Wow...it has been one busy weekend! Not necessarily full of fun stuff besides the training, but busy none the less. I was up at 6 am to accomplish a few things around the house before getting on to my bike. Thank goodness the weather was slightly more cooperative today for riding outdoors! I had a 1.5 hour ride on the schedule followed by a 20 min run. I drove out to Cochrane, leaving behind sunny skies and heading towards some ominous looking clouds. I hadn't noticed those before I was leaving, but I was already on the road and would have had to turn around and do some research on another route that would have eaten up too much time. I just kept my fingers crossed that I'd be able to outrun the clouds.
I parked at my usual spot to ride the Horse Creek loop. I wanted to ride it and compare it to the last time I road a few weeks back with the group. I saw a few different groups along the way in the beginning, a few of them wearing Team Tri Life jackets. Unfortunately with all that bike gear on it was hard to recognize who was who, so I'm not too sure who I passed!
I'm definitely feeling a lot stronger riding than I did at the end of last year. Must have been all of those amazing training sessions over the winter! Hills that I huffed and puffed on now seem less consequential. I also spent some time getting into my aerobars a bit in the beginning, as well as getting used to my water bottle out of the cage (something I still find a bit tricky).
Once I finished going as far north on my loop as I could go I made a westerly turn and smacked head first into some wind. At this point the road isn't super smooth either and the vibrations were crazy! I hoped that when I turned south I wouldn't be pummeled by the wind so much anymore, but that wasn't the case. I forged on, just kept spinning and tried to keep my cadence as close to 90 rpm as possible. With a few miles left to go in the ride a few sprinkles started to fall. I could tell I was riding towards sunshine so I was keeping my fingers crossed that it wouldn't turn into a downpour. Once I turned onto Highway 1A the sprinkles stopped and I was nearly back at my car. All in all, 26.5 miles down, and about 5 minutes faster than the last time I road the loop a few weeks back. I also decided to ride in tri shorts. I figured that since I'll be racing in them I would be best off getting my behind used to riding in them on a regular basis.
I had a 20 minute brick next, and the road that I park on for this ride is probably my least favorite place to run afterward. It is a combination of dirt, mud and gravel and it just sucks any energy out of your legs. Not to mention that you have to start out running uphill. My legs were trashed (ahem...probably because I decided not to down my gel halfway through the ride...) so I wound up running for a whopping 7 minutes.
I stopped by Starbucks for a mocha since I figured it was a good combination of recovery drink (you know, like hot chocolate) and caffeine. I came home, sat on the couch to check a few things on the computer, then figured I'd better get up before I laid down for a long nap. Still plenty more to accomplish! I guess that is what happens when you have a pile of laundry from two weeks or so and a house that desperately needs some tidying!
Anyhow, I hope you folks all had a terrific weekend!!
I parked at my usual spot to ride the Horse Creek loop. I wanted to ride it and compare it to the last time I road a few weeks back with the group. I saw a few different groups along the way in the beginning, a few of them wearing Team Tri Life jackets. Unfortunately with all that bike gear on it was hard to recognize who was who, so I'm not too sure who I passed!
I'm definitely feeling a lot stronger riding than I did at the end of last year. Must have been all of those amazing training sessions over the winter! Hills that I huffed and puffed on now seem less consequential. I also spent some time getting into my aerobars a bit in the beginning, as well as getting used to my water bottle out of the cage (something I still find a bit tricky).
Once I finished going as far north on my loop as I could go I made a westerly turn and smacked head first into some wind. At this point the road isn't super smooth either and the vibrations were crazy! I hoped that when I turned south I wouldn't be pummeled by the wind so much anymore, but that wasn't the case. I forged on, just kept spinning and tried to keep my cadence as close to 90 rpm as possible. With a few miles left to go in the ride a few sprinkles started to fall. I could tell I was riding towards sunshine so I was keeping my fingers crossed that it wouldn't turn into a downpour. Once I turned onto Highway 1A the sprinkles stopped and I was nearly back at my car. All in all, 26.5 miles down, and about 5 minutes faster than the last time I road the loop a few weeks back. I also decided to ride in tri shorts. I figured that since I'll be racing in them I would be best off getting my behind used to riding in them on a regular basis.
I had a 20 minute brick next, and the road that I park on for this ride is probably my least favorite place to run afterward. It is a combination of dirt, mud and gravel and it just sucks any energy out of your legs. Not to mention that you have to start out running uphill. My legs were trashed (ahem...probably because I decided not to down my gel halfway through the ride...) so I wound up running for a whopping 7 minutes.
I stopped by Starbucks for a mocha since I figured it was a good combination of recovery drink (you know, like hot chocolate) and caffeine. I came home, sat on the couch to check a few things on the computer, then figured I'd better get up before I laid down for a long nap. Still plenty more to accomplish! I guess that is what happens when you have a pile of laundry from two weeks or so and a house that desperately needs some tidying!
Anyhow, I hope you folks all had a terrific weekend!!
3 comments:
Wow Leana, inspirational as usual :). What a weekend!
I did have a busy weekend! Reffing soccer all day Saturday, then taking my son to his game Sunday, riding for an hour, and Mother's Day! Never a dull moment!!
you are so active! (i am so envious!) i need to get up off my butt more like you and so many others. running alone will not keep me as healthy (nor get me to my goal weight) as much as i wish it would!
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