bampilot06

Yay, my training readiness is finally not a 1. My HRV is still super low though, not sure why that is. According to garmin I am either stressed or super fatigued. I don’t feel like either of these things.

phrantic09

I’ll never do better than top third in mostly every event I do. I can’t hand with guys pushing 21mph average on a course that climbs 125 feet per mile over 60 miles.

There’s one event I do where I probably would have snuck into the top ten (age group) last year if I wasn’t a nice person. Guy crashed right in front of me end over end. Probably spent 10 minutes helping him out and waiting for the fire department to get there and make sure he was okay.

I’d never do a crit, I’m plenty confident in my own handling abilities but don’t trust others. It’s why I also only do group rides with people I know.
A friend of mine had his hip shattered 2 summers ago because some guy wasn’t paying attention and took him out- only makes me feel more this way.

ls01

As if the grass were greener on...the.....nevermind......

ls01

Denial.. first sign of addiction. In the right place.

ls01

he can quit whenever he wants

ls01

it actually has ribbon(s?) Tied to it. But Yeah its a Richard move.

abshipp 

Had my closest call in my entire bike riding career last night.

I was on my road bike starting up a climb that begins at around 8% and then kicks up to 15%ish in the first third.

Very quiet road back behind a country club, and I look up after switching my computer screen and see a car moving fairly slowly but also crossing the centerline in to my lane. My thoughts went like this:

Probably just a small deviation...

Maybe they’re making an unnecessarily wide swing out to make a right hand turn in to a driveway...

They’re still coming...

Is this person actually trying to hit me?

As they got closer and closer it didn’t appear that the rate of change laterally was getting any higher, so I sped up as much as I could to shoot the gap between the car and what was left between it and the curb fully preparing to hop over the curb and bail in the bushes when they made a sudden correction.

Their window was open and I saw them give a half-assed “oh sorry my bad” wave while holding their phone in their other hand unlocked as I rode by and shouted “what the ****?”

I wish I would have screamed louder or smacked their mirror closed but I was just so shocked at what was happening.

This all happened at a closing speed of probably 25mph but I’m still very grateful I didn’t go up on the hood of a car last night.

I’m just hoping they didn’t mow down the other cyclist I had just passed going the opposite direction.

Everyone else on the road was driving like absolute idiots, too. I’ve never seen it this bad. My best guess is that it had to do with it being 5:30-6:00 and folks were focused only on getting home as fast as possible. I've only started riding after work over the previous fall and winter - sticking to the MUP and the local mountain which are usually drama free. Well, aside from the usual MUP idiocy.

ls01

I like the structured training on zwift. Recently I did the (can't remember it's name) 80 min 2x20 @ ftp sweet mother of suffering! Bam, I recommend this one for your frustration enjoyment. What a workout! Fantastic! Absolutely brutal! I use it as a "negative" hold as longcas possible. Let erg release. Ride till my heart rate comes down. Reaquire erg mode and repeat. Its awesome how good my legs feel the next day. If I can keep this up till the rides start this could be the year I break the 40 mph barrier.

ls01

Abshipp, yikes! Hey at least they kinda apologized/admitted fault. Here, you could have been on the front lawn of your home and it still would have been your fault. Glad your o.k.

Trsnrtr

Got a text from a neighbor back home. “We had hail last night. Your house has damage. Your siding is full of holes.”

datlas 

Oh crap! Hope it's minor damage.

BillyD

Evening rush hours are always bad. Morning rush hour between 8:45 and 9:15 is the absolute worst.

rjones28 

Yikes!

rjones28 

BillyD

Major bummer! Hope its not too bad and hope it’s covered by insurance.

TMonk

Glad you're OK abshipp, close call. And great Mt. Hamilton photos terrymorse!

genejockey 

Having done the Hamilton climb at about that temp, I can tell you it'll keep you plenty warm, and it can be a better idea to strip down for the climb and carry your cold weather clothing rather than wearing it, so it won't be soaked for the descent, which can also be cold but is also fast.

genejockey 

Since moving to the new office, which is maybe a quarter of a mile from Alameda de las Pulgas, which is the street that leads to Crystal Springs, which leads to all the cycling Nirvana, I considered riding from work, rather than driving over to Canada Rd to ride. But I know what drivers are like at that time of day, both on Alameda and Crystal Springs. There's a lot more traffic in San Mateo than there is in Woodside and Portola Valley, on narrower roads. So, once again, I decided "I'm too old for this ****" and I stick with "drive tor ride".

Mojo31

Document, document, document the damage, time of storm, and size of hail. Someone in your neighborhood has pictures of the hail if it was big enough to leave holes.

I fought for a year with State Farm to get a roof replaced. SF and all the other major insurers are just denying hail claims outright, and making you fight through the process. Pay attention to the appraisal provisions in your policy.

LAJ

The morning ride is generally incident free for me. I leave the house around six, and it seems idiots don't roll out of bed until later, for which I'm thankful. My ride home can certainly be full of adventure, and that I can live without. Or maybe I won't live through it, and Mrs. LAJ will then be rich.

LAJ

That sucks, abshipp Need to get the camera's rolling. Video proof is all the rage now.

LAJ

And kick the fly-by-night's off your porch when they come to your door.

Velo Vol 

It's a real problem. I got a bit nervous just walking recently when an oncoming dumb dumb came well over onto my side of the road.

TMonk

During my walking commutes to work - mornings are way more chill. I think people's start times are more variable, and people are more fresh / energized. Walking home at 5 - I have to be a bit vigilant/assertive crossing intersections with drivers trying to make right turns. Way more busy, way more impatient.

Trsnrtr

I’ve got pics from the neighbor. I’ve already notified my insurance and solar company. I never had any trouble 6 years ago with State Farm. In fact, they found and covered damage that I had no idea that I had.