Recovery Ride

Today I took it easy on the bike. It was a nice day to just cruise & watch the scenery. I really enjoyed just taking it easy today, not worrying about average speed, heart rate, & things like that. It's days like today that remind me why I love cycling. I'm going to ride with the Southern Crescent Cycling Club this weekend. They are sponsored by Epic Bikes in McDonough. I was in their store a few weeks ago & they seemed very friendly & invited me to join them for a ride sometime. I have an old high school friend coming to visit his brother in Buckhead this weekend so I'm going up to my parent's house & get together with him sometime this weekend. It's a perfect time to ride with a new group of people. I'm looking forward to the ride & will post about it later. Stay tuned for more......

Catch up time

I know, I know, I've been either lazy or busy since my last post. I'll let ya'll who read this decide which it's been. This past Friday I just went for an easy ride & just enjoyed the weather on the ride. On Saturday it was the rolling to Roberta ride. I headed to The Bike Store and arrived there about 9:30 am & Bill told me that the group left about 25 minutes earlier. I headed out on my way trying to see if I could catch the group that left. I hit Byron & decided that it probably would be easier to catch them if I didn't ride down Juniper Creek Rd & just head out on 42. I just put it in cruise control until I hit the hillier sections of the ride, then put in some hard efforts. I hit the Knoxville Store & was surprised to see that no riders were there yet. I got me some water & something to snack on & waited for a bit to see if anyone showed up. About 5 minutes later the group that was doing the ride showed up. I actually beat them to the store. I asked them what kind of pace they were going to do on the way back & they said they were going to be going much slower than I probably wanted to ride. I chatted a bit with them, then headed on my way back. I put it in the big ring after the first climb & kept up a nice steady pace. I turned on Walton Rd & headed to Ft. Valley. My legs were feeling pretty good even with all the climbing. I hit Ft. Valley & headed on 341 towards Perry. I was riding at a good pace & kept it steady. I hit Perry & needed to make a store stop to visit the bathroom. I finished there & headed back home. I managed to do 78 miles in just a bit over 4 hours on the bike. I felt good the entire ride & managed to average 19.5 mph. On Sunday I did a recovery ride with Eddie. We had great weather & he told me about the Pine Mt Challenge ride they did on Saturday. After hearing about it, I'm glad I chose not to go. He said it was a hard ride & everyone suffered in some way. We had a nice recovery ride & a nice chat while riding. Monday I started doing intervals. I did 15 seconds hard with 2 minutes recovery in between them. I did about 15 sets of intervals & I was feeling it by the time I got home. Today it was a beautiful day & I headed out for a ride. I did the same loop I did with Eddie, but it was in reverse. My legs felt good after warming up which was a surprise to me after yesterday's ride. I really pushed it when I had the wind at my back. I was able to do 36 miles in 1:46:00 & averaged 20.4 mph for the ride. I'm looking foward to an easy ride tomorrow. On Saturday I'm heading up north of here to ride with a new group of guys. I don't know what to expect, but it should be fun. I'll let everyone know how things go. Stay tuned for further updates........

Update time

I'm sorry it's been so long since my last update, but life has a way of getting in the way of training. I was planning on doing the Peach Peloton ride this past Saturday, but I woke up with an upset stomach & the weather was cold & raining. I decided to head back to bed and catch up on some sleep & hope the weather & my stomach would clear up later in the day. They both cleared up about 2:30 pm so I headed out for a ride. I did the loop I usually do with my friend Will. I didn't want to go too far in case I got sick again. My legs felt ok as I did the ride. On Sunday I went riding with Charles from The Bike Store before we went out on the usual group ride for Sunday. We all got together and did the Sunday route, my legs were feeling pretty good & I took my turns up front pulling the group along. We worked on doing a double paceline for the ride. It was a good ride, & when I got closer to the house I left the group and headed to the house. Yesterday I did a loop that I do with Will, only this time I did it in reverse. I kept it in the small ring the entire ride, but most of the ride I rode in a 39 x 14. My legs felt pretty good the entire ride & I was able to average 19.5 mph in the small ring. I'm hoping to get some good rides in the rest of the week, but we'll just have to see how the weather goes. Stay tuned for more updates.........

Nice day for a good ride

Today I went riding because the Peach Peloton ride scheduled for tomorrw was cancelled due to bad weather. It's going to rain all day tomorrow so I figured I'd get at least 90 mins on the bike today. I started out from my house & my legs felt pretty good. I rode the trainer last night at an easy pace for 90 minutes. I was surprised at how good my legs were feeling. I headed out on a route that I usually ride with my friend Will. It's a 30 mile loop with rolling hills. I warmed up for the first 5 miles of the ride in the small ring, then once I hit Hunt Rd, it was time to pick the pace up. I put it in the big ring and started pushing it harder. My legs felt great, I turned onto Lake Joy & kept a steady pace heading for the first of two climbs on that road. I really didn't push the first one that bad, because I wanted to push the pace up the second one. I climbed up the second hill at a good pace for me. I recovered & started picking things up again. I hit Kings Chapel Rd & I was feeling good. I rode hard to Arena Rd, & then turned off 127 to Bear Branch Rd. I picked up the pace on that road & I was starting to feel it a bit in my legs. I rode hard down that road turning on Farr Rd heading back towards home. I eventually hit Old Perry Rd & picked up the pace once again. My legs were feeling it, but I just kept on pushing at a steady pace. I pushed up the last two climbs on Old Perry Rd & then cruised for a bit on Hwy 96. I crossed Moody Rd on 96 & then picked up the pace for one more push. I was feeling a bit sore by now, but I just ignored it & kept on pedaling. I made the turn onto Peach Blossom for the home stretch & it was hard keeping a steady effort, but I tried my best. I reached home with one of the best rides I've had in a long time. I did 30.1 miles in 1:27:20 for an average speed of 20.6 mph. I can tell that all the suffering doing the Peach Peloton rides, Cyclo-Core, Cyclo-Zen, & the workout program are paying off. I need to concentrate on what I've learned so far & keep working on losing more weight. I'm looking forward to racing this season & should be more competitive than I was last year. Stay tuned for more updates.......

Peach Peloton #9

This past Saturday was another in a series of my suffering on the bike called Peach Peloton Rides. I really have enjoyed each and every ride this year, no matter how much I've suffered on them or after them (trust me, I've done plenty of both). This past ride was scheduled for 100 miles. I hadn't ridden that far in quite sometime so I really didn't know what to expect. The weather was a bit on the cool side, but was going to warm up during the ride. I brought out the new knee & arm warmers my folks gave me for a late Christmas present. This would be the second time I got to use them & I loved them after the first ride earlier in the week. I also took a windbreaker that would be able to be shoved in my jersey pocket once the weather started to warm up. Before the ride, Chad told me that I was NOT to take a pull at all today. He wanted me to sit in & finish with everyone instead of pulling like I did last week & not being able to stay with the group until the end. I told him that was fine with me & I just hoped that nobody would be mad about that. Chad told me not to worry about that. We headed out & the ride was fun, we mainly rode 2 abreast & I did what I was told to. I stayed about mid pack & just sat in. We headed to the first attack zone & the pace started to pick up. I couldn't stay with the group, but as always I had a copy of the map, & I stayed within myself. I caught up to the group at the store stop. I rested a bit & refueled before heading out again. The entire ride route was nothing but rollers. We stayed together heading back towards Macon, when Christian seemed to get sick. We slowed & waited for him to rejoin the group. We hit the second attack zone & Chad told me of a shortcut I could use. I took him up on his suggestion & took the shortcut. I rode hard on the shortcut & once I hit Maynards Mill Road, I thought it wouldn't be long until the group came flying past me, but I turned onto Shi Road & still no sign of the group. I was riding hard, but I guess the route they took was longer than I thought, because it wasn't until I was on Moore Road when they came flying past me. We regrouped somewhat at the end of Moore Road & headed back to Howard Middle School. On Zebulon Road, there are a few good climbs which have in the past really hurt going up after a long ride. This time they still were hard, but I didn't drop down to single digits on my computer like I have in the past. It was a good ride & once we got back to the school, Chad told me that I probably learned more sitting in the entire ride than if I took a turn up front & didn't finish. I told him I have learned quite a bit on each ride & look forward to learing more from the group. All in all it was a fun ride & I can at least say I have one century done this year. Stay tuned for more updates

Peach Peloton #8

We were supposed to have a Peach Peloton ride last week, but weather forced the cancellation of that. This week the scheduled route was for about 95 miles with attack zones. The weather was cold & it seemed that several of the other riders used that as an excuse not to show up. We had 10 of us there for the ride. We started out warming up then Chad had us practicing rotating going down US 23 towards Twiggs County. We kept up a good pace & I took my turns up front as I was feeling good so far. We hit HWY 96 & turned left for the next part of the ride. The pace picked up a bit & I did my best to hang with the group. I fell back a bit, but they waited for me at least once. We broke up into 2 groups to practice rotating again, but I couldn't keep up with the pace of the group I was in. I decided to just ride my own pace & be able to finish the ride instead of letting my ego get the best of me & try to keep up with them. We regrouped again & Chad said that there was an unannounced attack zone to the Laurens County sign. I told the group to have fun, I knew I wasn't going to be able to hang with them & I was correct. I was doing between 21 & 22 mph on the flatter parts & was getting left behind. I stayed within my abilities & rode my own pace. I hit US 80 & headed towards Allenton. I met the rest of the group at the store stop & let Chad know that I was going to finish the ride going straight on US 80. I let him know that the pace was too high for me, & I knew I wouldn't be able to keep up & didn't want to slow the group down. Chad said that was fine with him & that if my car was still at the starting place when they got back, he would know something happened to me. I refueled & headed out on my own. The rest of the ride down US 80 was nothing but rollers. The good thing was that the wind wasn't that bad on the way back to the school. My neck & shoulders started to get a bit sore, but my legs were actually feeling pretty good. I just stayed within myself & had a good hard ride. I managed to get 80 miles done with an average speed of 19.3 mph. When I got home I noticed I had a voicemail from Eddie & called him back to let him know that I made it home with no problems. He encouraged me to be back next week for the ride & I told him that I would be there unless something came up that I couldn't get out of. I told him thanks for the encouragement & I told him that I'm learning alot on these rides & I am getting stronger. I'm looking forward to next weeks ride & we'll see what happens..............

Happy New Year!!!!!!!

Today was the annual New Years Day ride starting at The Bike Store. I was using this ride as a recovery seeing as I was told this was a social ride & if anyone tried pushing the pace, they would be dealt with severly. The weather was certainly a factor during the ride. The wind was out of the NNW @ 15-25 mph. We had a tailwind most of the way out, but had a headwind most of the return trip. I decided to take my share of pulls up front early in the ride & then just ride behind someone the last part of the ride. The wind was a pain, but I did my share of pulling on the early parts of the ride. Once we got a tailwind, some of the other riders decided to pick things up a bit more. I picked up the pace myself, but kept it on the small chain ring. On one section with the tailwind I was in a 39 x 13 & managed to top 30 mph. I was very happy with that, & then backed off the pace for a time. I just hung in towards the back, drafting off people & staying out of the wind. All in all it was a good ride, my legs feel good & I'm looking foward to getting back into training the rest of this week. I just want to wish everyone who reads this a Happy New Year!!!!!!!!!

Final Post for the Year.

This is my final post for this year. I went riding with Will today instead of doing my scheduled workout because the weather was just too nice not to be outdoors on the bike. We did the usual loop we do when we only have a limited amount of time. I decided to push it a bit today for the final ride of the year. Going up Lake Joy Rd, we hit the hills & I pushed it up the first climb. I usually do worse on the second climb, but I decided to push it up that one too. My legs felt pretty good up the second climb. I pulled most of the ride, but it wasn't that big of a deal. My legs felt good the entire ride & when we finally hit the final climbs on the ride, I was behind Will & about half way up the final climb on Old Perry Rd, I decided to pull one of Will's fav moves. I just attacked him up the final hill & I was surprised to feel how good my legs felt hammering up that hill. All in all it was a good ride with a good friend.
This year was a good year on the bike for me, I started racing again, learned how much I need to improve to be competitive, rode more miles this year than last year, & had a good time doing something I really love to do. I started out the year feeling strong, my legs just had to get used to racing again & the fields were very fast. I learned alot from fellow riders and did improve throughout the year. I need to learn race tactics better and place myself in better positions in the pack during the race. I'll learn that only through racing more. I also need to increase my power output for crits and need to really improve my hill climbing ability.
There was a lot of contraversy in cycling this year concerning doping and I'm hoping that things are getting better and they are catching the cheaters more and more. I take a lot of flak from my buddies who don't ride about all the doping in cycling, but I know it's not the only sport where the athletes using performance enhancing drugs. Baseball just released the report about what they have found out about players cheating there. Then there was the fued between the UCI & the Grand Tour organizers, which really hasn't been settled as of today. We'll just have to see what happens next season. There has been lots of changes during the offseason so far & we'll just have to see what happens when the season kicks off next year.
Well thanks to everyone who had read my adventures throughout the year & I hope you'll keep reading next year......

Merry Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!

I just wanted to wish everyone who reads this a very MERRY CHRISTMAS!! May you and your families have a wonderful holiday & I hope that you get all sorts of new cycling gear to use for next season. See everyone on the road........

Peach Peloton #7

Today was my next Peach Peloton ride. I missed last week due to being out of town. It was only supposed to be a 50 mile ride. Once we got there, Chad said it was going to be a 70 mile ride. We broke up into groups and practiced rotating. We hit Maynard Mill Rd & after yesterday's hard workout I realized that I wasn't going to be able to stay with Chad & the others. I had the map of the orginal route & decided to do that route instead. I pulled out the map & was on my way. I reached one intersection & checked the map but I had the map in the wrong position so I read it wrong & made a wrong turn. I went 5 miles down the road in the wrong direction before I realized my mistake. I turned around & headed in the right direction. My legs were starting to feel it after yesterday & today. What was supposed to be a 50 mile ride turned into a 65 mile ride & my legs are feeling the past 2 days. Thanks for reading & I'll keep you updated.........

Cyclo-Core/Zen Update

Last week wasn't a great week for my workout routine. The holidays are starting to get in the way. I'm starting the past week over again. I had to do the recovery yoga routine from Cyclo-Zen today. I'm getting a bit more flexible, but still have a long way to go in that department. Yesterday was supposed to be an off day, but seeing as I haven't been on the bike since last Wednesday I went for a ride. I did the route I use for a fitness test. I managed to do a bit over 20 miles in under 1 hour & 3 minutes. The wind was a bit of a pain yesterday, but I did my best. I felt like I was going to throw up when I got home so I know I rode hard. My legs are a bit sore today, but I'll work that out later this week. Stay tuned for more updates.......

Peach Peloton #6

I know this post is about a week late, but I've been busy with other projects all week long and doing some Christmas shopping also. This past Peach Peloton ride started out in east Macon. We started from Bernd Elementary School & headed out. We had a group of about 10-12 of us on the ride. The plan was to ride about 80 miles with no attack zones, just practice rotation throughout the ride. I was happy about not having the attack zones, but didn't know how my legs were going to feel this ride. I spent the Friday night before the ride working on cleaning a house for friends to earn some extra cash for the holidays. I stayed with the group the first half of the ride until the store stop. We headed back towards Macon & started to hit some hillier roads. I was able to stay with the group until we hit Myricks Mill Rd. Chad describes that road as one short downhill & about the next 5 miles of climbing & he's right. I was dropped on the first climb on the road. I stayed within myself & rode that stretch of road at my pace. I wasn't the only one having problems on that stretch of road. Shane showed up for the ride & he was having a hard time too. I guess I over did it with the house cleaning because we regrouped before heading back to Macon & once we hit a good climb, I was dropped off the back again. Shane & I pretty much rode back to the school together, tired but feeling good to finish that distance. I was pretty much shot for the rest of the day, but have been doing more riding this week & doing the training exercises so far. Some of the workouts are getting a bit easier to do, but some still hurt. LOL That's about all I have for now, stayed tuned for more updates......

Cyclo-Core/Zen Workout Update

I'm on the third week of my 12 week Cyclo-Core/Zen offseason workout program. This week has been challenging to say the least so far. Yesterday's workout was what is called a 45 min. yoga spin. I started out doing some yoga to stretch out my legs then it was onto the bike. I started riding a 39 x 24 for 2 minutes to warm up, then the real fun began. I shifted into a 53 x 21 for 3 minutes at 100 rpm while staying in the drops. After that was a 1 minute recovery in a 39 x 24 at 80-90 rpm for 1 minute. Then it was back onto the big ring in a 53 x 19 for another 3 minutes at 100 rpm. My legs were feeling good so far at that moment, after 3 minutes of that, it was another minute of recovery. The next interval was a 53 x 17 same amount of time & same cadence. My legs were starting to feel it a bit by now, but it still wasn't that bad. After another minute of recovery time, it was time to big ring it again in a 53 x 15. This was getting harder with each interval to keep the cadence up to 100 rpm, but I gave it my best effort. After another minute of recovery it was time for the last interval, a 53 x 14. My legs were about fried half-way through this one. Once I was done with that and a 2 minute recovery spin, it was time for what they call power yoga. After doing that workout on the bike, I was having a hard time doing the positions called for, but I did try my best to do each one. The final workout was a cool down & stretching program. It felt good to stretch all my muscles after that workout.
Today was the ab/core workout. I still need lots of work with the exercises in this routine, but I can tell I'm improving a little. Some of the exercises aren't as hard to do now as they were earlier. My abs and core muscles are still sore from doing them, but if I want to get stronger and faster, this is what must be done. Thanks again to everyone who reads this & I'll keep updating as often as I can. Until next time......

Peach Peloton #5

Today was the 5th Peach Peloton ride. The weather was a bit cool at the start, but it was going to warm up during the ride. The plan was to ride 77 miles with an attack zone. At the start of the ride, Chad told us there would be no attack zone (thankfully). The route was going to be hard. It was the hilliest route we've done so far. We left Howard Middle School and headed towards Byron using the climb on Boy Scout Rd. I hadn't ridden that road in quite sometime & forgot how hard the climb was. We stayed together the entire climb so it wasn't that bad. Once we hit the top of the climb, we took a quick break to let someone who dropped off time to catch up. That gave me time to lose some of the gear I had on seeing as it was warming up & I was starting to get a bit on the warm side. We hit Hwy 42 & divided into 2 groups to practice rotating pacelines. I was with Chad, Christian, Doug, another Chad as we started out. Chad told me to do what I could and if I couldn't take my turn up front to just sit on the back and hang on. I told him I would do what I could & if I couldn't pull, I'd just sit in. We started out quite smoothly and once we hit a stretch of flat road, Chad started to pick up the pace. I was doing 29 mph & he was pulling away from me. Just at that moment, the second group caught up to us & the pace really started to pick up. I knew where the store stop was and what the road was like, seeing as I've ridden it before, so I just stayed within my limits & kept up a good pace that I was comfortable with. I was able to make it to the store & I wasn't the last one there. We waited for everyone to arrive and take a break. Some of the group had to head back to Macon for something, so they headed out on their way. The rest of us started back out on the back side of the route. We just kept up a comfortable pace until we hit Hopewell Rd. Once we made the turn onto Hopewell, we started a rolling paceline again. We kept this up the entire time we were on Hopewell, being nice and smooth and not leaving anyone behind. We then turned onto Montpelier Station Rd & just rolled on until we hit Maynard Mill Rd. Once on that road, the pace picked up & I stayed with them as best as I could, but was dropped. I did catch up to Robert Jordan, who was backing off a bit and the two of us just rode together until we got to Zebulon Rd where we saw the rest of the group. The climbs on Zebulon really hurt after all the riding I did, so needless to say I was left a bit behind, but they slowed up and let me catch them before returning to the school. It was a great ride today. I learned alot along the ride and my average speed was the highest it's been on a Peach Peloton ride. I was actually able to average 20 mph for the entire ride. I'm looking forward to the next ride. Stay tuned for more updates.......

Back on Track Again

Well, last week was a total washout for my Cyclo-Core/Zen workouts. I was pretty much busy most of the time & was a bit fatigued from things. I remember Graeme saying that you should listen to your body & if you're fatigued, skip a workout instead of getting yourself wornout and becoming sick. I'm back on the schedule again & feeling good about doing all the workouts. The only bad news was at my Weight Watchers meeting. I gained weight again this week. I'm going to start back to basics again & writing everything I eat down. I think that was my main failure two out of the past three weeks. So I have to concentrate on both what I eat & continuing with the Core/Zen program. Here's to a better week........

Peach Peloton #4

Today was the fourth ride of the Peach Peloton. We left from Howard Middle School in north Macon. The weather today was just a carbon copy of yesterday. Cold and a bit windy. The route we took today was a nice route. We started with a headwind so we would have a tail wind on the way home. My legs were a bit sore from yesterday's ride, so I didn't know how I would do on the ride today. I was able to keep with the group for the first part of the ride. After we were on the back part of ride, Chad decided to break up the group into 2 smaller groups to work on a rotating paceline. I was with Chad, Jake, Charles, Doug, and another ride I can't remember his name. I was doing well, taking my turns up front until we hit a good climb. I felt it in my legs, that it was going to be painful and did my best to stay with the group, but I had to drop back and climb at my own pace. We caught Charles' friend Chris from the first group and pulled him along. We all regrouped in Forsyth and headed back home. The way home was nothing but rollers and I really felt everyone of them. I had dropped off the back of the group, but was keeping them in sight. The attack zone started as the group made a left turn onto Maynard Mill Rd. I was behind everyone, so I just rode at a good pace for me. The attack zone was a long one today & I lost sight of the group once they picked the pace up. I made it to Zebulon Rd, and the hills on that road really hurt. My legs were on fire climbing up some of those hills. I actually made it back to the school in one piece. My legs were really fragged after two hard rides. I haven't done anything like that in quite some time, so I'm planning on taking an easy ride sometime tomorrow afternoon if the weather co-operates. Once we got back to the school, we noticed that Charles' friend Chris hadn't arrived at the school. We waited a bit & Chad said he'd go look for him, but I volunteered to take Charles and drive back on the route to see if we could find him. We drove the attack zone back to 42 and found no sign of Chris. We turned back on 42 & headed further south, thinking he might have missed the turn onto Maynard Mill Rd. Charles called his wife to get the number and we found out that Chris did miss the turn and rode for about another 7 miles down the road before turning back and heading back to Forsyth to have his wife drive him back to the school. I waited at the school with Charles until Chris & his wife pulled up. My average speed for this ride was the slowest one so far, but I think it has more to do with my legs being sore from riding yesterday and not recovering as quickly. We'll just have to see how things go next weekend. Stay tuned for more.......

Post Turkey Day Ride.

Today was a post Thanksgiving Day ride. We met at Bernd Elementary School in East Macon for about a 60 mile ride. The weather was a bit on the cold side, but we had a pretty good turnout for the ride. We headed out and just rode 2 abreast for the first part of the ride. Once we crossed one intersection, Chad said he wanted to start working on a rolling paceline. We were on a section of road that wasn't too hilly and it was about 7 miles until the next turn. We started out rollling right to left. The goal was to just keep a steady pace and when you got your turn at the front, you just rolled to the left and let the next guy pass and he did the same. We kept up a good tempo doing this & it was really easy to learn how to do it. We all took turns up front and Chad told us that if we couldn't take our turn up front, not to worry about having to sit in the back & just be pulled around. We hit another road and this one had a couple of good climbs on it. Chad asked that we try to keep it together as best as we could so we wouldn't drop anyone on the climbs. We did well on the first climb, the group staying together, but on the second climb we started to lose some riders, so we just backed the pace down so they could catch up with the group. We hit Jeffersonville & decided to make a store stop. The rest of the way back into Macon was going to be into the wind. The decision was made to ride 2 abreast and at each mile marker sign we would rotate the lead. Sitting in the back was easy, but when you're up front, it's a bit harder to keep the same pace going. The entire route back was nothing but rolling hills. We all took our turns up front & we arrived back safely. All in all it was a good ride and I'm glad I was able to get out & ride. Stay tuned for the next update with the Peach Peloton......

Peach Peloton Ride #3

Today's Peach Peloton ride route was called the Forsyth Metric Century. We started out at Howard Middle School & headed out on the route the same way we did 2 weeks ago. The weather at the start was about 30 degrees, but we had 18-20 people show up for the ride. I dressed in my cold weather gear & we headed out. The ride for the first few miles was cold, but I knew that in time, I'd warm up a bit. The route was pretty much rolling hills. We used back roads to get to Forsyth & the scenery was beautiful. On one road, we had a bit of competition. We were riding past a farm when I looked over and saw 3 horses running along their fence line with us. It seemed that they were having fun seeing all the crazy humans that were dressed funny on the road. Once we got into Forsyth we had to stop for a funeral to pass by. It wasn't very long until we were on our way once again. Riding down 41 was starting to get a bit hairy sometimes, some vehicles gave up plenty of room and were patient as they waited for a clear section of road to pass us, but others weren't. There were at least 2 close calls for accidents as some people were in too much of a hurry to check & see if the road in the opposite direction was clear to pass us. We also had a few vehicles pass by us a bit on the close side. Eddie, the ride leader, says, he's not going to ride a group the size that we had today down that road again. It's just a bit to dangerous. We finally hit the left turn and the attacks started. I did my best to hang on, but as usual I was dropped off the back. I kept up a hard effort for me all the way until the end of the attack zone. I'm surprised that my back was feeling as well as it was the entire ride after doing a Cyclo-Zen back routine yesterday. All in all it was a good ride & I was able to finish not that far back from the rest of the group. Today's totals: 66 miles, 3:24:15, average speed 19.62. Tomorrow is an off day for me, then back to the routine on Monday. Stay tuned for more updates.......

Off to a good start

I've started the Cyclo-Core 12 week offseason workout plan this week & it's been interseting to say the least. I've done every workout so far and some are easy while some are challenging. I had to do one legged drills (OLD's) the other day & boy do I need to work on my pedal stroke. I've never done drills like that in all the time I've been cycling & I found out that I have a major dead spot on my pedal stroke. It's going to take time to get used to doing them, but I have every intention to improve my stroke before the racing season starts. Most of the on the bike exercises have dealt with high cadence pedaling & speed. They've been pretty easy to do, but they are a workout. I finally received my copy of Cyclo-Zen & I have to do one of the workouts tomorrow. I'll let anyone who reads this how things go. On Saturday is the next Peach Peloton ride & we're planning on doing 65 miles for that ride. I'm looking foward to it, I've really enjoyed the first two rides. The group that shows up are a great bunch to ride with. That's about all I have for now, stay tuned for more.....

Forgotten Lesson Learned

Today I was reminded of how out of shape my core muscles are. I had to do the bonus ab & core workout today & it was brutal. I had a hard time doing some of the exercises. I did my best, but I know I'll have to get better at them in order to get stronger. The hindu squats of the body resistance workout weren't that bad today, but doing the bicycle kicks after the ab & core workout earlier was very hard. I did the best I could today & have to remind myself that this is only the start of the program & I'll get stronger as long as I stick with the workouts & do them to the best of my abilities. Stay tuned for more............