For whatever reason, there were plenty of energy reserves in ol' IronBill this morning, and they were used to execute a rather timely and efficient gym workout before work. This cleared the early afternoon for a ride. But where? How far?
There were of course limitations. There was the Regional track meet, a ballgame (niece), and perhaps some inventory work after hours for school. The possible ride ranges were 32, 42, or 65. What to do?
65 was almost immediately out because of time constraints. There was the enticing possibility of a time trial on 337, made more appealing by favoring winds. Would it be legit? No way. But it could be fun.
There was the possibility of riding from Lighthouse, which would garner at least 42 miles. This was out because of the work on 60. Would it be passable? There was no way to know without first going there, so it was on to option 3.
Spring Mill. Park at Spring Mill and do the Tuesday thang. Yup, that wound up being the choice. Would it be a solitary ride? Mike opted out. The rest of the gang was otherwise engaged. It looked to be a loner. Then my training partners, my TRUE training partners, showed up.
Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to the best training partners I ever had: Me, Myself, and I.
First off, I had to convince Myself to attempt the workout. If it were up to Me, there would have been only two for the workout. I gave Myself a pep talk, which did the trick. It even satisfied Me.
I drew up the battle plans - somehow things never work out when they're left up to Me, and when it comes to making workouts, there isn't much to recommend Myself. The plan was to ride out to the county line, do the flip and go fast.
This went according to plan going out. It was windy, more from cross than directly headwind, but it would be favorable on the return as planned. It was time to discuss the order of pulls, the target pace, etc. I conferred the honor of the first pull to Myself, with no complaints from Me. The second pull would go to Me, and I would take the anchor leg. Since all riders were super-strong, there would only be one pull apiece.
Once turned, the real fun began. I must say, after watching the first pull, I really like Myself. It was an incredibly strong pull, climbing the first hill at over 27 mph. The pull was excellent, as was the draft, and though the speeds topped 30+, the effort didn't tax Me at all.
Would it be possible for Me to top that effort? Time to find out! Past Pumpkin Center turn, a short leg north, then the rollers to Lost River Valley, nothing was too hard for Me. It didn't take Me any time at all to scoot through the valley floor and race toward the big hill of the course. It wasn't possible for Me to maintain 20 mph all the way up, the effort was beginning to show. Over the top, I knew it wouldn't be long before I had a turn.
I took over as expected, and it was time to put in one more effort. There was still the final hill to climb. I had a secret goal that was challenging for Me, so I kept telling Myself it didn't matter. I wanted 22 minutes. No. I wanted less than 22 minutes.
This was going to take a team effort now. I growled a challenge at the last climb, felt Myself whip Me into a frenzy, and totally went for it. The speed dropped to 18 mph over the top, still a great ride, but would I meet the goal?
I went into a glide, using the hill to help Me pick up some speed, then quickly urged Myself back into action. Harder and harder I pedaled, hoping to maintain as much of the average as possible. I knew if the target was missed, it would really upset Me. It's a long stretch to the finish from the break hill, and all eyes were focused on the line. Reaching over to hit the split button, the outcome was still in doubt.
21:09. Goal shattered. Average speed was 28.36 mph, the fastest time trial recorded on this course by this group. Wind aided? Certainly. I didn't care, it didn't bother Me, and I was happy for Myself.
*Congratulations to Hope Sowders, newest math teacher at BMS!*
Sorry, had to give a shout-out!
There were of course limitations. There was the Regional track meet, a ballgame (niece), and perhaps some inventory work after hours for school. The possible ride ranges were 32, 42, or 65. What to do?
65 was almost immediately out because of time constraints. There was the enticing possibility of a time trial on 337, made more appealing by favoring winds. Would it be legit? No way. But it could be fun.
There was the possibility of riding from Lighthouse, which would garner at least 42 miles. This was out because of the work on 60. Would it be passable? There was no way to know without first going there, so it was on to option 3.
Spring Mill. Park at Spring Mill and do the Tuesday thang. Yup, that wound up being the choice. Would it be a solitary ride? Mike opted out. The rest of the gang was otherwise engaged. It looked to be a loner. Then my training partners, my TRUE training partners, showed up.
Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to the best training partners I ever had: Me, Myself, and I.
First off, I had to convince Myself to attempt the workout. If it were up to Me, there would have been only two for the workout. I gave Myself a pep talk, which did the trick. It even satisfied Me.
I drew up the battle plans - somehow things never work out when they're left up to Me, and when it comes to making workouts, there isn't much to recommend Myself. The plan was to ride out to the county line, do the flip and go fast.
This went according to plan going out. It was windy, more from cross than directly headwind, but it would be favorable on the return as planned. It was time to discuss the order of pulls, the target pace, etc. I conferred the honor of the first pull to Myself, with no complaints from Me. The second pull would go to Me, and I would take the anchor leg. Since all riders were super-strong, there would only be one pull apiece.
Once turned, the real fun began. I must say, after watching the first pull, I really like Myself. It was an incredibly strong pull, climbing the first hill at over 27 mph. The pull was excellent, as was the draft, and though the speeds topped 30+, the effort didn't tax Me at all.
Would it be possible for Me to top that effort? Time to find out! Past Pumpkin Center turn, a short leg north, then the rollers to Lost River Valley, nothing was too hard for Me. It didn't take Me any time at all to scoot through the valley floor and race toward the big hill of the course. It wasn't possible for Me to maintain 20 mph all the way up, the effort was beginning to show. Over the top, I knew it wouldn't be long before I had a turn.
I took over as expected, and it was time to put in one more effort. There was still the final hill to climb. I had a secret goal that was challenging for Me, so I kept telling Myself it didn't matter. I wanted 22 minutes. No. I wanted less than 22 minutes.
This was going to take a team effort now. I growled a challenge at the last climb, felt Myself whip Me into a frenzy, and totally went for it. The speed dropped to 18 mph over the top, still a great ride, but would I meet the goal?
I went into a glide, using the hill to help Me pick up some speed, then quickly urged Myself back into action. Harder and harder I pedaled, hoping to maintain as much of the average as possible. I knew if the target was missed, it would really upset Me. It's a long stretch to the finish from the break hill, and all eyes were focused on the line. Reaching over to hit the split button, the outcome was still in doubt.
21:09. Goal shattered. Average speed was 28.36 mph, the fastest time trial recorded on this course by this group. Wind aided? Certainly. I didn't care, it didn't bother Me, and I was happy for Myself.
*Congratulations to Hope Sowders, newest math teacher at BMS!*
Sorry, had to give a shout-out!
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