October 22 Ride Reports

I've commited myself to doing the Iron Girl Columbia Triathlon next August so today I went and rode the bike route. It's only 17.5 miles but it averages more climbing per mile than anything I've been doing. They call it "challenging". It was around 45 degrees and cloudy and my quads felt tight the whole ride. The route definitely had some challenging hills but I was able to get up them in granny gear (when necessary) and never got close to feeling like I was going to have to stop and walk. I finished in 1' 15" for an average speed of 14.2mph. Not so bad for a first try. I'm finding it hard to imagine what it will be like to do it after a swim.

(It was also my first ride going commando :D )

I haven't done any serious off-roading since a nasty crash in the summer of 2005, but today I was hankering for something different than my usual road rides. I took "Wo Fat", my '84 Kuwahara MTB on a steep, twisty rough 30km
(18mile) ride through Thetis Lake Park, and via several other twisty tracks back home. It was lovely! But I'd forgotten how hot and steamy it can be in the rainforest, even on a cool 15C (59F) fall day. Working hard but moving slow, no wind and no airflow to keep one cool, so I was just drenched and dehydrated by the time I got home. Still, it was so nice to get out into the woods again! No crashes, either. :cool:

Did a quick 12mi loop in pouring rain. Felt great being out despite the weather. And my new knickers and fleece jersey kept me comfortably warm the whole way. And now I'm off to do a bit of TE shopping. Need more winter gear so I'll be ordering one or two items and passing on a wish list to Duck on Wheels in case she needs suggestions for Christmas...

We did our first century ride today. Felt pretty good the whole ride. Never felt like I wouldn't be able to finish. It wasn't a big event, just a ride put on by our club. 17 riders showed up and there was a support vehicle, if anyone needed it. Ride time was just over 6 hours for an average of 16.4 mph. Still feeling good, but we'll see how I feel tomorrow.

Kerry

Good luck with the IronGirl next summer, MDHillSlug! That's a great goal.
I know several folks who have done it. I told them I'd love to do it, if I ran or swam! I'm kind of a one act show, here.
I don't have a ride of my own to report here today - I went to church today to say a prayer for my dad, gone 3 years this tuesday, and then spent the rest of the a.m. planting daffodil bulbs. Between yesterday and today, I think I put about 150-200 in the ground! I already can't wait for Spring, even tho' I just got some new ski pants from REI for the winter! :rolleyes:
I did want to report on my DH's ride today, however. He recently upgraded the bottom linkage on his mtb - an '03 Klein Palomino Race. The frame design is the Maverick 7, and it's very highly regarded as a do-anything dual suspension trail bike. However, in order to keep the price reasonable, Klein spec'ed a rear triangle linkage using bushings, versus the bearings that Maverick (and Seven) uses. Maverick recently developed a retro-fit kit for the Kleins, and DH jumped at the chance to eliminate the problems that the bushings pose (namely, a squirrely back end and some maintenance issues).
Night and day, he said. He's been on a total high from his ride today. He's been grinning ear-to-ear. A very happy-Zen day for him in the woods with a buddy of his. He said he couldn't believe the stuff he cleared today (and seeing the scrape on his knee, I didn't want to know what he was doing!) and was totally happy with the bike's - and his - performance.
Now he wants me to do the same to MY Klein Palomino. I'm hesitant, as it would make the bike the most expensive bike I never ride. I'd like to get back in the woods. Maybe this winter, if we don't get any snow, we'll take the mtb's out a bit.
...maybe...

It turns out the doc was right--once the acute inflammation has had a week to diminish, you sure can ride with a broken toe. Mr. Salsa and I did a 48-mile tandem ride on an absolutely stellar autumn day. My, I'm SO much happier now.

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Originally Posted by Regina

Good luck with the IronGirl next summer, MDHillSlug! That's a great goal.
I know several folks who have done it. I told them I'd love to do it, if I ran or swam! I'm kind of a one act show, here.

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As of this moment I could say the same thing about myself. I'll do my first run on Tuesday, the first in over 25 years. I know how to swim, but not sufficiently for the Tri at this time. Luckily, I have 10 months to train. I'll either be seeking a coach or I'll take some sort of "perfect your stroke" class at the local aquatics center.

Congrats Kerrybelle!

This was the weekend of "it is supposed to be X miles". Today we went for a long ride following a route from the Austin Cycling Association- Longhorn Cavern ride. It is *supposed* to be 52 miles but we missed a turn. Ended up having to ride uphill for a constant 9 miles on a highway with a small shoulder. :eek: It is a fairly quiet highway, but it did not do a thing for my nerves.

The first half of the ride was amazing. It had a lot of climbs, a few very fun descents, a castle, cows, white tail deer and a wonderful view of Inks Lake. Why don't I have a camera to take on these rides?? The post wrong turn ride was frustrating. It really killed the second half of our ride because we were sweating making it to the car by dark.

Overall our ride ended up being 58.7 miles, 13.7 mph :o and wayyy to long. I want to do the ride again with the right turn!

I already posted about this in the noob forum, but I'll mention it here, too. I rode for the first time after the bike meets car incident I had at the end of August. Man, two plus months of depression and illness takes a lot out of a girl. I only made it for about 11 minutes and rode just under a mile. It was cold out - time to make that jacket!

Congrats, Kerrybelle, on your 1st century. And to HipGnosis6 for getting on the bike again.

I ended up doing a 24 mile loop Sunday. DH came along because he's been traveling and eating too much and not exercising. Leave it to me, I take him up the biggest hill I know, and then have to slow down and finally stop before he can catch up. Every hill he'd get behind and I'd have to slow down for the next 1/2 mile (but slowing on the hill? nope, can't do that). Anyway, nice ride, nice weather, nice scenery. Good to be out.

MDHillSlug, I did a ride in Columbia a couple weeks ago with a friend. We started at APL and I was told that part of our route was on the Columbia Triathlon course (is there more than one?). They kept talking about this one hill, and when we got there and were 2/3 of the way up, I asked my friend when it was going to get steep. She just scowled at me. They'd built it up so much that I was expecting worse. Besides, we came at it straight, and the triathlon course makes a left turn into it right at the start of the hill, so the triathlon riders have to do it with no starting momentum.

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Originally Posted by DebW

MDHillSlug, I did a ride in Columbia a couple weeks ago with a friend. We started at APL and I was told that part of our route was on the Columbia Triathlon course (is there more than one?). They kept talking about this one hill, and when we got there and were 2/3 of the way up, I asked my friend when it was going to get steep. She just scowled at me. They'd built it up so much that I was expecting worse. Besides, we came at it straight, and the triathlon course makes a left turn into it right at the start of the hill, so the triathlon riders have to do it with no starting momentum.

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I think there are two, the Iron Girl Columbia Triathlon (1K swim, 17.5 mile bike, 3.3 mile run) and the Columbia Triathlon (1.5K swim, 41K ride, 10K run). I'm doing the Iron Girl. I've seen both route maps and there's a little bit of overlap. If you can tell me what road your hill was on I can tell you which route it was.

md... good luck on the training! Climbing is such great training...

Kerrybelle, BIG CONGRATS on completing your century... and FAST too! :eek: :D way to go...

HipG... way to go getting back on the bike... good for you...

I rode my 4th ride since returning after 3 months off due to surgery... did 28.3miles and felt pretty good... thru the flats I really pushed and was maintaining 18-19mph...whooo, did I feel it! My legs are coming back, but I can tell I'm gonna have to suffer to get there... LOL. A few more rides to just get some base miles back in my legs and I'll start hitting the climbs again... :)

Just wanted to post a link to the castle we saw on our ride. It is gorgeous and so random for Texas!! :D

http://www.falkensteincastle.com/

We were climbing a nice steady grade at a much improved speed over the beginning of the season, another guy hooked up to us and while BF went off a bit, I managed to keep him behind me (hehehe) and heard him puffing a bit.
Having someone breathing down my neck I worked harder.

He split around a field and came back on the next incline where I hooked up to his rear wheel and did not let go...
He was at least 30 pounds heavier than me or my BF and on a pricey Colnago. So much for that. He sweated profusely when we arrived on top to start a chat.

There's Ms. competitive showing.

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Originally Posted by Aggie_Ama

Just wanted to post a link to the castle we saw on our ride. It is gorgeous and so random for Texas!! :D

http://www.falkensteincastle.com/

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Wow! That's beautiful. Is there a history to that castle?