Miracle of miracles, the gym was pretty much empty when I got there after school. This allowed me to use the brief time at my disposal to maximize my workout. I was able to set up most of my lifts into circuit format, and I was out of there before I knew what hit me.
I read Allen's tweet earlier, or rather, saw the picture of the Washington/Orange County line sign and read between the lines - Allen would night be at the evening ride. Mike bailed (with good reason), Jimmy was out of town, and well... the odds of finding someone waiting when I got there were slim to none. None as it turned out. I was on my own.
It was windy, really windy. I was glad I'd driven to Lighthouse, because the thought of going up and down that cut under those conditions didn't sound safe at all. Five minutes of riding bore that out. The wind was very stiff out of the south/southwest, and going crosswise with it created a great deal of buffet with my aero wheels. Going into it was no picnic either.
I rode the course backward, just for a change. The pace was very slow, partly because of the wind, more because my legs felt awful (and I have to race in two days). The final stretch south into Orleans was especially bad, but then again, that's directly into the teeth of the wind.
I took the Huck's stop, headed west, finding the outward leg not all that hard. In fact, things were beginning to improve dramatically. By the time I turned north again, there was a definite feeling in the air it would be a special segment.
It was.
It was easy to hold over 30 most of the way. Twenty-seven to 30+ the whole way back to the eastern crossroad, some 3-4 miles disappeared almost instantly. In fact, things had gone so well, I decided to stay on Highway 37 instead of crossing over to head for the Bernards.
Once out of the Main Street area and headed true north, I was so glad about the choice. In no time at all speeds had gone over 35+, eventually topping out at nearly 38. Someone asked me recently why you need a cassette with fewer than the 11 teeth my smallest one has now... this is why. That's pretty much the top end of what my bike can do, because honestly, the pedals simply won't turn over any faster than that. In the rare case you get a big tailwind like tonight, the 9-22 cassette would have been real handy.
The ride was right at 20 mph average, a pretty good ride under the conditions.
Ended the night with a short swim. Now it's time to rest for Indy. I'm meeting Jimmy in the K-Mart lot at 5:15 AM Saturday. Hoping for cooler weather than forecast!
I read Allen's tweet earlier, or rather, saw the picture of the Washington/Orange County line sign and read between the lines - Allen would night be at the evening ride. Mike bailed (with good reason), Jimmy was out of town, and well... the odds of finding someone waiting when I got there were slim to none. None as it turned out. I was on my own.
It was windy, really windy. I was glad I'd driven to Lighthouse, because the thought of going up and down that cut under those conditions didn't sound safe at all. Five minutes of riding bore that out. The wind was very stiff out of the south/southwest, and going crosswise with it created a great deal of buffet with my aero wheels. Going into it was no picnic either.
I rode the course backward, just for a change. The pace was very slow, partly because of the wind, more because my legs felt awful (and I have to race in two days). The final stretch south into Orleans was especially bad, but then again, that's directly into the teeth of the wind.
I took the Huck's stop, headed west, finding the outward leg not all that hard. In fact, things were beginning to improve dramatically. By the time I turned north again, there was a definite feeling in the air it would be a special segment.
It was.
It was easy to hold over 30 most of the way. Twenty-seven to 30+ the whole way back to the eastern crossroad, some 3-4 miles disappeared almost instantly. In fact, things had gone so well, I decided to stay on Highway 37 instead of crossing over to head for the Bernards.
Once out of the Main Street area and headed true north, I was so glad about the choice. In no time at all speeds had gone over 35+, eventually topping out at nearly 38. Someone asked me recently why you need a cassette with fewer than the 11 teeth my smallest one has now... this is why. That's pretty much the top end of what my bike can do, because honestly, the pedals simply won't turn over any faster than that. In the rare case you get a big tailwind like tonight, the 9-22 cassette would have been real handy.
The ride was right at 20 mph average, a pretty good ride under the conditions.
Ended the night with a short swim. Now it's time to rest for Indy. I'm meeting Jimmy in the K-Mart lot at 5:15 AM Saturday. Hoping for cooler weather than forecast!
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