Breaking Free - First Road Ride!

I did it :D :p :D I finally got to take Stella off onto a 13 mile loop of country roads! It was fantastic! Sure I had to walk up a hill or two, and I took advantage of a stop sign or two to stop for a few minutes and drink water as I am not about to try to drink and ride at the same time as of yet.

There were 17 mph winds that were always either cross- or head-winds, very rarely were they tail-winds. However my concerns about how to dress was unfounded, for of course I had no problem with being too cool :p One water bottle, however, was not enough. Technically it was, I ran out just as I returned to my car.

My average speed was 11.9, top speed was 22 and bottom speed was 7...remember those hills I walked :p

It took me 75 minutes to bike 13 miles, which doesn't seem too bad for a total novice :rolleyes:

I suspect that speeds, and time, would have been better without that incredible headwind - however it was fun! It was fun to look around and see the blooming trees/flowers as I cycled across the countryside.

Much to my surprise, I was NOT nervous about cars once I actually got on my bike and put it in motion. I just tried to be mindful of cars and to get over where I could so they could pass.

A lot of the pavement was quite rough, and I've not felt that vibration in my bars before because of it. It will be interesting to see how my LHT rides those same roads - though he will have aluminum bars rather than steel when I see him again.

Now off to a shower and then to get some work done!

Woohoo! Great job :)

Way to go, Catrin!!!
I'm glad it was a positive experience for you! Yippee!!:D

I'm glad it went so well! :) Sounds like you had a lovely 1st road ride.

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Originally Posted by Melissa71

I'm glad it went so well! :) Sounds like you had a lovely 1st road ride.

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Yes it was lovely, and am trying to decide what to do tomorrow :p I also like having the numbers to look at from my bike's computer - I AM a geek, after all, LOL. It adds to the fun, I certainly don't take the numbers seriously at this point. I think it is WAY cool that I was going 21 mph! Granted, that was downhill, but I will take what I can get ;)

I suspect that I will only have time to go to Eagle Creek Park tomorrow, but that is a great place to ride - a lot of people do.

One of the nice things today was to see all of the OTHER people who were riding the same roads I was! People on tandems, people riding in pairs, several asked me as I was walking up a hill if I was ok (which was nice), it was just all a lot of fun.

Now if I can just figure out how to keep my downhill momentum from dissipating while trying to shift down for the uphill stage I might be able to not have to walk quite so early :) I only had to walk 4 times, and one of those was due to a stop sign at a busy intersection that was half-way up a steep hill.

Yay! :cool: Great job!!!

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Originally Posted by Catrin

I only had to walk 4 times, and one of those was due to a stop sign at a busy intersection that was half-way up a steep hill.

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Don't feel too bad.. I did 25 miles today with Aggie_Ama and somewhere around 18-19 miles I not only had to walk up part of a hill, but then I sat down at the top and had to rest for a few minutes :p I only got up when some other cyclists who started with us but rode a longer route passed us... I felt super lame :rolleyes:

I'm blaming all the oak pollen out there right now.. between allergies and asthma it makes it really hard to get enough air.

I am trying to decide how much longer to make next Saturday's ride. Today was 13 miles, I am thinking that adding 5 miles each Saturday for a couple of weeks will be good - then we will see about adding more. I want to work my way up to at least a metric century this summer. Does that sound a reasonable pace to build a mileage base?

I don't feel bad about having to walk a little bit - I've yet to see a hill I can't walk up :o :rolleyes: :p I DO have asthma....hmmmm... I can blame it on THAT! it was more of a shifting coordination thing

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Originally Posted by Catrin

Now if I can just figure out how to keep my downhill momentum from dissipating while trying to shift down for the uphill stage I might be able to not have to walk quite so early :) I only had to walk 4 times, and one of those was due to a stop sign at a busy intersection that was half-way up a steep hill.

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Ahh, rolling hills, huh? They're my favorite (really). Cadence up as you near the end of your decent. A big gear is fine b/c as you said, the momentum will carry you up. Then as you start to slow on the uphill start gearing down.

Great job, Catrin! I hope you're proud of yourself!

You ride went better than mine. My DH and I met two friends in Columbus. I, of course, forget my shoes and don't realize it until we were there. They were great about it, so we drove back to Franklin while they did a warm up.

I was in charge of the route. It's a route CIBA has hosted in the past that we've ridden on or own a few times. I got the cue sheet off of CIBA's website, but didn't look to closely at it. It wasn't until we were a few miles in that we realized it was a different route. With a lot more hills. Well, I wasn't feeling all that great, as I'd been battling a bit of a stomach bug. Needless to say, a couple hills nearly did me in. I got off and walked one particularly long, steep section.

We finally got to the little market along the way and had some lunch. I bought some Pepto, too. We started up again, and I think all of us felt a revived. About four miles after the stop, a dog charged us from a yard with no warning. The guys were pretty bunched and the third in the line hit somebody's wheel. He went down hard.

The stupid homeowner just stood there without saying a word. My friend finally stopped writhing on the ground enough to determine that nothing was broken. Still, we thought it wise to get a ploce report.

We sat there forever waiting for the sheriff. In the meantime, the homeowner finally came out to apologize. Gee, thanks. My DH and I rode back to the car to retrieve the other two. My friend has a torn shoulder and some bruised ribs.

So, the moral of my story is that loose dogs are a real downside to riding in rural areas. I am always on the lookout for them. The minute you see ANY movement from a dog, use your loudest, sternest voice to yell "back" or "no." That usually stops them in their tracks. If you have any doubt that a dog isn't going to back off, stop and use your bike as a shield. Spray your water bottle at them. If your're with a group, be sure you yell "dog" and give the direction, i.e., "dog, right.". I usually put a little distance beteen me and my companions at that point in case one of us has to do something erratic to avoid the dog. Thankfully, my DH typically tries to shield me.

I will say that there are for fewer (hardly any) loose dogs on the northwest side of town. Down south, they are much more common.

Oh My Goodness, you did have an interesting day - I hope your friend recovers quickly and that the homeowner will finally keep the dog under control.

My friend who suggested my base route yesterday made sure I avoided another part of his route on which he is always chased by 1-3 dogs. Apparently they are quite predictable but I don't feel up to outrunning dogs yet. Thanks for your tips on dealing with dogs - my trainer tells me that splashing them with his water bottle always works - but at this point I can't get my hand off of the bars to do that...another reason to learn!

Woot! Sounds like a nice ride.

:O) good!