Elevation Training

Adding extra elevation to my fresh legs has simply crushed them into submission. My planned 60 mile morning Friday ride went the way of the Do Do bird. Instead, I chose sleep and the ability to see most my way in with natural sunlight instead of my trusted lumens dispenser. And if that wasn't enough, on a whim I ran a mile yesterday just to see how the ol' knee is doing.

On the flip side I found a nice climb to practice on near my neighborhood (thanks Rob) this week. Looks very simarlar to the photo of where my daughter is climbing. When I reached the peak, I turned right and was ready for a nice easy downward loop. Only the road tilted upward. Ok, so how bad could it be? Well, on a hot day as the beads of sweat roll off your sunglasses the 12% gradient continued until finally I nipped the last portion. At that point a couple in a Prius pulled up next to me to congratulate me. They said they followed me up the entire climb just to see if I could do it. I was so focused on just turning the cranks over that I had no idea I was being followed. Not as cool as when a CHP motorcycle followed me half way across the Golden Gate Bridge once, as if I had an escort....but just the same I provided some entertainment value. Note to hybrid owners - cyclists don't hear you!!

Resting at the top I snapped a photo cause I just can't resist a shot with the Sleeping Lady in the background (far left corner). As I focused I thought I heard some rattlers shaking their tails at me, until I realized it was merely the sound of electricity in the wires overhead, zooming over to power the ACs of Novato. I knew I could have used some cooling at that point.

Which brings me back to Friday morning. My ride started in the moonlit skies hovering around 48 degrees. By the time I rode through Terra Linda I was contemplating taking the ferry in. That's when I started laughing. Sorry, not riding the waves today. Going to finish my 36 miles for what it is. Afterall, it's a kid's soccer weekend for me. I have a whole weekend to rest my legs for next week. I can't afford to disappoint my motorist fans so I will rest easy and see what climbs find their way into my routine next week.