Soggy and Saddle Sore

First thing first. The more observant amongst you will have noticed a name change to this blog. Why? Well - having been inspired by the various pirates at IMUK, and all the stuff on the forums, I've decided to give IMDE a shot in 2006. Okay - my knee may give out on me, life may get in the way, or I may get hit by a bolt of lightning, but what the feck - you can't live life on that basis! So - I'm going for it, and looking forward to the rollercoaster ride that I'm sure will follow. It feels like the challenge I've been looking for, and my motivation to train is the best it's been for ages having made that decision :oD

Having done with that, on to today's training:

Discipline: Bike
Distance: 20.32 miles
Time: 1:22:23
Max speed: 30.0mph
Av speed: 14.8mph

It was a dank and miserable night, but I've been meaning to do another bike ride for ages, so when the rain cleared a bit, I set out. I had a route in mind, but as it turned out, I got lost, and didn't quite do that route! Instead, I did this one.

It still takes me a while to get settled into the bike - clipping in and out, the position, and everything else. My two biggest sore areas are the bits where my thumbs and first fingers join, even with the gel padded gloves, and my perineum and nadgers(!) The fact that I forgot my bike shorts tonight may not have helped!

The journey to Epsom was a lot of stop and starting at lights, which was irritating, and I fought to get used to the gears. The big idea in my mind at the moment is to keep that cadence in the range 85-95. Keeping the heart rate down is also a good idea, but I'll leave that to happen as I get fitter!

Once through Epsom, I was onto a long stretch of road out to Oxshott that only has one set of lights on it. It has gentle slopes up and down, and was good practice with the gears. I found I was devloping a natural feel for when I was in the right range cadence-wise. Left turn at Oxhott, then through the village and otu towards Leatherhead. This is where I made my mistake - instead of carrying straight on to J9 of the M25 and then heading back into Epsom via Ashtead, I turned back up a road going to the crossroads on the Oxshott road. This worked out okay, I could go right there and then back home through Epsom, but it had cut a corner off my route, so I decided to add a bit extra. At the crossroads, both my calves cramped when I got off the saddle when the stop sign showed, and I managed to walk onto the central island to get out of the way. A quick rest, and the calves recobvered, so I set off back into Epsom. It was busy, even at gone 8pm, so I made slow progress. A quick detour round the back streets avoided some of the hold up, and then I headed down the Ewell bypass and up the back of Nonsuch Park before heading back through Cheam. The climb into Cheam Village was steep, and I really had to knock the gears down. Not sure how I'd cope with the Alps - guess I'll just have to get used to it!

The final mile or so I was feeling knackered, so it was good to see home. I got off my bike, but my legs were wobbly and my back a bit tight, so I nearly fell over! Teh tension across my upper back/neck had been a persistent issue, which is a bit worrying as it's one of the things the chiro always picks up on, but apparently it's quite a normal biking thing to have, so no panic as yet.

All in all a very satisfactory ride. A few issues, but nothing too bad or that might not be expected for someone building up their time on a bike. I downed my jacket spud, beans and sausages (left from the weekend!) with gusto, feelign that I'd earned it!