Training Log Archive: veinbuster

Chilly damp air this morning. It wasn't really foggy, but the dampness gathered on my glasses at anything over about 25km/hr. The legs never really warmed up either and a pair of tights would not have been out of place.

When I looked at the stays for the Friday altered ride, I noticed an interval with an unexpected elevation so I thought I'd search out exactly where that was. It turns out it was just the luck of where the interval landed on the road.

Day 3 resistance bands and pushups

A quick (for me) 40k as the sun was coming into its stride. Even though I went out a bit late the temperature was stubbornly stuck at 10C to start. I didn't notice how warm it had become until I finished the ride and realized I was dripping wet.

I stuck to a tight little loop in case the cut in the front tire decided to explode. It didn't. The route was pretty clean road with few intersections so I was able to maintain a decent pace. Heart recovery was very quick, which is good to know because I don't often test recovery from a rate this high for very long. Back in the 70s by the time I put everything away.

September wins again.

Another beautiful day to be outside, but Murphy came along for the ride today. I started out with every possible red light, a school bus and a flag man at some pop up construction.
At about 20km I figured pace wasn't going to happen so I might as well just embrace it and enjoy the sun. A few km later I came to the refuse of some past construction. A front flat snuck up on me and without a warning event, I didn't notice it until I realized I was crunching clumsily over all the gravel.
When I got the tube out I found a tiny metal sliver stuck in the rubber. It was so small it was very hard to get out. Who knew tweezers should be in your road repair kit? I finally poked it through and put in a new tube. When I examined the result I noticed a bit of a slash something else sharp had put on the edge of the tire, so it is probably nearing the end of its short life.
I skipped the extra 15km loop I had been planning in favour of working my way closer to home. This would put me a bit short of the 50km that would have warranted the first apple dumpling with ice cream of the season. But it was the perfect day for it so I took that detour and chose cinnamon ice cream.

I think I'll take next September off.

Day 2 free weights and pushups + abs

A bit of an odd ride.
First I followed a school bus bringing kids home. After three stops I figured out the system for passing it and rode by little cheering sections of tiny kids waiting for an elder sibling to come home. That was fun as each of them needed a greeting.

The bus held up the cars for a bit and I almost made it through town before it caught up. I had a good pace of 30+km/hr focusing on a tight line by parked cars to minimize the fish of a driver being over anxious to pass when I caught a sharp rock with my rear tire and spit it out at lightening speed as the back end bucked a bit. I had long enough to hope I survived without a flat before I was looking for a place to pull over.

I walked over to the nicest bit of curb to fix it. Before I got my tools out a man of 80 or so stopped on his bike to ask if I was ok. A few minutes later a woman not quite as old came out of her house to check up on me and wish me luck. Apparently a good part of town to break down.

Since I didn't have another spare tube, I headed back and did a shortened ride close enough to walk home if need be. Even though it was cloudy, a bit cool for just a jersey, windy and I had a repair and had to ride a fairly boring route, it was still nice to be out. I like my bike(s).

I added time for when my Garmin timer was off because I had noted how long the repair took. I did not guess at a distance adjustment.

Rubber note: the Turbo tires that are very nice to corner on seem more prone to flats than other rubber I've used. I noted while doing the change that the rubber is quite thin on the upright line and am speculating that they will likely give me about half the mileage of previous tires. If I raced, I would definitely use them again, but in might pick something else for my enjoying the outdoors riding.

C • Bike Repair Stops 1

Great fall ride after work: clear sky, light wind, 20C+, and zero traffic incidents.

At one point a very large bug fly inside the vents on my helmet and was trapped there for a good 5km. I had visions of my skull being ravaged if it couldn't escape.

Day 1 free weights