You Should Sit Down

Going to Sierra Peak:



Last night was the fourth week in a row where I rode up Blackstar on a Tuesday night. The difference this time was that I rode my singlespeed. Our little group of four actually went all the way to Sierra Peak on what turned out to be a very warm night.

I was happy that I was able to sit down and pedal more than the last time I rode to Sierra on my singlespeed. My goal when I ride the SS is to sit as much as possible. It keeps my heart rate down and strengthens my legs. Standing is cool and it's a good workout, but I can't sustain it on longer climbs.

The most fun of the ride for me was passing a large group of riders that had started a little bit before our group. I love passing people. It doesn't happen all the time, but I cherish it when it does. It was extra special last night because I passed 3-4 other SS riders.

I also caught the leader of their group a little before Hidden Valley which felt great. Physically I was beat, but the mental high of catching their leader was enough to keep me going. I thought he was going to catch me again in Hidden Valley since he was on a geared bike - and he came pretty close. At the start of the climbing out of Hidden Valley he had closed in, but once the climbing started again he was left far behind. Felt good.

It might seem arrogant to always focus on passing people, but when you ride for an hour at night alone you have to get motivated somehow. Plus I always see it as motivation rather than an assertion that I'm a good rider while other guys suck. The goal is just to never get passed and to drag down anybody else I can find.

Time to Beek's sucked (1:01), but the overall time for the ride was good considering I was on the SS (2:09).

I felt great after the ride and realized it wasn't quite as difficult as it was the last time I did this route on the SS. Looking forward to more training on the SS.

(Note: It was super windy last night. Really annoying in a few spots. Oh well!)