Weeks 19 & 20, May 3 - 23

Think of bicycles as rideable art that can just about save the world. ~Grant Petersen

May 15, 2010 Tour de Lincoln 114.36 miles - goal met, #8

I met goal on this week with a commute ride and the Tour de Lincoln. TDL is one of my favorite rides of all time. It is 20 minutes from my house. It is a beautiful ride up through the foothills between Lincoln and Auburn. And they have a great after ride lunch! It is a bar-b-q, your choice of a grilled chicken breast, hot dog, hamburger or veggie burger. I always go with the chicken and then I see the hot dog and think I should have gotten that! I'll have to try and remember next year to give the dog a try. There is also baked beans, salad, real produce for the sandwich, and Italian ice for dessert. Very nice. Not too much to say about this particular ride, it was relatively wind free, no drama, I actually made it up Baxter Grade!, the weather was just about perfect, not too hot, not too cold. A perfect day that is going to end with an abalone barbeque, ahhhh heaven.

May 23, 2010, Monticello Solano Century 100 miles - goal met! #9

As I was driving home from my ride today, I noticed the Sierras looming above the Sacramento skyline, they looked so imposing, their snow covered peaks setting a striking contrast to the blue sky. It struck me how often I have made that drive and never really noticed them. Guess the wind is good for thing, it clears the air so we can see our mountains. I am trying to make peace with the wind, god knows it has made it presence known on every ride I have ridden this year, but one, the Bike Around the Buttes. I am trying to be zen about this element of nature, if the wind blows I get stronger. If the wind blows the air is cleaner, therefore my allergies are lessened. If the wind blows...ah the wind is always blowing, it should be "when the wind blows."

Today's ride was the Monticello Solano Century. This morning started out cold and, of course, windy, but really the wind wasn't too strong, just cold. I hit the road at 7:45 am, and got lost within a block. Evidently, the map provided was not current on how to get out the parking lot, a local rider caught up with a couple of us who missed the turn and got us on the right track. Anyone who has ridden with me knows my making a wrong turn on a ride is a given, I just usually don't make it within sight of my car. The ride tracks out of Vacaville, to Fairfield and then back towards wine country, following Hwy's 121 and 128. It starts out with rollers, actually this entire ride either had an uphill slant or a downhill slant, no true flats anywhere. Pretty nice ride for the first 25 miles, easy ups and downs all the way to the first rest stop at the Wooden Valley Elementary School. Anyone who has ridden Foxy's Fall would recognize this spot at the lunch stop for Foxy's. And, I realized that the Metric Century for MSC is the back end of the Foxy's Fall Century.

Coming out of the 1st rest stop you make a right on Hwy 121 and start going up, the first big climb of the ride. After a few rollers you arrive at lunch, a little soon for metric riders, but probably just right for the century riders. Pretty little winery that I did not see the name for, not sure it was still operational.

Out from lunch you continue on Hwy 128. Yes that is right, I did Cardiac Hill today. And, I rode the whole thing, slowly, but I made it. My lower back was wound pretty tight by the time I got through that climb, I had forgotten what a long grind that hill is, it was good to get through it and get to the third rest stop at Lake Solano. Very pretty site, Putah Creek is running full force, it looks great.

The last 15 miles were uneventful. I finally warmed up, my legs finally loosened up and I just cruised along at around 18 mph, enjoying the view. Pleasant Valley Rd is looking spring pretty right now.

The after dinner ride was good, interestingly not well balanced, but very good. tri-tip (tender, moist, just a hint of smoke flavor, the guys did a nice job), rice, refried beans (had a smoked ham flavor, not strong, just a hint of it, but delicious) and spaghetti. Not a green thing in sight, I suspect there was not a woman involved in planning this menu. The guys at the barbeque even gave me enough meat for leftovers and foil to wrap them in! Lunch was out on the quad of the high school, Journey was blaring on a boom box, one of the guys as sneakily pouring a Budweiser from a cooler in the back of his truck into his party cup , riders are laughing and having a good time. If I squinted just right and looked out of the corner of my eye the paunches faded, the receding hairlines filled in, I swore I could have been back in high school.

I was back by 12:45, 5 hours out total, approximately 4 hrs 15 mins of riding. Not too bad.

Week 18, Apr 26 - May 2

Couple of things to cover today, I need to play catch up on a couple of items. First, welcome to my new blog. I was using Apple's me.com, but I ran out of space and I really don't want to pay for more, so here we are, on google, the free mecca of the internet. I am starting fresh with today's post (which will also catch up the last couple of weeks), and if I can figure out how to do it I will archive the older posts here. I am technically challenged, so we will see how that goes.

This first entry starts the month of May and the first (disasterous) ride of May...

Week 18, Apr 26 - May 2

“To understand me, you have to meet me and be around me. And then only if I'm in a good mood - don't meet me in a bad mood.” -- Avril Lavigne

Sunday, May 2, 2010, Delta Century 25 miles

Today was a total bust and I am not sure what happened. Just a day that was not meant to be... I overslept - by an HOUR - this morning, awoke at 6 am, the time I supposed to be checking in to start my ride. Two alarms are not sufficient, maybe louder ones? or maybe a clock in each room of the house? I hate it when I roll out of bed in a bad mood, I really like to reserve those moments for work days, not days I was looking forward too. I rushed out of the house, thank god I had everything ready to go and loaded the night before. I cannot shake the feeling that I am pushing my way through the air, like it has thickened somehow, creating more resistance.

Hit the road and notice the wind, my god, the wind, 20 mph with gusts over 30 mph. (I checked on NOAA, not just my keen guestimate on wind speed) I keep trying to psych myself up all the way to Lodi, keep telling myself that it is just wind... I am not a very good pep talk coach. Not climbing out of this funk, not a good sign.

Get to the sign up, and have to fight the urge to take the head off of the volunteers running sign up, they are unorganized, standing there chatting with riders standing in front of them waiting to sign in. I had to ask to be signed in, I had to ask for my wrist band, I had to ask for a route sheet, and I am getting more and more irritated. My employees would have recognized the look on my face and just gotten things done, they are a smart group of people. I managed to get away from the table with out snapping at anyone, I swear, I was nice.

Off on the road, starting the century 1 1/2 hours late, and a headwind right out of the gate. I can’t get speed up over 13 miles an hour, and I am passing people on the road. No one is moving at speed and my mood is sinking with each crank turn. 13 mph for 100 miles? I turn a corner, and hit a literal wall of wind, 9 mph is a struggle. I have down about 20 miles and I haven’t lifted my head once. I am guessing the countryside is beautiful, I wouldn’t know I didn’t really see it. I feel something shift in my mood, and I am done with this ride. I do not want to fight this wind for 100 miles, not gonna happen. I make the next turn and start heading back to the car.

1/3 of the way home I am suddenly so sleepy I can hardly keep my eyes open. Roll all the windows down, crank up the radio, finally pull into my garage, so foggy and cold for some reason. I let Joey in the house, curl up on the couch wrapped in a blanket. Woke up 5 hours later, still cold, but not as foggy.

It has to be my allergy meds, I have been taking more lately with the rain and warm weather I am not getting a break with my sinuses. So decision to make, do I back off on my meds and go through life with swollen sinuses and sneezing uncontrollably? Or, do I just roll with it and accept that the quality of spring rides are going to be a crap shoot depending upon allergen load?

I was really looking forward to this ride, I need to get back out there later this summer and do it on my own. The ride hits enough little delta towns to provide restock options for fluids and fuel. Maybe I can talk some friends into joining me...