I know it's been a while since last post.

I know, I know, it's been 2 weeks since my last post here. My computer decided it doesn't like me much anymore & doesn't want to work right. I'm going to have to get it looked at here sometime soon. Since my last post, I've just been doing my training that Mike has so graciously provided me. I've done hill repeats, my 5 x 5 intervals, only this time with another twist. Once I have 2 minutes left in the hard 5 minutes, I'm to increase the intensity, then do that again with 1 minute left, & finally give it everything I have the final 30 seconds. I'm telling you, that is one hard workout. I did that last Tuesday & my legs were shot after about 5 sets, the only problem was that I still had about 15 miles to ride before I was home. Needless to say, those last 15 miles were at a recovery pace. Last Wednesday was a recovery ride & boy it was very welcome. On Thursday I took a rest day then did mock sprints on that Friday. I was going to go on the group ride last Saturday, but Mike called me just before I left to tell me not to waste my time seeing as it was raining up in McDonough. I then decided to head to the Perry Welcome Center to see if anyone was going to show up for a ride there, but then it started raining there also. I just decided that it was not meant for me to ride that day. Last Sunday afternoon I headed out & ran into my friend Eddie & joined him for about a 45 mile ride. We put some hard efforts in & my legs felt good. This past Monday was a high tempo ride which was done on the trainer due to rain. I rode for about 90 minutes. On Tuesday, it was the same interval workout as the week before, but this time I stayed closer to home. My legs still hurt after the workout. Yesterday was a pyramid workout, starting out with a 15 minute warm-up then 1 mintue hard, 1 minute easy, increasing the hard & easy efforts by 1 minute till I hit 6 minutes. After a 6 minute rest it was another 6 minutes hard, but the rest periods on the way back down were a minute shorter. I'm telling you, my legs were shot after that workout & are sore today. I'm planning on going for an easy ride today & keeping it on the small ring. I'm hoping for good weather this weekend & doing the group ride on Saturday. Stay tuned for further reports on my suffering......

Group Ride with Southern Crescent Group

Yesterday was my first weekday group ride with the group. I really had no idea what to expect & was just looking forward to a good ride. The pace was fast from the start. It's a good thing I warmed up before the ride or I'd have been in a world of hurt. We headed out & just kept a good paceline going, taking turns up front for a bit. I did my share up front & was feeling good. I tried to stay near the front seeing as I hadn't ridden this route before. We got close to Atlanta Motor Speedway & I was dropped a bit on a climb. I was alone until I turned the corner to the back side of the racetrack. I caught Scott there, he had been dropped from the other riders. I left him briefly, trying to catch the 3 guys up front. I followed them & they had gotten out of site. I turned the wrong way at one intersection & had to catch up to another rider to make sure I was going the right way. I hit a stop light & Scott & David caught up to me. We decided to work together till the end of the ride. We hit Mt. Carmel & picked up the pace with me in the lead. I took a good long pull, then let the others take turns up front. We made the final turn towards Epic bikes & just cruised in from there. It was a fast ride. We did about 27 miles with an average speed of 22.4 mph. This is one fast group to ride with. I just wanted to say thanks to Mike for all the workouts, they helped me stay with the group for most of the ride. I still need to lose some more weight & work on my climbing. All that will come in time & with effort. I know I'm much stronger than last year & look forward to getting stronger & faster. All in all a good time with a good bunch of riders.

Wrap up from last week

Sorry it's been so long since my last post, but life has been keeping me busy. I was pretty busy with my training all last week. On Tuesday, I was doing intervals, the usual 5 minutes on, 5 minutes off, but Mike threw a twist in it. In in the final minute of the on section, I was to increase the pace & then let it all hang out during the final 30 seconds. I was to do this 6 times. The first time it really hurt, but I survived. I thought I had picked a route that would give me at tailwind for most of the workout, but the wind shifted & I ended up doing all 6 sets with somewhat of a headwind. My legs were quite tired when I got home. On Wednesday it was an easy tempo ride. My legs needed it. On Thursday, I rode with the bike club in Warner Robins. I just sat on till we hit the big climb. I just kept a steady rhythym & actually rode everyone in the group off my wheel. I never dropped below 17 mph for the climb. I've never climbed that hill that fast before. We regrouped at the church then headed out. I was in the lead & got a gap & kept my cadence steady. The group was behind me, when I acutally got stopped by a train. That's the first time in 6 years doing that route that has happened. Needless to say, they caught up to me. Once the train passed we started again. I just stayed with the group till we hit the horseshoe part of the route. For some reason the group slowed up & I just kept on going. I just put it in cruise mode & kept a steady pace. I was getting near Elko Rd, when I noticed that they were getting a bit closer. I decided that if they were going to catch me, they were going to have to work for it. I kicked it up a notch & put it in time trial mode. I was able to stay away & was pleased with my effort. On Saturday it was the Peach Blossom ride in Byron. Some of the Securtiy Bank riders showed up & I knew that they were going to hammer the ride. I stayed with them as long as I could & we ended up doing over 21 miles in the first hour of the ride. They decided to pick it up a bit more, but I thought better of trying to stay with them & keep my own pace. The ride was fun, I rode with another group of riders for a bit, then went off on my own up one of the climbs. I finished the ride by myself & I was feeling the effort about the last 3-4 miles. I ended up doing 66 miles with an average speed of 20.3 mph. The hard work is paying off & I can tell I'm stronger than last year. I'm planning on doing a group ride with the guys from Epic this Wednesday, that should give me a good indication of how fit I am right now. I'm looking forward to a hard, but fun ride. I'll let eveyone know how it goes.

Catch up time

This weekend, I went to the Perry Welcome Center to see who was going to show up for a group ride. Chip was there when I arrived, then John, & Tom arrived. We were getting ready to leave when Shane showed up. I told everyone else I'd wait for Shane & catch up to them. Shane was saying he wanted to do 130 miles to get ready for the Bike Ride Across Florida. I told him I couldn't go that far, but I'd ride with him until we got to a point where he wanted to go farther. We left & proceeded to try to catch the other guys. We ended up catching them on Hayneville Hill, once we got to the top, the other guys changed the route we were going to ride. They didn't want to ride down Pitts Rd, because of the hills. I told them, that was fine with me & I would catch up to Shane & wait for them at the turn they said. I then put it in the big ring & caught up to Shane & rode a bit further with him. He was headed to Hawkinsville, but we were headed to Unadilla. I got to the intersection & waited for the others to arrive. We headed down Klondike towards Pitts Rd, I had gotten a gap from the others, so when I got to the intersection, I had to wait for the others. Chip & I decided to ride our pace & we waited for the others once we got to Unadilla. After leaving the store, Chip & I headed out on our own. Once we hit Elko Rd, we put it in the big ring & started hammering it. I pulled most of the way, my legs were feeling good. Once we hit the final climb, I kept a steady pace, but seemed that it was a bit much for Chip. He dropped back, but I thought he would catch up at the top of the climb. Once I saw that he wasn't catching up, I put it in the big ring & hammered down the last downhill. I figured that if he was going to catch me, I would at least make him work for it. I hit the intersection at the parkway extension & saw that Chip was a bit behind me, I waited for him & he asked me what I've been doing to get better. I told him that it was due to doing the Peach Peloton rides, & other workouts I had been doing over the winter. I also told him that losing about 20 lbs. didn't hurt eaither. Today was hill repeats. The wind outside was brutal, it was out of the NW @ 16 mph with gusts. I drove to the Perry Welcome Center to ride out the Perry Parkway to use Hayneville Hill for my workout. I wanted to keep a consistent pace up the hill on each climb. I am happy to say that I succeeded in doing that. I kept it between 14.5 -16 mph each time up the hill. I did 4 climbs & thought about doing one more before common sense kicked in & told me that I had a headwind to ride into in order to get back to my car. The wind was a pain, but I suffered & managed to get back to the car. All in all a good workout, my climbing seems to be getting better. Stay tuned for more.....

Perry-Roubaix Race Report

Well, the first mass start races for this season are in the books. On Saturday was the circuit race. It was a short course with a couple of small climbs. The class I was in was scheduled for 15 laps of the course, which they said would be 21 miles. The pace was fast from the beginning. The pack was staying together & the pace was comfortable for me. A couple of times other riders tried getting away, but the pack chased down each & every attempt. I even tried my hand at getting away with another rider. One of the Aaron riders said he was going to try a break on the back side of the course & wanted to know if anyone would go with him. I said I would give it a go & one other rider said the same. He went up the right side of the pack with both of us in tow, but we really didn't get much of a gap before we were caught. The pace was high enough not to allow anyone much of a gap. We stayed together until the last turn, I was in a good position for a top ten finish, but coming out of the final corner, I was cut off & had to let up a bit & finished 13th out of 31 riders. I was quite pleased with being able to stay with the pack the entire race. The workouts Mike has me doing are helping for sure. On Sunday was the road race. I know the course well, but it's not really my forte. There is just too much climbing on it. The first climb up Elko Rd was a bit fast for me but I managed to catch the pack on Gilbert, just as I got back on, someone up front must have attacked, because the pack picked up the pace. My legs started to cramp up & I knew that if I tried to catch the break, I'd never finish. I just settled into a fast pace that was comfortable for me to finish the race. The dirt section of the course was packed pretty good, so I was able to keep a good pace on it. Each time up Elko Rd hurt a bit more than before. I was able to catch up to a couple of other riders from my class & we rode together for the rest of the second lap. On the third lap, I thought I wasn't going to be able to get up the climbs, but I just dug deep & gave it my best, knowing I could recover a bit on the back side of the course. I rode with another rider who came up from Florida for the race & we worked well together. We both decided that we were going to finish the race, no matter what. On the finaly lap, he got a gap on me going up Elko, but I just kept a steady pace for me. I even managed to pass another rider from the other Competitive class. I kept up a steady pace on the dirt & gave it all I had on the back part of the course. I managed to finish 29th & made the finish list. I'm just happy that I finished 4 laps of that course. All in all it was a fun weekend of racing & now it's time to get ready for my next races. Stay tuned for more.....

Getting ready for Perry-Roubaix

I've been getting ready for the races this weekend in Perry. I did my intervals on Monday & it was hard as usual. On Tuesday I did the Ride to the Capitol & we put a hard effort on the way back. On Wednesday I was just cruising & ran into my friend Rob, who is back from being deployed. We just cruised around & caught up on things. Today was mock sprints. I did my 12 sets of them & then met some other cycling friends of mine & just rode easy with them. I'm looking foward to this weekend of racing. I'm going out there & giving it all I have. I'm borrowing a set of Kyrsium SL wheels for the races from my friend Will. I used these wheels on my ride today. I might not want to return them. This is one nice set of wheels. I'm probably going to take tomorrow off & have the bike checked out by Charles just to make sure things are working great for this weekend. Stay tuned for race reports this weekend........

Ride to the Capitol

Today was the Ride to the Capitol to let legislators know that cycling is an alternative mode of trasnportation worthy of more funding. We all met at Epic Bikes in McDonough. There were about 30 of us doing the ride. We left the shop with a police escort. We had one patrol car in the lead, one following, & 2 motorcycle officers blocking the intersections for us. We had one lane of Jonesboro Rd all to ourselves. That was probably the coolest thing I've ever had done for me while riding my bike. I know what the pros feel like when they get it done for them. We met the McDonough mayor at city hall & he rode with us for about a mile. He then got into a vehicle & rode in it until we arrived at the Marta station. The route was nothing but rollers with a few good climbs. We pretty much rode together the way to the capitol. We had one rider who kept getting flats till he changed wheels. The only other incident we had was one rider was trying to help another up the hill & lost his balance & fell. Everything turned out alright & we made it to the capitol, hooking up with another group from different parts of the city. We listened to the speakers, ate lunch & then got ready to head back. We started back towards the Marta station, & Mike was feeling really froggy. It was a sprint fest between each set of stoplights. My legs were hurting seeing as they weren't warmed up that much at the time. We were doing about 27 mph trying to catch up to him. We got to the station & decided what the plan going back would be. It was if you couldn't hang with the fast group, the truck was there to pick you up if needed. We headed out back to the shop & the pace was much faster than on the way there. I tried keeping up with Mike & was doing good until he decided to let the group go by & catch up from behind. I caught the back of the group, but by then Mike was off the front with another rider. We all grouped together & tried to catch him, with not much luck. We just settled into a good rhythym & rode on our own. We made it back to the shop & we really had a good ride. It was a good time & great company.

Perry-Roubaix recon ride

Yesterday I went & rode the road race route & circuit race route for the Perry-Roubaix races this coming weekend. I rode with Eddie & several of the guys from the Security Bank cycling team from Macon. We did 2 laps of the road race course & I did one lap of the circuit race route. My legs were a bit sore the first time up Elko Rd, due to not being properly warmed up. We found out that Firetower Rd is packed down good as of right now. I'm hoping it stays that way all week. You can ride pretty much anywhere on the dirt as of now. I felt better going up Elko Rd on the second lap, & the Security Bank guys were kind enough to wait for me. I told them that they should go & do what they needed to do & I'd be fine. I was going to check out the circuit race route while they went & checked out the time trial route. The circuit race course is different from last year. The only problem I noticed was the turn from the parkway back onto Limerock Rd. There is an island & the turn seems pretty tight to me. We'll just have to see how things go on race day. Today I did my interval workout. Mike had me do the last 2 intervals in a 53 x 12 & boy was that a workout. Legs actually felt pretty good during the ride though. Tomorrow is the Ride to the Capitol. I'm looking foward to this. There should be lots of cyclists to show the politicians that cycling is a great alternative means of transportation & more money should be spent on bike lanes & things to make cities more bicycle friendly. I'll have a report about it either tomorrow or Wednesday at the latest. I'm also scheduled for a power threshold test before the ride. Tim said that would be a good warm-up before the ride. I don't know what to expect, so I really won't be surprised or dissapointed. It's going to be a starting point & we'll see how the season goes & if I get stronger as it goes on. Stay tuned for more.....

Great day for a ride.

Today was a beautifulday for a ride. It was about 70 degrees with not much wind. I was scheduled to do mock sprints today. I did 12 sets of them & my legs were a bit sore, this is only the second time I've done this workout. After doing the mock sprints, I decided to go for a longer ride. I was doing the loop I've ridden with my friend Eddie, & the wind was not much of a factor. I hit the Larry Walker Parkway & put it in the big ring. My legs were a bit sore at the start of this, but after a few minutes, they felt great. I kept it in the big ring the entire parkway, even going up the climbs. My legs were feeling good & I kept it in the big ring the rest of the way home. I rode through Perry & then hit Lake Joy Rd. I just kept a steady pace down the entire road. I ended up doing 35.5 miles with an average speed of 20.1 mph. I'm planning on pre riding the race courses for Perry this weekend, the weather doesn't look all that great, but I should be out there. I'll let everyone know what happened.

Two weeks to Perry-Roubaix

In about 2 weeks my first race weekend will be here. It's just south of me & I know the course quite well. I've ridden it several times over the years. I'm in the preperation mode & getting ready to do some climbing practice to get ready for it. I raced this course last year, but the category I was in only did 3 laps. This year we are doing 4 laps for a total of 50 miles. I'm planning on doing the race distance on Saturday. The past several days, I've been doing workouts that Mike from Epic Bikes has told me to do. Mostly it's been designed to build up my speed. I've done several workouts that involve some type of intervals. This is the workouts I did last week & will be doing. On Monday it was intervals, 5 minutes hard, 5 minutes easy. I did 5 sets of that. On Tuedsay it's a pyramid workout, 1 minute hard, 1 minute easy, 2 mins hard, 2 easy & so on until you get to 5 minutes, then work your way back down to 1 minute. On Wednesday, it's an easy ride, keeping it in the small ring. Thursday is an off day & Friday is mock sprints. You ride in the drops & raise your butt out of the saddle for 15 seconds, do this 12 times. Last week I was quite sore from the workouts, but this week I'm feeling a bit better now. I'm looking forward to the races in two weeks. I hope I do well.

Time to catch things up.

On Saturday, I went riding with Mike & the guys from Epic bikes. The weather wasn't the greatest, but it wasn't raining & it was starting to clear up a bit by the time we left. The roads were still wet, but that was ok. We had 4 of us riding total. We did the Jordan Hill loop. I really like riding that loop, it's mainly rolling hills, but the last part of the ride is really the fun part. We rode like Mike usually has the group doing, going hard on certain sections of the ride, then taking it a bit on the easy side when someone starts to drop back. We hit Jordan Hill & I was in a 53 x 17 hoping to get up the hill without shifting, that was not to be, I made it up about 2/3's of the way before having to downshift to a 53 x 19. We regrouped after that & cruised through Hampton. Once we hit Mt. Carmel, it was the fun part of the ride. Mike let me lead & I started pushing it. I kept the speed between 24-26 mph, then my legs started to cramp up. I just kept going a bit farther. My legs started to cramp up even more by now. Mike noticed that I was slowing down & passed me, encouraging me to get on his wheel. I somehow was able to catch up & he was pulling me at 28+ mph. After the ride was over, I cleaned up my bike a bit & got ready for the fitting I had scheduled. Mike told me he had been watching me while we were riding & already had some ideas on what needed to be changed on my bike. He told me he was going to shorten my stem because I was too stretched out & he raised my saddle a bit. He told me that should help me with getting more power to the pedals & should help my climbing. On Sunday I put the new position to the test. I rode with the group leaving from The Bike Store. The new position felt comfortable & during the ride, I noticed that it did help with my climbing. I actually tried chasing Charles on one of the climbs & seemed to be closing in a bit. Later in the ride, a few of the guys tried attacking & I was able to catch up to them & hang in there contesting the sprint. I haven't been able to do that before. On Monday after work I went & did intervals. I did 5 minutes as hard as I could go & then 5 minutes easy. I finished 5 sets of intervals after a 15 minute warm up. My legs were a bit sore to say the least. Today it was raining so I was on the trainer doing a pyramid workout. It was one tough workout & I know I'm going to feel it tomorrow. Mike says that tomorrow is going to be a steady tempo ride on the small ring to workout the soreness from the past two workouts. I'm looking foward to taking it a bit easier on the bike. I'm getting ready for the race weekend it Perry. I'll get several chances to pre-ride the course during the next couple of weeks. Stay tuned for more.....

Good ride today

Today was a good day for a ride. I've started commuting to work by bike this week. If anyone is interested in that adventure, you can check out my new blog at http://commutingbybike.blogspot.com
After the commute home today, I switched bikes & got on the road bike. It certainly felt a bit different on the road bike after riding the commuter bike the past two days. I headed out & just went for a loop I usually do with Will. I headed out on Lake Joy & my legs felt good even doing the climbs. I then had a tailwind & put it on the big ring & started pushing it. My legs started to feel a bit sore, but I just pushed through it for a bit longer. I hit Houston Lake Rd. & then decided to take it a bit easier until I got home. All in all it felt great to be back on the road bike, & looking forward to the weekend.

Nice day for a ride.

Today I went for a ride to work out the kinks that were in my legs since finishing the Tundra Time Trial. I rode the loop I've done with Eddie, only in reverse to take advantage of the wind on the last half of the ride. My legs felt heavy the first part of the ride. I kept it on the small ring until I hit the Perry Parkway. I had the wind at my back & put it on the big ring. My legs felt much better by then, so I decided to pick up the pace a bit & take advantage of the tail wind. I just kept up a good cadence & kep on pedaling. I hit 341 & had a head/cross wind the rest of the ride. I still was able to keep it on the big ring & really didn't slow down that much. All in all, it was a good ride & my legs feel much better now than they did yesterday.

Tundra Time Trial Report

Today was the Tundra Time Trial in Hiram, Ga. It's on the Silver Comet Trail. They claim it's flat, but I'll tell you that they lie!!!! It's not flat at all, there are gradual inclines & descents the entire trail. The start was at the trail head in Hiram, then it was out about 4.75 miles, turn around and come back. I made sure I arrived early enough to get a good parking space & made sure I warmed up well before my start time. Well I warmed up & got ready to head to the start ramp when they got close to calling my number. I rolled up on the ramp & got ready to go. I got the start & headed out. The trip out is mostly uphill with a few sections that go downhill. I was using a set of Mavic Kyrsium wheels I borrowed from Will. I really like these wheels. I was going well until I hit a bump at the beginning of a bridge crossing. Once I hit that, the speed magnet on the wheel slid & I was without any kind of info concerning time, distance, & most importantly speed. The only info I had was my heart rate. I just concentrated on getting to the turn around point. It was a very tight turn, really had to slow down to make it, then it was back up out of the saddle gaining speed. I hammered it on the way back, my legs felt good the entire ride. I managed to beat my time from last year by over 2 minutes. I finished in 26:01. All in all a good time & a good race. Nice way to start the racing season.

Update from the weekend.

This past Saturday I went riding with my new club. I joined the Southern Crescent Cycling Club in McDonough & this past Saturday was my first group ride. I met the ride leader at Epic Bikes about 6:30 am seeing as the ride was scheduled to start at 7. His name was Mike & he told me what to expect during the ride. He said that the route was rolling hills with a short, somewhat steep climb later in the ride. I told him I would do my best to stay with the group. I had no idea what to expect during the ride. I wasn't sure what the pace was going to be & what kind of riders I was going to be riding with. We had a group of about 6 of us that left Epic Bikes around 7 am. It was a bit on the cold side ( surprise), but it was going to warm up during the ride. Mike said that he never leaves anyone during a ride, there would be sections to be ridden fast & sections to let the slower riders catch up. Each group would get a workout, the faster riders would be doing intervals, while the slower riders would be building base miles. I liked the concept, Mike said it was kind of like riding to learn the flow of a race, there would be sections where the pace would be fast, and sections where the peloton would bunch up and slow down. The other riders on the ride really made me feel welcome during the ride. It really was a nice route to ride, the traffic really wasn't a problem at all until we were getting closer to the shop on the return trip. The climb up Jordan Hill was just like Mike said, short & somewhat steep. I was in the big ring going up the climb, but managed to make it up the hill. We regrouped at the top of the hill for another of the fast sections of the ride. We were doing about 22-23 mph during that section, when one of the group started to drop back, Mike said it was time to slow down & let the other rider catch up to us. We hit the section of the route that they use for a local time trial, & it was time to hammer. I don't think I dropped down below 25 mph on that section of road. It felt good to really hammer for a good stretch of time. We got back to the shop & I just chatted with everyone that was in the group. I'm looking forward to riding more with the group & Mike said that the pace would be picking up in not much longer. I'm looking forward to the challenge of keeping up with this group. All in all it was a good ride, a good new route to ride, & great new people to ride with.

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