April showers bring excuses

Well, the rain has been coming and going, as have the after-work responsibilities of my old and my new jobs. These things - combined with my general couch-potatoness - have lent to my inability to start training as vigorously as I'd like; but, all excuses aside, I was able to get in a great morning ride at the end of last week. It was my first of two days off between my former and my new job, and the weather was wonderful if not a little breezy, so I threw my bike onto the back of my station wagon and headed into Forest Park. I split my time between the roads inside the park and the bike path in an effort to start building my confidence off-trail. Thanks to my new Take-A-Look mirror helmet adapter (and the relatively low volume of traffic on a late Thursday morning), the short amount of time that I did decide to ride on the park roads wasn't as terrifying as I initially anticipated. You have to keep in mind, I'm very much the amateur cyclist, and I like to ride with a buddy if at all possible, so riding along side cars for the first time - and ALONE - felt like a very big step. In the end, no injuries to report, I felt a lot less winded than my first ride of the season, and it was great honoring myself with the respect and the time to go out for this ride. I had every best intention to write it up after I got in, but things got in the way - so it goes.

04/17 Ride Wrap-Up:
Dist: 10.36 miles
Avg: 12.4 mph
Mx: 25.8 mph - hit top gear several times, but the downhills helped
Time: 49.57

I did get the chance to ride yesterday, and for the first time, I didn't shuttle my bike to a trail to get started - I left right from my front driveway! I'll say it was a bit harrowing to cross through busy intersections and ride up and down Clayton Road on a Saturday afternoon, but again, overall it was another exercise in confidence as the road riding forced me to be even more alert, all while tackling some big hills (which many trails have allowed me to avoid thus far). I have to say, I came off this ride - albeit a short one - quite exhilarated since I didn't let the afore mentioned hills get the better of me, and I have really started to notice an improvement in my endurance. This gives me at least a decent reason to hope that I'll be able to make it through, at minimum, the shorter 22 mile option for next weekend's Bike MS Kick-Off ride.

04/26 Ride Wrap-Up:
Dist: 12.52 miles
Avg: 11.4 mph
Mx: 24.5 mph
Time: 1.05.45

I would have liked to do a recoup flat trail ride today, but rain is in the forecast, and I don't even own a windbreaker, so I'll be walking the dog twice instead. I'm sure he'll appreciate it, and besides, it will be the perfect way to ensure it doesn't rain!