sarals 

@revchuck. That was a beautiful story. I could plainly visualize that honor guard and ceremony. You've had a quite a two weeks. Long Island, and you live in Louisiana? That's quite a contrast!

I went to Hellyer yesterday. It was Session #43, and I used it to denote the beginning of the 2018 season. I did that because October 15 of last year was my first ride on Hellyer since 2012, when a certain sprinter told me there was nothing for me on the track (in your face, buddy). Anyway... I'm still in a rest period, and to be sure, I've been going pretty easy over the last week and a half. I've used the time to get used to the rollers (and I'm getting there), and I've also done a lot of soul searching. Coming down from the high of Worlds was borderline depressing. And then, it was a very difficult pill to swallow, getting that close to the gold medal round and not getting it done. I've done a lot of work putting it into perspective, helped in no small way by coach and BJ. I've never done a race the scale of Worlds before. I did very, very well, and that's the important part, the "good stuff". I had always heard that it's not just the competition that is hard on the national and world level, it's the mental game. The only way you can prepare for that is to experience it, and then grow from it. I'm trying!

Anyway, Hellyer - 30 lap warmup, 1 X flying 200, 6 X 100 meter jumps, "to keep the legs interested". They were! It was all done in a dinky gear, 80 inches. That was the "going easy" part....

Hermes

It is very hot in SoCal and today I did a coffee ride down the hill and rode along the beach trying to stay cool. We went to La Jolla Cove and back. Then I packed up my power meter to send back to SRM and worked on track bikes.

sarals 

@Hermes, idyllic! The conditions up here are VERY similar. Me, rather than go to the beach, has started painting my kitchen. I was feeling guilty after all of "me" stuff I've been doing over the last year. I need to do "chores"....

Racer Ex 

Hi Chuck. I served largely with fellow soldiers who had been in Vietnam, mostly Medivac and Gunship crew and pilots. They all came back changed, and they all came back with a bit of bitterness at the reception, or lack thereof, that was waiting on their arrival.

If there is one thing that should be done right, it's honoring the fallen and taking care of those who served, and their families.

For so many things in the history of this country, Lincoln sets the benchmark on how to do things right in this regard:

Dear Madam,
I have been shown in the files of the War Department a statement of the Adjutant General of Massachusetts that you are the mother of five sons who have died gloriously on the field of battle.


I feel how weak and fruitless must be any word of mine which should attempt to beguile you from the grief of a loss so overwhelming. But I cannot refrain from tendering to you the consolation that may be found in the thanks of the Republic they died to save.


I pray that our Heavenly Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement, and leave you only the cherished memory of the loved and lost, and the solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar of Freedom.


Yours, very sincerely and respectfully,


A. Lincoln.

Hermes

Back at SD Velodrome yesterday. I had the place to myself and it was hot but the workout was doable. I even looked forward to the windy back stretch to cool off.

Allegheny Jet

Today was our first snow flurry day since last spring which is not as impressive as coastal pics. I did my indoor 1 hr gauntlet of pain while watching a recorded UCI cyclocross race. Three full circuits of bike @ 90-95 cadence for recovery, versa climber, bike, box step-ups, bike, concept 2 rower, bike, upside bosu ball squats on 2:15. I need 15" to change stations and still get 2' of efforts on each station. The most difficult part is getting on the trainer and getting my feet into the cages within 15". With two fused ankles this training session is my way of lower body lifting.

Hermes

@Allegheny Jet Nice workout. It reminds me of the workouts we had with my Russian coach. We had stations and had to move from workout station to station as fast as possible. After finishing, my bike was on the rollers and I did a set of intervals. I am not sure if it made me faster but definitely tougher.

Today was a 2 hour endurance coastal ride - high z2/low z3 effort with some high end thrown in for good measure. It was a beautiful day in SD with temps in the low 70s.

Allegheny Jet

[QUOTE=Hermes;19958929]@Allegheny Jet Nice workout. It reminds me of the workouts we had with my Russian coach. We had stations and had to move from workout station to station as fast as possible. After finishing, my bike was on the rollers and I did a set of intervals. I am not sure if it made me faster but definitely tougher.

Stronger, faster and tougher are boxes on the To Do List. I got the weight box checked so, at least I got that going for me.

Allegheny Jet

Three hours chasing my brother in law while mountain biking today. He is a serial placer at the NUE 50+ races and was just riding for fun. I needed one of those bike connect bungee devices that Herme's wife uses to pull him up hills.

Hermes

Hey. she rides next to me and pushes me up the hills.

revchuck 

For a retired guy, I've got way too much going on.

Quick recap of the week's rides...

Wednesday: 2h:01 at endurance pace, with 3x10' ascending intervals (SST -> threshold -> threshold +) in the middle. I felt way better than I thought I would.

Thursday: 1h:44 at endurance pace, with an hour of Z3 in the middle. That hour of Z3 was at 87% - had I known that I would've pushed a bit harder so I could say I had an hour at SST.

Friday: 44' at recovery pace.

Saturday: 1h:34 at endurance pace with 3x6' ascending intervals.

Sunday: 6h:18 at endurance pace (5h:53 rolling time). Went out to my climbing route, ended up with 102 miles/4700 ft. I'm a mite tired. TSS 361, IF .76 for this ride.

Overall for the week: TSS 769, CTL 56, ATL 99.

sarals 

Yesterday my team, PenVelo, had a "team photo shoot". We did it at the Pulgas Water Temple off of Canada Road near Crystal Springs Reservoir, south of San Francisco. It's an odd name, there's an open space nearby named "Pulgas Ridge Open Space", and I'm guessing that's where the name comes from. The Water Temple is the location of the end of the Hetch Hetchy canal, which supplies San Francisco and the surrounding area it's drinking water (I would bet most people living in the area don't know that - I didn't!). Anyway, enough of the history lesson. We had a great turn out for the team photo, and those of us who were current champions were to wear our championship kits. The team had a large number of those jerseys on display, really cool! Then, we women folk did a long ride. It turned out to be too long for my trackie legs, almost 42 miles, but just the same, it was pretty terrific. We've got three new members of the women's team, and they were there for the photo and the ride. Exciting!

Today I did yard work intervals. I know the TSS was pretty high on those, I hope coach doesn't get too upset with me...

Allegheny Jet

That's some serious saddle time revchuck!

Sara, reads like your team was dressed for success. Isn't the Hetch Hetchy the river that flows out of Yosemite National Park?

Hermes

Yesterday 1.5 hour endurance ride. Continuing to ride my backup bike while my SRM is being serviced. Another nice day although it was overcast at the coast for most of the ride.

Racer Ex 

It's from the damned canyon just north of Yosemite Valley, part of the national park but was allowed to be flooded by the Raker Act.

It rivaled Yosemite Valley for scenic beauty. There's been talk to restore the valley, and store the water down stream in one of the large existing reservoirs and possible building a second.

San Francisco is fighting this because HH is a giant cash cow for water and power sales, and the water quality allows them to get by with minimal treatment.

I've been there and could get a sense of what they flooded. Some old pics:






Probably more than you wanted to know

Hermes

Got an email from SRM stating that they received my power meter and it is in the queue. However, they are unable to predict when it will be repaired but they assured me that it will be done in the most expeditious manner.

revchuck 

53' at recovery pace with 4x30" fast pedal intervals. I was stiff but bearable when I started the ride, but when I did the first interval, OUCH! My legs didn't want to move that fast. They loosened up by the last one, though.

ETA: Just found out that that the folks with whom I did the 140-mile ride last November (Tour de Swamp) are reprising it, albeit somewhat shorter - only 125 miles. That'll be on November 25th. That makes five 100+ mile rides in as many weekends...yesterday's ride, two this coming weekend, El Tour de Tucson on the 18th, and Le Tour de Swamp on the 25th. Lotsa miles this fall.

Allegheny Jet

45' on the rollers removing hurt and hate after receiving a text from my lower body.

sarals 

20 minutes on the rollers. Some days I'm steady as a rock, others I'm not. Today was a "not". Still, I didn't fall off.

Allegheny Jet

Our weekly group ride only had 4 riders last night. Possibly the 38 degrees at 6:00 PM turned some away. We meet year round every Tuesday at a smokehouse/brew pub located away from any city. The roads are open farm country and very lightly traveled.

Usually the group is around 12 to 20 riders who are all very strong yet are very respectful group riders. Riding in a group in the dark is not for everyone but we seem to get it right as the past 5 years have seen no crashes. There have been a few slow speed crashes around stop signs in the daylight. Recently for 5 consecutive weeks one of Ohio best racers, if not the best joined, our ride. My first thought was "there goes the neighborhood!" however he simply rode within the group and took even and steady pulls. One thing that does separate him from the chafe is that while the pace line is moving along at 25-27 mph he can pull out to the left and ride by himself while having a conversation with someone in the line.

It used to be sketchy riders were a threat to our group rides but as the average speed picked up those guys went away. Now, however it's the KOM's that can blow up the ride. We can be riding along at near ludicrous speed then all of the sudden the group goes plaid! Sure enough the young guys were going for a downhill KOM or some other flat land KOM. At least they re-group after those episodes.

Hermes

SD Velodrome today. Warmup, jumps and some HIIT for good measure. Had the place to myself once again.

revchuck 

Off the bike yesterday. I needed that rest day!

This morning's ride was...interesting. The forecast was rain, starting at about 9. The scheduled ride was two hours at endurance pace with 3x9' ascending intervals. I got out there at about 0630 and it was raining hard. A smarter man would've seen that as a hint. I went back inside to wait for it to lighten up and it did, so I started riding at about 0650. The rain never stopped for the entire ride.

The first two intervals went okay, though I noticed my heart rate was higher than usual. My route was an out-and-back, and I turned around slightly sooner than planned after the second interval. I started the third interval and the steady rain turned into a bleepin' frog-strangler. I started having problems about halfway through the interval, due in roughly equal parts to fatigue and to not being able to see the Garmin due to the rain and fog on my glasses. Oh, and there was a solitary flash of lightning too, though it was a couple of miles away. I was glad to finish that ride!

When I got home I stripped off my kit and put on some coffee to warm me back up. When the coffee was finished, a light bulb went off in my head and I dumped a big splash of Old Bushmills in the cup for some additional warmth. I know my Irish ancestors approved.

1h:48, TSS 110, IF .78, 1123 kj.

Hermes

Yesterday 2 hour endurance ride. I met my former cycling friend that I encountered a couple of weeks ago for a reunion ride.

We started at Fiesta Island and rode to Point Loma. It is tricky getting from Mission Bay / Fiesta Island to Point Loma due to waterways and freeways but there are bike paths and special bridges for cyclists. I kept looking over my shoulder when on the bike paths keeping a watchful eye out for jihadists in Home Depot trucks.

There are so many beautiful beaches it is hard to select one over another but Sunset Cliffs offers some great riding along the ocean.

We stopped at a lookout before we started climbing up the ridge. One can see the Coronado Islands off in the distance. When we first moved to SD in 1979, we belonged to a sailing club and sailed out SD bay to the Islands



Pic of Tom and me looking the other direction.



How did the ride go? Tom rides 200 miles per week with a couple of fast group rides on the weekends while I have been doing 10 miles per week including a bunch of jumps. Fortunately, most of the climbs were the 30 to 40 second variety so I could keep up. He is a former college decathlete that never lost his mojo.

Allegheny Jet

Hermes, you never lost your 400 hurdle mojo either!

Participated in a hastily called urban group ride yesterday. We did 37 miles with 2,500' climbing and some pretty rough roads. A friend who lives very near the Cuyahoga Valley National Park invited several buddies to join him on a ride that goes from his home into the center of Akron then returns via a different route. The mid-point is an antique store that he likes to browse in for a few minutes. Another of the riders is an airline pilot, and he purchased a wood airplane propeller that he will need to pick up on Saturday. I didn't buy anything as my pockets were full, however they do have several vintage Coleman lanterns in the style that I upcycle into amazing electric table lamps. I may take my wife there this weekend knowing that it might cost me big time.

Allegheny Jet

45' on the rollers that included 5 x 1' OTS intervals. Finished up the day with 3 sets of weighted walking lounges. Quad cramps took me out of he 3rd set about halfway through.