Cheering at a Crit

Today we had a great day out with our friends Chris and Debby! We met up in Ninigret, RI at the Mystic Velo Criterium where Chris was racing Cat 3.

This was the first time I'd tried to take pics of him racing in this year's kit, so I had to get used to looking for him in it!

After a while, I could pick him out pretty well. It's easier to see than the previous one that was dark colors.



He was even easier to see when he was at the front of the pack to chase the breakaway!

Go, Chris, Go!!

We were so lucky that it didn't rain, despite being cloudy, and after the bike race we enjoyed dinner and shopping together too!

Edited to add:

2 short video clips from Cat 3 race

finish line video of Cat 3 race

Also, I have a ton of pics from this race, so if you are looking for pics of someone else, let me know, I might be able to help!

My (Is it Really?*) June Metric Century and Catching Up

(*The day started out with heavy gray clouds and light rain and 50F degree temps. A cold north wind blew the clouds apart so it finally got mostly sunny and temps rose to 64F. Not exactly typical June weather!)

Well, summer comes and my habits change dramatically as you've noticed from my blog hiatus! But I'm still here and haven't been as absent from cycling as my blog would indicate. However, I did take a whole week off for complete rest and recovery!

I have been thinking about taking a week off for awhile, but wanted to feel in control of it and not be doing it just because of laziness or because of a lack of motivation. Last week seemed like a good time as it rained most of the time and I was so at the end of my rope with traffic that I'd done the entire week before on the computrainer. I had some other things I wanted to catch up on. Also, I hadn't taken a week off the bike since the week ending July 19, 2008.

Here's my mileage by week chart to bring you up to date. The current week is incomplete, of course.

I was a little freaked out that I'd lose fitness fast, but after a few days I was so busy and sore from cutting back hedges and other yard work that I didn't feel the need for more exercise!

The week off turned out to be wonderful for my biking! My legs felt fresh and strong today. It was a little weird not to really be aware of them...no aches or pains or complaining muscles. I'd look down and it was sort of surreal to see my legs cranking away and they lasted great for the entire metric.

Given the cold wind everywhere and the damp cold by the beaches, I was in a long sleeve jersey and still cold enough for goose bumps at times. It got really weird later in my ride as the sun came out because the sun would be warming my back, but I was chilly at the same time from the wind. Felt kind of like being feverish!

I did 3 laps of my regular route and some extra back and forth bits to get the necessary miles. The pics were taken on my first and third trips to Sachuest Point today. From seeing my profiles, you are probably nearly as familiar with my bike terrain as I am!

Here's the speed profile. Yeah, I got a little tired toward the end, but the slow down actually had more to do with some school buses and UPS trucks slowing up traffic and me.

I've decided I like these Nutrigrain bars on rides better than various energy bars I've tried that are just too chewy for me. Note the long sleeves!

June Metric Stats
62.96 miles
3:58 hours
15.8 mph average...was at 16.2 'til the last miles and those buses, etc...had hoped to hang onto 16 'til the end =)
2,760' elevation gain
2 cereal bars and 2 bottles of Gatorade for fuel