SpokEasy

Author name: CAL

Cycling enthusiast; classical music lover; experimenter in the kitchen!

Rider’s Block

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I guess cyclists get rider’s block sometimes; just as authors get writer’s block. Somehow it seems that we just can’t get any faster; or the prep for a century isn’t going well. I’m not immune to rider’s block; and I wonder how much of it is of my own doing. My Own Block The hard efforts that we need to improve strength — and, therefore, speed — aren’t comfortable. They certainly aren’t my favorite part of riding; and it’s often hard for me to prod myself into doing them. No wonder I’m not getting stronger any too fast! I wasn’t sure that this morning was going to be a good time for such exercises, anyway, because “patchy dense fog” was in the forecast. Luckily there wasn’t much fog when I was riding. I was even able to see the old crescent moon; low in the sky, and looking big and orange-y. Yesterday morning it was very foggy, indeed. I had an early doctor’s appointment; and it was still dark plus foggy when I left home. I carried a bicycle headlight; and come to think of it, I should have worn my reflective vest. This appointment was at a clinic that I had never visited before; and I didn’t see anywhere for bicycle parking. It’s a good thing I didn’t try to ride there! So I missed riding yesterday; but I did get in 3-4 miles of walking! Tomorrow there’s a high wind warning from 8:00 am to 9:00 pm; and another outbreak of severe weather is possible in the evening. Poor Arabi. They’re still reeling from last Wednesday’s tornado; and now there’s the possibility of a repeat performance! I hope the wind doesn’t throw a meteorological rider’s block at me. Gusts might reach 45 mph; and that’s close to tropical storm strength! If the strong wind holds off until 8:00 o’clock, I should be OK for my morning ride. But it might be wise to walk to work tomorrow.

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Déjà Vu

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I got a sense of déjà vu yesterday, when I began my 50-mile ride with laps around the local park. It reminded me too much of my first century. Wind conditions that day provoked me to ride endless laps round and round that park. I wanted to get in the miles; but endless circling is terribly mind-numbing! Yesterday I decided to take that approach to make pit stops more convenient. To the park; six laps; and home made 14.50 miles; and that’s the same mileage that I typically ride to reach my first pit stop. (Note: this included a double-back of about 1.4 miles, while I waited for a train to move!) At home I topped up my Camel-Bak; visited Mrs. Murphy; applied more sunblock; and ate a GU-Gel. Then I took off again. Now that the weather is getting warmer, I’m drinking more fluid; and pit stops will be more important. That’s why I’m trying to think up a century route that will let me cover the miles; but not be too far from said pit stops. It will mean a lot of riding back and forth over the same stretch of bike path, aka plenty of déjà vu; but there’s a 4-mile segment that I don’t want to repeat too often in one day! It’s full of humps to climb over; and climbing isn’t my favorite thing. More Prep There’s a lot more prep that I need to do before I’m ready for a century; and I wonder whether anyone is ever truly ready. If they’re anything like me, they don’t ever feel ready! There’s yet more déjà vu — I always began a century ride feeling like I wasn’t properly prepared; and I guess it will always be that way. But maybe it’s better to feel I’m not ready, than to go too far the other way and brag that I’ll crush the Big Ride; and fizzle out at 40 miles. I wish I could get a really long-range weather forecast. If I’m to try for that 100-miler during April, I want a day of no rain and calm winds; but who can foretell that several weeks in advance? And such a day is only too likely to fall during the week, when I have to be at work. After April, it might be getting very hot; and that’s not a good time for me to tackle a century ride. If I had a shady path to ride, it might be different. Aim for a Fall century? That’s what I was doing last year; and then Ida happened! I’m not eager for déjà vu of that!

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Glass Half Full?

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Is my glass half full? Today I rode 50 miles — OK, I rode 52 miles; and that’s a half-century! It’s a hopeful sign; but riding twice that distance in one day is something else again. Today’s pedaling time was 4:16:03; and to ride 100 miles, I’ll need at least twice that amount of time. I’m bound to slow down as the ride goes on and I start to get tired; and in addition, century day might present me with a stronger wind than I had today. This morning my legs really started to feel the effort at about 40 miles; and that means I’m not yet ready for the jump to a full century. Who wants to slog through 60 miles, feeling like their legs are mush? Not I! Of course I can’t ride 100 miles non-stop; and time for the necessary rest breaks must enter into my calculations. In the end, we’re looking at a 10- or even 12-hour day. That’s a long time to be on the bike; but today’s ride seems to show the glass half full. My Garmin showed something that puzzles me. The data for any ride includes calories burned/calories consumed. Today it said I burned 1445 calories; and took in 1200. I know very well that the latter is incorrect; so is the former also wrong? Always Food! Speaking of calories, any ride over an hour or so means on-bike eating. I’m too lazy to do much cooking for my ride fuel; and I stick with FitCrunch bars, etcetera. The downside is, these bars tend to be sweet; and nothing but sweet food all day gets very tiresome — even for my sweet tooth. I need to look around for something more savory. The catch is that savory foods tend to make me too thirsty! I have a good stash of Gatorade Whey Protein bars; so you could say that my glass — or rather, my “feed bag” — is half full. Maybe I can add some Epic Bites to my feed bag. Or a few small cubes of cheese; and some Combos. Whatever I choose, it needs to be something that won’t get too soft in the heat. Incidentally, I started to get too warm today. As I was nearing my regular pit stop on the way home, I even began to feel a bit headachy. After I stopped, I took off one layer; and put my skull cap into my pocket. I also ate a GU-Gel that had a bit of caffeine in it; and after that, I felt better. It looks like windy conditions will arrive about mid-week; and I’m glad there wasn’t much wind today. I hope next Sunday is another low-wind day; and I can shoot for 55 miles!

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Break the Bank

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Break the bank — not! That’s why I go to the salvage store so often. I went again this morning; but tried not to bring home too much canned stuff. Even so, I had quite a load, because I bought a 6-pack of rolls of paper towels! That’s where that trailer comes in handy. The store still has Gatorade Whey Protein bars on sale; and as long as they have them, I’ll keep stocking up. There was on-sale Valentine candy; and today I found hummus! For quite some time, I’ve seen boxes of rice pudding in the refrigerator section of the store; and I finally got some to try. It’s good with cinnamon and clove on top. There was little wind today, which was a pleasant change. Last Saturday it was quite a battle, with the trailer catching the sidewind. I wish it were like today more often! It looks like the wind will be somewhat stronger tomorrow; and that’s not the best news. Of course I’m planning a long ride; and I get SO tired of headwinds during those long treks. I want to extend my distance to 50 miles; and sometimes I wish there were more cycling routes available. I ride the same old path over and over; and that does get monotonous. I think I need to get a new red blinkie for the back of my helmet. The switch on the old one doesn’t seem to be working well. Sometimes I’m sure I turned off the light; and later I’ll find it blinking away. I guess it’s worn out; and I don’t think a new one will break the bank.

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Basket Case?

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Don’t worry about being a basket case! Just use this hand-woven, willow wicker one. It can carry your picnic lunch or other small loads. Adjustable leather straps fasten it to your bicycle’s handlebars. Designed for adult bicycles. Size: 15.3″ x 9.4” x 11.4″/38.86 cm x 29.87 cm x 28.95 cm; and can carry up to 15 lb/6.8 kg. I haven’t tried using such a basket, although I suppose a handlebar bag comes close. I used to have one for the hybrid, before I got the road bike. It was great to carry my on-bike food during long rides; and this basket can do it, too.

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Grandiose Plans?

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I’m coming up with some grandiose plans; and let’s hope I’m not jumping the gun. Let’s say I’m really going to do that century ride next month. It’s none too soon to plan my route; and I think it will be better to do it in shorter segments. I don’t want to get too far from a pit stop, because by April it can already be getting hot; and that means drinking more fluids than when it’s cold. We know what that can do to us! Come Sunday, I think I’ll test part of that route. If I ride to the local park; make six circuits; and go home for a pit stop, I’ll knock off about 12.8 miles. While I’m home, I can top up my Camel-Bak. I can replenish my ride food supply as well; and then head out for my usual pit stop 14.5 miles away. Total so far: ~25.18 miles. Then I can ride on for about 5.5 more miles; and head back home. That should give me a total of 50 miles; or, a half-century. My longest ride so far this year was a bit over 45 miles; so extending my distance to 50 miles should be doable. It looks like the weather will cooperate; and that’s always a good thing. Of course hours spent out there on the bike means sunblock; and before long it will be too warm for those leg warmers. That means a lot more sunblock. We’ll see how things go for the next few weeks; and I’ll keep an eye on wind conditions! Fighting the wind all day is not fun; and can ruin my grandiose plans.

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Half Cocked

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If I try to ride a century next month, isn’t that going off half cocked? I suspect that it is; but April is another Love to Ride Challenge; and I think it would be great if I could get in that century during the month. My Sunday long ride is up to 45 miles; and while I’m not exhausted at the end, I’m certainly tired. Is the jump to 100 miles too much, too soon? On top of that, I’ve had several weeks of short mileage recently. If I attempt a 100-miler next month, I’ll have to accept that I won’t be able to ride it as fast as I wish I could. Even if I wait until the end of April to do it, I have only a few weeks’ time remaining to work at improving my pace; and let’s not forget about the taper in the final week before the big ride! At the very least, “tapering” means no force work that week! Of course I don’t want to gun for 100 miles on a day of strong winds; and even less do I want a day with T-storms! Warmer weather is setting in; and that’s good for long rides. Cold weather saps my energy, especially if there’s also a stiff wind! But I don’t want to wait to do a century until afternoon temperatures are climbing into the 90s! Mulling It Over What shall I take for ride food? Maybe, for such a long ride, a mix of savory and sweet is better than all chocolate-covered bars! The main thing is not to go off half cocked; and carry too little food. I’m also pondering the route I might take for a century. When I ride straight out to the Spillway, I cover about 24 miles; and there are few places where I can make pit stops. As the ride goes on, I’ll need to make such stops more frequently; and I’m thinking of laps between home and my regular pit stop spot, at 14.5 miles from home. The catch with boomerang-ing back home is that I might be too tempted to call it quits before I’m finished. It will also mean considerable doubling back and forth to reach 100 miles; but there’s an advantage to that. If I have a headwind, I won’t be fighting it for as long!

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Resurgam!

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Resurgam! I shall rise again, said Old Man River; and proceeded to rise. During the past week or so, I thought it looked like the river was rising; and now I know that it is. This morning I spotted my first gator eyes of the season; and I expect I’ll see more of them before long. I hope those eyes, and their owners, stay in the water; and away from the path! They probably will; but it doesn’t hurt to be careful around alligators. Yesterday it got very warm for March; and in the evening, bad weather pushed through. Those poor folks in Saint Bernard Parish got clobbered yet again. It’s a case of “resurgam”, even if they don’t have that particular word in mind. They’re quite resilient; and I wish them the best. In my immediate area, we didn’t even lose power; although the lights flickered a bit. It was probably right then that the tornadoes were passing through. I got an email with a weather statement about the tornado warning; and didn’t see it until the warning had expired! It came through right when I had left the laptop to fix today’s lunch; wash dishes; and wash the morning’s cycling shorts. Overnight it got cooler; and, thank goodness, the wind diminished considerably. It had felt like May for a while; and now it feels more like March again. I won’t mind when it’s warm enough for half-finger gloves; and then I can finally wash the full-finger gloves. I need at least one more pair of them, so I can wash one pair and use another while the first pair dries. It’s going to be chilly tomorrow morning; and I’ll need hand warmers. I’ll see how the river’s doing, too. I hope it doesn’t resurgam too much!

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Hope for the Best

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At 6:28 am: I’ll have to hope for the best today. It isn’t raining just now; but the wind is already 22 mph! Thanks to the wind, I decided to go ride a few circuits of the local park; and I made it a short ride. I think it will be wise not to ride to work today. The forecast predicts storms and strong wind right at the time I’d be riding home; and I’m going to chicken out. As to getting back home on foot, I’ll have to hope for the best. Waiting for the Storm At 2:20 pm: I got to work dry; but by 10:40 am we were under a tornado watch. The wind had risen to 21 mph; and we hadn’t seen the sun all morning. About half an hour later, the sun came out for a brief time; but then the clouds moved over it again. We had been under a wind advisory for several hours already; and when we were given the option of leaving early I seized the opportunity. I jumped ship, so to speak, at 1:30 pm; and got home about 2:00. Perhaps that was premature; but when potentially severe weather is looming, I’d rather err on the safe side. During the walk home, it didn’t seem that storms are on the way; except perhaps for the strong wind. The sun came in and out of the clouds; and it actually wasn’t bad out there. Who knows, though. With wind like this, a power outage is always possible; and during the last hour or so that I was at work, there was an occasional flicker of the lights. At 2:15 pm, the wind was SSE 21 mph; and both wind advisory and tornado watch were still in effect. I’m glad I didn’t ride a bicycle to work! For at least half of the ride home, that wind would have been right on my nose; and strong winds also make me nervous about falling tree limbs and flailing power lines. When I do ride when it’s so windy, I just hope for the best.

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Plan for the Worst

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Plan for the worst; and hope for the best. That’s all we can do when it comes to cycling and weather; and it looks like our weather will be terrible tomorrow; especially from early afternoon onwards. By late morning today, the wind was already 20 mph. Tomorrow morning T-storms are possible from 7:00 am; and I hope I can ride before I go to work. The forecast says, some of the T-storms might be severe; and naturally I don’t want to get caught out in such a storm. At the same time, I’m tired of being on tenterhooks about bad weather. A forecast will sound like doomsday, and it’s most irritating to skip riding because of such predictions; and then nothing happens. It makes me feel cheated; because I could have gone for a ride, after all! And why does the weather have to turn nasty during Ride Anywhere Week? I can’t do anything but wait and see how things are in the morning. If it’s storming, I can put the hybrid in the trainer; and get a little “exercise” that way. If there’s no imminent threat of rain and lightning, I think I’ll ride in the park. Sometimes I wish I had a book to help me figure out what the weather is going to do. There may well be signs that I could “read”; but I’ve never had the time to learn them. And so, after a lifetime in this place, I still can’t tell what the weather is going to do! That’s why we have to plan for the worst; and then hope the worst doesn’t happen.

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