Race Against the Rain

My first ride from work to home. It was a race against the impending rain storm. How could I NOT get on the road bike when the temp was 64!? Ride was decent, quite a bit of headwind, of course. I felt like I spent all my reserves by mile 12, seemed like I was going so slow at that point. Real tired. Kept pushing. I guess I was just too excited to get off to a giant start. Looked up the last time I rode this route...Aug 21 of last year. Time 1:20:13. Beat it by about :45 and to top it off, I was not happy with the traffic and selection of stop lights I had to deal with today. Stop signs suck. I also should have not rode the section of trail that was not plowed over the winter (last 3 miles). It was thawed out pretty much, some spots still slicked up with slush, but snowmobiles have thrown gravel (BIG gravel) all over the place - had to ride cautiously so I didn't wipe out, catch a stick in the spokes or get a flat. I sent rocks flying off into the nearby woods, I could hear them, tire puncture threatening. Happily it did not happen. I flew through all of the last 5 or so stop signs in town to make sure I beat my time. Willing to scare any motorist that was driving the crossroads. Luckily I never saw a soul at the crossings. With all the disappointing starting/stopping and cautious riding I had to do, it's awesome to think in March, friggin' March, I'm riding at August level from last year. Killed it.

Animal Style

My goal today (Sunday afternoon) was to go for a "leisurely" 10-12 mile ride while the sun was (almost) out and roads were dry. Decided to try the heart rate monitor this time also. Upon hitting the roads with the mountain bike, things were road-bike quick right to start. After only about 5 miles in, I began to start looking for dirt roads (which were frozen/soft with ice melt sludge on top). It was fun. Mud slurp-age everywhere. I'm not sure if it was the time of day, or what I ate for breakfast/lunch, but I was a machine that couldn't be stopped. I think on a few occasions, I actually sped up to climb hills instead of slow down. I was focused and in the zone. Before I knew it, I had whipped down a nice 17 miles and felt great! Only reason I stopped back home is because of my lack of imagination on where to go to next. Already hoping for a dry/rain-free Thursday evening so I can venture home from work. My first commuter ride - nice now that the time has changed and I can get home before darkness sets in. PS - I love how my route below looks like a tired wang. PSS - check the calorie burn count...a cool 83 calories. Garmin must have thought I was burning Dilithium Crystals as fuel.

Run update.

I successfully made it to 3.5 miles today without taking a break. The hip felt better than usual. Cardio is tip top. Ran it in 36 minutes - just over 10 minute miles. I want to run the 10K in May in less than 60 minutes. So by then I should be up to the right pace and mileage to meet my goal. Ran next to George Costanza today...he smelled like a bowl of a$$holes. Had to turn on the fan to the dreadmill to get some fresh air in my face. Wanted to trow up.