i got up this morning and looked at the weatherlab online. it was 29 degrees and the wind was howling along at 24mph. when i saw a gust of 27mph, i'll admit i almost went back to bed. i knew the pain i would endure. riding in the cold with that kind of wind is not fun.
well, i didn't have fun, but i rode. i got dressed as quickly as i could and headed out on the highway. i crept along, pushing against a wind bent on the complete devastation of my will. i was barely hanging onto sub-10mph speeds at times. i growled and the wind growled back.
i made it out to the base of l'alpe d'anville and turned around. the wind was not as helpful as it could have been, but at least i got a bit of a break. i wobbled home, ending my first 14 miles with a 13.5mph average speed.
after breakfast i headed out for another 10 miles. the story was much the same except the sun was out and it was a little colder - 25 degrees. i fought the wind out to the top of drouhard hill, turned around and rode back. my average climbed to 14.3mph.
the only good thing about riding today was what it did for my mileage. i only need 750.9 miles to reach my goal of 8040 miles and tomorrow the wind is predicted to be 2-3mph. i'll believe that when i see it.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
efficient, not obsessive
my wife occasionally (nearly every day) suggests (tells me in no uncertain terms) that i am a little bit (completely) obsessed with meeting my mileage goal. i don't know what she's talking about. i had almost an hour from when she left for wichita and when my EMS meeting started tonight. i took less than 10 minutes getting dressed to go out. it was 33 degrees. the wind had died down a bit. i road 10.36 miles. i was only on my bike for 36 minutes and 21 seconds. that left me more than 10 minutes to shower, post my workout to DM and get to my meeting. i have four minutes to spare. i'm not obsessive. i'm efficient! (10.36 miles @ 17.1mph)
a pilgrimage cut short
i had two goals for my ride this morning. the first, to #zapthezero, was easy. i rode down my driveway and it was done. the second, to get my miles needed to reach my goal for the year under 800 miles, was just a little harder. i nailed it too. i needed 19 miles. i got 34. another good ride or two today and tomorrow and i'll not have too much trouble reaching 8040 miles. i still have to beat Steve S. there, but that's another issue altogether.
my miles came in two out-and-back rides this morning. the first 20.05 miles were in the dark. i was blown this way and that by the atrocious wind. it was crazy slow going on the way out and not all that fast coming home.
i shed a tear or two at fisher's corner. two skunks and a possum died there. it appeared the possum was guiding his smelly companions northeastward toward sedgwick county park where the striped ones hoped to catch a glimpse of the skunk whisperer, @winston k. it's a shame their pilgrimage was cut short by a speeding semi.
this first ride ended at 6:30. my average speed was a measly 14.8mph.
the second "half" of the morning's mileage came after breakfast. another out-and-back gave me 14.02 more miles. my speed was a bit better. perhaps the sun helped warm my legs so they functioned better. i don't know.
i saw an additional road kill victim, a raccoon smashed on the side of the chicaskia river bridge. perhaps he was a scout for the skunk pilgrims. perhaps a raider seeking to do them harm. either way, he died in his prime. a critter full of vim and vigor. weep for his children, his wife, his other wife, his other children, his bowling buddies. he is no more.
i made it out and back with no problems and no surprises. my average speed gained a half mile per hour reaching a"lofty" 15.3mph. not bad for a windy winter day. (34.07 miles @ 15.3mph)
my miles came in two out-and-back rides this morning. the first 20.05 miles were in the dark. i was blown this way and that by the atrocious wind. it was crazy slow going on the way out and not all that fast coming home.
i shed a tear or two at fisher's corner. two skunks and a possum died there. it appeared the possum was guiding his smelly companions northeastward toward sedgwick county park where the striped ones hoped to catch a glimpse of the skunk whisperer, @winston k. it's a shame their pilgrimage was cut short by a speeding semi.
this first ride ended at 6:30. my average speed was a measly 14.8mph.
the second "half" of the morning's mileage came after breakfast. another out-and-back gave me 14.02 more miles. my speed was a bit better. perhaps the sun helped warm my legs so they functioned better. i don't know.
i saw an additional road kill victim, a raccoon smashed on the side of the chicaskia river bridge. perhaps he was a scout for the skunk pilgrims. perhaps a raider seeking to do them harm. either way, he died in his prime. a critter full of vim and vigor. weep for his children, his wife, his other wife, his other children, his bowling buddies. he is no more.
i made it out and back with no problems and no surprises. my average speed gained a half mile per hour reaching a"lofty" 15.3mph. not bad for a windy winter day. (34.07 miles @ 15.3mph)
Saturday, November 27, 2010
plans that go awry
i didn't wake up until almost 6:00 this morning. it took me forever to get bundled up for the cold, so i didn't have as much time as i would have liked to ride. by the time i rolled down the driveway it was nearly 6:30.
since my parents live near the top of a little hill, i decided to coast as far as i could. i made it to the other end of the housing development before i took my first pedal stroke.
leaving town, i went south today. i rode down to county road 458 and then headed west again. i had a few hills that i'd missed yesterday that i wanted to take in before we head home later today.
the greatest hill - if you're going down it - is just to the west of 1400 road on 1100 road. i flew down it, getting just over 32mph.
from there the plan was to ride in to lawrence and loop back to the house on old highway 10. my plans went awry.
when i got to 1200 road i couldn't help myself. i turned to the west and headed out to the dam. i had noticed the outlet park yesterday and wanted to see what it would be like to go that way without having to be frozen by the wind off the lake.
the trip through the park was awesome. no wind. a gradual incline. much better than the evil hill that i'd have had to climb if i went up and over the dam. i'm storing this route for future reference.
when i got through the park, i headed north toward the clinton parkway. i was going to ride it back through town and then take old highway 10 back to eudora. my plans changed again.
when i saw the bike path at the base of the hill, i decided to turn and take it back into town. i cruised along the 12" wide path, passing an occasional runner along the way. the path wound around and got me back to the hollywood theaters and highway 59. a quick cross-country maneuver and i was out on the highway and with a quick left back on the route i rode yesterday.
i shot through the baker wetlands and then across to haskell where i headed north rather than south. i climbed the hill back up to 23rd and took it east till i reached the turn off for old highway 10. from there it was a straight shot back to eudora.
i turned at the base of the hill back into eudora and rode to 14th street which i thought went all the way through to 2200. it didn't. i ended up having to zig zag my way back to 2200 using cedar, 12th, elm and 14th.
i turned south onto 2200 and a couple miles later i was back in my parents' driveway. i rolled to a stop a few minutes later than i planned, but none the worse for the wear. the extra miles will help me in my battle against Steve S. (38.16 miles @ 15.6mph)
since my parents live near the top of a little hill, i decided to coast as far as i could. i made it to the other end of the housing development before i took my first pedal stroke.
leaving town, i went south today. i rode down to county road 458 and then headed west again. i had a few hills that i'd missed yesterday that i wanted to take in before we head home later today.
the greatest hill - if you're going down it - is just to the west of 1400 road on 1100 road. i flew down it, getting just over 32mph.
from there the plan was to ride in to lawrence and loop back to the house on old highway 10. my plans went awry.
when i got to 1200 road i couldn't help myself. i turned to the west and headed out to the dam. i had noticed the outlet park yesterday and wanted to see what it would be like to go that way without having to be frozen by the wind off the lake.
the trip through the park was awesome. no wind. a gradual incline. much better than the evil hill that i'd have had to climb if i went up and over the dam. i'm storing this route for future reference.
when i got through the park, i headed north toward the clinton parkway. i was going to ride it back through town and then take old highway 10 back to eudora. my plans changed again.
when i saw the bike path at the base of the hill, i decided to turn and take it back into town. i cruised along the 12" wide path, passing an occasional runner along the way. the path wound around and got me back to the hollywood theaters and highway 59. a quick cross-country maneuver and i was out on the highway and with a quick left back on the route i rode yesterday.
i shot through the baker wetlands and then across to haskell where i headed north rather than south. i climbed the hill back up to 23rd and took it east till i reached the turn off for old highway 10. from there it was a straight shot back to eudora.
i turned at the base of the hill back into eudora and rode to 14th street which i thought went all the way through to 2200. it didn't. i ended up having to zig zag my way back to 2200 using cedar, 12th, elm and 14th.
i turned south onto 2200 and a couple miles later i was back in my parents' driveway. i rolled to a stop a few minutes later than i planned, but none the worse for the wear. the extra miles will help me in my battle against Steve S. (38.16 miles @ 15.6mph)
Friday, November 26, 2010
6.25 miles in 55'13"
everyone was fixated on the non-game (at the time) between auburn and alabama. i was tired of reading "major" by todd balf, a fascinating book about major taylor's cycling exploits in the late 1800s and early 1900s. what a great narrative. an african-american athlete ignores the racist whites of the south and breaks world record after world record. amazing story! still, i can only take so much sitting around. i had to get out and do something.
i announced my intentions to run a 10K (6.25 miles actually) and be back by 5:00. with the women away, no one batted an eye. so i pulled on a long sleeve base layer and shrugged into my GoRun wichita shirt, slipped on my shorts and shoes and headed out the door.
the first mile was a real grind. i was stiff and didn't feel all that great, but i kept going and eventually i started feeling a bit better and got my legs under me. i entered eudora from the south and turned off the main road, a busy two-lane street, onto side streets at the first opportunity.
running west past the 2-mile mark (i was at an 8:20 pace then) i turned north and then west and then north again and made my way to a final westward turn and dove down the hill on 10th street to the 3-mile mark just before turning south on 2100 road.
2100 began with a fairly steep climb back up to the west side of eudora. i ran it at a decent clip and then dealt with the rolleurs that followed. a run up and over highway 10 brought me to the 4-mile mark. i was somewhere around 35 minutes at that point. the pavement ended shortly after that and i was running on gravel.
i crossed 1300 road and continued on toward 1200. the hills started coming thick and fast and at the bottom of nearly every one of them there was a driveway that looked like a road. i'd fly to the bottom of the hill eagerly anticipating my final turn only to be disappointed. i'm serious! it happened three or four times before 1200 finally appeared out of no where.
i turned east knowing that i was on pace to finish with a time close to the PR i established in haviland at the end of october. i was pleased to be doing so well and feeling so well considering the addition of this route's hills. there were no hills in haviland!
i continued down the road at high alert. before i left the house, my dad had warned me about a couple of dogs and i didn't want to be caught by them unaware. they never materialized.
i turned north into my parents' housing development and headed up the hill to the north end of it. i was pretty sure i wasn't going to land a new PR at this point, but i figured there was no reason not to try for one. i felt strong as i climbed. i made it to the top and turned east. a little down and up and i was at the corner just north of the finish line.
i turned south and ran hard to the end. i stopped my watch at 55'13" giving me an 8'50" per mile pace. not bad. on the flats i'm sure i would have PRed had i run as strong. be that as it may be, i loved the hills that challenged. they added interest and excitement to the race against the clock.
i walked a block or two to cool down, then walked in the door a few minutes before 5:00. "you're back!" my dad said. "it's not even 5:00." gotta love that!
i announced my intentions to run a 10K (6.25 miles actually) and be back by 5:00. with the women away, no one batted an eye. so i pulled on a long sleeve base layer and shrugged into my GoRun wichita shirt, slipped on my shorts and shoes and headed out the door.
the first mile was a real grind. i was stiff and didn't feel all that great, but i kept going and eventually i started feeling a bit better and got my legs under me. i entered eudora from the south and turned off the main road, a busy two-lane street, onto side streets at the first opportunity.
running west past the 2-mile mark (i was at an 8:20 pace then) i turned north and then west and then north again and made my way to a final westward turn and dove down the hill on 10th street to the 3-mile mark just before turning south on 2100 road.
2100 began with a fairly steep climb back up to the west side of eudora. i ran it at a decent clip and then dealt with the rolleurs that followed. a run up and over highway 10 brought me to the 4-mile mark. i was somewhere around 35 minutes at that point. the pavement ended shortly after that and i was running on gravel.
i crossed 1300 road and continued on toward 1200. the hills started coming thick and fast and at the bottom of nearly every one of them there was a driveway that looked like a road. i'd fly to the bottom of the hill eagerly anticipating my final turn only to be disappointed. i'm serious! it happened three or four times before 1200 finally appeared out of no where.
i turned east knowing that i was on pace to finish with a time close to the PR i established in haviland at the end of october. i was pleased to be doing so well and feeling so well considering the addition of this route's hills. there were no hills in haviland!
i continued down the road at high alert. before i left the house, my dad had warned me about a couple of dogs and i didn't want to be caught by them unaware. they never materialized.
i turned north into my parents' housing development and headed up the hill to the north end of it. i was pretty sure i wasn't going to land a new PR at this point, but i figured there was no reason not to try for one. i felt strong as i climbed. i made it to the top and turned east. a little down and up and i was at the corner just north of the finish line.
i turned south and ran hard to the end. i stopped my watch at 55'13" giving me an 8'50" per mile pace. not bad. on the flats i'm sure i would have PRed had i run as strong. be that as it may be, i loved the hills that challenged. they added interest and excitement to the race against the clock.
i walked a block or two to cool down, then walked in the door a few minutes before 5:00. "you're back!" my dad said. "it's not even 5:00." gotta love that!
black friday
i woke up just before 5:00 this morning and realized it was black friday, the day people get up at ungodly hours to fight with other people for a tickle me elmo or a beanie baby or a care bear or whatever happens to be the "kill for" item that year. since no one else was going to do anything sensible, i decided it was up to me to balance things out a bit. the world needed a hero on a bike doing good to counteract all the evil being perpetrated at the malls of america. to quote a somewhat famous cucumber: "i am that hero!"
by the time i found all my gear and had my bike ready to go, it was about 5:10. i rolled down elm street and turned left to head toward eudora. i cruised up and over highway 10 and pulled in at the kwik shop for some gatorade and a powerbar.
my purchases secured, i headed back out on the road. i went south to eudora's main east-west road and turned west to go to lawrence on old highway 10. this highway is flat as anything between eudora and lawrence, but there are steep hills on both ends of it. i had to climb up to the top of the hill in eudora before plunging down to the flats and then i had to climb up into lawrence on 15th street. i crossed the railroad tracks just before a train came roaring through. the crossing guards came down before i reached the crest of the hill.
it was much warmer in lawrence. the buildings blocked the wind some making the "feels like" temperature a bit more bearable. i didn't know what the actual temperature was at this point, but i knew i was glad for the respite.
when i reached haskell, i turned north and rode up to 11th street before turning west again. i rode up 11th to new hampshire and turned north again. new hampshire took me to 7th which took me to kentucky which took me to 6th.
heading west on 6th i encountered what may be the longest hill i've ever climbed. it wasn't terribly steep, but it just kept going and going. i was blessed by green lights almost all the way up. there was one red light at a three-way intersection. i didn't stop. it was dark. no one was coming from any direction and the side of the intersection without a road was my side. i'm sorry beccie. i couldn't help myself. i slowed a bit if that makes it any better. i took the gutter and kept rolling upwards.
the hill ended eventually and i enjoyed a brief downhill. i was tempted by breakfast at burger king and mcdonald's, but that would mean participating in the evil of black friday. i wasn't about to spend money unnecessarily before 9:00.
i followed 6th until i reached kasold and then headed south. there was a great hill that i'd never managed to hit going down. riding up that hill is painful, so i figured down would be better than a snot-free nose on a chilly day.
before i got to the hill, i passed tam o' shanter street. from that point on all my inner conversation was spoken with a scottish accent. i said, "top o' the morning to ye," to everyone i met. that's probably poor scottish, but it's all i know so give me a wee break if ye please.
riding down the hill was marvelous. actually, marvelous hardly describes it. i sped down, down, down and banked hard into the parking lot at hyvee. i spun this way and that dodging parked cars and ended up out on highway 10 again.
following 10 took me up another nasty long hill and then i got to plunge down one again. wheeee! it was even more fun than the kasold hill and i'm really glad i decided not to ride on the bike path. about halfway down i went streaking past a runner out with his (or her) two black dogs. i'm not sure i would've seen them fast enough to avoid them had i been on the same strip of asphalt. thank God for small favors!
when i hit the bottom of the hill, i did a quick right-left and hopped on the bike path for the equal and opposite uphill. to say it was awful would be an understatement. it wasn't as long as the hill i climbed on 6th, but it was steeper. i growled and dug deep and made it up and over the top.
i spun around the traffic circle at the top and then rode up to the clinton lake state park road. since my road teed there, i turned south and headed down toward the dam. i'd ridden across the dam earlier in the year while scouting the kansas ironman 70.3 bike route for my dailymile friends and i wanted to do it again.
turns out that was one of my less fortunate decisions. the wind off the lac (i'm still thinking scottish here) was cold! the wind was from the west and as it crossed the water it picked up speed and dropped a degree or two. brrrrr! my fingers which had been fine to this point started to ache a bit. i had to flex them over and over to keep the blood flowing.
as soon as i was across the wind and out of the wind, i had to climb the stupid hill that leaves that dam and climbs up and around a bend before diving back down to the land beneath the lake. the climb was not fun. the dive was a blast.
i got to the bottom of the hill and turned right. before i'd ridden a mile, i realized i'd turned the wrong way. i recognized the wakarusa school on the east side of the road - that's where i dropped a water bottle at full speed on a group ride last spring - so i turned around in the parking lot and headed back toward lawrence.
i was thankful for the break from hills that the road i was on gave me. it was mostly flat back to highway 59.
reaching the highway, i decided to turn north toward town and then sneak around the south side of town past the baker wetlands. i zigged and zagged and then turned south on what would have been haskell had i gone north. this road is one of my favorites. it passes along the river's wetlands and then passes through a series of rolleurs before reaching county road 458, my route back to eudora.
i sped across the flats and took the rolleurs in stride. i rolled on to 458 and then turned east. there were a few long, fairly shallow hills on the county's thuroughfare and a short steep hill or two and then nothing. a short flat section and then a left turn onto church street and a couple of miles back into eudora.
when i reached my parents' housing development, i spun around the outside edges completing my loop without using the same section of road twice. the thermometer read 20 degrees! no wonder my fingers and toes were numb.
the world is back in balance now. it is after 9:00. i shall shower and then - *gulp* - shop. grrrr! (43.60 miles @ 14.9mph)
by the time i found all my gear and had my bike ready to go, it was about 5:10. i rolled down elm street and turned left to head toward eudora. i cruised up and over highway 10 and pulled in at the kwik shop for some gatorade and a powerbar.
my purchases secured, i headed back out on the road. i went south to eudora's main east-west road and turned west to go to lawrence on old highway 10. this highway is flat as anything between eudora and lawrence, but there are steep hills on both ends of it. i had to climb up to the top of the hill in eudora before plunging down to the flats and then i had to climb up into lawrence on 15th street. i crossed the railroad tracks just before a train came roaring through. the crossing guards came down before i reached the crest of the hill.
it was much warmer in lawrence. the buildings blocked the wind some making the "feels like" temperature a bit more bearable. i didn't know what the actual temperature was at this point, but i knew i was glad for the respite.
when i reached haskell, i turned north and rode up to 11th street before turning west again. i rode up 11th to new hampshire and turned north again. new hampshire took me to 7th which took me to kentucky which took me to 6th.
heading west on 6th i encountered what may be the longest hill i've ever climbed. it wasn't terribly steep, but it just kept going and going. i was blessed by green lights almost all the way up. there was one red light at a three-way intersection. i didn't stop. it was dark. no one was coming from any direction and the side of the intersection without a road was my side. i'm sorry beccie. i couldn't help myself. i slowed a bit if that makes it any better. i took the gutter and kept rolling upwards.
the hill ended eventually and i enjoyed a brief downhill. i was tempted by breakfast at burger king and mcdonald's, but that would mean participating in the evil of black friday. i wasn't about to spend money unnecessarily before 9:00.
i followed 6th until i reached kasold and then headed south. there was a great hill that i'd never managed to hit going down. riding up that hill is painful, so i figured down would be better than a snot-free nose on a chilly day.
before i got to the hill, i passed tam o' shanter street. from that point on all my inner conversation was spoken with a scottish accent. i said, "top o' the morning to ye," to everyone i met. that's probably poor scottish, but it's all i know so give me a wee break if ye please.
riding down the hill was marvelous. actually, marvelous hardly describes it. i sped down, down, down and banked hard into the parking lot at hyvee. i spun this way and that dodging parked cars and ended up out on highway 10 again.
following 10 took me up another nasty long hill and then i got to plunge down one again. wheeee! it was even more fun than the kasold hill and i'm really glad i decided not to ride on the bike path. about halfway down i went streaking past a runner out with his (or her) two black dogs. i'm not sure i would've seen them fast enough to avoid them had i been on the same strip of asphalt. thank God for small favors!
when i hit the bottom of the hill, i did a quick right-left and hopped on the bike path for the equal and opposite uphill. to say it was awful would be an understatement. it wasn't as long as the hill i climbed on 6th, but it was steeper. i growled and dug deep and made it up and over the top.
i spun around the traffic circle at the top and then rode up to the clinton lake state park road. since my road teed there, i turned south and headed down toward the dam. i'd ridden across the dam earlier in the year while scouting the kansas ironman 70.3 bike route for my dailymile friends and i wanted to do it again.
turns out that was one of my less fortunate decisions. the wind off the lac (i'm still thinking scottish here) was cold! the wind was from the west and as it crossed the water it picked up speed and dropped a degree or two. brrrrr! my fingers which had been fine to this point started to ache a bit. i had to flex them over and over to keep the blood flowing.
as soon as i was across the wind and out of the wind, i had to climb the stupid hill that leaves that dam and climbs up and around a bend before diving back down to the land beneath the lake. the climb was not fun. the dive was a blast.
i got to the bottom of the hill and turned right. before i'd ridden a mile, i realized i'd turned the wrong way. i recognized the wakarusa school on the east side of the road - that's where i dropped a water bottle at full speed on a group ride last spring - so i turned around in the parking lot and headed back toward lawrence.
i was thankful for the break from hills that the road i was on gave me. it was mostly flat back to highway 59.
reaching the highway, i decided to turn north toward town and then sneak around the south side of town past the baker wetlands. i zigged and zagged and then turned south on what would have been haskell had i gone north. this road is one of my favorites. it passes along the river's wetlands and then passes through a series of rolleurs before reaching county road 458, my route back to eudora.
i sped across the flats and took the rolleurs in stride. i rolled on to 458 and then turned east. there were a few long, fairly shallow hills on the county's thuroughfare and a short steep hill or two and then nothing. a short flat section and then a left turn onto church street and a couple of miles back into eudora.
when i reached my parents' housing development, i spun around the outside edges completing my loop without using the same section of road twice. the thermometer read 20 degrees! no wonder my fingers and toes were numb.
the world is back in balance now. it is after 9:00. i shall shower and then - *gulp* - shop. grrrr! (43.60 miles @ 14.9mph)
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