Riding hard makes you stronger. The wind has little to do with it

I live in Ventura County and most of my rides involve some portions of open, unprotected fields, hills or PCH (or other coastal portions of the county), or a combination of all of the above.

Wind is a part of life here. Sometimes it is an onshore wind, sometimes it is an offshore wind. Most of the time is a steady wind, but LOTS of times it is a swirling, gusting winds.

The wind can drive swirling dust and dirt into my face, can cause cars to swerve on narrow back roads and it can grab at my bike's front wheel and shake it around.

Riding against the wind is a royal pain in the ass. But along with climbing hills, it is part of the life of a cyclist. Anyone hoping to become an all-round rider has to learn to deal with the wind (just like we have to learn to deal with hill climbing). Many TdF have been plagued by high winds that made riding miserable, but what are you gonna do? Stop the Tour? Nah, you just put your head down and keep on riding, hoping to eventually catch a tailwind.

I don't like the wind anymore than the next guy, but it sure beats having to ride in rain, snow or extreme heat. It certainly beats the heck out of staying home piling the miles on an indoor trainer

I will take a windy day any day of the week over my CycleOps indoor trainer and watching trianing videos by Chris Carmichael.

It occurred to me early in my riding career that when you see a lot of these on your rides:



You should probably learn to ride in the wind.