i rode through wellington, i only dipped below 20mph a few times.
the ride back was pretty unremarkable. i rode above 18mph almost the entire way. on the flats and going down hill i seldom dropped below 20mph. on the way down nine mile hill i hit 35.8mph with just a little harder effort. about five miles from home my average finally reached 18mph.
i got back to town and my odometer read just a little under 50 miles, so i did a little extra riding. i turned south on main, rode to boys street, followed it around to bryana and then came back up main to walnut where i turned east back to pine and home.
so i did it. my bike log now says that i've ridden 4026.60 miles this year. never thought i'd pass my goal this early. time to make it higher i guess. but that can wait for a day or two. i've got to revel in the glory of this accomplishment for a little bit. (51.68 miles @ 18.2mph)
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
praying for green
it was a bit chilly this morning. at the beginning of my ride i almost wished i'd taken the time to put my tights and jacket on. mind you, 65 isn't anything compared to 32, but it feels brisk after last night's 86 degree ride.
the best part of this recovery ride came on the return trip. there's a construction zone on the east side of danville and a traffic light controlling passage over l'alpe d'anville. i was a bit concerned about this crossing since the sensors aren't touchy enough to notice a bike and the one lane open is really narrow. i didn't want to meet a truck head on, so i was sure i'd be sitting there for twenty minutes waiting on a car to trip the trigger.
some of you will think i'm crazy, but i prayed about that light several times after i crossed the bridge going west. i didn't have a lot of extra time, so i needed a green light when i came back.
as i approached danville, a car went buzzing passed me. too early i thought. he'll get to the light and it'll turn green then back to red before i get there. i kept pedaling. i saw his brake lights come on. he stopped. the light stayed red. i kept pedaling. as i passed the last street, the light was still red. just as i was about to brake behind the car, the light turned green. the driver signaled for me to go around him and i rode up and over l'alpe d'anville with a kind driver blocking traffic from behind. how cool is that?
God cares about the little things in our lives. i don't know why He chose to turn that light green but doesn't always heal sickness, but i know He cares and i'm grateful this morning for a little glimpse of His grace. (23.88 miles @ 16.6mph)
the best part of this recovery ride came on the return trip. there's a construction zone on the east side of danville and a traffic light controlling passage over l'alpe d'anville. i was a bit concerned about this crossing since the sensors aren't touchy enough to notice a bike and the one lane open is really narrow. i didn't want to meet a truck head on, so i was sure i'd be sitting there for twenty minutes waiting on a car to trip the trigger.
some of you will think i'm crazy, but i prayed about that light several times after i crossed the bridge going west. i didn't have a lot of extra time, so i needed a green light when i came back.
as i approached danville, a car went buzzing passed me. too early i thought. he'll get to the light and it'll turn green then back to red before i get there. i kept pedaling. i saw his brake lights come on. he stopped. the light stayed red. i kept pedaling. as i passed the last street, the light was still red. just as i was about to brake behind the car, the light turned green. the driver signaled for me to go around him and i rode up and over l'alpe d'anville with a kind driver blocking traffic from behind. how cool is that?
God cares about the little things in our lives. i don't know why He chose to turn that light green but doesn't always heal sickness, but i know He cares and i'm grateful this morning for a little glimpse of His grace. (23.88 miles @ 16.6mph)
Monday, June 28, 2010
hammering in the heat
my second ride of the day was a bit more intense than this morning's. the heat was up - 86 now as compared to 67 then. the wind was stronger. the humidity more of a factor. still, i hammered it. i rode out a mile further before turning around and made the round trip in just a little over three minutes longer than this morning's two-miles-less ride. fun stuff! (12.21 miles @ 19.3mph)
waking late
i overslept (for me) a bit this morning. i woke with a start at 5:55. late! i dressed quickly and rolled down my driveway at 6:02. i pushed myself a bit and got up to speed quickly. riding east, i wanted 11 miles to bring me within 80 miles of this year's goal, but i ran out of time. i had to turn around at milan road and sprint back. i cleaned up and made it to swim team practice only five minutes late. i plan to ride another 10 miles or so this evening before my ems class. hope that can happen. (10.21 miles @ 17.9mph)
Saturday, June 26, 2010
ball diamand and two
my family and i rode down to the ball diamond to get burgers and watch a little softball. sadly, argonia's little leaguers lost 10-12 to kiowa.
when the game was over, i did two laps around town before it got dark. the wind was atrocious going south. slowed me way down. it was enjoyable. i stopped in and picked up some ice cream at argonia mart before coming home. the chocolate hit the spot post ride.
just over 90 miles to reach 4020 miles for the year. don't know if i'll get it before the end of the month. (7.49 miles @ 11.5mph)
when the game was over, i did two laps around town before it got dark. the wind was atrocious going south. slowed me way down. it was enjoyable. i stopped in and picked up some ice cream at argonia mart before coming home. the chocolate hit the spot post ride.
just over 90 miles to reach 4020 miles for the year. don't know if i'll get it before the end of the month. (7.49 miles @ 11.5mph)
to belle plaine
i got up early this morning and loaded up the van with swim meet stuff - food, drinks, chairs, clothes to change into, etc. i put everything together and then loaded myself on my bike around 5:00. at that time it was 72 degrees with a light south-south-east wind around 6mph.
i turned on my lights and headed out on the highway. i ramped up my effort slowly until i reached my cruising speed after two or three miles. with the wind slightly in my face, i was able to ride at 16-18mph most of the way to the turn at anson road.
i rounded the corner just as the sun was peeking over the horizon and headed north. the wind helped me up and over 20mph. i was able to bring my average speed up to 18.5mph by the time i reached the turn onto parallel road. i saw one car on anson road and one dog in anson. that was the extent of the excitement for that stretch of back road.
on parallel, also called 90th, the wind was back in my face, but i was able to keep my pace up a little higher. maybe i was warmed up more. maybe i was more awake. not sure why i was able to ride faster than the first thirteen miles in the same direction. i saw three more cars and two dogs before hopping onto the short stretch of highway 81 i had to navigate.
when i pulled onto 81, i got nervous. the traffic volume jumped up a bit and the space between me and cars hurtling down the road got smaller. i hugged the white line and hoped everyone could see me.
when 81 curved northward, i kept my front wheel pointed straight ahead and rolled onto highway 55. i was pleased to see a good wide shoulder after the miles on 81 with next to nothing to ride on. i had forgotten that lane-width margin was there. yippee! i was passed by a couple of people on our swim team while i was speeding merrily along. crossing the railroad tracks, i climbed the little hill into belle plaine and rolled the few blocks to the pool. i arrived there about thirty minutes earlier than i had planned, so i had no clean clothes to change into. thankfully, spandex isn't an uncommon sight at a swimming competition. a lady talked with me for a bit about riding. her husband rides from clearwater down to argonia at times. i need to meet him at the next meet. maybe we can find time to ride together.
my wife and kids arrived around 7:00 with our stuff. after unloading the car, i showered quickly (they had no hot water) and got to the coaches meeting a minute or two late. our head coach and the 8 and under coach were there on time, so my brief absence wasn't a big deal.
the meet started around 8:00. our team did well. even with 13 swimmers out for ball tournaments or sickness, we placed our usual second overall. my daughters placed in all their events. my youngest had a first ever first place finish. her smooth strokes and powerful kick put her atop the podium in the 11-12 age group 50m backstroke!
we stopped for a picnic in wellington on the way home. i took a short nap and i'm staying in now. it's 96 degrees! yikes! may go watch some little league softball later this evening. that's always good for a few laughs. (34.82 miles @ 18.9mph)
i turned on my lights and headed out on the highway. i ramped up my effort slowly until i reached my cruising speed after two or three miles. with the wind slightly in my face, i was able to ride at 16-18mph most of the way to the turn at anson road.
i rounded the corner just as the sun was peeking over the horizon and headed north. the wind helped me up and over 20mph. i was able to bring my average speed up to 18.5mph by the time i reached the turn onto parallel road. i saw one car on anson road and one dog in anson. that was the extent of the excitement for that stretch of back road.
on parallel, also called 90th, the wind was back in my face, but i was able to keep my pace up a little higher. maybe i was warmed up more. maybe i was more awake. not sure why i was able to ride faster than the first thirteen miles in the same direction. i saw three more cars and two dogs before hopping onto the short stretch of highway 81 i had to navigate.
when i pulled onto 81, i got nervous. the traffic volume jumped up a bit and the space between me and cars hurtling down the road got smaller. i hugged the white line and hoped everyone could see me.
when 81 curved northward, i kept my front wheel pointed straight ahead and rolled onto highway 55. i was pleased to see a good wide shoulder after the miles on 81 with next to nothing to ride on. i had forgotten that lane-width margin was there. yippee! i was passed by a couple of people on our swim team while i was speeding merrily along. crossing the railroad tracks, i climbed the little hill into belle plaine and rolled the few blocks to the pool. i arrived there about thirty minutes earlier than i had planned, so i had no clean clothes to change into. thankfully, spandex isn't an uncommon sight at a swimming competition. a lady talked with me for a bit about riding. her husband rides from clearwater down to argonia at times. i need to meet him at the next meet. maybe we can find time to ride together.
my wife and kids arrived around 7:00 with our stuff. after unloading the car, i showered quickly (they had no hot water) and got to the coaches meeting a minute or two late. our head coach and the 8 and under coach were there on time, so my brief absence wasn't a big deal.
the meet started around 8:00. our team did well. even with 13 swimmers out for ball tournaments or sickness, we placed our usual second overall. my daughters placed in all their events. my youngest had a first ever first place finish. her smooth strokes and powerful kick put her atop the podium in the 11-12 age group 50m backstroke!
we stopped for a picnic in wellington on the way home. i took a short nap and i'm staying in now. it's 96 degrees! yikes! may go watch some little league softball later this evening. that's always good for a few laughs. (34.82 miles @ 18.9mph)
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