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bicycling

Feels Like October

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, Outdoors /

Feels Like October This blog/page may contain affiliate links. “We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.” * It feels like October at last; now that October is over! Our temperature yesterday morning was about 72; today it was some 20 degrees cooler. I went for a ride, but the wind was rather strong; so I was a sissy and went to ride laps around the park. Before I had ridden one mile, my hands and feet were starting to feel the chill. Maybe I need some Rabbitroom Gloves! My feet were getting cold, too. My intended five laps got reduced to a measly two laps. The sky was overcast; and it began to mist. The wind seemed to be strengthening; and I decided it might be better to go home before it began to pour. Then, of course, it didn’t!? I forget sometimes that learning to deal with adverse weather is part of being a cyclist. Pushing your pace against the wind helps to develop strength and endurance; and it you’re to commute to work or school by bicycle, you must know how to ride in the rain. Tonight is supposed to be even cooler; with a wind advisory in effect until mid-morning tomorrow. I might have to postpone my ride!  Yes, it feels like October — now that November is here!

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Pushmi-Pullyu

BACK ISSUES, bicycling /

Pushmi-Pullyu? This blog/page may contain affiliate links. “We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.” * I thought of Dr. Dolittle’s pushmi-pullyu about two days ago, thanks to a couple of trains.  Rounding the turn before the last mile on the bike path, I heard the compressed-air sound that idling locomotives frequently make. Then I saw the train sitting there; and I hoped it wasn’t so long that it was blocking the crossing. As I rode further, I could see that the crossing was clear. Then I saw more locomitives! At first, it seemed that there were “locos” on both ends of the train; but then I noticed that there were two trains on idle. One was headed one direction; and the other one was pointing the opposite way. The pushmi-pullyu is one of the few things I remember from reading the book, Dr. Dolittle. (Not surprising, as that was decades ago.) It might be interesting if some enterprising inventor created a tandem bicycle to resemble the critter. The two saddles would have to face in opposite directions, each with its own set of handlebars. One pair of pedals would have to be operated in reverse; and that — captain or stoker? — pedaling backwards sure would make people look twice!

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Katy Bar the Door

BACK ISSUES, bicycling /

Katy Bar the Door? This blog/page may contain affiliate links. “We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.” * I hope all my work today doesn’t mean, Katy bar the door. On the contrary, I hope it makes navigation easier! Speaking of navigation, I’m glad Hurricane Tammy is far away from us; if it did some weird maneuvering, we might be in for a rough time! This morning I just did one easy circuit around the park; but I plan to do a longer ride tomorrow. At the moment, the wind is pretty strong; so I’m glad I’m not trying to ride against it. I’ve been trying to get into the routine of a longer ride in the middle of the week, in addition to the Sunday long ride. I’m also experimenting with starting my mid-week long rides before I eat. I cut up a protein bar to take along; and I eat pieces of it as I go. So far, it seems to work pretty well. The weather is weird enough without any visitors from the tropics. It still gets into the 80s in the afternoon. When the weather does turn cold, it’s likely to abruptly drop from the 80s into the 40s overnight. Does that happen everywhere; or is it just us? It makes me feel like saying, Katy bar the door.      

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Kaleidoscopic Effect

BACK ISSUES, bicycling /

Kaleidoscopic Effect I’d feel like the kaleidoscopic effect if I went for a ride attired in the jersey shown above! I must say, it’s very colorful. But when we’re riding, we don’t need to worry about kaleidoscopes. What we’ve got going is the gyroscopic effect. Ever notice how much harder it is to hold a straight line at a slow pace? Or how much harder steering is? That’s because of the gyroscopic effect. As a new rider, increasing the pace is scary. It made me feel like I was going out of control; but as I got more practice, I learned that the opposite is true. In an easy gear/high cadence, it’s still hard to ride in a straight line; but I suspect that’s a core-strength issue. Today I created no kaleidoscopic effect; my jersey was sky-blue, with black side panels. It was mostly covered by my vest (which is white). Things got a bit more garish when I added my reflective vest. It’s neon yellow, with orange-edged reflective stripes. Even so, I was sporting relatively few colors. I needed the visibility, too. When I went out, there were areas of light fog; and the sky was mostly overcast. It was still rather early anyway; so the light level was rather low. Getting my Sunday mileage back into the 20s now; but still a ways to go before I can do 40 again. Especially with a lapiplasty coming up next month!

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Cadence

BACK ISSUES, bicycling /

Cadence Cadence isn’t only about marching and military tattoos. We cyclists engage in cadence every time we ride. Yesterday I did some work on pushing the RPMs; and somehow that seems to make it easier to push the pace as well. Apparently that shift in mental gears helps as much as any shift in bicycle gears! For 30-60 seconds at a time, I worked to push my cadence anywhere from 85 to 95 rpm; and without shifting to a lower gear. That sure gets my heart rate up; and it was easier to go 16 mph! (For me, that’s fast). Which naturally leads to the question: What should my cadence be? I’d say that that is, to some degree, a matter of personal choice; and it also has something to do with muscle-fiber composition. Spinning uses slow-twitch muscle fibers; while mashing calls slow-twitch fibers into play. Everyone has a unique slow-twitch/fast-twitch ratio. Mashing a hard gear at low rpm makes your muscles tire faster because of lactic acid build-up. Rapid pedaling in an easier gear can make you out of breath faster; so each cyclist need to find the happy medium that works best for him/her. I’m glad that I don’t have to worry about marching. A marching stride is typically too long for my short legs. I have to almost lunge-walk to keep up! This morning I got lazy, though. I rode to the supermarket, but that was all. Tomorrow, the salvage store! After that, back to the kitchen.

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Dancing Shoes

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, equipment /

Dancing Shoes? Since when are cycling shoes, dancing shoes? I don’t think I would want to dance in my cycling shoes. The soles are too stiff; and even MTB shoes, with their recessed cleats, might lead to slipping. This morning, however, I was at my bike shop, buying a new pair of cycling shoes. The shop owner was teasing me about my dancing shoes; and I said, yeah, I’m ready for the foxtrot. I got a size larger this time, because of the bunion/bone spurs on my left foot. The shoes still feel a bit too snug at that spot; but I figure they’ll stretch over time. Shoes do that, you know. The pair I’m replacing are a good three years old; and they’re getting pretty soft around the heels. I read somewhere that you’re risking bio-mechanical trouble by “trying to milk more miles out of shot shoes”. I’ve got enough trouble without that! Better to pay for a new pair of shoes now, than have major doctors’ bills farther down the road. The weather forecast over the next few days shows a warming trend. I hope it doesn’t shoot up into the 90s again! Rain chances are low to none until next Wednesday; so at least I won’t need a rain suit.

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Not a Bike?

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Not a Bike? When is a bike not a bike? That depends on your exact definition. To me, a bike is something that  you can pedal to make yourself move, be it a two-wheeler; an adult trike; or even a unicycle. An indoor exercise bike is in the gray area. You can pedal as fast and hard as you like; but no amount of effort makes you and that thing get anywhere. Your CV system might be getting a terrific workout; but I’d rather have my efforts transfer into forward motion. Hence I came up with the term un-bikes!  Our weather is finally turning into something more like October. It was below 60 degrees this morning; and with a 12 mph wind, it felt quite chilly. And down to 54 tonight! We’re into another spell of dry weather; and who knows how long it will last. We still need rain. This morning I rode in the park, short and easy. I didn’t feel like battling the wind on top of the levee. Incidentally, sometimes I see things up there that are not a bike, such as scooters. Those things can fly; but they don’t have pedals. Neither do roller blades.  Of course I’ll be getting chilly while riding; and that means it’s hot-chocolate time! In recent months, I stocked up on reduced-calorie hot chocolate that I found in the salvage store. I didn’t care how hot the weather was; I knew I would want that stuff come Winter. I’ve got four or five boxes of it; so I should be all set!

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Eclipse

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, Outdoors /

Eclipse I nearly forgot about the eclipse yesterday! We’re outside the areas for the best viewing; and I wasn’t even thinking about it. Then, about 12:15 pm, I went out on an errand. I noticed funny little crescents of light on the sidewalk where the trees’ shadows fell — and then I remembered about the eclipse. When I got back home, I got out two small pieces of paper; and punched a hole in one of them. Then I went back outside to “see” the eclipse. I discovered that I had to turn so that the sun was at my back for my “viewer” to work. I took a pic of the light crescents with my cell phone; but to my great chagrin, I can’t figure out how to download it to my laptop. That’s what comes of my being such a technophobe! Today it’s been mostly clear. I rode nearly 20 miles this morning, fueled by a FitCrunch bar and Biosteel. The wind was rather a hassle, which is only too common. I didn’t try to hurry; I just tried to ride steadily. That’s what the Sunday long ride is supposed to be about, anyway. But I’m still quite  a long way from 40-mile rides! On the way back home, I did get a good tailwind for a bit. Especially in the final mile, I really got moving — and hit 21.73 mph!?

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No More TGIF

BACK ISSUES, bicycling /

No More TGIF This blog/page may contain affiliate links. “We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.” There’s no more TGIF, now that I’m retired. It’s such a weird feeling. Friday, heralding the weekend, used to take forever to come. Now I catch myself thinking, It’s Friday already? But today is no ordinary Friday; it’s Friday the Thirteenth. It’s supposed to be unlucky; so I’m wearing my Lucky British Black Cat pin! Actually I was fairly lucky for this morning’s ride. The rain is over for now; and the wind wasn’t bad at all. It was partly cloudy; and a temperature in the low 60s is pretty comfortable. I did wear long sleeves and a vest; leg warmers; and I used a skull cap. It isn’t chilly enough yet for full-fingered gloves, which is fine with me. When I need such gloves for my Sunday long ride, they make it much harder to take a bite of energy bar out of my snack bag. Today I didn’t try any intervals; I just rode. My head feels stuffy again; and that, in turn, makes me feel tired. If I weren’t retired, I’d sure be longing for the time when I could think, No more TGIF. At present I’m not exactly “training” for anything, anyway. The thought of shooting for a century crosses my mind now and then; but I doubt that I can be ready for one by early next month. Then, just before Thanksgiving, I’ve got foot surgery scheduled. It’s not only the bunion; I’ve got bone spurs that make flexing my toes upwards painful. Recovery from the procedure will likely mean a few months off the bike. So no century before next June, probably. And then it might be getting too hot!

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While I Can

BACK ISSUES, bicycling /

While I Can I had to ride today while I can. The weather outlook for tomorrow is 90% chance of heavy rain; and the wind as high as 20 mph by afternoon. Gusts could reach 35 mph; and I don’t want to be trying to ride in that! Actually, I felt like taking today off; but I knew what might happen if I did. By tomorrow I’d be getting very antsy from the lack of physical activity; and if I couldn’t get out to ride, I’d go crazy. Today I put in a total of six one-minute efforts at riding 15 mph or more. I’ve got to do that at least once a week; and work to lengthen those intervals.  They say, you have to go fast if you want to get fast. It makes sense, really; it’s rather like learning to play a musical instrument. You’ve got to practice if you want to be able to play. This morning I hit a max speed of 17+ mph. It helped that there was almost no wind — unusual for us. But it looks like it’s coming! There’s a weather system in the SW Gulf that they’re watching; and I believe that’s the generator for the wind and rain expected tomorrow. At about 11:30 am I had to go out to run an errand; and the sky was mostly overcast. I’m glad it didn’t rain, because I had my laptop with me. Should I try to go for another, short ride while I can? The hour-by-hour forecast doesn’t show any rain before tonight. On the other hand, I’ve got things to do!

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