weekend rides - the fable of the turtle and the hare

[Biciclista]

My husband marks all our rides on the calendar. and there it was; P4 on Saturday the 2nd. Some of you know I am doing a P12 this year, that means 12 permanents of 100k or about 63 miles, once a month, for a year. And yesterday I finished my 4th one.

Permanents are pre-planned routes with checkpoints (buying a candy bar at a minimart for example, and getting a receipt) to show where you were and when you were there.
Here in Seattle, we got over an inch of rain on Friday. It rained so intensely that sometimes a cloud just descended on Boeing field while I nervously watched out the window.
Before it was light on Saturday we were up, me with this great foreboding of doom, I knew I would be incredibly miserable if it rained all day on our ride. But as the sky grew light, I noticed the pavement was dry-ish. I donned an array of wool clothing, and covered myself with my Showers Pass Elite jacket, sidi bike shoes and booties.
There were about a dozen riders and most of them are hardened veterans of tough long rides. My husband let me know in no uncertain terms that I would probably only see their backsides and only at the beginning of the ride.
The ride started at 9am and everyone else was still drinking coffee and chit chatting. I was ready to go. My DH was running the ride; he said "Go ahead and leave Mimi, we'll catch up" So I hopped on my trusty Cavalletta and headed north on the Burke Gilman trail. Less than a mile later, my friends started catching up with me, and soon, I was at the tail end of the ride.

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/208989_1861283244372_1009659155_32157820_6433939_n.jpg
(here I am still close to the other riders)

After a bathroom stop, I found myself close to some of the other riders, and with great bursts of energy, I was able to stick to them for a while.
Eventually, totally out of breath and legs burning, I slowed down, the headwind was just killing me. I have a lot of trouble in pacelines, I don't have depth perception and it is really scary to be that close to other bikes.
It's a good way to conserve energy on windy days; but alas, I was on my own.. At every rest stop, I ate, used facilities, filled waterbottles, got receipts and got back on my bike. At the halfway point, people sat down and had lunch. Several riders took off their helmets and relaxed, while I stood and ate my peanutbutter sandwich. No sitting for me, I was doing enough of that on the bike.
For the second quarter of the ride, DH positioned himself in front of me, like a carrot, riding a very steady pace of about 14 or 15 miles an hour. I could never quite keep up with him, but it kept me pushing much harder than I felt like doing, particularly in the wind.
Finally we got to the turn around point, and we had some wind at our backs. I noticed that the ground was wet, that our window of dry weather was coming to an end. I sped down the road at speeds close to 20mph, it was lovely. But my legs were starting to hurt, I knew that when we turned the bend that headwind was going to sock me. the rain started in fits, and sometimes came down hard, or just spit at us. Encased in two layers of wool, I got wet, but as long as I was moving, it was fine.
the last quarter of the ride was just pain to me. My neck hurt, my arms hurt, my lower back complained, my legs and my knees hurt. the tailwind deserted me and I honestly don't know if I had a headwind or not, but 12 mph became my new stick to point. I watched as my DH disappeared around a bend ahead of me and took a moment to stop and move all those body parts for a minute.
Usually the last 5 miles of a ride are an exultation. Joy, relief, satisfaction. This time they seemed to go on forever and ever, I wanted to cry because my legs ached. I was riding the BK trail, so very familiar to me, so I knew right where I was at least. Finally we were done. Oh, i was so ready to get off the bike. I couldn't even walk fast. I trudged through the supermarket and went to their bathroom. I realized that I might be a little low on fuel.
I got back to the coffeeshop, where all the faster riders were, and discovered that they had not all come in yet! SLOW and STEADY got me in before several riders! Although I did not make a public display, I knew my strategies were working. we finished in 5 hours and 29 minutes!

I leave you with these thoughts:
A rider needs to continue to push themself
It is important to know your own limitations. (I would be a fool to think I could ever be the gal who finished first)
Slow and steady might not win the race, but it will leave you with a respectable finish time.

[redrhodie]

Excellent report! 4 down. You're getting there. Is that you at the back, in the Italian flag colors? Love that jersey.

I just commuted yesterday, and did a short ride this morning. 25 mph winds here, too.

[Biciclista]

yes, that's my back end with the Italian colors!

[lauraelmore1033]

Boy, we finished our ride at Magnusun park just as the rain started, so I saw how miserable that must have been. It was terrible driving home in that rain, I can't imagine having to continue riding in it! Hopefully the weather will improve for your next one! You are one strong lady.:cool:

[azfiddle]

Way to go! I think you're doing an amazing job with the P12!
And good advice.
Sharon

[Crankin]

The philosophy of the turtle and the hair always wins for me.
Good job, in horrible conditions. I would have been fighting my inner demons to ride through rain like that.

[lph]

Oooh, nice. I recognized your backside right away, Mimi, and I've never even met you! :D

Great story.

[Biciclista]

LPH!!! LOL!!

hey am I the ONLY one that rode??

[AppleTree]

LPH!!! LOL!!

hey am I the ONLY one that rode??

Oh, no...I was also out in our "on again, off again" convergence zone yesterday. It was sunny when I left the house, 10 minutes later it started raining. I thought...no.... I am desperate to keep riding, I am going to keep on. 15 minutes later the sun came out... 20 minutes later...well, you get the idea. Less then 15 miles, but still got to ride. Today we are doing a 40 mile ride on the Centennial Trail. Need to get some serious miles in before the STP, but our weather has NOT been cooperating one little bit. :(

I did have a personal best though yesterday. Two flats in one day! :rolleyes: The first I noticed when I got home and was washing my bike off. The other after I rode to the bike shop to get it fixed and came home...flat AGAIN. Stupid little stinkin' piece of glass. Just bad luck...they did give me the 2nd tube for free at least. Rats.

Ride on!!

[Catrin]

LPH!!! LOL!!

hey am I the ONLY one that rode??

I rode! In a fashion, that is :eek: :o Winds were high yesterday afternoon but couldn't resist warm temps and sun...winds were FAR too strong for me though - at least in the wind-swept cornfields. As soon as I hit my first cross-wind I knew I was out of my depth and changed my route to get back to my car. Wind even pushed me into the other lane! Almost 30 minutes in the wind, and another 45 in a wind-protected nature preserve park.

You were awesome! I know how good it must have felt to know you weren't the last one in!

[malkin]

Way to go and Hooray for Turtles!

[Biciclista]

I rode! In a fashion, that is :eek: :o Winds were high yesterday afternoon but couldn't resist warm temps and sun...winds were FAR too strong for me though - at least in the wind-swept cornfields. As soon as I hit my first cross-wind I knew I was out of my depth and changed my route to get back to my car. Wind even pushed me into the other lane! Almost 30 minutes in the wind, and another 45 in a wind-protected nature preserve park.

You were awesome! I know how good it must have felt to know you weren't the last one in!

wow, that's scary wind!

[Catrin]

wow, that's scary wind!

I do not know what the wind gusts were yesterday - but they forecast 22mph winds. Today they are forecasting wind gusts of 45 mph :eek: There was a male cyclist who passed me who seemed to be suffering far less. However he was bigger/heavier than I so perhaps that helps? I am quite sure that my riding position does work against me in a headwind though, but that is life :)

My 'pre-church' ride this morning was quite tame in comparison - though I had a lot more clothes on!

[ladyicon]

What a great ride report !!!! I did 20 miles in a headwind with big gusts, it was also cold and cloudy. This was my first ride with my new Specialized carbon pro shoes, and of course new cleats. I am very sore today, I guess new cleats were not adjusted properly.:(

[azfiddle]

I rode 31.5 miles yesterday with my DH. My daughter drove out to meet me at the farmer's market. My husband is still dealing with the after effects of his car-assisted bike incident and is riding his mountain bike to put less stress on his arm but I'm sure it was too much, too soon Normally, I am the tortoise, and he is the hare- no matter what he's riding- road bike, folding bike, or mountain bike, so I knew that he really had over exerted himself it when I repeatedly dropped him....and waited for him to catch up.

When we rode the 8 mile loop road through Saguaro National Park, we met a group of 30 cyclists from Quebec- they certainly got a warm welcome as it was headed for an unseasonably high temp in the 90's

This morning I just did a solo ride of 19 miles.

[mariacycle]

(((Biciclista))) I loved reading the story of your ride and feel so inspired :) Congratulations on your fourth such ride and I can't wait to hear about #5-#12!! By the way, DH sounds like a great riding partner :)

[Crankin]

Yesterday I did 16 miles around Hanscom AFB and back, in the same winds everyone else is having. At one point, on the way back we got behind a very large couple who were going slower than us and we used them as a wind shield until we got near Concord center. But, overall, the ride was good and speed was good for those conditions.
Today I felt I had to do a long ride. I thought it would be less windy, but it felt worse, maybe because we were riding right into it for about 20 miles and the we had some nice gusts, even when we were riding in a tailwind. The goal was to ride to our favorite hill in Harvard, sort of a benchmark for me at various parts of the season. Too bad DH decided to take a somewhat circuitous route, which involved some nasty hills before we actually got to the hill we set out to do. It's not the worst hill in Harvard, and that was fine, as I went up it like a snail, compared to usual. But, right before we went up the hill, I had to pee really badly, and there's no place to stop, so I went into the woods, and I discovered I had no tissue, so I had to get creative... by this time I wanted to turn around and go home, but we soldiered on.
It was really sunny and warm (55 F), but I was not feeling it today; probably because I rode 36.5 miles with 1724 feet of climbing and my longest previous ride so far was only 25.5. So much for building up gradually. But, I got that out of the way.

[Biciclista]

I rode 31.5 miles yesterday with my DH. My daughter drove out to meet me at the farmer's market. My husband is still dealing with the after effects of his car-assisted bike incident and is riding his mountain bike to put less stress on his arm but I'm sure it was too much, too soon Normally, I am the tortoise, and he is the hare- no matter what he's riding- road bike, folding bike, or mountain bike, so I knew that he really had over exerted himself it when I repeatedly dropped him....and waited for him to catch up.

When we rode the 8 mile loop road through Saguaro National Park, we met a group of 30 cyclists from Quebec- they certainly got a warm welcome as it was headed for an unseasonably high temp in the 90's

This morning I just did a solo ride of 19 miles.

ah poor guy. At least he's trying.

[azfiddle]

Yeah- I think the thing he was most bummed about was losing his attempt to get the perfect commute year with the bike journal commuters. He was riding to work again 3 weeks after the accident and long before he got an okay from the doctor. (but then, you probably know about that obsession at your house, too....

[Biciclista]

uh yeah, I most certainly do. I'm used to it, but I think when my DH talks to other people they think he's nuts..

[nscrbug]

WOW...that trail in your pic looks absolutely WONDERFUL!! I could only WISH for such a lovely trail like that around here. Great report!

Linda

[kfergos]

Had an excellent vigorous ride yesterday. We rode to Snoqualmie Falls, and then on the way back got lost because of having to avoid flooded roads near Carnation.

I ended up with 73.8 miles and about 4800 feet of climbing. Averaged about 16.4 mph, but the last five or so miles the leaders picked up the pace and we were zipping along somewhere around 22 to 24 mph -- pretty speedy for me!

It was overcast the whole time and we got drizzled on a bit, but mostly we all just got totally filthy from the wet roads because nobody brought fenders (forecast was for partly sunny). Overall a fun ride.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5252/5588538391_80a41a1eb3_o.jpg

[Biciclista]

Nice photo of you, what's up with the white ribbon?
and what do you mean no one "brought" fenders?? (LOL, mine live on my bike)
I was wondering how cyclists were faring with all the flooding up there. glad you finished with a smile!

I know what you mean about the grime, I cleaned my bike yesterday because it looked disgusting and discovered not only grime, but a slow leaking tire which might have been why the last 1/3 of my ride on Saturday was so tough. (Ya think?)

[kfergos]

Nice photo of you, what's up with the white ribbon?
and what do you mean no one "brought" fenders?? (LOL, mine live on my bike)
I was wondering how cyclists were faring with all the flooding up there. glad you finished with a smile!

I know what you mean about the grime, I cleaned my bike yesterday because it looked disgusting and discovered not only grime, but a slow leaking tire which might have been why the last 1/3 of my ride on Saturday was so tough. (Ya think?)
The white ribbon is reflective. I wear it for four reasons:
1. To identify me to motorists. If you're a driver, all bicyclists look pretty much the same. But if you see me with my ribbons once, and then see me again later, you'll know it's me. My theory is that connection -- "Oh, it's the same person I saw earlier!" -- changes me from Just Another Darn Bicyclist Slowing Me Down to a human being.
2. To be eye-catching and reflective when I ride in the dark.
3. To be pretty. :)
4. To be a wind sock so I always know which way the wind is coming from.

"Brought fenders" - This group is a fast-paced group that tends to have those race blade fenders you can snap on and off real quick. They only put those fenders on when the roads are wet. If it's really rainy, we'll all bring our rain bikes that have permanent fenders with buddy flaps. I have permanent fenders on my commuting bike, but on Lucy (the Fast Bike shown in this picture), I just use a rear race blade. Except yesterday I didn't.

We rode through a fair bit of water up there. I was unaware of the flooding until we got to a sign that said "Road closed due to flooding." We rode through anyway and some places the water was low enough to ride through; other places, we had to reroute. I can't imagine what's happening up there today with more rain!

[Biciclista]

The white ribbon is reflective. I wear it for four reasons:
1. To identify me to motorists. If you're a driver, all bicyclists look pretty much the same. But if you see me with my ribbons once, and then see me again later, you'll know it's me. My theory is that connection -- "Oh, it's the same person I saw earlier!" -- changes me from Just Another Darn Bicyclist Slowing Me Down to a human being.
2. To be eye-catching and reflective when I ride in the dark.
3. To be pretty. :)
4. To be a wind sock so I always know which way the wind is coming from.


what a great idea!! I'll be looking for you. :D:D

[Biciclista]

btw; On our Saturday ride we were on the B-G trail and there was a sign that said "ROAD CLOSED" and like true cyclists everywhere, we ignored the sign and rode on until we came to a mudslide.. I guess they meant it.
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/206921_1861282084343_1009659155_32157815_2734886_n.jpg

[Velocivixen]

Mimi, I loved reading this, and it gives me such inspiration! Especially as a "neighbor" just south of you I feel sort of a rain based kinship. I admire your use of strategy to beat some of your faster competitors! Nicely done. I am in my "infancy" of riding, so your story gives me hope!
Happy riding.

[lph]

Kfergos, I like the ribbon! And it is pretty :)

[Blueberry]

Went for a ride yesterday - it's crazy-windy here again now (with strong thunderstorms coming later - ugh!). Trying to get some climbing in since I'm 11 weeks from a major climbing event. Set a new max heart rate (I thought I knew my max - apparently it's not my max - don't know if what I hit yesterday was or not). Beautiful day, though - but riding now means cleaning the bikes of pollen....

[Blueberry]

@kfergos - Love the ribbon! Where did you find it? Lovely bike too:)

[Bike Writer]

Rock On! What a great story of endurance, you're a rock. It sure gives inspiration.

What a cool story about the ribbon too! Neat idea.

[kfergos]

Feel free to copy the ribbon idea! I got the ribbon from Seattle Fabrics (http://www.seattlefabrics.com/). It cost maybe $3, and I think it was about 1 yard.

I get lots of comments on it when I'm out on the road. :p Some guys tease me, but more think it's a neat idea once I explain it.