Slacking hurts......

As I've indicated, I've been a slacker these past two weeks....and boy did I pay for it on Sunday! It's amazing what riotous living can do for your cycling. I was really hurting on Sunday, could barely do 30 miles. But hey, January 1st is coming, when the count down starts for real....the next thing you know it will be March 4th!

So, instead of biking, I've been hitting the movie theater, instead of commenting on my cylcing efforts, I'll comment on the movies....

It's Complicated......yes it is but Meryl Streep is just fabulous well worth the time in the seat....and of course Alec Baldwin, you just love to hate him.....

Up in the Air......what where they thinking, the title pretty much describes it, it does have a few moments....there were some laughs

Inglorious Bastards.....don't waste the time going to Blockbuster or clicking to download from netflix Schindler's List meets Springtime for Hitler, not funny.

I realize I'm not a movie critic and these opinions are just that my opinion....I should probably stick to biking, I'll get back at it after the first....

Hard work....

While I've been slacking a bit due to holidays...I did manage to get in 100 miles this past week. Friday morning I rode with The Ladies around Ahwatukee and did manage to get some hills in, including 5th Ave. and 17th Ave. I was pleased with my progress in spinning and am so grateful to Charlie for the tip....

Saturday brought another "Ladies Ride" this time we did the Tempe Ironman Course (not all 112 miles) but one of the loops. This was challenging, but the best part was riding with my sister, my riding buddy for the big trip. She was glad to be on the bike again since weather in Philadelphia hasn't been that cooperative....

The BIG RIDE was today (Sunday). I conquered "the towers" for readers familiar with the valley, you can see the South Mountain towers from every part of the valley. I rode from 48th and Warner to the top of South Mountain. The stepest part of the climb, from the base of the mountain in the park to the top was only 5 miles or so, but in that 5 miles we climbed 1800 ft. I'm sure this is great training, but I'm tired...so just chilling out, watched some great football (go Eagles!) and now watching my hero James Bond....

Continuing to Spin.........

On Sunday the spinning continued as I rode with Charlie and the MS150 training group here in Ahwatukee. We did a normal route, lots of hills, and lost of chance to spin. I am floored, I did the 17 Ave. hill, the 5th Ave. hill and the 40th St. hill, all upwards and at the end of the ride my aveage speed was 13.7.

Charlie is determined to get me to the towers in South Mountain Park next weekend, for those of you familiary with the valley, the South Mountain tv/communication towers can be seen valley wide, so it's a climb. He is determined to have me ready for San Diego....

Got several bike tips from Javelina Cycles, new end grips on my handle bars for a more relaxed and an optional grip for the long straights, and am also contimplating a new seat stem so I don't have so much trouble with the seat sliding down....

a great weekend of riding....again, taking it easy for a couple of days.....

Climbing, Climbing, Climbing

Saturday's ride was a good training workout for me. We started in North Scottsdale and rode up, up, and up to Carefree and Cave Creek. All in all we climbed 1800 feet in elevation. This was a great exercise.....as you might suspect, the best part for me was the downhill....after climbing for three hours (20) miles, the return trip of 20 miles took less than an hour.....wheeeeeeeeee!! My favorite part.

I again was awed by the various landscapes in our valley, biking has broadened by vistas of the valley of the sun, what a great place to live. I'm still in a bit of a holiday mood....slacking a little, but January 1st is coming.....so is March 4th...

Waning Signs!

Warning bells went off in my head on Thursday as I was preparing for my first ride since Sunday. First of all that's a bit disconcerting in an of itself. Then I put my helmet on and it felt weird, like it didn't fit. I amost panicked, three days without a ride and my helmet feel's weir? What's that about. How am I going to make 3,100 miles in 58 days, if after three days off, it feels like I haven't ridden before...

The ride ended up being relatively uneventful, and I realize that now I do 22 miles without even thinking, like I used to do 10, so I guess that's a good thing...

I am relaxing a bit over the holidays, gearing up for the touch training schedule come January 1st. I have relinquished most of my extra ciricular activities, except training and fundraising....so here comes January 1st, the countdown to March 4th will begin!

Yet another Sunday Ride....

Today as usual I joined the training rides for the AZ MS 150 ride in March. We started in north Phoenix and headed up to Cave Creek. I was a bit tentative about the day, since I pushed so hard yesterday, I was concerned that I could not continue my sucess from yesterday. As we started out I felt great, and was holding a high cadence (tip from last week) and a good speed. However, as we continued on the ride, I began to struggle. Then got a bit spooked as I was struggling in the low teens on what appeared to be the flat. After 19 miles (bringing up the rear as usual) we regrouped, stopped with the SAG then headed back 19 miles. My struggle on the way out soon became apparent. We were climbing a grade the whole way out....needless to say, the return was much quicker at a faster pace, ended up with an average speed of 13.7....feeling good..... faith restored....looking forward to March...

Phoenix Metro Free Ride

What a great Saturday ride! The Ladies joined the Phoenix Metro Bike Club's annual free ride starting at Mesa's Pioneer Park. The club offered 25, 40, and 60 mile routes. We opted for the 40 mile segment. It was a beautiful ride, while the day was cold (by AZ standards) the scenery was beautiful! We headed north and east and wound up in Usury Pass in the McDowell Mountains, the red rocks, the cactus, and of course great biking made for a great day. The last 10 miles were slightly down hill, and I was able to pull a consisten 20MPH a new personal best for me....tired at the endof the day, but it felt great!

I've said it many time.....

Today was another one of those "this is why we live in Arizona" days. Blue sky, big sunshine and a perfect day for a ride.

I got a little tip on Sunday while I was riding in the presence of greatness....I was surprised to learn that our fearless leader, who placed in the el Tour de Tucson, doesn't shift to the big wheel until he's around 20 mph....so today I tried it, well, not 20, but 17-18, so cadance was high. I could not believe the result. I probably had the best ride yet! With all the stop signs, traffic lights and hills, I averaged almost 14mp, a huge gain for me 22 miles was almost like a walk in the park....you learn something new every day!