Sunday, August 1, 2010

Time to kill post

So I'm at work with some time to kill while I wait for some software to be updated.

Two things came to mind as far as what to post. First I need to play catch up from the last post, which was in April!

I drastically scaled down my race plans for 2010 after getting switched onto a new project at work. Working 45-50 hours a week doesn't leave much time for training. Some weeks riding disappeared completely. It has been incredibly frustrating.

However a few weeks ago the routine started back up and I have been doing my best to prepare for the Son of Death ride on August 28th. The ride is off the 395 highway and is 140 miles long with about 17,000 feet of elevation gain. I'm nervous about doing the ride for a few reasons:

1. Longest ride on my road bike thus far.
2. Not the best descender on the road. Hoping not to lay it down.
3. I don't have a small ring on my road bike. Might be too much grinding.
4. Need to eat well during the ride to keep energy up.
5. Ride should be in the 10 hour range and I have not done many rides like that. (Only one comes close actually and that is Ultra Quest - UGH!)

I have plans for fixing all those issues, but we'll see what happens. I also signed up for the 50 mile epic ride in Temecula in October. I got fourth last year in my class and missed the podium. This year with better training, more miles in my legs and better focus I'm hoping to do much better.

The second idea for posting was a list of things I would do if I had the time. I know how to get faster on the bike, but I often lack the time.

1. I would do yoga.
2. I would stretch.
3. I would roll my legs more.
4. I would make more trips to the grocery store and be wiser in what I buy.
5. I would learn how to fix my own bikes.

I suppose that's it.

Even though I haven't been posting much (I also gave up on posting on Geoladders), I have been riding a fair amount. Lately I've been riding 8-10 hours a week and did around 100 miles or so a week or two ago in one week. So I'm getting out, but riding in general has just changed radically for me.

If work can die down I can be a much happier rider.