May Rides

[MarieV]

We've been lucky with unusually warm and dry weather here in the PNW, so I've been bike commuting and doing more 100 km rides on the weekends. DH and I did my favorite Maltby-Granite Falls 100K ride last weekend, and I matched my fastest time on a 100K ride. I guess all the bike commuting, which involves uphill climbs both ways, is finally paying off. Yesterday, we did the Seattle Lakes and Trails 100K, which got kind of crazy since there must have been hundreds of riders going in the opposite direction on the Burke-Gilman and Sammamish River Trails doing the Haul Ash bike ride commemorating the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens.

[Jolt]

Just got back from a 4-day tour with a friend...we started in Augusta, rode to Camden (about 45 miles) and camped in a state park there that night and the next (the second day was spent in the local area there, taking it easy), then the next day we rode 10 miles to Rockland, got on the ferry to Vinalhaven (one of the islands off the coast) and rode about 10 miles there before taking the ferry back and then riding to Rockport where we camped last night. Then today we rode back to Augusta, another 45-mile day which felt like it was mostly uphill (there was also a bit of a headwind for parts of it). Today was the hardest day...between the elevation/headwind and the fact that I think I waited a little too long to eat something and was probably in the beginnings of a bonk about halfway through; the rest of the ride after that just felt a lot harder than it should have. Despite the "off" day today it was a great trip and I hope to do more trips like that. Trying to figure out where I can pare down the weight of my load a bit, since that will make the climbing a little easier.

[Dragonfly5]

Sounds like a great trip Jolt!

[marni]

I actually got out on my bike for the second time this month. It has been a battle between constant wind, thunder, lightning and wind and riding. I opt for safety and trainer workouts. Our yard has become a swamplett of 3-5 inches of standing water. The frogs and toad are happy and the heron checks it out now and then, but the dogs (corgie, and mixed shitzu) have requested either stilts of a raft.

Today was hot and humid with a brisk little breeze but at least there was no rain. The humidity made up for that. Now starts the season of sweat rings on the floor of the garage. I took off my sweat band, held it out and watches the sweat run off it. Still I managed 34 miles at 15.2 which is very fast for me. Gues the trainer intervals or the adreniline surge from finally being outside helped. With any luck, tomorrow will stay dry long enough for me to ride again so I can do a back to back. Fingers crossed!

[Helene2013]

Isn't it a great feeling Marni when you realize all the hard work done on trainer is a real payoff when we get our bikes out?

This weekend we were in the Burlington (VT) area for camping and picking up my Crux frame. So of course we brought our road bikes along.

It was the 2nd but 1st real ride since my husband crashed in his club. He's improving but still in physio. He says only the 1st 30 minutes are rougher on the saddle but after he's good.

So we left Colchester and headed to Burlington using the bike path. It was soooo much fun that we asked for a late checkout yesterday to redo a bit of spinning the wheels. BUT!!! yesterday was so windy and so hot and so humid. HATED that. We left the campground and did about .5km, on a hill to start. Not even warmed up. I was already sweating just dressing up...imagine cycling. haha Did I tell you I hate heat. I'm such a lost case with the sun and the heat. lol Anyway, after cycling about 5km I was warmed-up enough and did no longer feel the burning/stinging in my thighs (from the ride the day before). I'm not used to a lot of hills so this weekend was all that. And to top it off, yesterday winds were gusting at about 45km/h. That is a lot for me. But I was never scared (like it I would have been with my ex-Kuota). We ended doing 30km and it was just enough for a 2nd day in a row in harder conditions than I'm used to.

So very happy that I've worked hard at intervalls and simulate hills during my winter training. Although it was hard, I never felt like quitting or getting off my bike to finish that climb. Maybe it is also a combination of having lost 8 pounds that helped too. Oh...and my knees never once cried for mercy while pushing to get to the top of the hills. They were tired, but that's about it. So my synvisc is working for sure. I would not have done that last year without icing them and taking Aleve once in the car. Life is good!

My speed Sunday was excellent. Yesterday I was a bit slower due to "pain", winds pushing me back.

But it was one of my best cycling weekends ever.

[marni]

I got out again for a second ride today. Not as long or as fast, definitely had some better tail winds than I thought yesterday as I can't believe that I am actually showing some improvement. I always sya I could go fast like Lance on a steep downhill with a good tailwind.

25 miles at 14.8 which is more like my average speed.

As hot as and if possible more humid than yesterday. I obviously need to move a basket of beach towels out to the garage to mop up with and the sweat circles on the floor are now turning into major large wet areas. sigh......

[Crankin]

I went out alone around 10:00 AM, with the idea of doing about 20-25 miles, combining some local roads in a new way.
Good thing I didn't. I sneezed a bunch of times before I went, took an allergy pill and nasal rinse. My eyes were hurting, but off I went. It is nice and cool out, around 60 when I left. I got up Strawberry Hill, feeling a little off, and my speed was just a little lower than usual. Then, I had a nice flat/downhill. OK. The next road is about half a mile of 4% uphill. Gradual. All of a sudden, I felt like I was choking, and I wished I had my inhaler! After a bit, I stopped and drank half of my bottle and blew my nose. I slowed down and regulated my breathing, but I was in a cold sweat. At a certain point, maybe mile 9, I turned right instead of left and headed home. Just when I started going up my street, up the hill, a group of about 8 cyclists were coming down the hill. Iknew almost all of them, and was slightly embarrassed about my leisurely pace of say, oh, about 5.5 mph. But, I felt bad enough to not really care. Came home, showered all of the pollen off of me and took my contacts out. Still not feeling great and I am planning to ride early early AM. Hopefully, it's gone by then. A grand total of just under 14 miles.
Glad I didn't drive 45 miles to do a metric today!

[Crankin]

Had a great ride in cool temperatures, with bright sun. Starting off, it was really cool, almost fall -like, but I so prefer this to 80+ degrees. This was a major hill ride for me, over 3,000 ft. of climbing in 50 miles. Other than my GPS totally freezing and needing to be rebooted, it was fun, although the hills were hard. We went through Acton, Boxborough, Harvard, Bolton, Clinton, and Lancaster, and then back to Acton. Did one hill I haven't done in 5-6 years (Vaughn Hill) and Old Bay Rd., which I did not do last year. Both of these roads are in Bolton and have 10-13% grades. Needless to say, my average was low, but it felt like we were riding in Vermont, except going through Clinton, which is a pretty depressed looking town. We also went up or down some hills we usually do in the other direction.
Feeling pretty good and getting ready to go out to the Dudley Chateau, ("the Chat"), one of the oldest and truest pubs around here. It's a secret, hidden place I went to on a group ride.

[Lelani Carver]

I did the Chicago "Bike The Drive" Sunday with a few thousand other people, and rode 30 miles. DH and I met up with other members of Team Red (Tour de Cure) and had a great day despite drizzling rain. There was one jerk that yelled at me but I and others yelled back. I also did 22 miles Saturday on a friendly social ride organized by a wonderful woman through Meetup.com. Locally in Chicagoland the CBG Meetup rides are well run, safe, and teach good group ride etiquette.

[rebeccaC]

I did the Chicago "Bike The Drive" Sunday with a few thousand other people, and rode 30 miles.

Lelani… that sounds like a fun time…is that the ride where only bicycles are allowed on Lake Shore Drive for the day?

There is an organized ride over three passes in the California Sierra Nevada mountains each July with 15,000 feet of climbing and 130 miles. A small group of us are planning on doing it. I was originally planning on doing a one-day Seattle to Portland ride again but this ride is the same weekend and a different kind of challenge. Because of the driving time to where we stayed to begin the ride, this memorial day weekend was a good one to ride the two steepest of the passes on the route for a total of 92 miles and 12,000 ft of climbing. We started and ended in Markleeville Ca., which is also the start/end point for July’s ride. We rode the July rides route up both sides of Monitor Pass and then both sides of Ebbertts Pass. Coming down the east side of Monitor Pass to Topaz lake was just an incredible fast descent on good pavement but knowing I had to go back up it gave me pause. On the way back we rode 4 miles past Markleeville to Grover Hot Springs for a long relaxing soak. Such gorgeous country with a lot of breathtaking views…well when I had the breath to spare..

The ride gave me a good chance see how I would acclimate to the elevation and to gauge my hydration/nutrition and mental strategies. Good friends and a good challenging ride always makes for a good day

[Lelani Carver]

Yes, they have a closed loop with rest stops, food, and live music at the main starting point, but just until 11am. Your ride sounds epic!

[Crankin]

I did a little recovery ride on Sunday, 17 miles. Figured out that through my GPS meltdown the day before, some of the settings had been altered, like the one where you get to calculate your average only on actual riding time... I was a bit suspicious on Saturday, but I knew there were a lot of things wrong, when my speed was the same for like a half hour, no matter if I was climbing or descending! At the end of Sunday's ride, I looked at my stats, and I knew this setting was off, as it was a ride on local roads, where I am very good at judging a lot of stuff. That got fixed.
Yesterday I went for a short trail run, even though I should have rested. Today, just a commute and tomorrow I am forcing myself to do a group ride that is really lovely, in an area I don't ride in very often.

[Crankin]

Well, my last ride in May was yesterday, as it is raining on and off, fairly hard today. Despite getting up at an ungodly hour, I dawdled and it was raining when I went to get on the bike, after getting my bike clothes on. DH and I went for a planned short walk and were about 3/4 mile from home, when it started raining again. I had my rain jacket, but right when it was really starting to pour, our neighbor drove by and gave us a ride home.
Yesterday's ride was a test of a Thursday night ride we are leading in July. We rode to the start, about 5-6 miles and then carried on. It was hotter than hell when we went out, about 1:30 and I knew I'd be suffering, despite a lot of shade and drinking copious amounts of Skratch lemon lime. However, the ride took us through a neighborhood that was new to us, huge homes, with a hill and at least a mile of a false flat. At this point, my very good average went plummeting. After a very nice downhill, we headed home, instead of doing the last 2 miles of the ride, as, if we had ridden back to the start, and then home, it would have involved more climbing than I wanted to do. I did get my average within .1 mph of where it had been, but before I climbed my hill, I stopped and poured my water over my head and down my bra.

[Helene2013]

Wanted to ride yesterday but major storm warnings and too much heat prevented me from heading out. We have a 110km ride next weekend so I have to get one out before THE day.

Today we still had rain in the morning, very cold too (like 8c). No way to ride. So we took the dogs for a car ride (they love it) and went to check where our start will be next weekend. Find parking area, etc. Then early dinner as we only had toasts early today. As we were having dinner, the sky became clearer...so home we went to drop off the dogs, changed and hop on the bikes we went for a 40km ride, even with the winds. I'm so proud of me and all the training I did. Riding is so easy and no longer a fight.

Bring on June!