Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Keeping Up with Leslie

When Leslie and I were talking about riding on Monday (as we often do) she told me that she tries to keep a 20mph pace on flats and an 11-12 mph pace on hills. Leslie is really the person that has taught me the most about riding and I really look up to her. I've had a rough couple of days and decided a game was what I needed for today's ride: Keep Up With Leslie.

I did okay on the flats. 20mph is not my most comfortable pace...I couldn't do it for 70 miles, but to ride to and from Tabor I did fine. When I got to the first hill I was like, "Okay, start at your normal pace and see how far you have to go." Normal pace: 8.5mph. Darn it. Well, clearly, 12 mph is out of the question. How about 10 mph. That seems attainable.

The whole way up the Lincoln side I struggled to see that blasted 1 and 0. 9.5, 9.6, 9.7, oh damn, 9.5. On the last little stretch I hit 10.0 for a split second before I lost it. Coming up the Salmon side I got to 10.0 a couple of times, but I couldn't hold it. I imagined seeing Leslie's svelte figure 50 feet ahead of me. 12 miles an hour! 12 miles an hour! How the hell does she go 12 miles an hour?

I decided to do the big steep hill on Yamhill for my third run. That was laughable. It looks really scary so I geared down to my granny gear as I was going down. That put me at a measly 7mph going up the hill.

For my last climb I did the sweeping road past the resevoir and for that I can do 11-12 mph. Though, not the whole way. But, hey, I still did it.

Riding home I was in the best mood. My game had kept me thoroughly entertained and my admiration for Leslie was as high as ever. Checking my clock when I parked my bike I realized that by just TRYING to keep up with Leslie I had shaved 11 minutes off my Tabor time. And, that made me very happy, indeed.

3 comments:

  1. Wow! 11 minutes is a great gain. My progression in thinking (if not performance) is to focus on maintaining a high side cadence (~90-105) rather than mph. When you can maintain it at a distance then gradually you can work on keeping in a higher gear longer on climbs. I worked on some trainers this winter and shifting that focus really seemed to help my workout and endurance. Happy cycling!

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  2. I'm so excited for you and bummed for me. Where do you get your energy and your 'push'? You are inspirational and dad-gum iritating with all that improvement :@)

    Sounds like I have issues.......shhhhhh....

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  3. Christian,
    I think working on your cadence is the best thing about having to use a trainer. Here in Portland, we have good weather all year so there is really no need. I know mine is too low (about 70) and I definitely need to work on that. Happy cycling to you!

    Ms. S,
    Thanks! You are so sweet. I just love to work hard because it is then that my mind is most quiet. Things that have bothered me for years I've resolved in one really hard bike ride.

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