dbmcclellan.com

Well here is an unexpected pleasant bit of news (for me); I had a really good ride!

As you may know from my previous entries, I have been struggling BIG TIME with my cycling.  My mind remembers my previous fitness level and how capable I was at all sorts of things.  Climbing, sprints, long distance…all of it…I was good once.  And for a cyclist to suffer during a contest or training ride is expected.  And I was pretty good at that too!  Ride to the pain, then ride through it….made me a better rider, it did. But that was then.  My NOW?  My body rebels at the mere <i>thought</i> of going faster, harder, or longer.  I suffer, but that’s about it.

Yes, the suffering has been great, and I still know how to get there, but the results have been pretty much the same.  Every ride begins with me hoping for a shred of evidence of my past strength, but ends with me wondering when something good is going to happen.  Every. Single. Day.

I saddle up and struggle to get comfortable.  Then it is SNAFU….and nothing to report.  Oh sure, there is an occasional glimpse of power like when I tuck into the TT position and TRY to go fast.  But that always ends with my heart POUNDING like a drum during the High School fight song, sweat pouring down my face like someone dumped a bucket of water on my head, and my legs SCREAMING BLOODY MURDER to stop or at least slow down.  Dutifully I wind it down and plod the rest of the way to work or home.  Every day.  And you know wut?  It’s getting old!

Yesterday’s Ride

Which is why yesterday’s ride was so much a pleasure that I am pounding out this note.  First, I took the sunrise photo….wait a second, that was a little later in the ride.   First, I had a nice little warm up…..no wait, that was before I realized it was going to be a good day!  The first thing I did was…wow, I’m writing myself into a corner.  Back in a sec…..

Much time has passed.  Cup of coffee in hand, a Saturday morning happening all around, and a clear mind.  OK, here is how the ride happened; I started the day off at 5:30 am with a shower, got some breakfast and pondered the day.  The weather has been trending hotter and hotter until yesterday when we actually busted a hundred degrees.  So it’s been hot.  I’ve also been having trouble with my weight.  After 9 months of being off the bike, I gained 16 pounds.  This is understandable (not acceptable, but I’m past that).  So after being ON the bike for almost three months, I thought I might have some success to share.  Alas, that is not the case, as I am down only 6 pounds (might be the beer, or my darn sweet tooth…don’t know for certain).  Anyway, clocking the scale at 186, I am still carrying 10 lbs. too many.  So I’m working on that too.

But I stopped after my morning cereal and thought, “today is going to be a good day”.  And way back in the 80’s I learned from Jack and Gary Kinder, “If it is to be, it is up to me.”  So what happens today is my fault.  I can make it or break it.  Today is my day.  It’s up to me.

So I got in the closet and dressed for success.  Instead of riding shorts, I put on my bibs.  These provide excellent comfort and do not allow any chafing in the seat area.  They also wick away moisture really well and just make for an all around better feeling outfit for a long ride.  And today was going to be that 18 mile ride in to work and eighteen mile back home; with the return during the 100 degree sunny afternoon.  Comfort would be important.

The day got going with some really good energy, a good vibe, and some hope for a good ride.  I was a little late out the door so I decided to cut corners if I could.  Having shed some demons by giving myself a little pep talk is a good thing to do anytime you can do it, and by golly I did it, so lets get this thing underway!  I pushed off and here we go.

I ride back behind my old High School, note the darkness all around, and quietly thank the manufacturer for the light I bought a couple of years ago.  I can see the street really well and I’m fairly certain drivers and anyone looking my way won’t miss the glowing orb coming toward them.  I’m seriously lit up!

Then it is past the old bridge on Norris and I’m taking back roads all the way over to the bike trail at Watt Avenue and Fair Oaks Boulevard.  In a zig zag pattern I’m crossing Marconi Avenue, then Arden Way, and then I’m across Fair Oaks Blvd. before dropping down onto the bike trail.  And here is where I have a decision to make, do I continue on for the sake of getting the full 18 miles or do I take the shortcut through Sacramento State University and arrive to work on time.  Since I started my ride ten minutes late, I take the shortcut.  It cuts the ride by about 4 miles and will easily save a few minutes, so I’ll be okay on time.

Morning Rides are BEST!

And it is a good thing I did!  While riding atop the levee on the back side of Sac State, I notice the morning is getting lighter.  I have been involved in balancing my lungs/heart/legs and hadn’t been noticing how the sun is beginning to light up the sky.  As my awareness focuses in on the surroundings, I notice the Simpsons-style clouds, the orange tint of the sun rise, and how it is reflecting its beauty over the river.  Now, most of the time, I won’t stop a ride unless something makes me.  A flat tire, help another rider, or the scent of a fresh blueberry scone at a bakery is about the only thing to make me stop.  But this sunrise was about as pretty a one as I have seen, in a good long time so I took a picture of it with my Windows Phone.  And here it is!  Pretty, right?

The ride gets started up again and I am noticing I have some “legs” today.  But the streets of downtown are waiting for me and I don’t really feel like going hard, so I continue on to work and arrive in the bike lock-up room at the designated time of 7:20.  Here it is Friday and an 8 hour shift awaits.

The workday is over and here is the good part; time to ride! Like I’ve said before, “work is the thing I do between rides.”

Warm up with a ride through the streets of Old Sacramento.  There’s Fannie Anne’s on the right, there’s the old candy shop, here comes the Train Depot.  People are everywhere walking the planks out in front of the shops, I have only a few cars to contend with, and it’s on to the bike trail.  Here comes Discovery Park, and just like that it is behind me.  I decide to test my legs.

And here is where it gets REALLY good.  I tuck in to the Time Trial position.  Elbows are resting on the handlebars and my hands lightly hold the shifter cables out in front of the bike.  My neck has been getting better and better at holding my head up to see the road streaming in front of me and the bike is in its highest gear selection.  This is a hard test and you can get going around 28 to 32 mph…..and that is what I am going!  Mile one comes and goes.  My heart rate is hammering out a nice tempo, my mouth is agape and pulling in air for my lungs to process the coveted oxygen, and my legs are busy just doing their job of mashing the pedals toward the ground again and again; today with power!

Huh?  What is happening??  My mind is REELING!  Is this really going on?  Like a finely tuned athlete, I am SCORCHING the bike path and seriously LOVING IT!  This is very similar to some of the efforts I was able to do before Cancer came a calling on my prostate!!

Mile two is here and yes, I am spent.  But I should be!  Maybe I should not have gone so hard for so long, but I did….and here I am to talk about it.  I survived the test!  And my brain is now thinking (and worrying just a little) about how I’m going to get the rest of the way home.  And instead of LISTENING TO THAT CRAP, I motored home, pushing it the entire way.  My ride of 18 miles was completed in just less than the 70 minutes it has been taking me.  Pre-surgery I was doing this regularly at 60 minutes, and I am very pleased with the results of this ride of 58 minutes!

The take-away here?  Never, ever, stop trying.  Strive to do something and then give yourself a chance to be the winner you are.

Today is your day….what are you going to do with it?

Believe it.  Do it.  Begin now.