Originally Posted by
Spreggy
Thanks Ban, I appreciate it. You may be right about blowing the wad too early. I rode into the hills thinking conservation all the way, but there is always that voice in your head telling you it's a race, too, even though it's not.
At mile 60, I thought "no more hills, ever", at 70 while zipping along during the wind-down finish, I though "hey cycling is awesome, this feels great", and after chilling out this morning I'm starting to construct what it would take to make those hills down there a lot smaller. Who knows, another hilly ride may still come this year. If it doesn't, I'll latch onto some other goal like century-a-month. Catching some speed in the flats after crawling up hills for hours is an awesome feeling, like a birdy on the 18th hole after a hard round lol.
How'd it go today? Did your pacing idea pan out the way you wanted?
It did. Aside from pacing, today I was testing my knees. This season, I've been having some issues with them. I went easy on them for a few weeks to let them heal up but decided today would be a good day to find out if they're up to some real climbing. Right now, they both feel great and my legs are a little tired but not blown. I'm on track to complete a monster ride in late Sept. Ironically, my speed average for this pacing ride was very respectable.
BTW, one other reason to take it easy towards the beginning of a hilly ride is to prevent you from racing people you shouldn't (those who are stronger, and those who are also riding too hard). As the ride progresses and you feel good, you can pick up the pace. You'll start dropping people who passed you earlier which will tend to boost your spirits when you're feeling tired and/or in pain.