Are You Kidding??!?!

I finally completed a 33-mile ride today.  I felt a great deal of accomplishment, but it wasn't all smiles.  A good part of the ride was absolutely agonizing, and most of it was avoidable.  Simply put, I made a lot of rookie mistakes.

In no particular order:

1. I didn't eat much the night before, and certainly didn't eat the carbohydrates I should have to get my muscles ready for the ride.

2. I had only a 210 calorie protein shake for breakfast before the ride.

3.  I only brought one bottle of water, even though I was likely going to be riding for over three hours.

4.  I took only a 120 calorie protein bar with me.

5. My bike was not quipped with any kind of bags or packs to carry needed items.

6.  I didn't check wind speed or wind direction before I set out.

Thanks to all the above "should have known better" moves, I rode the 16 miles out to Viva Naughton and was almost out of water when I got there.  I sat for a little while on the boat ramp and talked with a gentleman who was putting his boat in the water.  I rested for about 15-20 minutes, eating my protein bar as I looked out on the lake.  When I rose to head back to town, walking about a fourth of a mile up a hill to get back to the road, I was alarmed at how drained I already felt.

No matter, I thought, the ride in is always easy -- tail winds all the way and more coasting than climbing.  I got back on my bike and started pedaling, and it felt as though I had 500 pound weights in both my thighs (can you say lack of carbohydrate energy reserves?).  I noticed I wasn't gaining much speed going downhill, and the climbs seemed exponentially more arduous.  Eventually I started watching the long grass and shrubs and realized with a sinking feeling that the wind was coming from the south and I was heading back to town in a headwind or strong crosswind, depending on how the road was winding.

It was horrible.

At mile 25 I ran out of water.  Miles 26, 27 and 28 seemed to drag on for hours.  As I approached mile 29, walking my bike up the hill I no longer had the energy to climb on my bike, I broke down and called my assistant, Kathy.  "Can you bring me a bottle of water and any kind of sugar soda?"  Humiliating, but honestly, by then I didn't see myself finishing the ride without fluids and quick energy.  She met me around mile 30 with two bottles of water and a can of Coke.  As I guzzled both, it took pretty much every remaining ounce of self-discipline I had not to crawl into her car and beg her to drive me into town.

I finished the ride.  But it wasn't a very good experience. 

And THEN... (I know.. you are thinking, "There's MORE??")... I talked to my riding partner, Fred today.  Let me give you a little history.  Fred just turned 70 and is probably the most fit 70-yr-old I know.  He plays racquetball all over the world, and gets extremely restless and irritable if he goes more than a day or two without good physical activity.   He is a natural athlete, agile and strong.

HOWEVER... his "training" for this ride thus far has consisted of riding up to 10 miles on a stationary bike.  A STATIONARY bike.  Indoors.  In one place.  No ROAD, let alone hills and wind and mosquitos.  "You know, Jennifer, I think this stationary bike has done well by me." 

Uh huh.  Just wait, I thought, until you get out into the real world and ride.  Stationary bikes are for wussies.  I can't tell you how many times I thought to myself, the road riding is going to eat him for lunch.  I have lectured him repeatedly about how the ride is coming up, and he better GET A BIKE and get out on the road.

So yesterday, he rides 8 miles on a borrowed bike.  Ok, good start.  He sits in the Jacuzzi last night because "his sit bones hurt".  Today he tells me he is going to try 22 miles.  I feel smug, considering my own 33-mile agenda.  After our rides, we compare notes, and the first thing he tells me is that he "ran out of gas".  Well, fair enough.  A 22-mile ride is pretty ambitious for a guy who rode his first 8 miles of road in training just yesterday.

Yeah.  Turns out he felt so good on the borrowed bike that he rode 38 -THIRTY-EIGHT - miles before "running out of gas."

You have to be freakin' kidding me.  In what parallel universe is that justice?  Fairness? Equity?  I have been getting my booty on that bike seat for MONTHS, preparing, training, killing my butt bones.  And look who is already all caught up -- Mister The-Stationary-Bike-Has-Done-Well-By-Me.

If that kind of thing doesn't frost you and send some MAJOR sympathy my way, dear reader, then you are reading the wrong blog. 

Honestly.

Whatever Works...

The weather today was not optimal for cycling.  Not even close.  Rain, thunder, lightning and even hail fell from the sky.  After yesterday's storm debacle, I came home from work today and took a nap without even debating whether to try to get a short ride in.

Then I talked to Fred.  Fred is my riding partner for this September ride.  He and his wife are in Colorado for the next couple weeks, and we kicked around the idea of Adam, Aislynn and I driving down to Aspen for the weekend so that Fred and I could practice together on a longer ride.
Turns out this is a bad weekend for hotel vouchers.  We tried three or four different cities nearby and I was pretty much ready to give up on the plan.  Adam and I started to discuss other alternatives for what would be a solo ride for me somewhere here in Wyoming or possibly in Utah.

Then Fred's sister and brother-in-law graciously offered to let us stay with them in Grand Junction AND to do a 35-mile ride with us on Saturday.  Peter and Dianne are avid cyclists.  We made some tentative plans and I hung up.  And immediately started to worry.

 I worried so much that I got dressed for riding.  Adam only slightly raised his eyebrows as I headed out into the cold, damp, windy evening.  I rode around, doing the exact opposite of Layne's advice.  Instead of enjoying my cadence and the gorgeous Wyoming landscape, I was frantically climbing, climbing, climbing, worrying the whole way.

What if I can't keep up?  What if the ride is too long?  What if they take one look at my chubby thighs and round stomach and think, 'Yeah, good luck.'  What if I disappoint Fred?  What if I disappoint myself?  What if I can't handle the climbs?  I worried up hills, down hills, through downtown and along Highway 30.

What am I worrying about?  That I get to do a benchmark ride with 6 weeks still to go?  That I get to do a longish ride with experienced riders who can observe me and make suggestions?  That I can pick their brains about what to bring, how to handle problems, how to get my mind straight for the challenge?  How are any of these things bad? 

I know it's not good.  I know I have to get over it.  I know I need to take each day one at a time.  I know I need to toughen up.

But on the bright side, my worrying did get me on my bike tonight. ;)

Layne's Great Advice

I asked my friend Layne (who's claim to cycling fame is that he, among other adventures, rode his bike from Washington State to Maine a few summers ago) what I need to bring along for my upcoming 323 mile ride.  His response had lots of good practical advice about sunglasses, nutrients, hydration and the like.  All very practical and helpful.

But the single best thing he wrote was, "It's not about the distance on a bike, but using the bike to see our incredible world.  Forget that, the day drags.  Remember it, it soars."  Layne, that's exactly what I would expect from a creative, life-loving genius such as yourself.  Thank you!

In about an hour and a half, I am making my third attempt at riding out to Viva Naughton and back. The ride is 32 miles round trip, definitely long enough to put Layne's advice to the test.  It's a gorgeous day of sunshine and big, fluffy clouds.  Here's to seeing something truly spectacular along the way.  See you on the other side of the ride!

(Oh.. and Layne, uh.... I'm not completely sure I want to know what "Butt'R" is yet.....yikes.)

Cheers, blog.

Update:

Still have not accomplished this ride.  Tonight, I got about 6 miles out when the wind got so bad I had to get off my bike and start walking it.  That's where Adam found me when he came driving up 233.  He had been golfing and got concerned at how fast the storm was blowing in.

It kind of feels like a giant conspiracy. 

BUT.. I will try it again tomorrow.  And the next day.  And the next day, until I make it.

Below, a picture of the weather... probably not the best for riding!

Pecking Away at Problems

Late yesterday afternoon, the sky got dark.  The wind blew hard and the temperature dropped.  Such a tease, Mother Nature.  Much needed rain never did fall, but the promise of it was enough that it deterred me from getting on my bike.  From 5 pm til about 7:30 pm, it was a very legitimate decision.

But at 7:30, the clouds had blown over, the sun was shining, albeit starting to set, and the wind had died down to about the closest thing to a dead calm I have seen since moving here.  There was a good hour of decent light left, so I could have gotten on my bike and done some training.

I did not.

By then I had already "resigned" myself to taking the night off, and I didn't have the mental fortitude to change directions and take advantage of the opportunity that had presented itself.

 Which brings me to my thoughts today.  Work has been hard lately.  Tough, consuming situations that have drained both emotions and energy.  Home has been hard lately.  Parenting is a tough gig, and parenting a "tween" seems an especially tough gig.  And this training is really hard, with moments of brilliance and light but other moments of worry, failure, dread and paralyzing self-doubt.

I used to be an avid reader of M. Scott Peck, a psycho-analyst and author who wrote a number of books, the most well-known of which was The Road Less Traveled.  His starting premise has always stuck with me.  He begins by saying that life is difficult, and life's problems are difficult and then focuses on the role of discpline in taking on those problems.  "Without discipline we can solve nothing. With only some discipline we can solve only some problems. With total discipline we can solve all problems." 

This is important because I have really been examining my approach as a parent, a manager and an individual and have been looking at some things I want and need to change -- things that require consistency and focus, which translates to discipline.  And a big part of it is having the discipline to use my time wisely and not waste precious moments, hours, parts of days -- time just isn't refillable.  We all have a finite amount of it in our lifespan.  So wasted moments cannot actually be recovered.

Peck addresses this too.... he says, “Until you value yourself, you won't value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it. ”  I am finally at a stage in my life where I am genuinely happy to be me, genuinely happy to be living my life.  But this is a fairly new perspective on my part, and I think many years of not valuing myself and my time have led to a practice of not always being wise about my days (and nights).  

All of the things I want to change (body, mind, spirit) will take true work, but I need to remember that these are not just things "I have to do", but rather investments in the kind of quality life I want to lead and the kind of quality person I want to be.   Investments in Plan A, as it were.

So.. discipline.  Okay. 

One, two, three, GO.

Thanks, blog.

Careful, It's a Tweak

Rode 18 miles tonight in 1 hour and 10 minutes.  I was a maniac.  Way fun.  

Some things I learned:

1. All this climbing has done something good.  I kept riding up hills on 233 thinking, "THIS was the hill I struggled up before?  THIS is the hill I was weeping over?  THIS is the hill that seemed unsurmountable?"  It was so cool.  Never mind that there are mountains that must be moved in order to reach the September goal -- sometimes it's just fun to see how far I've come.

2. Adjusting both my seat and handlebars just a little bit made a huge difference.  Booty bones still hurt from the new seat, but no numbness or pain in the "nether regions", which, apparently is the girl jock way of saying crotch.  Suits me fine... crotch is one of those words that ... sounds just like what it is... and is uncomfortable to say out loud (and to type.)  It's like... phlegm.  I used to have a music teacher whose last name was Skrobis.  My dad used to insist her name sounded like a body part you weren't supposed to touch in public. 

Anyway, my fingers and thumbs also kept from going numb the entire ride -- no more bringing on the pins and needles.  Success!

And, my lower spine wasn't sore.  So the adjustments are helping.

3. Mental attitude is everything.  I finished the ride and got to the Event Center.  Adam was supposed to be there with the lights he took down from Triangle Park.  He wasn't there yet, and upon calling, I found out it was taking him longer than he had hoped, so I told him I'd ride over to the Park.  Got back on my bike, no problem.  Could have gone farther if the sunlight had cooperated. :)

4. I can do the entire ride if I do what I did tonight 18 times.  18 times, divided by three times a day is 6 days of riding....manageable.

5. I'm too tired to make any more sense of this tonight.

Night, blog.

Sticking With Plan A

Adam and Aislynn and I traveled back to Wisconsin this past week for the wedding of a former student who has grown into a truly lovely woman.  I couldn't have been prouder of all she has become, and we felt so blessed to be able to share in her joy.

While there, we decided to attend services at LifePoint, the church my cousins, Rob and Aimee, pastor.  Adam had never seen their facility, and I am always happy to support their efforts over in Mukwonago.  Rob preached a sermon that he entitled, "Plan B Syndrome".  He talked about how many of us start our spiritual journeys in Plan A, where we are passionate, joyful, committed and disciplined in our approach to discipleship.  We are faithful in our worship, dedicated to prayer, sacrificial in our daily living, and genuine in our witness to others.

But somewhere along the way we end up instead executing Plan B... where we simply "exist" spiritually rather than thrive.  We go to church, but are not truly involved in what happens there.  We talk the talk, but are not empowered to thrive in the love story that is the gospel.

It was powerful food for thought, and as I do these days, I found myself relaying the concept not only spiritually, but to all areas of my life, even my cycling.

In how many areas am I stuck in Plan B because I am not correctly planning, organizing, thinking through and disciplining myself to bring my "A" game (or Plan!)? 

I want to accomplish Plan A -- in everything.   So yesterday, my first day back home, I set out to do all things "A".  I got to work early, read through all the notes from my assistants, looked at my schedule for the week, and then got busy writing out backwards calendars for the events coming up, sorting to-do lists by priority and deadlines.  I took care of several pesky, lingering tasks -- you know the ones-- that I had been shoving aside for weeks.  Done.  There are four big community/cultural events coming up for my department in the next two months, and for each one, my team is going to be executing Plan A.

Then, after work, we made a family trip to the grocery store, replenishing our home food supply and focusing on good, nutritious foods -- lots of berries, vegetables, lean meats, healthy snacks.  Normally, once home, I would put everything away and move to the next task.  Not this time.  I sat down and divided everything from berries and nuts to gluten-free pretzels into one-portion bags and containers, writing the calories, and fat, fiber, protein carb grams right on the bags.  Now, throughout the week, I can "grab and go" AND have everything I need to track on my smartphone -- no Plan B in my eating, and no Plan B in my food journal ("I'll do it later when I can look this up...")

Finally, I got on my bike.  I didn't put it on the truck and take it to an "easier" riding route.  I just got on, faced the hills all around me and rode.  It was a short ride (just 6 miles), but man, did I ever do the climbing.  Up Canyon Road.  Up Garnet Street.  Up Dell Rio.  Up, up, up.   Instead of avoiding the steep hills, as I am prone to do, I went out of my way to find them and climb them.  You know why?  Because the route in September is full of climbs and I need to be on my "A" game.

I took a little break in the middle because as I rode past Zakotnik's house, my good friend and confidante Mary Kay was outside on her porch, enjoying her Kindle and some iced tea.  Soon I was enjoying iced tea with her.  We chatted while I cooled off, and then I admired her new countertops and was back on my bike, climbing, climbing, climbing. 

Add to this mix a dentist appointment,a cello lesson, and a devotional and there you have it -- a day chock full of making good, healthy, Plan A choices.

Not surprisingly, I woke up full of energy and excited to start the new day.  So here's to the continuation of Plan A, with thanks to Rob for the paradigm shift.

Have a great day, blog. 

Sitting Pretty

I am very proud to say that I rode my bike every single day I have been in Wisconsin.  First time ever.  I guess it goes to show that when something is a priority, we accomplish it.  I found myself fashioning my "dates" and appointments around being able to ride my bike to them. My goal was further helped by the fact that my step mom cycles regularly and was happy to ride with me several times.  And. if I can give myself a few extra kudos here, I want to add that it has been 85-90 degrees with high humidity every day. Now that is commitment!

So yes, I need to continue the trend when I get home.  And in fact, I cannot wait to get back to Kemmerer and onto my rode bike again.  Because.....

Because.....

Because I bought a new saddle (seat) today!!! Hoorah!  After reading several books on long-distance cycling, including the Woman's Guide to Cycling, I realized that we women have different sit bone needs than men, ergo the need for specialized "lady-specific" seats.  (Not making that term up... it says right on the package that it's lady-specific.)

Purchased, at Wheel and Sprocket (with a sweet "Founder's Discount" -- thanks Kegel family, and thanks Dad!), a Selle Italia DIVA gel flow seat.  Oh, man.  Oh, man.  Italian leather cover over a gel seat... my booty will thank me tomorrow, the day after, and every day of that 323 mile ride in September.  It has fantastic reviews.. lots of comments by women who were doing some major squirming after 10-15 miles on their old bike seats, but can easily endure 40-60 miles on this one.  Hopefully that is going to be ME very shortly.

I will let you know how it turns out.

In the next two weeks, I need to get majorly organized.  It's time to start creating a list of things I will need and to slowly gather them (and, learning from Cheryl Strayed, practice packing, carrying and using them!)  60 days out now -- yikes!  It's getting really close, but there is still time to get stronger, faster, better.
(Actually, I am feeling a little smug.  My friend Fred is doing the ride with me, and HE has yet to buy a bike... and here I have a bike AND a new seat. Uh huh.)

Stay tuned, and thanks blog!

Cycling as a Lifestyle

I am sitting in my grandfather's kitchen, drinking coffee and listening to the conversations swirling around me.  Heaven.  In 45 minutes I will get on my bike and ride 6 miles to Panera to meet my cousin for...well, more coffee.  But the point is, by noon I will have 12 miles in, so naturally.

This makes me wonder two things.   First, how lovely would it be to live somewhere where fitness could more easily be a part of the daily routine? (And would I take advantage of it?). And second, what would it take to incorporate riding into my normal day in Wyoming?

I'm not going to lie... It would not be easy AT ALL.  There is a lack of shoulders on roads (not to mention bike lanes), frequently the winds gust at over 25 miles per hour, which, without buildings and trees to block, is downright dangerous.  And then there are the hills...Egad.  But it is probably doable with commitment and determination.

So maybe the real question is whether I have that commitment and determination. Not sure.  It deserves more thought, though.

For now, I am going to finish my coffee and get on my bike.  Later today I am going to Wheel and Sprocket to find a better saddle for my Fuji and to look at clip ins for the pedals.  Baby steps. :)

Still Kickin'

Hello, Blog! 

Have you missed me as much as I have missed you?  Happy to say that 1) reports of my demise have been greatly exaggerated and 2) the ride is still on.  (I need to do a countdown to September 15th... it's getting closer -- yikes!)

I was traveling the past week and fully intended to blog from the road but got side-tracked by an unfortunate and untimely case of dehydration and esophagitis and subsequent hospitalization.  More on that later, but for now I will say that I am way spoiled by the speedy medical attention here in rural Wyoming.  The San Francisco ER took hoooouuuuurrrrrrs, though the wait was mitigated by the wonderful care of a sweet and funny nurse named Fe.

At any rate, I am back and rarin' to go.  Heading to Milwaukee (again!) for a wedding and of course, to hold my baby niece as much as my sister will let me (if I can wrangle her away from my husband and daughter, who are as doting as I am!)  Adam and Aislynn are already there, and my lovely husband is going to have my old Trek, which has been in Milwaukee since LAST summer, tuned up and ready for me.  It will probably be a nice break from the sleeker but decidedly less comfortable Fuji.

So... more on all of this sooner than later. 

Nite, Blog.