The ride that didn't happen

Today's post was going to be about how I managed to complete a tough 25 mile ride for the Pedal to the Medal event on Saturday.  I was registered for the event and I intended to take my time and meet the challenge even though my longest ride of the year was just shy of 13 miles back at the beginning of May.  I panned on talking about the volunteers, the scenic course, the wind and how thankful I was for cooler temperatures.  It was going to be an epic story of struggle.

Alas, the tale was not meant to be.  I had logistical issues which arose with a vehicle in the shop and 4 grandkids needing to be a 2 different schools for their basketball games on Saturday morning. Family definitely trumps cycling so I didn't partake in the ride since we couldn't arrange the transportation of everyone to their assigned locations in a timely manner if I was dropped off for the ride, or I took one of the vehicles.

I am a little sad that I didn't ride, but it is more than offset by having watched the grandkids play their respective games. The 2 youngest are on teams in the same division and actually played each other so we had one win and one lose.  The second oldest played well, but his team lost.  The oldest played well as well and his team won! So we were 2 for 4 on the day.

Here are some pictures.

Would I have liked to ride? Sure I would, but in the end I'm actually glad I didn't as I would have missed the fun.

Get on your bikes and ride!

Fall already

August has come and gone.  Its now back to school time and the start of the fall riding season.  At least that is the perception.  Unfortunately it seems mother nature hasn't gotten that memo and the last few days have been the warmest we've seen since the middle of July.  Our daytime highs have been in the 104 to 108 range and the humidity has been a bit above normal as well.  Certainly not the fall weather I have been looking forward to.

The warmer temps have limited the amount of time I have been spending on my bike.  I'm still riding every single day, but each day's ride has been shorter than they should be.  I'm only doing 1 to 3 miles.  Sure, for a lot of the rides, I ride hard for the short distances, but I know I need to really concentrate on going for longer rides.  I have impressed myself just a little bit with how fast I've gone on one of my new training loops.  I call it loops within loops on Map My Ride.

Basically I head out from the house, going around the outside of the neighboring subdivision, then I dive into it, loop around a block and head back out to make it back home.  One "lap" is about 2.28 miles.  I like the fact that I'm riding in the subdivision as there is less traffic that I have to worry about.  the roads are also in very nice shape.

Add to that I recently got my bike serviced.  i had thought I needed a new bottom bracket as there was binding and strange noises coming from it when I really applied pressure to the pedals, but a thorough cleaning and greasing and its good to go for a lot more miles before it needs to be replaced.  Now I can pedal and not worry that something will fail or that I'm doing damage to the bike.

My first good ride of the Loops Within Loops route had me complete the distance of 2.28 miles in 9:56 which netted me an average speed of 13.8 mph.  I rode it a few more times, not really pushing because of my bike issues.  Now that the bike is better, I pushed it over the weekend and netted a time of 9:10 and an average speed of 14.9 mph.  Quite an improvement, especially with the short distances I have been doing for the last few months.

I am hoping the weather does finally cool off and I can start getting in longer rides. My first real test of the fall is coming up on September 27 when I am doing the Pedal to the Medal for the Special Olympics.  We were supposed to be doing the fun ride next Saturday but there is no way to register and the organizers haven't responded to my latest email.  The site says to check back mid-August for the registration form and since it is already the first week of September, I don't see it happening.  I'm really bummed too as the grand kids were looking forward tot he organized ride.

So, let's get out there and start putting some miles on as the weather improves.

Get on your bikes and ride!!!!

90 days in a row

Its hard to believe that I've actually ridden my bike at least a mile every one of the last 90 days.  Besides eating and sleeping, when was the last time you did anything for 90 days in a row?  I know its been a long time for me.

While I haven't been riding very far on any given day, I have been enjoying the ride. Of course this is only the halfway point in my personal challenge. Here are some interesting stats as pulled from DailyMile:

# of rides:     90
Total Distance:     201.95 Miles
Total Time:     16 hours 24 Minutes
Total Calories burned:     24452

From these numbers I calculate the following:
Average pace:     12.31 mph
Average ride length:     2.25 miles
Average ride duration:     10:55

I find it interesting that my average is under 11 minutes per day. That doesn't seem to be very much time out of my day.  Then again this is only measuring the actual moving time on the bike.  I figure a good 11 to 13 minutes additional time per day with changing clothes, pumping tires, waiting for the Garmin to find the satellites, etc. Still not a large amount of time.

All of these statistics will be increasing as I increase the distances ridden per day over the next couple of months to prepare for and participate in the upcoming events like the Viva Bike Vegas Fun Ride and the Pedal to the Medal.

Get on your bikes and ride!!!!!

Decisions made

Going to take the Diamondback into my LBS on Friday to get it serviced.  I weighed the pros and cons of self servicing vs professional servicing taking into account a lack of appropriate tools, a skills and knowledge gap and the fact that with just a little effort I can get my Schwinn rideable, it was a no-brainer. So I'll get in a quick ride tomorrow morning on the Diamondback then transfer my lights and possibly the seat to the Schwinn and take the Diamondback in for service.

                      

I know I am faster on the hybrid than I am on my cruiser.  Exactly how much I don't really know.  I guess I'll find out over the next few days.

I've been looking ahead and there are some interesting rides coming up in the near future that I really need to increase my mileage to get ready for.  The Viva Bike Vegas Fun Ride is a 10 miler that the grandkids (at least 2 of them) will be doing with me.  That's only 6 weeks away.  The Pedal 2 the Medal is 2 weeks after that and I'm eyeing the 25 mile route.

The last ride I am looking at is the Honor Ride for the Ride 2 Recovery.  That is on November 8 and it is a 40 mile ride.  The good news is I have lots of time to prepare for that ride. the bad news is my longest ride over the last 3 months is only 12.5 miles.  I definitely need to start increasing the mileage on a daily and weekly basis.

So, what are your plans for up coming rides?

Even if you aren't doing an organized ride:

GET ON YOUR BIKES AND RIDE!!!!!!

Feeling Neglected?

Good readers, I do apologize for my lack of posts the last couple of weeks.  Not much exciting has been happening on the fitness/cycling/weight loss front.

One good thing is that I am still on track for my personal cycling challenge.  I have ridden 24 days in a row now and covered just under 50 miles.  Granted my average ride length is short, but the fact that I am actually getting out there on days that I surely would not have is the good news.  I am getting to the point where it feels wrong if I haven't been on my bike on a given day.  This is good!  Now I need to start increasing the mileage.  One problem has been the times I am riding and how they are not conducive to long rides due to the heat.

On the fitness front, I have been walking a little along with the riding, but its nothing to be proud of.  Distances are very short.  Unfortunately I haven't been in the water in a long time as well.  Looking ahead to the next few months' schedules, I see very few opportunities to get into the water.  Lack of training in this arena has caused me to rethink my plans for the fall.  I have decided that I will not be doing Pumpkinman this fall.  I hadn't realized how much moving to the southwest part of town would impact my training.  When I lived on the east side, near Henderson, there were several pools within 10 minutes of the house.  That is not the case, now.

Sure, I know if I really wanted to do it, I would find a way to make the training happen.  That's just it, I am not motivated nor excited to do the event and therefore am not going to do it.

I have been looking for charity ride in the fall and I have one.

http://sonv.org/events/our-fundraisers/pedal-medal-2014

This ride supports the Special Olympics. From the website: "Pedal to the Medal offers something for riders of all levels and abilities with several route options and a free bicycle rodeo for both children and people with special needs.

Choose from a 25 mile, 50 mile or Century Ride.  The 50 mile and Century rides include an optional timed hill climb up Mt. Potosi."

I am excited about this ride as this is a cause I do believe in.  My nephew participated in the Special Olympics for a couple of years back in Michigan and I saw the wonderful opportunities this organization provides for the athletes.  Why not join me on this ride????

Get on your bikes and ride!