Strava: http://app.strava.com/activities/221382625
I was really looking forward to riding with team members again, but I had to go solo due to a class I got in last minute that started at 1 PM. You may be asking then why I'm blogging about a solo ride vs. a team one. 1) Because I can, 2) because I want to and 3) because it lets the other guys on the team know I mean business. The game is definitely on, so I'm hoping this encourages the rest of the team to train up to keep up or keep ahead. Knowing how the guys are, these words will not be taken lightly. Good!
So my purpose for getting out to ride was to get more seat time, especially on my TT bike, and starting bringing up that discipline again. It is my favorite mostly because it's the easiest to work on given that it's more about tempo than high intensity. I was hoping someone might come out and join me to push me even more, but no takers so solo it was.
One of the things I realized when riding was that my mind was equally in need of conditioning. I felt less confident about pushing myself (fearing I may pop or cramp), I was more inhibited when it came to turning on the aeros and I really had to force my myself to focus on breathing, being smooth, etc. I'm sure these also apply when I'm on my road bike, but it seems more relevant when solo given that the only company I keep are my thoughts. This is definitely going to take some more seat time to overcome.
Despite the mental aspect, I was actually a little surprised I was able to average 200+ watts for the ride. I did my non-stop pedaling route, but the stop light on California and a dog being walked on Back Bay without a leash made it less than ideal. The weather was great though.
In the end, I was pleased with being able to average 22+ on the route. I'm hoping I can hit 23-24 again eventually, but I'm just getting started (or restarted).
One encouraging thing to see was Vince's and Shannon's Strava posts showing they rode at lunch yesterday also. I'm sure others probably rode with them, but like the saying goes...if it isn't on Strava, it didn't happen. With the amount of riding these guys are doing compared to the others, you can tell they're only going to keep pushing the bar higher and higher. I'm fine with it as it gives me something to shoot for. It's great when team mates push one another. I'm hoping these damn blogs will help push others as well. If at least one is encouraged by them, then it's all worth the while.
I was really looking forward to riding with team members again, but I had to go solo due to a class I got in last minute that started at 1 PM. You may be asking then why I'm blogging about a solo ride vs. a team one. 1) Because I can, 2) because I want to and 3) because it lets the other guys on the team know I mean business. The game is definitely on, so I'm hoping this encourages the rest of the team to train up to keep up or keep ahead. Knowing how the guys are, these words will not be taken lightly. Good!
So my purpose for getting out to ride was to get more seat time, especially on my TT bike, and starting bringing up that discipline again. It is my favorite mostly because it's the easiest to work on given that it's more about tempo than high intensity. I was hoping someone might come out and join me to push me even more, but no takers so solo it was.
One of the things I realized when riding was that my mind was equally in need of conditioning. I felt less confident about pushing myself (fearing I may pop or cramp), I was more inhibited when it came to turning on the aeros and I really had to force my myself to focus on breathing, being smooth, etc. I'm sure these also apply when I'm on my road bike, but it seems more relevant when solo given that the only company I keep are my thoughts. This is definitely going to take some more seat time to overcome.
Despite the mental aspect, I was actually a little surprised I was able to average 200+ watts for the ride. I did my non-stop pedaling route, but the stop light on California and a dog being walked on Back Bay without a leash made it less than ideal. The weather was great though.
In the end, I was pleased with being able to average 22+ on the route. I'm hoping I can hit 23-24 again eventually, but I'm just getting started (or restarted).
One encouraging thing to see was Vince's and Shannon's Strava posts showing they rode at lunch yesterday also. I'm sure others probably rode with them, but like the saying goes...if it isn't on Strava, it didn't happen. With the amount of riding these guys are doing compared to the others, you can tell they're only going to keep pushing the bar higher and higher. I'm fine with it as it gives me something to shoot for. It's great when team mates push one another. I'm hoping these damn blogs will help push others as well. If at least one is encouraged by them, then it's all worth the while.
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