Slipping up

I don't know how I could let this go. Once again I have slipped up and forgotten a major portion of a tale, and I find myself having to back up and retell a portion of the previous day's events.

As I posted yesterday, three of us took the challenge and rode in spite of the rain. Let's face it, you never know, it may rain race day. You'd still ride, right? We had to man up.

Remember the order was Scott, Roy, then me. Remember I felt that was a hard choice to make between Roy and Scott, as I feel there is practically nothing between them in speed at the moment. One is slightly better one way, the other in another. I felt giving Scott a one-minute advantage would be more than enough to ensure Roy couldn't catch - which turned out to be correct. What we didn't know was Scott helped keep it closer, albeit unintentionally.

We were on the cool-down portion of the ride. We were discussing our efforts and times, calculating roughly our speeds, when Scott had his epiphany.

He'd ridden the whole time trial in the small ring.

Let that soak in for a second. He'd been cautious on the way out because of the wet roads. We layered back off Roy's lead, so I noticed over and over on the way out he was in the low ring. He simply forgot to shift it up when he started the time trial. Chalk it up to the distraction of wet roads, but nonetheless, he rode his best TT time in the low chain ring.

Anyone who rides knows that meant he left a lot of speed out there. What had been a high-23 might have been a high-24/low-25. Easily. Maybe more. It was a great effort, and now passes into club lore in the category of, "You remember that time...?" Hall-of-Fame greats in that category?

• Larry Moffatt wearing his helmet backwards as Galloway clipped in and immediately fell over on his first clipped ride
• Galloway wearing his helmet through T2 and onto the run leg of Cicero Triathlon
• Galloway undressing in the doorway at Cicero, showing his backside to anyone interested in looking up
• Galloway attempting to change his flat tire without removing the wheel from the frame

Hey, waitaminnit... this whole thing ought to be renamed the "Galloway Hall of Shame"!

Congratulations, Scott. It takes a great effort to be aligned with one of the all-time greats.

Why not?

Allen started contacting me about 1:30. The weather was falling apart, and he was looking for a way to complete the ride before the rain started. There was obvious wisdom to his planning, but alas, we waited too long. The line moving in from Illinois was massive and building. The forecast for thunderstorm activity seemed to be spot on, so I agreed to try to sneak it in. However, as the agreed upon time to ride approached, it became obvious the line would overtake us long before we could complete the workout.

If it had been anyone else than Allen (or Lester) I might have gone anyway. Unfortunately I was already blamed (rightly so, I suppose) for the stormy ride we had earlier in the summer. Kedra had been somewhat forgiving of me for that episode, though I endangered the lives of two of her favorite people. I couldn't risk it again. I told Allen we'd best wait to see if it would blow over.

Of course it didn't. The front parked itself right over Lawrence County precisely when we should have headed to the gathering. One by one riders begged off via text, and though I resolved to go anyway, I doubted anyone else would show. It didn't matter; I was going. It's taper, and some things need to happen in a timely fashion. I felt this was a critical workout, so if I could make it happen, it would happen.

Roy, Scott, and I were the only people to show. Scott hopped out of the truck thinking run, as he was garbed in running attire. I suppose Roy was too. When I started unloading my bike in the light rain, they both looked at me with slightly surprised expressions. "Are you going to ride in this?", they asked. I explained I'd done more in worse, and figured I'd give it a shot. I guess I shamed them into it, because within minutes we were all loaded up on bikes and ready to go. On time I might add, Mr. Galloway!

We batted courses back-and-forth for a few minutes. I said I didn't know if a hard ride was possible, they said they didn't care to ride hard in this stuff, so we considered our options. In the back of my mind I hadn't yet given up on a time trial, so I suggested going out the regular way. We could always change our minds later if necessary.

As we started, they mentioned Jimmy had been planning a time trial today. It made sense. We are at the end of the season for some, and it's good to get a check on progress. If I was going to do it, today had to be the day. Next week is the week of the peak race, so I wouldn't do it then. After that, I probably won't get another chance to ride on Tuesdays. Now or never for me.

On the way out Roy pushed the pace all the way (once on 337). We had to string out a bit because the roads were soaked, traffic was steady, and the bikes threw up quite a bit of water. I'd judge Scott's rooster tail to be about three bike lengths (or the size of a Toyota Corolla for you triathletes), so I laid way back. Looking at the road on the way out, I knew it was dicey. There was a lot of ponding water, and any misstep could be disastrous.

Pace line was out. There was no safe way to do it. Time trial was the best option. At first the other guys didn't seem interested, but like me, I think the testosterone started to kick in when someone committed to going hard. I said flat out I was going for it no matter what - the worst that would happen is I wouldn't make it (actually, the worst that could happen would be to die in a tragic slide-off-the-slick-road style crash into a barb wire fence). That's infallible logic, so we were set.

Scott went first. That was a hard one to judge, because I don't think there's much difference between Roy and Scott in terms of speed. Roy is in better bike shape, Scott is a better climber. This was going to be fun.

I went last. There was a minute between every rider, and I honestly wondered if there was any way to catch them.

When I got onto 337, I saw Roy way off in the distance. Way off. He was clearly riding much better than before, and it didn't seem possible to get to him. Regardless, I laid over the top tube and got to work. The speed was good, but not impressive. Clearly there was no tailwind assist, so this would have to be done the old fashioned way. I kept the pressure on, and by the end of the straightaway I'd closed quite a bit.

Through Bromer I could see the gap was closing, but it wasn't rapid. Steady, not fast. It wasn't until we'd topped the first hill and were in the next section when I caught him. Even then, I didn't smash by him. It was work. I set my eyes forward to scour the landscape for Scott.

I was using the whole road, taking the straight lines, the shortest distances, yet trying to avoid the larger puddles that covered the road in places. I focused on these because I figured that would improve my odds of finishing without a nasty wreck. I finally got to Scott in the Lost River Bottoms, though he too was pushing well.

I half imagined he would overtake me on the climb up Lost River Hill. Even if he did, I was confident I would rebuild my speed and overtake him again in a short time. (In another year this may not be possible!) My speed quickly returned, and I was left only with the last series of rollers and the final hill.

It went pretty well. I couldn't really read my Garmin easily because the rain drops covered the display, distorting the readout. I went by feel. Speaking of feel, my lungs felt fine, but my quads were still a bit sore. I pushed them anyway.

I'd checked my time when I hit the start and again at the finish. It was 1:05:35 at the start, 1:27:50 at the end. That's 22:15 on the preliminary, which would be a season's best if it held. It did. That equates to 26.9 mph, and a 2-second PR (season) for the KOM.

Roy went 24:32, good for 24.42 mph. That would have to rank as one of his best rides this season.

Scott didn't get his time. His Garmin has it, and when he uploads his ride tonight it will show up on the segments. I'm betting it was a good one. (Let me check... there it is. 25:16 for 23.7 mph) This would be a PR for Scott.

On the ride in, Allen met us on DNR road for an impromptu photo session. Roy put me up to mischief I quickly regretted... Kedra was in the car. Sorry!

We were all soaked when we got back, and since no one had brought a change of socks, we canned the run. It was all good. It was a good meal and a good time. Man, I'm going to miss our Wendy's after a hard workout!

Forgotten info

I can't believe I didn't relate this on Saturday's post, but it was a rather long day and I forgot. Let me make up for that error of omission straight off...

Roy, Robin and I had just left Heltonville on the 30-mile ride from the club. It had been interesting enough, Robin telling us about her sunflower peanut butter and the billy goat visiting, though it was time to get on our way. We weren't five minutes from Bonehead's when it happened.

We were strung out in line because of traffic, thought it wasn't particularly heavy. I was in front, then Robin, then Roy. They were pretty close together, I was maybe 25 yards ahead. On the flat straightaway right out of town I saw it coming - a jet black blur of fur and teeth, medium in size but high in speed. I calculated instantly that it had no angle for me, rather it was trying for Robin. I called, "Dog!" and looked back to see what would happen. What happened next could be considered comic or tragic (or a Shakespearean comedy I suppose, which is a bit of both) depending on your perspective.

Apparently it was an immature dog, because he missed his angle - badly. That's not so bad in the animal kingdom, inexperienced hunters often miss until they practice a bit. Problem was the pup also had tunnel vision, because it never saw Roy until it was far too late. It was a clean miss on Robin, and the dog was still looking square at its escaping prey when it ran smack into Roy's front wheel. THUMP!

You never know how that will play out. Often a rider will go down if they hit something that large, but Roy just ran it over - not squarely, just the hind quarters - but that was enough. With a rather sheepish look and much meeker demeanor the dog slunk away to the waiting owner, who never uttered a word throughout the 5-10 seconds it took to play out.

"Great. Just went down a few days ago and now I about went down again." Roy's a man of few words and pragmatic outlook. I waited for a block, then asked him to pull it over so I could check out the bike. All was good and we went on without further incident. I do wish I'd gotten that one on film. It was pretty funny after the fact, when I knew no one was hurt and nothing was damaged...

Back to today... didn't run that much as I am in taper. However, Leisa and I did work out in the yard all day staining the fence. It was a long day in the sun. I was whistling "Bridge Over the River Kuwai" by the time it was done. My back is pretty red too. Not a bad sunburn mind you, but it was definitely time to get back in the house.

Tomorrow we ride, weather permitting. I am also going to run at least a little after the ride.That may be alone or with company, but I'm announcing it now. I figure I need one brick before the race next week...

Hills AGAIN?!

My run this morning went a lot better than I could have expected. No, it wasn't fast, but the last two days of biking have been a lot hillier than I'm used to. On top of that, I created five new segments on the course, and of course I had to push on all the segments during yesterday's ride. I wound up picking up a KOM and a couple of sore quads full of lactic acid.

In the afternoon a few of us met at Kenray for our Sunday swim. Rand, Jimmy, and Allen all had their wetsuits - I was without. I'd considered bringing mine, even figured they would, but I wanted one more training swim without. I figured whatever I could accomplish today would be slower than what could be done at Milwaukee with a wetsuit.

My time was 25:48, which breaks down to 1:28 per 100 yards. That's very good, and consistent with the times I've been seeing at the pool. At that level I am on par with the best swimmers in my age group at Nationals. And that's without the wetsuit. I should be able to peel a minute or two off that time, which would be a major coup if it happens.

Actually, if I wanted to get more technical about it, that pace translates into a 24-flat 1500 meter swim without wetsuit. Dropping a couple minutes from there would make it 22-flat, which again would be among the best. Of course this is all theoretical, because I know nothing of the course and how things will be staged, how crowded, etc., but the math is accurate. I also don't know if last year's results are typical. Still, if I can swim in the 22-23 range, I will be very pleased.

Jimmy wanted to keep the bike ride in town because he was short of time. Of course that meant we were going to do the Industrial Park hill workout... what, hills AGAIN?! Third day in a row, and I knew my legs were totally not up for it. You know me though... I hope no one ever challenges me to a turd eating contest, because I'd bet I'd have to win that, too.

It was only Bartley, Jimmy, and me. Bartley climbs well, we had a tailwind, and I was confident he would wind up the with KOM with very little effort. But... James's words of wisdom rang in my ears (he has to tell you, I won't repeat them here). So I tried. Over and over. Remarkably the speed went up with each succeeding attempt, until ultimately I felt confident I might actually have a shot at the KOM.

We took Jimmy home, then Bartley and I went out on William's Blvd. for a fast stretch. I figured either there existed a segment on the road, or there soon would be. We caught a break in traffic and rolled onto the stretch.

Believe it or not, it's not flat. In fact, after the first part it climbs. My legs were screaming at me, protesting all the effort they've been put through over the last few days. My lungs didn't care - thank goodness for the cool weather. There's only so much you can ask of your body, and I faded a bit over the last part of the segment. Still, I pushed until the agreed upon ending point. It would be up to the upload to sort it out.

We finished the ride gathering junk miles around town. I wanted 20, and got it. I'd like to pick up 70-80 more this week, including the pace line on Tuesday. This is the first week of taper, so I'll have to be more careful about the quality workouts I include.

Ride data!

WWDDD

Can you believe it? On the morning of the inaugural Alumni Days Bike Ride, rain fell defiantly from the skies. It had been with a great deal of trepidation our guides had faced the prospect of guiding neophyte riders through the unforgiving hills and valleys of northern Lawrence County... now we had to face them on wet roads.

Our conviction wavered, if only for a while. Our impromptu breakfast at McDonald's had been a stalling tactic, attempting to set aside for a while the decision we were all secretly admitting must be made - to cancel the event. Once we arrived at the club, Jimmy echoed the voices in our minds, and seemed poised to end the suspense.

Then the ladies came.

That's right, the women gave the men the backbone to venture out. When it was time to toe the line, it was a 3/2 advantage for the women. Embarking were Robin Elliot, Judy Cross, Amy Brown, Roy Ritter, and IronBill.

It might have been that we laid it on too thick - okay, maybe I laid it on too thick - about yesterday's ride. I had been talking about hills being pretty challenging, and we were all worried about slick roads on some of the massive downhills. The results was two of the ladies turned back before we hit the big stuff. For that, I'm sorry.

Once it was down to three, the ride began in earnest. Fortunately for us the skies dried up and the northwest winds quickly dried the roads, and we enjoyed ever safer roads as time went on. We were very cautious about the two major downhills, and with that put away, we only concerned ourselves about getting through the ensuing uphills.

I mentioned yesterday how I began laughing when I faced that wall of a hill near Peerless. No joke, I let Roy and Robin go ahead (I planned to try to hit it hard), and as they crossed the bridge I distinctly heard Robin begin laughing. I love it. Imminent death faced her, and she rode into it not whining, but laughing. I'd ride with her any time.

I gave it all I could, but I could not overtake the KOM. I'm not a climber anyway, but yesterday's ride definitely took the zip out of my legs. Funny thing... my lungs were fine, a sign my conditioning is excellent I suppose. I just couldn't crush the pedals fast enough. It wasn't even close, I can tell you that.

After that the ride was a lot more pleasant. We crossed Bartlettsville road and headed toward Bonehead's in Heltonville. There we stopped and got a drink and ate our food. It's worth noting Robin had some exotic peanut butter made from sunflower seeds and nutrition bars. I'm not going to argue with the value of such things, given she's a pretty fit person, but dang... if I had to live on that stuff, I'd probably sprint towards the light.

The ride across the valley proved once again Robin could hang. On the flats she could hold 18 mph without effort, and that is as well as we do as a group. Maybe we had to wait a little on the hills, but it wasn't much. Looking at the ride data would fool you, because it's 2 mph slower than yesterday, but... that's because the first 4-5 miles of the ride were spent waiting on the rider on the old mountain bike.

In the end it was a terrific ride. Roy and Robin were old friends from school, so the conversation went smoothly throughout the morning. I didn't know what to expect in her riding ability. I knew she could ride distance, as her group has already accomplished 100-milers this year. Still you never know until you ride with people.

Roy did well too. This doesn't surprise me as much, because he lives and rides in an area surrounded by hills, and he recently competed in a half-Ironman. For that reason I haven't spent a lot of electronic ink here discussing his efforts. I will say I never felt he was wearing out or struggling any more than we did yesterday.

For my part, I tried to take a few KOMs but largely failed. The good news is the one I really wanted most, the "Mt. Unpleasant" segment, is mine. Of course that will last only until Miller or Heatherly or Bartley get out there to top it (they all climb better than I do), but today, it's mine.

Mt. Unpleasant

So what if the numbers were low? So what if only three went the distance? It was a fun ride. I actually like the circuit, hilly though it is. It doesn't figure much into the next two weeks of my training (taper), but afterwards, who knows?

After the ride, Roy and I went to Subway for a sandwich. As I was standing in line deciding what to buy, I asked myself the question any serious connoisseur of the glorified bologna sandwich would: WWDDD? (That's, "What Would Dan Dyke Do?")

I could hear that baritone voice drawling in his familiar John Wayne cadence, "Anyone who rides THAT hard of a ride ought to eat the WHOLE sandwich!" How right you are, Dan! So I bought the full sub, though I took half home. Maybe I'll have it later tonight...

Interesting ride

That was interesting! John T., Jimmy, Scott, Galloway, Rand, Allen, and I rode the Alumni bike tour course today, more to finalize it than anything, and wow, it sure is different than riding south! The biggest thing we have to face when going south is the cut; we could only dream of something as easy as the cut today.

Jimmy and I drove the proposed course yesterday, and honestly from a car it didn't seem too bad. However, when we got to the bottoms north of GM and hooked right and hit the first hill, it was clear we had been mislead. When we hit the second bottoms and crossed the bridge, I looked ahead and saw the massive hill awaiting us. It literally looked as if we were riding into a wall. I just started laughing. What else could we do? We had to go up.

I kid you not, my Garmin, however accurate it might or might not have been, registered 26% grade. That's over double the pitch of a regular roof. It was crazy steep, if not that long. I never doubted for a second I could climb it, or even if any of our riders would... I was more thinking of the poor souls we lead out tomorrow. There will be blood, oh yes, there will be blood...

It would have been bad enough if that had been the end of it, but it wasn't. The next few miles were a serious of lulls interrupted by harsh climbs. None of them lasted too long, usually about a half mile or so, but they were more than enough.

Eventually we got to some tamer hills, and the ride turned downright pleasant. I will also say road conditions were excellent throughout the ride, including fresh pavement in two separate areas. There can't be any complaint about being on overly busy roads either - we managed to stay off Highway 58, making it a much safer ride.

It came down to this - we could have a safe ride or we could have an easier ride. There was no way to have both. I think we made the right choice, even if some of our "guests" tomorrow wind up hating our guts.

Oh, I created five new segments on today's course in Strava. Check it out... it was surprising who won the most KOMs. Allen also asked that I create a club, the "Amish Country Cyclists", and I've sent invites to everyone who has given me an e-mail. Of course you should all understand you have to create a Strava account if you want to be a club member. Don't worry, it's free. If you have the ability to upload ride data (either through smartphone or Garmin device) you can analyze and compare your rides with others. It's actually a terrific training tool. If you haven't tried it, you don't know what you're missing.

Ride tomorrow!

Trifecta

Did all three today - ran, biked, then swam. Didn't get into a single guy's face either. I got a little sassy with a couple of girls on my team in the morning run, but they don't count.

My 4.5 mile run this morning was purposely curtailed because I had enough miles already for the week AND I needed to watch the girls run for the technical portion of the workout. We did some form drills on the 800 course on Washington Avenue. They did a great job, all 13 of them.

Later Jimmy and I drove a proposed course for Saturday's event. We felt confident we had something safe, if challenging. We'll ride it tomorrow, and you guys will see for yourself. Here's a one-word hint: Peerless.

Later, Allen and I went for a ride. Before we left the church Allen mentioned trying to get a ranking on the Super 2. Did it work? Check for yourself!

We rode into Huck's, had a drink and a bite, then headed on east to meet Lester. We eventually found him and finished the ride. Nothing difficult, other than the Super 2 stretch. Well, I did try to beat my time on the "Climb to Glide" segment...

Later on was the swim. John T., Allen, Greg, and I were the only ones. I jumped right in and started my set - 8 x 200 @3:00. I did this with a pull buoy to replicate wetsuit speed. I made the set with ease, which is a bit of a confidence booster.

Jimmy and I were out in the fading light marking the course. Never fear, we got most of it finished, so tomorrow no one should get lost. Well, Allen should get lost, but that's another story...