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SpokEasy

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Saddle Up!

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, equipment /

Saddle Up! ?? Let’s saddle up and ride! You can go with the leather Brooks England B17 Saddle; especially if you’re into longer distances. The Brooks England B17 Saddle conforms to your body’s contours over time; and for ladies, there’s the Brooks B17S. A leather saddle needs some special care to keep it supple; and Brooks Saddle Cream is great for protecting and preserving it. This is especially important if you ride in the rain. For a cushier saddle, there’s the Giddy Up! Bike Seat. It has elastomer suspension; memory foam padding; and ergonomic design. Built-in tail light for night cycling. As for me, I’ll stick with the saddle I’ve got; something called Mimic. It’s fairly hard — padding level 2 out of 6 — but I like to put in the miles. By all the advice I’ve read, firmer, narrower saddles are better than soft, cushioned saddles for riding long and/or fast. The most important thing about a saddle: be sure it supports your sit bones! All Bodies on Bikes ?‍♀️ ?‍♂️ ?? No, you don’t have to have the fitness and physique of a Grand Tour GC contender to saddle up and ride. It doesn’t matter if you’re way overweight; you can still ride a bicycle! All Bodies on Bikes aims to make cycling more inclusive; and to help put and end to discrimination against bigger riders. See here at 31:25 minutes as Marley Blonsky tells of her mission. I think it’s great! I wish her all success! 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.” ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Saddle Up! May 29, 2024 Climbing vs Elevation Gain May 28, 2024 Practice Makes Perfect May 27, 2024 Hear Ye Hear Ye May 26, 2024 Load More TRANSLATOR

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Hear Ye Hear Ye

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, equipment /

Hear Ye Hear Ye ? “Hear ye, hear ye,” said my legs this morning. “We don’t feel fit. We don’t want to ride any 35-40 miles.” Sometimes it’s better to listen when your body starts talking like that. The trick is knowing when you’re simply not quite in the mood for a ride; and when you really need to back off. There are days when my legs start to feel a lot better after riding easily for 10 minutes; and there are days when those muscles simply won’t “snap out of it”. Today it was the latter. Not only were my legs tired and heavy; the wind was really hard to deal with.  It felt like I could hardly make any headway. So when those legs kept crying, “Hear ye, hear ye,” I finally decided to cut the ride short. Heat Index ? Our heat index is taking off, which doesn’t help. There was a heat advisory posted from noon today, lasting until tomorrow evening. At 7:00 am this morning, it was already nearly 80 degrees! I did my first experiment in using my lightweight helmet liner as a cooling beanie. I learned that it doesn’t work well. As long as the liner stayed wet, it did make my head cooler. After about half an hour, the liner was too dry; and my head was getting hot. I’d need to re-wet that liner about every 30 minutes; and that’s rather impractical. When the heat index rises over 100, I need to drink my water! So I have to find other ways to keep cool. 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.” ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Hear Ye Hear Ye May 26, 2024 Do Not Repeat May 25, 2024 Not Roses May 24, 2024 Tailor? May 23, 2024 Load More TRANSLATOR

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Why Didn’t I Look?

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, equipment /

Why Didn’t I Look? ? Why didn’t I look at my Garmin more carefully? I’ve never been able to get my heart rate zones to show on the display screen; although beats per minute is there. Somehow I thought that I wasn’t getting the breakdown of Time Spent in HR Zones; so for at least a year I didn’t even try to find it. Well, why didn’t I look? That info is there. Just think of the data I missed! Of course I can go back through my history of rides and get what I want; but I decided that the last few weeks’ info gives me enough to go on. I went back to May 5, and saw that much of my riding time — at least, on the road bike — was spent in Zone 3 and Zone 4. So now I have a decent idea of what my training load is. Carrying a Load? ? Maybe I really am carrying a load that’s a bit much. Zone 3 is called “steady”; and “just above your comfort zone”. Zone 4 is “brisk”; and the point where you begin to edge into working anaerobically. Since May 5, I actually spent a little more time in Zone 4 than I did in Zone 3! I want to keep better track of this as I ride; and in order to watch which zone I’m in, I had to write the zones on a bit of index card, and tape it to my handlebars. Today I worked to stay in Zone 2; and it was surprisingly hard. I kept wanting to push harder and faster! How do you determine  your training load? Let’s say you went for a ride; and spent 10 minutes in Zone 2; 40 minutes in Zone 3; and 10 minutes in Zone 4. That’s (10 x 2) + (40 x 3) + (10 x 4) = training load 180.  You’ll really be carrying a load if you spend a lot of time in Zone 5. I think I need a little more time working at my maximum heart rate; but one day a week of such efforts is enough for an amateur like me! 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.” ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Why Didn’t I Look? May 20, 2024 Doubling Back May 19, 2024 Hurricane Rehearsal? May 18, 2024 Still on Edge! May 17, 2024 Load More TRANSLATOR

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Welcome Change

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, equipment /

Welcome Change ☀️ Today was a welcome change from yesterday. The sky had cleared; and it was great to be out on the road bike again! As always, I wasn’t as fast as I wish I could be; but I’m working at it. Another welcome change was having a TAILwind on the way home! All the more so, as the wind had gotten considerably stronger by the time I turned around for the return trip. On the way out, I had a wind of about 6 mph; for the way home, the breeze was more like 12 mph. Try Again! ?? I decided this morning, try again. And again. I’ll never get any faster if I don’t! Even against a wind of only 6 mph, it’s hard to attain 15 mph. I made these efforts only one minute long; and that makes me feel like a wimp. Shouldn’t I keep it up for longer? Was my three sets of three 60-second efforts enough of a workout? But when I got that wind behind me — oh, wow! I could do five-minute efforts; and they didn’t seem terribly hard. If only it could be like that all the time! On the other hand, the rarity of a tailwind on the way home makes it that much more fun. Regular riding gives me ample time to view my road bike’s handlebar tape; and it looks like I may need to replace it soon. It’s always something!  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.” ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Welcome Change May 14, 2024 Missed Opportunity? May 13, 2024 Muscles or Mush? May 12, 2024 What Happened? May 11, 2024 Load More TRANSLATOR

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Tired But Not Tired

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, equipment /

Tired But Not Tired ? You know that tired, but not tired feeling? That’s me today. Over yesterday and the day before, I completed my first attempt at back-to-back long rides; and I’m not sure whether I can say I’m tired or not! Fatigue in the sense of can’t-get-put-of-bed exhaustion, no. Even my legs don’t feel very stiff and tired, until I try to ride. I made a short trip to the local farmers market; and later rode to the bike shop. My legs did feel rather tired then. Maybe I need to do some stretching? The bike shop called to say my derailer hanger was in; and I went to get it. I like to keep a spare on hand at all times. While I was there, I got some gloves; and stopped to buy bananas on the way home. Total mileage today: barely over 5. Maybe tired but not tired means I’ll be in fine fettle for tomorrow’s planned pace work. How about efforts at 15 mph for six minutes? We’ll see how it goes! Taste of RAGBRAI? ?? Have I gotten a taste of RAGBRAI? A slight nibble, I’d guess. RAGBRAI is about averaging some 70 miles per day — seven days in a row! Two consecutive days of 30-32 miles is a far cry from such distances; and I have a tendency to try to build up slowly to long rides. Maybe too slowly! That’s why I’m taking a start-training-up-now approach. Training aside, if I do RAGBRAI, I’ll want something larger than the top-tube pouch I have. At the bike shop today, I saw handlebar bags similar to the one at left; but I don’t want to buy one until I can get to that store with my road bike. Might as well be sure the bag will fit on the bike; and riding with more of a load on the handlebars will be another taste of RAGBRAI! 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.” ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Done! May 6, 2024 Halfway May 5, 2024 Do-si-do? May 4, 2024 Rain Drill? May 3, 2024 Load More TRANSLATOR

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Rain Drill?

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, equipment, Outdoors /

Rain Drill? ?️ I thought I might get a rain drill today; namely, that I’d get caught in a downpour. And without a poncho! Anyone who cycles regularly for exercise; fun; or transportation, does need to learn how to deal with riding in the rain. Hence the term rain drill.  When I set out this morning, the sky was overcast; and it looked quite stormy in a northwesterly direction. However, I got lucky. I was back home before we any rain began. A former co-worker once told of cycling home in rain so heavy that it threatened to wash his contact lenses out of his eyes! It makes me glad that I don’t use contacts. An occasional rain drill is also good practice for RAGBRAI. We can’t count on having clear weather all week. If I do that big ride, I must remember to bring along chain lube! If it does rain, I’ll need it. Weekend Outlook ☀️ The weekend outlook, fortunately, is much better. Tomorrow I’ll want to hang my panniers on the hybrid’s rack; and make my usual trek to the salvage store. I must look for ride food; and I hope I find almond milk. It’s also time to think about laying in supplies in case we have a hurricane (oh, that loathsome H-word!) Sunday I want to go for a longish ride. A high of 86 is predicted; so I won’t need leg warmers. But I will need plenty of sunblock! 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.” ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Rain Drill? May 3, 2024 Enough Rest? May 2, 2024 Experimenting May 1, 2024 Goodbye Leg Warmers? April 30, 2024 Load More TRANSLATOR

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Experimenting

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, equipment /

Experimenting ? With RAGBRAI in mind, I’m experimenting. I’ve been trying out different ride foods and drinks for many years; but not ways to sleep if I go on a multi-day ride. With that in mind, I bought an air mattress today. It’s not quite as fancy as this HiiPeak; but it ought to suffice. It might seem like overkill, as I have three air mattresses; bought last Fall when my brother and his family visited. However, they weigh almost 10 pounds each! If I do RAGBRAI and use a charter, there’s typically a luggage weight limit of 50 pounds. I don’t think I’ll want an air mattress that gobbles up a fifth of my baggage weight allowance. The mattress I bought weighs under 3.5 pounds. Since I’m experimenting, tonight I can pump up that mattress; and maybe even try sleeping on it. It lacks a built-in pump; but the charter I’m considering if I do RAGBRAI has air pumps. This air mattress includes a glue-less patch kit. As long as I don’t store the thing in a broiling hot attic or garage, it should keep a year or two. Getting ahead of Myself? ?? Okay, I’m getting a bit ahead of myself here. But I’d rather get ahead of myself now, than find myself behind a year from now. RAGBRAI is a major undertaking; and I keep thinking of more and more things. I’m considering getting a handlebar bag for my road bike, provided it fits properly. I’d like something that holds a little more than the top-tube pouch I’ve been using for  years. But having that bag on my handlebars could affect bike handling; and I’ll need a little time to adjust to it. Getting back to the air mattress, I’ll wait to get any kind of sleeping bag. Buying it now is getting ahead of myself a bit too much. 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.” ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Experimenting May 1, 2024 Goodbye Leg Warmers? April 30, 2024 Old Tease April 29, 2024 Time to Back Off! April 28, 2024 Load More TRANSLATOR

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Goodbye Leg Warmers?

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, equipment /

Goodbye Leg Warmers? ? Can I say, goodbye leg warmers for the season? This morning I thought I’d need them, as it was 66 degrees. But before I finished my ride, the things were too warm! The forecast predicts highs in the 80s for at least a few days; and that might mean the end of Spring. May is rather early for Summer to set in; but it’s happed as early as March. So it won’t only be, goodbye leg warmers; I can also wave goodbye to long sleeves and helmet liners. Well, helmet liners to keep warm, anyway. I want to try mine as cooling beanies this season. I have some kind of cooling band; but it’s narrow, and tends to slip out of place. I’ll drape it around my neck; and next thing I know, it’s falling off! Ride Easy ?? Today I reminded myself to ride easy. I’m lucky I didn’t have a strong headwind to fight. I’m also cutting mileage a little this week; no 20-mile jaunts. How about a ride to Walmart tomorrow, to check out their sports section? Maybe I can get one or two things to try for my prospective RAGBRAI. At least, I can see what they have. And the shopping list is growing. I won’t itemize here; but as I watch more videos about RAGBRAI, I think of more and more things to add! But it’s better to think of them now; not a year from now. Then I won’t have to think during the event, oh no, I should’ve gotten X. If I do get to participate in RAGBRAI, I want to be able to ride easy. 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.” ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Old Tease April 29, 2024 Time to Back Off! April 28, 2024 Don’t Drag Yourself Down April 27, 2024 Mister Finnegan April 26, 2024 Load More TRANSLATOR

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Reconnaissance

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, equipment /

Reconnaissance ? It’s time to start some reconnaissance! If I want to do a 100-miler, I need to find out where I can stop for a restroom break; and buy more snacks if I need them. There’s that pocket park about 15 miles from here; but I need more potential pit stops. So this morning I made my hybrid a spy bike! Along my route, there are places where neighborhood streets dead-end at the levee; and at one of them I rolled my bike down to street level. Less than half a mile away, there’s a filling station. It’s annoying to have to go out of my way like that; but what else can I do? By late May/early June, it will be too hot for me to take it easy with liquid intake. A little reconnaissance now might pay off big time in a couple of months! Half Measures ? Maybe it’s time for  some half measures, too. I don’t think I’m ready for a full century yet; but I might be able to knock out 50 miles in a day. My weekly long ride is up to 25-30 miles; and they say a cyclist can manage a one-day distance equal to twice the longest ride in a week. The long-range forecast doesn’t look bad; but I’m watching for a day when the wind won’t be too strong. How tired I get of wind! Naturally I have to plan what food to take with me; and no half measures with hydration! Even when the temperature is still in the 60s, I notice how quickly I can start to feel parched; and dehydration is no joke. A cooling beanie sounds like a good idea, too; but first I think I’ll see how my lightweight helmet liner works. I’ve got it; so why not use it? 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.” ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Reconnaissance April 12, 2024 Getting Shortchanged April 11, 2024 Paraphrase April 10, 2024 Hotheaded April 9, 2024 Load More TRANSLATOR

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Getting Shortchanged

BACK ISSUES, bicycling, equipment /

Getting Shortchanged? ? Am I getting shortchanged? It feels like it when I have to replace a pair of cycling shorts. After all, they aren’t cheap; but at the same time, I must admit that they’re worth it. With their built-in padding, cycling shorts are much more comfortable than regular shorts for anything more than a very short ride. That’s especially true if those regular shorts have a zipper up the front; I don’t have to say why! Cycling shorts also help support your leg muscles; and they typically have silicone grippers around the bottoms of the legs. Those grippers help keep your shorts’ legs from sliding upwards as you ride. Over time, however, those grippers stop gripping; and the fabric of the shorts gets overly stretched out. Then it’s time for a new pair. Then there are days when I feel like I’ve getting shortchanged on my mileage. That’s frustrating when you’re trying to work up to a big ride! Am I Merely Lazy? ? Sometimes I wonder, am I merely lazy? Do I just want to stay in the sack all day? I especially think about that on days when I cut my intended mileage, for whatever reason. This morning I had a strong wind — on the way out, for a change! — and I planned to ride 10 miles or so before turning for home. As I approached the 9.5-mile point, the wind suddenly seemed to get much stronger; and I decided to turn around and head for home. It was glorious having a strong tailwind; and for a while I was doing 17+ mph. On the way out, I averaged only about 9.9 mph; quite pokey. On the other hand, the wind was as as strong as 21 mph. Time was when that would have slowed me to a plodding 6 mph! Today I didn’t feel like working hard agains the wind; even though that’s a good way to improve strength; and to get fast. It’s also good as simulated climbing; and I need that.  So was I tierd? Or am I merely lazy? 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.” ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Paraphrase April 10, 2024 Hotheaded April 9, 2024 Shady Dealings Again April 8, 2024 Blockage April 7, 2024 Load More TRANSLATOR

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