Lake Shannon Loop: Maybe I’m Not As Tired As I Thought
Of course I am that tired… I only have to ride this evening to make it the full month of July without a day off and too many personal bests to count. That didn’t mean I couldn’t knuckle down for one more big ride before taking a couple of needed days off, either…
I expected to drop from last evening’s festivities. Actually, I seriously thought about skipping, first… I could have stayed home. I threw that stupid thought right in the frickin’ garbage can, though. If I was going to drop, I was going to do it right. I packed my stuff and headed for the high school.
I chose a short three mile warm-up with a nice climb at the beginning. I went up easy last week and still got a Strava 9th Place Cup. I wanted give it a real try to see what I could do. Man, it was a bear of a little hill. I put the power down and up I went. I was good for about 3/4’s of the hill but I ran out of gas and had to spin up the rest… still, I felt I was pretty quick compared to last week. I wouldn’t know how I did till I uploaded it after the main ride…
Another couple of miles and I was back in the parking lot of the high school to start. We rolled out… and somehow I ended up out front. I was trying to hide. Kinda. I pulled for the next mile and three quarters. Because I’m an idiot.
We headed south with a tasty tailwind. We had four guys who’d pull and three or four more who seemed content to sit in. One, who I’d never met, was of the yo-yo variety. He’d catch up to the group… then leave a gap… and catch up… and coast until he had another gap… I can’t stand this… I timed his gap and went around him. You end up working twice as hard with that yo-yo crap. After that, I stayed to the front of the rotation which made it pretty ugly for me. There were more than a few times I thought about dropping but I stuck with it.
We hit a segment titled “full gas” heading down old US-23 (the service drive) with that 8-mph tailwind and the pace was incredible. We averaged, for the two mile stretch, just shy of 30-mph. Mike was up front (after having bailed me out when I left a bike-and-a-half gap in the Lake Shannon subdivision up a hill), so as soon as he started bleeding speed, I came around. At this point we only had five with the group so I gave him a few seconds to latch on and hit the gas. I took it up to 34-ish-mph before coming to a four-way stop sign and slowing down. We were immediately back on the gas and pushing it hard for the turn-around. And headwind.
The hill climbing north, after the turnaround is brutal with a tailwind. It was nasty with a headwind, but Craig made short work of it. It starts off at 7.5% but levels off a little bit after that initial punch in the face. We started up at 15-mph and took it up to 20 by the time we hit the top.
I took the next mile at 22-23-mph, still with a slight grade and into the wind. I’d gather that was one of my best pulls this year. After flicking off, drifting to the back of our six-man pack, Doc Mike didn’t say a word – he simply stuck his fist out for me to bump it as I went back.
I gotta tell you, I felt pretty stoked about that as I gave him a quick bump.
I was in for the rest of the ride after that. It was an ugly slog north but we held our pace well. It seemed the wind was dying down just a little bit also. I think we all wanted to hit that 22-mph average. We were operating like a finely tuned machine and the miles were ticking by. We came to the last hill. It ramps all the way up to 18% halfway up and it’s brutal (in all fairness, it’s only 18% for a second, 12% for another few, and 7-8% for most). I’d already made my mind up to sit up when I hit it but I was at that 22-mph average and I wanted to give it everything I had to keep it. The descent down the back is fast, so there was a chance… I cracked about three-quarters of the way up. I still managed a 12-mph average up that sucker. It sucked.
I hammered the descent as best I could, but I was pretty cooked. The best I could do coming across the City Limits sign was 21.9-mph for the average. Another PR, and my God was it fun.
It was all hi-five’s and good stories back in the parking lot. Another fun evening, a good time had by all.
Friends, I’ve gotta tell you; it never gets old.
Incidentally, I picked up a solid 5th overall on that warm-up climb.
TNIL (Tuesday Night In Lennon): The Wind Makes an Appearance Edition
The wind was building all day long. Forecasts said it was coming, and it did. 15-mph winds with gusts above 20 (24-kmh and 32-kmh respectively) out of the west. I knew shortly after I woke up at four in the morning that TNIL was going to be tough.
After an easier than normal warm-up, we lined up to roll. We had a fairly small B Group and the A’s were flush, so one of our guys, as is usual, suggested we roll out with the A’s and let them pull us to the tailwind. This sounds brilliant, but it’s a recipe for disaster. What you envision happening is the group sharing the load, defeating the headwind as a triumphal group. Hi-five’s all around! It’s damn-near a beer commercial.
That’s not what happens, though. No, what happens is you get a knot of A guys rolling up the road, progressively in echelon to the right of the road to escape the crosswind a mile-and-a-half up the road, followed closely by eight B Group’ers all lined up in the ditch on the edge of the road with no draft. They get spit off one-by-one and take fifteen miles to come back together as a few groups. “Who wants that chaos?” I asked. I suggested we wait and roll out as a B Group. After a complaint, I relented and my buddy Chuck said, “Well that’s great, now we have to chase them down!” The chase never materialized and we rolled out as the B Group.
What came next was a wonder in teamwork and effective, enjoyable cycling. We bucked the headwind, chewed on the crosswind, bucked some more headwind and at the turn for tailwind at 16-ish miles, we had a 20-mph average. We’d lost a couple of the weaker riders but we were, relatively speaking, whole.
And just as all hell was about to break loose with a tailwind when we made the left hand hairpin turn… there was a train lazily rolling down the tracks across the road.
We ended up waiting for several minutes for the train to pass. Once it was clear, we took a minute to form up climbing a hill and BAM, just like that the hammer dropped. The pace picked up and we had us a ride on our hands. We cruised the hills with a little help from the wind and turned in for the regroup after the last big hill. After the last rider turned the corner, we rolled toward my favorite part of the ride.
Immediately after the regroup, we’ve got a nice little descent that takes us to 28-ish-mph followed by a sharp, short climb before we level out at a 2% incline that we normally take at around 21-mph. Last night we were over 23. We crested the top with two horses up front. I was second bike back and figured I’d be lead-out. The two up front took a really long turn, screaming down the -1 to -3% grade at 33-mph. My guy started to bleed speed and when he dropped to 29, I came around rather than wait for him to flick. I took it back up to 30 on the flat with six tenths of a mile to the City Limits sign. I kept the hammer down and, almost unbelievably, didn’t run out of gas. The tenths clicked by until the sign was only 100 yards away. I was watching shadows behind me and couldn’t see anyone making a move so I kept the power up… I crossed the City Limits sign first, on the front for six tenths of a mile at 30-mph. First time off the front like that. I’ve taken the sign dozens of times but never from the lead-out position… and certainly not while leading out a group of horses like the one we had last night. I’m going to have a smile on my face for a while remembering that one.
Next up was a turn north for a couple miles. I made a mistake, trying to wave a truck by after a four-way stop and fell off the back a considerable distance. The speed after that stop was the problem. The group goes from 15 to 27-mph almost instantly because of a perfect little 1% descent. I was at 15, waving my arm to get him to go around, and stayed there while the group accelerated. I absolutely had to bust my butt to latch back on. I almost quit, but with one last rush, I latched. Thankfully, being at the back, I had enough time to fully recover. I knew the homestretch was coming up with a 15 to 20-mph tailwind.
The last four-ish miles were insane and awesome. We managed to keep it above 27-mph the whole way, with the exception of a stop for a stop sign. That break was needed, too. If we’d have hit the hill after that intersection at speed, it would have been ugly for the tandems. Instead, the pace increased steadily and they were with us for the final push.
The final 3/4’s of a mile is slightly downhill, between 1/2 and 1%. With that tailwind, it was absolutely awesome. We were hard on the pedals at 30-mph and cooking hard for the sprint. The lead fell off and my buddy Chucker and Josh took the lead. Josh is a big dude and with him up front, I knew I could hold his wheel but I didn’t know if I’d get around him. I was in perfect position as the speed hit 33… then 34… we just nudged 35 and I didn’t bother going around him. In hindsight I should have – but 35-mph.
I finished second behind Josh. He earned it. The parade mile home was all hi-five’s and laughs. It wasn’t the fastest Tuesday night, but it was fast enough with that wind, and it was more fun that a person should have with their clothes on.
That’ll do.
Can Something As Simple As A Quick Release Skewer Change A Bike’s Ride Characteristics? The Halo Hex Lock Skewer.
I can’t believe I wrote that Title. The idea that a quick release skewer could make a difference in a bike’s ride quality is… well, crazy.
But it’s dead-bang true. A simple skewer can vastly improve the quality of your bike’s ride. A $20 set improved the ride quality of my $6,000, 15-1/2 pound Specialized Venge… and significantly. I kid you not.
Enter the Halo hex key skewer set.
I bought two sets after a friend showed me the set he put on his LeMond 105 steel race bike (it’s a spectacular bike). He said they were surprisingly light and relatively inexpensive. He had me at light weight. Inexpensive helped get them by my wife. One set for each road bike.
They showed up Tuesday, just before I had to split for my normal Tuesday night ride… so I did what every over-exuberant knucklehead cycling enthusiast does when he gets a new, untested piece of high-end equipment… he throws it on the good bike and tests it on the fastest ride of the week.
Had I not had speed on the brain, I might have thought that through a bit more.
There they are in action. I’m on the left. Joel, a good cycling bud of mine, took the photo.
Look, normally I’m not an overly effusive guy… well, not overly effusive unless it’s cycling, but not about skewers. I am about these. They’re marvelous.
I’ve been kicking around different skewers for years trying to find the right set. Ican’s skewers, at least the older one’s, left a lot to be desired (the set that came with my F&L 50’s are quite good, though). My old set that came with my Vuelta wheels were pretty good, or so I thought, but the set that came with my wife’s Ultegra wheels were probably the best. Good old Shimano – the stuff just works. I had the Ican set on my Venge and the Ultegra set on my Trek – and all was relatively well, again, so I thought, until I rolled out last night.
Our Tuesday night ride, if you haven’t read my posts before, is very fast. I’m in the B-Group and we’re usually between 22 & 24-mph for an average pace over 28(ish) miles. Much of the asphalt we ride on it great, but a few miles leave a little to be desired. One of the bad sections has got those expansion cracks every twelve feet or so. They can be jarring at 28-mph.
The Halo skewers, with no cam action were noticeably rock solid over the pavement so I had a more connected feel through the handlebars throughout the entire ride. This meant that the tires did what they were supposed to do, absorbing the bumps rather than transferring a little jolt through the forks because the normal quick releases give where the Halo’s don’t.
This will probably read as though the information is a little off. Surely, when you tighten a normal quick release and bounce the front wheel off the ground, it’s solidly attached and there’s no “give”. I know, it was very difficult to write what I did, the fear of someone thinking I did something wrong and I’m stupid is there… but I’m not wrong. No matter how hard you crank down a traditional quick release, it won’t be the same. Believe me, it’s worth Twenty Bucks to find out for yourself.
They’re so good I’ll be ordering two sets for my wife as well. One for her road bike, one for the gravel bike. Halo skewers are incredibly light (the rod is chrome-moly) and absolutely solid.
If you’re happy with your traditional skewers, fantastic. If, however, you’re tired of the climbing creaks if they’re not cranked down impossibly hard, or you want to shed some weight and have a better feel of the road through the handlebars, try a set of Halo’s. I’m glad I did. They’re welcome upgrades to both my race and rain bikes.
Chillin’ On the Rain Bike, Just to Keep the Streak Alive…
My last day off the bike was June 10th. I want to make it till the end of July without a day off.
With rain in the forecast, it wasn’t looking good. By the time I got home it was only a 30% chance of rain, diminishing as the evening wore on.
I wasn’t going to ride late so I suited up, prepped the Trek, and rolled out.
The real reason for the ride wasn’t so sinister as keeping a streak going. The group ride tonight will be tough. Windy and fast. I needed to get the long weekend miles spun out of my legs before the ride tonight. If I’d taken the day off, the ride tonight would have been considerably harder.
That’s just how it works.
So I rolled out at an easy pace. 18 with a crosswind, 15 into the headwind… just spinning with a smile on my face, following my normal weekday route.
Then it started spitting on me. I was five miles out and would need to manufacture one to get an even ten. I rolled toward home, thinking about where to add the extra. I found my spot and made my turn. I figured I was close to home so if the sky opened up… the raindrops intensified but it never opened up.
I pulled into the driveway just as that last increase before the big rain hit… the drops were getting big.
Three minutes. That’s all I was in the door when it opened up. I beat the rain by a mile and got ten wonderful miles in.
My legs will thank me for it tonight.
Tandemonium! Learning How to Love A Tandem Bicycle – We Had to Start Slow… (But We Didn’t)
Sunday Funday became a perfect chance for my wife and I to learn how to ride our tandem. It was my wife who first suggested we pull the tandem out for an easier Sunday ride. Back in days past, I’d text out that we’d be riding an easy pace and it’d start out great, but if one or two heavy hitters showed, it would get out of hand in a hurry. My wife, with no speedometer for the stoker, had no idea how fast we were going so she would… uh… pedal lightly. I’d hammer the pedals to keep up and I could literally feel my pedal strokes pushing into hers.
My buddy, Mike, said once, a while back, that he works about 30% harder on a tandem with his wife than on his single so I figured this was simply how tandems were. I’d be good for about 30, maybe 35 miles, and I’d be smoked. We managed close to a 20-mph pace a few times, but that kind of speed was hard.
Then, Sunday Funday. With no pressure to keep a 20-mph average, my wife and I were afforded the opportunity to learn how to work together on the bike. Better, as the ride became known as a relaxed pace ride, more tandems popped up. We had four tandems one week – more tandems than single bikes.
With the relaxed pace I watched how the others rode. I learned little tricks, like not holding wheels as tightly in a pace-line as I would on my single (this was a huge tip – I blew a lot of energy trying to stay right on the wheel in front of me). Also, using the right of the cyclist in front of me as a little bailout to scrub speed. Riding with experienced tandem couples was huge. Unfortunately, it also meant a lot of work. Experienced tandem couples tend to have really nice tandems, often weighing ten to sixteen pounds less than ours (and costing more than double, even triple the $4,000 we have into ours).
I cleaned up and readied the tandem for the first time since last year about eight Sundays ago. 17-mph was a fair bit of work back then. Today, 18 is easy. In fact, just yesterday, to keep our at the upper range of a 17 to 18-mph average, we actually had to scrub speed coming home with a tailwind. It was fantastic. Now, we could have finished with an 18.2-mph average. Nobody in that group would have cared, but we decided to go exploring and took our time with it. The ride was so much fun, I’m likely to get a call from my accountant that my taxes have been raised because it’s just not fair I should have so much fun on a bicycle.
If I had it to do over again, we would’ve started out slower, maybe even just the two of us, rather than try to climb directly into the ring to duke it out. On the other hand, if that had been how we started, I’m not guaranteed we would be where we are now, either. In the end, I suppose everything worked out just as it should because we’re having an @$$-ton of fun on that bicycle. Yesterday’s ride was a little more than 40 miles. We pulled up front for 37 of them.
And I just had something new arrive at the house for it yesterday:
A Perfectly Ugly Century… 100 Miles of Bliss
Friends, in my years of cycling, I can’t remember a year with more than two or three perfect days. When it comes to great days, we get plenty. Perfect is rare.
Yesterday was another of the rare days, though not so rare for this year. Sunny, cool to start, and almost no wind (2-mph out of the… who cares?! 2-mph!).
We rolled out at 7 am and I was searching for the early morning sun right out of the gate. At 60° (15 C) it was a little on the brisk side and finding the sun through the early morning shade was a challenge in the first mile. Once we started east it wasn’t so bad, the long shadows couldn’t get us. Our third mile would be my last thought that could be construed as “complainy” the rest of the day.
Turnout at my house was a little sparse, but we picked up four along the way and ended up with a fantastic group. We had plans for a 65 mile ride, then Chuck and I were going to add another 35 and make it a cool hundred. We were the only takers for the century. Jonathan thought about hanging with us but couldn’t chance being late for a meeting so he backed out.
The route we picked led us through the blooming sunflower fields. They were spectacular in the early morning sunshine. This is one of my favorite times in summer.
Once past the sunflower fields we kept a wonderfully steady pace between 19 & 22-mph. Jonathan, Chuck or I would pick up the tempo every now and again but for the most part we were incredibly steady.
Two hours into our ride and that nice cool start was long behind us. It heated up in a hurry. With my Specialized team kit on, though, I didn’t really think about the heat much. I’ve got three full sets now, and, while they’re visually stunning, their best attribute is heat management.
Mike’s taking up the rear with his brand new Ican 38’s. Four in that group are running the 38’s and I’ve got the 50’s (and the 38’s on my other bike)… I think it’s time Ican start sending me free stuff!
This is a marvelous stretch of road along a route full of fantastic asphalt and chip-seal. We have some stretches that are pretty rough, too, but who doesn’t? We rolled on, talking and laughing, and basically just enjoyed being together. At 51 miles, Phill and Brad split off and headed home. The rest of us pushed on to the first stretch of road where I could have stood a faster pace. For most of us, we only had 13 miles to go so they were in “just get there” mode while Chuck and I were only halfway into our ride – we were still relatively fresh. It never ceases to amaze me how much “mental” goes into cycling. If I know I’ve only got a few miles left, I’ll allow myself to be tired and drag a little. On the other hand, if I know I’m only halfway there, I’ll still have a spring in my step.
Anyway, I don’t want to get lost in a cycling psychology discussion. Jonathan split off next and headed home, then Dave… and we were down to Mike, my wife, Chuck and I for the last five miles home. Mike had hoped Chuck and I would split along the way so they could soft-pedal home but we needed 35 miles somewhere, so we stayed with them to the homestead… and kept the pace up. When we hit the driveway, Mike lowered his shoulders and kept going to home. I dismounted and leaned my bike against a tree and headed inside to the restroom and a water bottle refill. Chuck unscrewed his top and handed his bottle to my wife who offered to fill it. Bottles topped off, we rolled out – no clue how we were going to fit 35 miles in. A friend of mine had dropped off a Garmin heart rate monitor that he wasn’t going to use anymore because he’d picked up a new one. So, for the first time ever, I actually rode knowing what my heart rate was. I probably averaged 110-120-something over that first 65.
We headed east, still barely a breeze and the sun shining brilliantly. We created our own breeze as we headed out for lunch. Chuck is a lot more daring than I am, even with my radar taillight. He’ll ride on roads I won’t go near due to traffic, and he kept extending the out portion to where we had to ride on some heavily trafficked roads… but we kept it to four or five lane highways so cars always had an extra lane to pass us. And it was better than a normal two-lane road. By a long shot.
We pulled into the local Subway staring at 75 miles on the Garmin. Our pace had stayed the same (20-23-mph) but my heart rate had gone from the mid-90’s – 120’s to 145-155 and I was HUNGRY. We leaned our bikes against the windows outside and went in to eat. We left our several thousand Dollar bikes outside, no lock, for the entire time we were inside (20-30 minutes) and nobody even looked sideways at them. Call it privilege if you’re an idiot, there are no rules governing who can buy or rent a house or apartment in our town… we are generally good people, though. We have a strong, supported police force and I am glad to live in a place where I can leave my bike outside, unattended, while I eat. That’s enough of that.
The next 25 miles were easy(ish). We tee’d them up and knocked ’em down. I ended up having to ride Chuck home to get an extra two miles – and those last two were s-l-o-w… but I pulled into the driveway with 100.44 miles and a smile on my face.
So, all of that, almost 1,000 words, and you’re wondering where the ugly part is?
There’s another 1,000 words… that route was fugly!
Why is the Road Cycling World Going Waxy?! The Rise of the Dry Lube.
Ah, the clean drivetrain! How we (should) love the look of a freshly cleaned chain, cassette and chainrings! Alas, with wet lubes, they tend to get pretty dingy in a hurry. Enter the dry wax lube. Made for dry, dusty conditions, wax lube doesn’t collect dirt and buildup like wet lubes do. In fact, if regularly tended to, a wax lubed chain won’t be perfectly clean to the touch, but it won’t make a mess of you, either.
The photo above, of my Trek 5200’s setup, was taken after three rides on a newly cleaned and lubed chain. I wiped the excess off after the first spin and that’s how it looks au naturel. As one would imagine, there isn’t much to rub off on the hands.
Life isn’t all fat and happy, though. Sadly. If you live in the UK, or about any other locale where you’ll be riding regularly in the rain, a wax lube isn’t for you. It wears off when it gets wet so you end up accelerating your chain’s life.
I can’t say much bad about the wax lubes (I’m partial to Squirt). They sure are a lot cleaner than my Finish Line Ceramic Wet Lube!
To put a bow on this post, what about reapplication and cleaning? This is the best part:
There is no need to remove wax from your chain again after applying Squirt Chain
Lube. Just brush off occasionally with a dry brush and use a toothpick to remove some residue from the cassette and chain rings if necessary. A well waxed chain repels dirt, mud and water, and reduces chances of friction and chain suck.
They recommend every six hours for a road bike, but I find I can go a little longer than that. I apply once a week (about 14 hours). I also go a few steps further… I wipe off the excess in the morning, after it’s had a chance to dry overnight. I also wipe the excess off the outside plates after I apply the lube. Finally, while that sounds nice, brushing the cassette off, that doesn’t do much to keep it shiny. I apply some degreaser to a towel and clean in between the cogs to get the gears shiny again.
Hardcore Fast; Thursday Evening Speed and Happiness on a Bicycle
There comes with cycling, a virtually indescribable joy in being a part of a solid pace-line, speeding down a winding road so fast cars have a tough time keeping up. I “train” only so I can be a part of that. I don’t care about Strava accolades, KOM’s, PR’s, or beating other people… for me, it’s just about being a part of the group. The speed and intricacy of it is my definition of fun.
We prepped to roll out Thursday night coming off a record event the week before. Conditions were perfect last week. This week, less desirable – better temp, more of a breeze… but we had a larger, faster group with some serious heavy hitters from Tuesday Night in Lennon. With the fantastic weather and 0% chance of rain, I picked the Venge for this ride.
Craig and I led the group out in a double pace-line. We had a big group, but it splintered quickly under a rubber-band effect and unfortunately, with a few new guys in the group, we missed a couple of regroup points. We did manage to hit a couple, though, one a few minutes before this photo was taken by a friend and regular in our group who was stuck attending a graduation party (don’t worry, Gov., social distancing was being practiced – well, ish). Coming out of the Lake Shannon loop, we were pushing, unbelievably, a 22-mph average (35-kmh). 20-mph is fast for the ride. 21 is crazy and was our record just last week.
Coming over a major hill that I PR’ed on last week, I PR’ed again (by a lot) but still got dropped and the group rolled right through the regroup point so four of us, rather than try to chase down a group we were never going to catch, cut a hard mile of the out-and-back portion of the course off and waited atop a hill that was going to hammer the lead group. We simply stopped, took a second to catch our breath, take a drink and waited for them to appear on the way up an ugly 6% climb.
Sure enough, once we caught a glimpse of them we started rolling and took the lead as they latched on. From that point on, we stayed together, sharing the headwind ride back. I’d dropped from 22-mph down to 21.6, but the average climbed as much of the headwind was actually slightly downhill. We turned right to a crosswind and hammered down the road. Our average passed 22-mph by a tenth as we closed in on the last climb.
I, having spent way too much time up front early on while the group was sorting itself out, was completely spent. As we rounded the corner to start the climb, I flicked off the front and didn’t bother latching on at the back. I was popped and I just didn’t have a desire to try to keep up. I didn’t care about the average or the record. I eased my way up in the granny gear and lumbered down the back toward the City Limits sign and the end of our most excellent ride.
Even chilling up the last hill I beat last week’s average by six or seven tenths of a mile-an-hour.
It was all laughs back in the parking lot as we loaded our toys and headed home. Another record breaking Thursday night… and I can feel it today! I’ll be looking forward to a slow evening ride a little later. I have no doubt, with excellent weather for the weekend, we’ll put together a fun, long ride for Saturday.
After having leftover pizza for dinner, I’m pretty sure I fell asleep with a smile on my face. I surely woke up smiling.
What to Do With Garmin Down?!
Garmin is down for some reason, so there’s no uploading (Bluetooth-ily) to Strava, Endomondo or Ride with GPS right now. You don’t have to manually enter your rides, though. In fact, uploading your rides is faster than manually entering them and it’s as easy as easy gets.
Strava and Endomondo are the same (I didn’t bother with RWGPS).
Open your computer/laptop. Plug in your Garmin device. Open your web browser. Open up your homepage. Hit the “+” button for “add a workout”. Choose “Upload Activity” (Strava) or “Import from File” for Endomondo. Your activity will be in the “Activities” folder on your Garmin device. Choose the proper file by the date. Click “Open”, customize your info and click “Save”. You’re done. Your ride will appear on your activity feed.
Super simple and you get all of your intricate data from your ride profile, rather than just entering in the miles and time and getting an average speed you’ll get everything, including segment records.
UPDATE: Kecia commented that it’s possibly a ransomware issue at Garmin… They’re still down as of 11 am today (7/24). I confirmed Kecia’s comment against multiple news sources. I’d love to be a fly on the wall when Garmin tracks the perpetrators down. I have a feeling that’s going to get messy.
Playing With A $3,000 Etch-a-Sketch to Earn… Pizza!
I went on a semi-random ride last night, with one goal: burn enough calories to justify my dinner. Sam’s Italian Restaurant pizza. It’s the good stuff, folks. Sure, I like the Detroit-style deep dish. Chicago style is to die for (though not literally, sheesh). I love me some Little Caesar’s or Hungry Howie’s… but Sam’s is the gourmet thin crust, zesty, sweet sauce, Italian pizza.
In fact, I’ve gotta stop writing about said pizza because I have 40 minutes till I can pick it up!
I had no goals for last night’s ride. No worries, no cares, just me and the road and excellent looking cornfields (this has got to be one of Michigan’s best years in a long time for farming, it’s amazing how good the crops look)…
It was a glorious evening for a bike ride… and because my bikes have been behaving so well, I decided to tinker with the Trek. I lowered the handlebar 5 mm. I didn’t like it much on day 1, but on day 3 was fantastic. I’d assumed (correctly) that Chucker was working so it was a solo afternoon jaunt and I was feeling pretty good. I could have just done my normal 20 miles and called it good but decided to keep following my front wheel (while avoiding busy roads – no sense tempting fate) until I’d had enough and wanted to take my toy home.
I ended up with 27 easy miles (17.5-mph pace or 28 kmh) on my perfectly set up Trek. After the first day with the handlebar dropped, I’d almost considered raising it again before I left for my ride. I’m glad I didn’t. I just needed a few rides to get used to it. And it helps that most of my winter gut is gone…
OH! And dinner was fantastic. I got my usual (pepperoni, bacon, red onion, mild (banana) peppers) but this time, because there are so many people at our meeting nowadays, I also picked up a straight-up pepperoni pizza. One of the best I’d ever eaten. That’ll be on the ticket again next week!
Fit Recovery 