Category Archives: Tues/Thurs 7:45am ride

Endless ramblings regarding the every Tuesday & Thursday-morning bike ride, leaving Olive Hill & Canada Road at 7:45am, rain or shine

Sunday, To the Sea! But a lot more of me showed up Tuesday

Ride reports (not Tu/Th), Tues/Thurs 7:45am ride

Sunday, there really wasn’t a choice. It’s been weeks, maybe over a month, who knows how long, since I’d ridden out to the coast. I’ve been hanging out on “this” side of the hill, sometimes due to weather, sometimes due to having to ride solo and not feeling like I wanted to be “over the hill” with too many thoughts to myself. Lots of reasons. But Sunday I finally got out with three others (Kevin, Kevin, JeffH) and did the LaHonda/San Gregorio/Pescadero loop. It wasn’t pretty; I was the weakest link all along the way. But I survived, saw the creek flowing on Tunitas, and yeah, it was slow, JeffH waited for me at the Grassy Knoll (where the steep part of Tunitas ends) but I didn’t mind that it took just over an hour. }

Tuesday was another thing entirely. No idea why a different version of me, one I hadn’t seen for a while, showed up and actually wanted to climb. That first steep pitch on Kings, yes, it still hurt, but I got over the top of it and didn’t feel 100% dead like usual. Kept up with Kevin, for once, and by the time we got to the first creek crossing I was gapping him, able to put in a minute or so hard effort, then throttle back and wait for him to catch up. Actually able to keep that up all the way to the top. Don’t know how fast I’d have been if I’d just kept it up, but looks like I’m going to have to re-calibrate the rate of my decline and actually raise my FTP, which I’d just lowered to a pathetic 210 watts.

Tomorrow… who knows what version of me shows up tomorrow. Film at 11.

Yes, it was cold Thursday morning. Not “epic” cold but cold enough!

Tues/Thurs 7:45am ride

Why is it that really cold days get the beautiful views?
The good news, didn’t have to ride our rain bikes! Roads had dried off reasonably well. The bad news? Coldest day so far. My computer reads a bit high but from Kevin’s we know that it got right down to freezing, but not below. Cold enough that we did have to pay attention to the road, looking for ice, especially since the hillsides were oozing water onto the roads from the prior rains.

Slow? Oh yes it was slow. No thinking we’d be doing the West Old LaHonda loop… hopefully next week, if the weather’s nice. I’m sure the view would have been amazing!!! But Thursday morning, even Kevin wasn’t feeling particularly frisky. Just too darned cold, and unfortunately, my body is thinking hey, winter, hibernate! Eating too much, riding too little, and gaining weight I shouldn’t be gaining. Too bad I can’t trade it with my wife, who desperately needs to gain weight.

There were a few spots where the pavement had that funny sort of appearance where it was right on the edge, just the tiniest veneer of ice, mere molecules thick and not a problem. Fortunately the temps started fairly high during the night and didn’t get to their coldest until 6:30am I think. And who’d be riding at 6:30am?

Right. Who’d be riding when it’s this cold (never mind that we’ve ridden days when it was quite a bit colder). Until we started heading up Kings, the answer was, nobody. But about 1/4 of the way up we saw a guy coming down, and we’re thinking, geez, how early was he out there? Then, 3/4 into the climb, we saw one of our more fearless customers, Peggy, riding down the hill. How early did SHE start riding??? Well she came into the shop this morning (Saturday), and I asked her. She started riding at 2:30. In the morning. That is one tough lady!!!

Sunday. We’ll see how tomorrow goes. Would really like to make it to the coast. Kevin hasn’t ridden Sundays in a few weeks, and I’m really not into riding to the “wrong” side of the hill alone. Too much time to think, and right now I need to focus on the ride, the coffee, the food, the conversation (with other people, not the other voices in my head).