I was riding up Pisgah road yesterday when I happened upon some workers cutting trees next to the road. They had blocked one lane, so there was a man standing in the road with one of those stop/slow signs. He saw me and said, “you’d better hurry up if you’re gonna catch the guy that just went through here!” I laughed and agreed with him, though didn’t think much of it once I went along my way into the Latting Rd area that prettymuch everyone rides through on their way out of Cordova and into good riding territory. There are a couple of ways through the neighborhood- I took the slightly shorter route. As I approached the intersection where the shorter/longer routes come back together, a rider in a Healthnet jacket passed by. He was going my way, so I figured I’d catch up to him & say hello.

What is your first thought when you see someone in a piece of pro team kit? (you people from California or other “nice” places don’t answer that) I was thinking the same thing- it’s just the usual recreational dude who was a either a Healthnet fan or happened to get a good deal from PBK. However, as I appraoched him, I could tell that my first impression was incorrect- he looked fit and had the pedal stroke and steadiness of someone who has lived small bits of life on two wheels.

I pulled up beside him. We talked for a while- turns out, his name is Rusty, and he used to ride for Healthnet several years ago, got burnt out, quit, and today- yes TODAY- was his first time back on a bike since then. Seems he & his wife were in Costa Rica the day before (nice!) when they saw some people riding. It inspired him to get his bike back out & try it again. I told him about the weekend group rides in the area, and he expressed some interest in going to the Trinity ride this morning.

Did he show up? I don’t know- I am tapering for VOS, and had another chiro appt. this morning, so I’m going to ride on my own in a little while. Hopefully he went, enjoyed himself and is inspired to keep it up!

When you think about it, it’s pretty crazy that we crossed paths at that moment. All the little things you do before/during a ride that only take a few seconds… seconds that could have potentially placed me just ahead or “just” behind far enough. Goosebumps :)

Not a whole lot of interesting stuff going on right now. I dedicated a good portion of my weekend to training/recovery with a side of Superbowl party.

Saturday was power testing day. That was tough, of course, and I followed it with another two hours or so of aerobic-intensity high-cadence riding (well, cadence >90rpms… which is high for me). I think that the cadence work was harder on me than the power tests. I felt exhausted when I got back home, though it wouldn’t have been so bad if my back & neck hadn’t started to hurt during the last hour of my ride. I had my Specialized Ruby saddle on my bike and was painfully reminded that I’d taken it off because it’s too darn flexible. Shifting around and trying to avoid the discomfort in my butt/low back caused by the saddle really irritated my neck. So, when I got home, I took to the whirlpool tub and felt somewhat better. The remainder of the evening was pretty low-key… some homemade pizza, a small glass of Boulevard “Long Strange Tripel” Ale (Ryan drank most of it… I just wanted to get a taste), and general relaxation.

Sunday morning, Ryan and I did our usual ride- Cordova to the Outdoors Store on Union, where we meet with a group and ride to Shelby Forest, then back. My legs felt like hell from the previous day’s ride. I was pretty surprised considering last Sunday my legs felt pretty awesome following Southern X. Even so, we rode in faster than usual. Once we met up with the group it was apparent that they’re catching wind of race season… as noted by the “spirited” pace. I obliged for part of the way- chasing down a couple of attacks and taking a hard pull or two, but then ended up splitting off from the group just before the “every man for himself” point in order to ride my own tempo up to the rest stop (not an easy tempo by any means… just not a pop & drop tempo!)
After the stop, somehow Ryan and I got separated from the group. We turned onto Watkins (~5 mile rolling 4-lane stretch of road) and looked back, only to find that the group was nowhere in sight. We figured they’d catch on, so we kept on going… only to look back a minute later & see that they were pretty far back. I knew that based on the guys in the group that they’d be chasing us down, so I told Ryan to pull me, and when they caught on, I’d counter. It didn’t quite work that way, because they ended up not catching up to us until near the “sprint point” at the end of the road, and they started to blow by us rather than take a wheel… it still worked out wonderfully, though. I’d been sitting in while they’d been chasing at a faster pace, so I grabbed the last wheel of the echelon, took a couple of breaths, then launched into the sprint. There was a bit of commotion as I passed the group, but (unlike other times I sprint with the guys) no one came around me before the unofficial “finish line.” Yay for strategy and group ride glory!!!! Bike racing is all about learning to kick people when they’re down…
Once we split from the group, the ride back was just as hard as the ride in. We kept the pace going most of the way back (I also “won” my second sprint of the day when we reached the Germantown city limits sign). I wasn’t as achy after the ride (saddle change!), but my neck was (still is) feeling not-so-hot.

Afterward was a Superbowl party. I had a little junk food, of course, and almost fell asleep during the game, but it was a good weekend wrap-up nonetheless. I’m pretty shot today. My legs feel like I rode harder than I did, and I’ve got to find a chiropractor to work on my neck before it becomes more than just an annoying ache. If any of my local readers know who is good, please share…