I reach over groggily and smacked the top of my alarm. The darkness outside told the tale; six, I thought, too bloody early and closed my eyes. A half hour later I was up and wondered if I should solo or ride with Velo. They backed the starting time an hour to avoid the worst of part of the 95+ degree day and it was already 6:30, so I really had no excuse. I missed Riding with Dean and Kent and really needed to get used to a group again after so many years out of the peleton. Before I dressed, I jumped up on Evil. It read 188; the same as yesterday. I have officially resigned as a cycling Clydesdale.I left the house and started the gentle climb up Century Blvd before a car slowed along side me. "Hey! You with Velo?!", the man asked while smiling from ear to ear. "Wanna ride to the start!?" I doubt he will ever know how much I appreciated the gesture, but I needed the warm up and the extra miles. We were only clocking out 40 today, but with the ride to and fro, I could tally up another eight or nine miles to that. Once there Dean yelled over to me as we caught up during the pre-ride announcements. He also coaxed me into the 21 group. I shuttered, but my friend Kent was leading, so I knew it would be controlled. The 21s are the fastest group without joining the Hammer and Nails racing team, but can still get very aggressive.
We strolled for a bit and a couple mild attacks took form, but nothing I could not bridge, and bridge I did. Each bridge was an average of 50 KPH, rejoining the rear pack to the more aggressive riders.
Numbers like these to a couch potato are mind boggling, but to a typical cyclist are nothing extraordinary; and to a elite racer another typical solo time trial.
But to me, this was a real crossroad. I did not plan on being where I was in mere 10 weeks. 10 weeks ago, I was 212 pounds, desperately trying to keep my heart rate below 160 at 28 kilometers per hour. Now, in a pace line, my heart rate was 142 while spinning at 22 miles per hour (36KPH). If I wanted to work, I would easily spin up to 50 KPH, get in the front, and pull for a few miles. This may sound like boasting, but really I am typing this in disbelief. I never thought I would be here in any amount of time. My personal goal was a 20 mile per hour average at February's Jack Frost Time Trial and I could do that now with ease.
So, now that the curse is over, where to go from here? Should I take it to the next level? Should I just stay put? Decisions, decisions...
