BACK ON TRACK

This week has allowed me to get back on my bike and put up some good mileage, despite less than stellar weather.

I'm at 50.53 miles this week, and it's only Thursday. I have a ride in me tonight, and then one more on Friday morning. The weekend rides are out for me this weekend. That's OK. I'll crank out some miles starting Monday morning for February's total.

January should see me end with over 250 miles.

Yeah!

Bill and I got out last night for a quick 10.6 mile ride. I had tons of energy I needed to just get rid of. Last night's ride was a perfect remedy. I felt great. I wish we could've ridden further, but there's always the next day for that.

I'm just glad to be putting some good numbers back up. I had 2 weeks of BLAH for mileage. I know it's January, but I LOVE seeing my speedometer/odometer creep closer and closer to 4,000.

I'll get there.

11.04 MILES

4:30am comes awful early. On a bright note, the temp this morning was 47 degrees. Perfect weather for riding. Not too cold, and definitely not too hot. I got away with simply wearing my long riding pants and 3 or 4 layers of shirts. Doo-rag on my bald head, and I was off and riding.

My neighbor, Bill, joined me for an 11-mile ride around the neighborhood here. It was a good ride. There was a pretty good head-wind hitting us at parts, but that's all part of the fun of riding.

I'm glad I got in a ride this morning. Tonight is out for me. Bill mentioned riding tomorrow night. I'm up for that for sure.

I've got 217 miles clocked in so far for January. I'd like to end up at around 230 miles.

February I want to shoot for 300. I have never had a 300-mile month. One goal of mine this Spring/Summer is to have a 500 mile month. Not a difficult thing to do, if I can focus.

:)

SUNDAY RIDE

2 days in a row for me for riding. Hooray.

Yesterday, I did a 15.5 mile ride in just under an hour. Today, Bill and I got out for a 28.88 mile ride. A bit windy for my taste, but it was good to get out. My legs are tired, but it's a good kind of tired.

I'll take tomorrow off, and then on Tuesday morning, I'll head out before work for a good 10 mile ride.

This week marks the last week in January. Come February 1st, I'm going to really concentrate on cranking out some miles.

I'll probably end the month with 220 or more miles. Not my best month (Dec '07) or my worst month (Nov '07). I know I'll crank out more in February.

Back to today's ride. Nothing major, good or bad. We did hit some new roads, which is always good. Bill and I really took turns being "lead dog" as we tackled some killer hills, and a fierce headwind.

There were times the wind was just BEATING my legs into submission. I always find it amazing how "mental" a ride can be. Weather can allow you to have the "ride of your life, " or the weather can be cruel and make you wish you would've just stayed home. Today, the weather had the latter affect on me.

I trudged along though, and really pushed myself more than I would've of, if I were riding solo. Group rides are good for that.

My legs are looking forward to a day off tomorrow.

I am too.

RULES OF THE ROAD

Over the many, many years I have been riding, I have learned (usually the hard way) of some very simple rules that one must follow when riding.

This may not be a complete list, and I may add to it in future blog entries, but here goes:

(In no particular order)

1. NEVER underestimate the fight (or staying power) of a dog that is chasing you.

It's always wise to pace yourself if you have a "canine companion" on a ride. I have found the smaller the dog, the bigger the attitude they have. Over the years I have been chased by Dobermans, Great Danes, German Shepherds, and Rottweillers. They pale in comparison to the chase that a Jack Russell Terrier, or GOD forbid a BORDER COLLIE'S gonna give you.

You're screwed if you've got one of these on your heels. They can run forever!

Each time I hear that god awful bark of an oncoming dog, I take note of what breed of dog it is, and then I pace myself accordingly. With Border Collie's, I have been fortunate to either have had enough "gas in the tank" to outpace him, or I've had the fortune of being on a downhill clip.

2. You Can NEVER Have Enough Water...

Not so much in the winter, but in the warmer weather, there is nothing worse than miscalculating your liquid intake. I've done more rides than I care to admit where I'm struggling to the "finish line" completely dehydrated. Not a good feeling. Scary at times.

3. Coast While You Can

A famous person once said, "What goes up, must come down." Every cyclist I know reverses that. What ever hill you're going down, the adjoining UPHILL will be worse. Coast while you can and store up the energy you WILL need to make it up that hill.

I enjoy hills, to a certain degree. They are a fantastic training opportunity. Stamina, leg strength, and pacing all come into play when "attacking the hills." No 2 hills are the same, and that's usually a good thing. When I'm out riding, and have the joy of "flying" down hills, I eat it up. I enjoy every moment I can where I can coast, cool off, take in the scenery and watch my speedometer enter into the 30 mph range, if not the 40mph range.

For those brief seconds where you are going 35+ miles per hour, you know you will pay for it as your churning back up the opposite facing hill at 9, 10, or 11 mph.

I love hills, and hate hills at the same time.

4. There Are Always 2 Cars Behind You

I do the majority of my riding on fairly well-traveled roads. Drivers in these parts tend to be very courteous and travel over to the other side of the road when approaching me. I can hear them coming a mile away, which is a good thing, because my eyesight is for the birds!

Every once in a while you get the "Blue Haired Bingo Lady" behind you driving the 22-foot long Buick,Olds, or Caddy. She won't pass you to save herself, even though there is no oncoming traffic. The road ahead is wide open, yet Betty the Blue-haired bingo lady won't budge.

I have learned that once that lead car passes you, HUG the shoulder as best you can, because behind the LEAD driver, there is ALWAYS another car, and they are not nearly as patient when passing you, as "Bingo Lady" was.

I never relax after the car passes. I know there are 2, if not more, cars ready to ZOOM by and possibly give me a piece of their mind.

5. Make Yourself Aware of EVERY Gas Station in a 10-mile radius that has FREE AIR

For me, there is nothing worse than riding on tires that are anything less than ROCK hard. I'm not sure where this unhealthy obsession with "properly inflated tires" began, but it's something like a RELIGION to me. I always check tire pressure before a ride, after a ride, and sometimes even during a ride.

I can tell you every gas station nearby that either HAS air service and/or which station charges for it. For this reason, I always ride with 4 quarters in my riding bag.

Like I mentioned, this is not a complete list, but for now it will do.

Ride daily! Ride Safely.

Weekend is here

I'm off today, so it's officially the weekend. Amen!

I'm hoping the weather warms up a bit. I'd love to get a ride in each of the next 3 days.

If the wind is not an issue today, I'll shoot for a 25-mile ride.

WINTER HIATUS.... unplanned

I can't remember when I've gone so long w/o a ride under my belt. I have no desire right now to suit up and ride. The weather here is just down right ugly. Fog, rain, sleet, snow, you name it.

Kind of ironic that I now have all this "winter" riding gear and my bike has sat parked all week.

I will get out this weekend for sure. Right now, my legs are re-couping from the 1,250 + miles I've done in the last 4 months.

Check back soon.

A RIDE-LESS WEEKEND

I've been steadily riding (1,250 miles) since September of 2007. 5 months now. Lots of miles. Lots of rides. Lots of newly discovered roads.

Never, in these past 19 weeks have I gone a weekend w/o getting in at least 1 ride. Typically, I make up the majority of my weekly miles ON the weekend.

Not this weekend. Time commitments, and the weather got the better of me both days. To make matters worse, I was off yesterday (Monday) for MLK Jr. Day. Did I ride? Heck no. Too cold. (Mentally, I'm just not into the rides right now....)

My waistline is paying the price. Of the 20 pounds I initially lost, I've put 9 of them back on....

Ugh!

C'mon warm-weather!! PULEEEEEEEEZ.

SLOW WEEK, NEW BIKE, and COLD WEATHER

For riding that is. I think I only got in 25 miles or so this week. That's going to happen here in January and February. I'll have weeks like that. I also know that in May, June, July, and August I'll have weeks where I log in over 150 miles a week, so I'm not worried about my goal of getting 4,000 miles.

Yesterday I checked out a road bike with my neighbor, Bill. Nice bike. REALLY nice bike. It was pouring outside though, so I wasn't able to ride it. I'm going to wait til I can ride it before making a decision.

It is a nice bike though.

It's Sunday and it's COLD outside. I would love to get in a ride though. Not sure if Bill's schedule will allow him to accompany me, but I'm in the mood for a nice 1 hour ride. No pace, just go out and ride.

I feel like I have "cabin fever" in regards to getting out and riding. This cold weather is for the birds.

If I do ride today, I will be quite the layered-bundled up rider. Might wait til later in the day til it warms up (a bit.)

Stay tuned.

This week may be one of those 25-mile total weeks. I haven't checked the week long forecast, so hopefully I'm wrong.

FINALLY A RIDE THIS WEEK

I woke up at 3 in the morning today. Tried going back to sleep. Wasn't going to happen. So, I muddle out of bed, make a cup of coffee. I head out to the front porch to check the weather (real hi-tech, I know.) Best weather gauge there is though... Head out (before you're truly awake) in shorts and only a t-shirt (with coffee in hand) to determine if it's merely "cold" outside, or HOLY @#$@ cold...

This morning it was simply "merely" cold. Not breezy either. A light bulb goes off in my head: "Suit up and go for a ride."

With bad winter weather headed our way, this morning was one of the few chances I would have this week to try and resurrect some measure of respectability to my weekly mileage total. It's a measely 25.7 miles for the week. (I've had longer mid-week rides longer than the 2 rides it took me to get to 25.7). Oh well. I went into this quest of 4,000 miles knowing that I'd have weeks like this. I also know I'll have weeks where I'll come close to 200 miles. It's all part of the plan...

So, I geared up, complete with my new face-mask, and churned out a quick 10 miles. 40 minutes later, I'm back at home finishing my now lukewarm coffee.

Great ride though. Quite, methodical, and just a well thought out and executed ride. Didn't break any land-speed records, but I also didn't blow out any leg muscles, so if this weather doesn't materialize tomorrow, I'll be in good shape to try and sneak in a 20+ mile ride.

Tomorrow I go to look at this road bike I may buy.

I'm stoked! New bike, new ride. Fast ride. Skinny tires...

Yeah, baby!

NEW BIKE?

I'm scouting out a "road" bike to replace/augment my mountain bike I've been riding for the past 1,250 miles.

Craigslist.org has some fantastic bikes on there. I'm eyeing out a few of them. One's a Trek, one's an Ibex, and the other is a KONA.

It's been a LONG time since I've had a road bike. (For those of you that are unaware of the different types of bikes, you have Mountain bikes, which are obviously built for off-road riding. Very rugged frames and tires. These bikes tend to be heavy and not ideal for riding on "regular" roads.

Currently, I have a mountain bike. Now, fortunately, it's a FANTASTIC bike. Very light (for a mtn bike) and with my new (skinnier) road type tires, it's easier to ride.

Now, there are also Road bikes. These are light framed bikes that have ultra skinny tires and sturdy rims that are designed for long distance "road" trips.

I had one way back when, but I have been making do with my various mountain bikes the past 15 years.

So, with that being said, I can't wait to find my Road bike. I know my rides will be more enjoyable, faster, and just "better."

Stay tuned!

FACE MASK and 2 DAYS OFF

My "balaclava" (face mask) finally arrived. Took forever. Tomorrow will be a good day for me to "break it in." It's going to be freezing tomorrow morning.

I haven't ridden since Sunday. I feel guilty, but at the same time, my body must be sending subliminal messages to me to lay off. I'm enjoying NOT being on the bike. I feel bad that I'm not exercising, but I'll get back on tomorrow.

77 miles this week seems like it's forever off. Weather is not on my side this week. This may be the worst week of winter weather we'll see here in NC. It is January afterall. :)

My kids are stoked at the possibility of some snow on Thursday. I do miss a good snowstorm. I'll be out doing my snow dance tomorrow night.

Not much else going on here.

Morning rides

I got up "early" this morning to ride. Dang, it's cold out. Not sure if I'm going to suit up or not for this ride. I may just do some strength training and lifting.

I'm going to make one last check outside to see the true temp.

I'm SO not a morning rider (if the temps are cold...)

I got out yesterday for a quick 1-hour ride. 15.5 miles. I'll take it.

Wish me luck today....

GOT MY 77

77 miles that is. I met my weekly total. I got in a short (11 mile) ride this afternoon. I focused on increasing my average MPH. I finished with 16.4mph. I want to get up to 18mph by early summer. Skinnier tires would help here. That's for sure.

I haven't heard from Bill on a Sunday ride. We usually do though, so I'm sure if the weather is willing, we'll get in a 25+ miler. I hope.

This week coming up has me in Columbia on Monday. That means I'll have a bit more time on Monday morning to ride. 16 miles (1 hour) would be nice. Then Monday night I could ride again. I want to get three 25 mile rides in this week.

NEED 11 MORE

I did the math. If I'm going to hit 4,000 miles this year, I need to ride 77 miles a week. Not a huge deal for me actually. As long as the weather is right, I can hit 77 without too much difficulty.

This week, I have ridden 66 miles, so 11 more are needed.

The weather today should allow it. I have to drive my niece back to USC this morning, but then the afternoon is mine. I want to try and get in at least a 20 mile ride, if I can.

With last week's mileage of 84 miles, I'm well on my way to 4 grand. Once the warm weather descends upon us here (I'm talking in the early hours) I will ride daily before heading into work.

While I don't mind riding in the winter months nearly as much as I thought I would, Summer riding is the best. Throw on some shorts, a light shirt and jump on the bike and go. No weather related issues to worry about. No layering questions as to how warm you should dress for a ride. Just get dressed and GO.

C'mon Summmer!

NIGHT RIDE and MORNING T-STORM

The warm weather trend continues down here in the Carolinas. Trust me, I'll be the last to complain about it. I love it. "One less day of Winter, and one day closer to Spring" is my motto.

I got out last night for a ride around the neighborhood. 2 rides in one day. It was a good day. Clocked in a combined 25+ miles for yesterday.

There was a HEAVY fog rolling in last night. The weather was warm, and I probably could've done w/o some of the layers I had on, but, as Bill always says, "I'd rather sweat than freeze." Last night I sweated. Felt great.

I awoke this morning and pondered a ride. Coffee and email won out over the ride. Good thing. As I was checking emails, I hear continuous thunder. Thinking to myself, "This can't be thunder...", I venture out to the front porch. Sure enough, it was a January thunderstorm. Buckets and buckets of rain fell as well. We really need any and all precipitation the skies send our way, so I was happy to see the rain.

I was also happy I rode last night. Riding in the rain is for the birds.

LOVE THOSE MORNING RIDES...

I had a "guest" rider with me on my 4:45am ride today. Bill gave me a call last night asking if I was going to ride in the morning. "Hell yeah" was my response. I had meant to get out for a Wednesday ride, but that never materialized, so a Thursday morning ride sounded good. Having company sounded better.

So, 4:45am found myself and my neighbor Bill cycling around the neighborhood.

Time restraints (on my part) kept our mileage just shy of 12 miles. It was a good ride. The morning temp was 54 degrees and there was a slight (non-issue) breeze to accompany us. Had a good clip going most the ride. Ended with an average of 16mph. Not bad for all the cul-de-sacs we ran into and had to turn around in.

I'm at 52 miles for the week. Tomorrow (if there is no rain) I'll ride again in the morning for another 12, and then on Saturday I'll get out for at least 25 miles. If that all works out, I'll have 90 miles for the week. Sunday will start the week over for me.

Bill mentioned that Saturday is kinda crazy for him, so I may be a solo rider that day. No problem. I kinda like every once in a while doing a "big" ride alone. Gives me time to clear my head.

I haven't checked the weather for the weekend, but hopefully it won't be bone-chilling cold.

Stay tuned.

THE BATTLE OF BEULAH... LEAD DOG ANYONE?

Bill and I did a 28.74 mile ride this afternoon to the tune of 68+ degree weather. Heaven you might think, right? For the most part. We got to ride in shorts, had only 3 layers of shirts on to fend off the elements. (No "Stay-Puff" Marshmallow Man look.)

About 5 miles into the ride, we hit a "new" road to us. Beulah Church Road was the name of it. Beulah must be French for "unbearable wind.?" We got blasted with gusts. I took a turn being "lead dog" (rider in front, acting as a wind shield). Then Bill took a turn. Our rides are seeing more and more switching going on, which I like. In the beginning, I always trailed behind Bill (drafting), but now we are doing more sharing of the lead dog role. I'm either getting to be a stronger rider, or Bill is tiring out more easily, and I doubt THAT is the case. :)

Well, on Beulah Church Road, early in the ride, I thought my thighs were going to explode. I was tired, my legs were more tired, and at one point I just wanted to hop off the bike, call Kelly, and have her come and get me. It was a steady wind killing us, and on top of that, there were some long, steady inclines. Wrong time of the ride for me to be "lead dog."

Bill and I hammered on and came to the end of Beulah all too happy to wish that road "adieu!" Buh-bye!

It was about this time I think that the Motrin I took about 20 minutes before we started riding started to kick in. HEAVEN!! With the wind now at our backs, and the pain in my legs dissipating, Bill and I hit a good clip. The miles melted away and what had the potential to be a horrific ride actually ended nicely.

My legs are in good shape for a morning route around the neighborhood, come 4:30am.

2 FOR SATURDAY

2 rides that is.

I got out yesterday for another ride around 3pm. Rode 14.7 miles on a route I know like the back of my hand.

The first part of the ride was fantastic. Made great time. Crushed.

Then came the 2nd part. Steady wind that just teased and laughed at my tired legs. The only good thing about all the wind was that is was not brutally cold. I had a good sweat going, so it kept me going.

Bill and I are going to ride today. We're shooting for 25 - 30 miles. I'm hoping for the lesser side of that scale. For some reason, my legs are really tired. I will be OK today, as long as we do a decent warm up. I didn't do that yesterday, and I paid for it on the way back. By the time I realized I was going to have a good 8 miles to ride in steady wind, it was too late. My tank was running low, so to say.

ONe of the things I want to work on in 2008 is pacing myself better for these long rides. Start slow, build up, end strong. That's my plan.

I may start working on that today. I have a feeling I will have a tough ride today. Mentally, I need to prepare for it.

Temperatures in the 60's will most definitely help me today.

Stay tuned.

I HATE WINTER

I'm ready for Spring, if not Summer. I hate winter. It's cold, cold, and did I mention.... COLD!

I went out for a morning ride EARLY today. (Couldn't sleep). I bundled up to the point I looked like the Stay-Puff Marshmallow Man. I felt like Randy in "A Christmas Story." "I can't put my arms down!" I rode for 7.78 miles. Mentally I just wasn't into the ride. Too cold. I got in 3 laps/loops around my neighborhood. I had a better average than my Wednesday ride, but I just couldn't stay focused.

I'm hoping with the new balaclava that I ordered I can stay a tad bit warmer outside. Of course when it's only 21 degrees outside, a bit of coldness is expected.

I'm not riding nearly as much as I want to, or like to either. Days are shorter, and nights are busy at home. Trying to squeeze in a ride here and there is tough. Mornings are MY time. That's why I enjoy them.

At 21 degrees though, I'm not enjoying them as much.

I've ridden 69 miles this week though, so I can't complain too much. (It's human nature though...) So, I complain.

C'mon SUMMER!

BRING ON THE COLD!!

I ordered a "Balaclava" today from Nashbar (a bicycle shop online store). I am now officially onboard for getting back into my morning rides. I now have enough apparel for my lower body, as well as my upperbody.

I have been scouring the house for WEEKS looking for this face-mask I had for cycling. I am no closer to finding that thing than OJ Simpson is to finding the real killer.

So, I went online and ordered this balaclava. (I may truly scare small children now with my riding gear/outfit. :)

I'm looking forward to getting back into my morning rides. They really start my day off on the correct setting.

BRISK BABY

I need to preface this blog entry with the statement that I am not a cold-weather rider. With that said, here's my blog for today about my ride.

Last night, I knew it was going to be cold in the morning. Bitter cold. Brass-monkey cold. The weather guys weren't wrong about that. What I wasn't counting on was the constant wind that accompanied the 21 degree weather. Damn, it's C-O-L-D at 4:45am. I would say that the windchill made it feel like 12 degrees, at least.

So, there I was heading out on my bike for a hopeful ride around my neighborhood. The 1st mile was probably the toughest. My body was screaming to my brain, "IT'S COLD, IT'S COLD....." This ride was definitely more of a mental workout than physical. I had to keep telling myself, "One more loop, one more loop, then I can stop." Like most rides, part of it was with the wind in my face, the other 1/2 was with the wind at my back. This morning, that wind in my face was more like a mule-kick to the face. Tough.

The last loop (2.3 miles) around the neighborhood actually wasn't that bad. Not that I was enjoying the ride at all. My eyes were tearing up and freezing to my cheeks. My finger tips, even with my new gloves were nearly frozen. My legs and arms were fine. I have enough gear for them. Not so for my face. I need to find my winter riding "mask." That would've been beneficial this morning.

I was none too happy to jump off my bike this morning. Sure, I only rode 7.57 miles, but the bigger accomplishment for me today was that I actually got out and rode. This will most likely be the coldest ride of the year (I hope!)

36.17 miles so far for January. Not bad for Jan. 2nd.

FIRST RIDE = HILLS, HILLS, and MORE HILLS

Bill mapped out a new route for us to take today. After the number of hills we encountered on this route, he's not allowed to do that anymore . :)

WOW! Talk about challenging hills. Hills that mentally crush you, make your legs hurt and force you to contemplate why on God's green earth you ride a bicycle. Those kind of hills.

In theory, what goes up MUST come down. Didn't seem that way today. I felt we climbed hills for a good part of our ride. More than 50% of the ride seemed an uphill challenge. So much for theory....

On a good note we DID escape the 20 mph winds they were predicting for today. The winds ARE here, but we rode early enough to escape their fury. Hills AND wind would not be my ideal choice of rides to break in the new year.

I layered my clothing just perfectly. 5 layers of shirts/jackets, etc... and 2 pairs of riding pants. Throw in a set of knee warmers, and the 34 degree weather wasn't that bad.

I hope to ride tomorrow morning before work. I'd like to shoot for 100 miles this week.

In theory....

A FRESH START

2008. Has a nice ring to it.

I'm glad the holidays are coming to an abrupt close. No more parties, candy, chocolates, sweets, breads, fattening foods. All gone with the adieu of 2007. Buh-bye! Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.

2008 is here and the list of accomplishments/goals of what I want to do is growing. As the new name of the blog implies, I want to ride 4,000 miles this year. How did I pick the number 4,000? Very scientifically. :)

I figured 3,000 would be too easy, especially since it only took me 107 days to ride 1,000 miles (after not riding a bike for more than 7 years....). 5,000 miles seemed a bit extreme, so I settled on the number between them: 4,000

I'd rather ride more than 4,000 than fall short at the end of the year of reaching 5 grand. Make sense?

Thrown into my workout this year will be some strength training. I have never been a fan of "lifting weights" and those of you that know me know I'm all lower body strength. This is the year to change that. 3 times a week I want to do some form of uppper body workout. Push-ups, lifting, and heavy-bag workouts are on slate for me.

With this accelerated push, I hope to drop some of this weight and get back to my "normal" weight of 175-180lbs.

Other than that, I haven't given much thought to other "New Year Resolutions." I'm not a huge fan of them, because most folks set unrealistic goals for themselves and they set themselves up for disappointment and failure from the beginning.

I'll stick with my plan of 4,000 miles.

How about you guys? Any resolutions you want to share?