Training Ride

I haven't been doing nearly as much long distance riding in my training for the 24-hour race this year. But I planned to do 100-miles on my mountain bike this past weekend. Thankfully, there were no disasters with kids or anything else, and I was able to get my ride in.

I left from my house in Seattle and rode to Woodinville. It is 18 miles to Red Hook Brewery. From there I set out to do 4 laps of the infamous Thrilla route. It is pretty boring, but actually a good training route. It is close to civilization (water, bathrooms, etc.) and it closely mimicks the experience in a 24-hour race (doing monotonous lap after lap).

It was a beautiful day to be out riding. It's been a long time since I saw the Olympics from the Pipeline Trail. Probably because I often ride it at night (for the weekly Wednesday night Thrilla ride), but also because of the cloudy, rainy weather we've been having. I rode almost the whole day in just shorts and a short-sleeve jersey. I only had to put on the arm warmers for the descents on the final lap.

I hear a lot about attitudes out on the bike, and I have written about my own experiences in this forum. But we often don't write about the positive experiences and people we run into. Sunday, I had the fortunate timing to come across another biker looking for a route into the Redmond Watershed. I told him to follow me as that is where I was headed. We started to chat. It turned out he lived in San Rafael, not far from my previous home in Novato.

I happened to share with Kevin what I was doing (which I don't always do). I'm glad I did, because he has been thinking about doing a 24-hour race, but never really thought he could do it. We got involved an in-depth conversation about the details of training for and surviving a solo 24-hour event. I shared just about everything I know on the subject. He said that he was really excited and inspired. Hopefully, he'll follow through and complete one as well. As long as I did get him in too much trouble with his wife for being out on his bike longer than planned.

Cheers Kevin! Hope all is well with the wife. You can definitely do it if you put your mind to it. And you really helped me get through my day yesterday - thanks.

And not to leave anyone out, I met up with another rider as I approached the final climb of the day. I don't even recall if I got his name (sorry - I was a bit tired). We chatted for a while before he branched off to take the single-track instead of Heart Attack Hill. Even that short time that we rode together really helped.

Ride summary:

Lap 1 was uneventful - 1hr 50min
Lap 2 had to stop to fix a cleat (luckily before the screws fell out - both were loose) - 1hr 55min
Lap 3 I met up with Kevin about 50min in and we rode together for a while - 1hr 50min
Lap 4 Kevin left, but someone else joined me for the home stretch - 1hr 58min

Total elapsed time from start to finish was 9hrs 21min, with about 27 minutes of stop time. Total time for the 4 laps was 8hrs 10min. Stop time included a shoe fix, eating stops, bathroom stop, and a quick chat with Kevin as we parted ways after he rode part of laps 3 and 4 with me.

The Mind is a Terrible Thing

I've been busy with work, kids, and training, so not much time for blogging. But I've been thinking about this one for a while. I went out on a 75-mile road ride a couple weeks ago. It was an out and back ride. On the way out, the wind really started to kick up. I had seen the forecast before I left that called for 20mph winds. A couple times, I thought about turning back early because the wind was at my back and getting stronger. That meant I would be heading straight into it for the entire trip home.

Needless to say, I did not turn back early. By the time I got to the turnaround point, the wind was as strong as any I have ever ridden in. At first, I was going OK into the wind. The descents were really tough, as the wind was really pushing me around. It was slow going. Eventually, I started to slow down, both physically and mentally. Things slowly turn from enjoying some time on the bike to a struggle. Thoughts like, "why am I out here?" enter your head. This is where I really wish I had an OFF switch on my mind. It can do terrible things to you on the bike.

Physically, I was fine, but yet my mind made me feel miserable. I know all of this, but am helpless at moments like this when my mind takes over. I am desperately trying to artificially create a scenario that snaps me out of it. So far no luck. What snapped me out of it on this day was two riders passing me. I was suffering and not very happy - slowing down more and more by the minute. The instant that I saw them, I picked up the pace and asked if I could join them. There is some advantage to drafting, of course. But drafting alone cannot explain the vast difference in the rest of the ride.

I didn't have a computer, but I would estimate that my speed almost doubled when I joined them. The wind didn't let up - it was blowing as strong as ever. But the combined physical benefit of drafting and psychological benefit of being with others made the rest of the ride enjoyable. (and fast). Now I just need to find a way to make that effect happen even when there is noone there next to me. Any ideas?