Council Crest

Went with Lawrence up Terwilliger to Capitol Hwy. to Cheltenham to
Westview to Council Crest.

Time: 1 hour

HR: Below 165 the entire way. Really, it stayed below 160 for all but
one little stretch.

Speed: Still no cyclocomputer on the Black Bomber. What can I say? We’re
broke. Maybe after the 15th.

I need to take it easy going down Vista. I nearly hit a parked car going
around one corner a little hot. That’d be a stupid way to go. Also, I’m
becoming increasingly freaked out about descending this winter. The
brakes on the Black Bomber suck, and they’re only gonna get worse in the
wet. The more I think about it, the more I realize I NEED to save some
money, and buy a cyclocross bike with disc brakes.

Lifted when I got back to the gym:

2 x 12 reach up lunges

2 x 12 reach down lunges

12 reps @ 20 lbs, 8 reps @ 30 lbs. dead lifts

45 sit ups, 30 russian twists, 20 sit ups, 12 reverse crunches (OW! OW!
OW!)

Work’s pretty slow right now. It’ll pick up tomorrow or the next day,
I’m quite sure. Hence, all the entries.

So there’s a person I know — great personality, very funny, very smart
– and it’s funny how she tries to get your attention. She’ll talk to
herself, out loud, and basically fish for people to interact with her.

“Gosh, I can’t even hardly make out my x-rays!”

“These x-rays sure are funny looking.”

“I don’t even know what to look for on these x-rays!”

And finally, someone will throw themselves on the grenade. “So. Let’s
see the x-rays.” And you’re in.

And, again, she’s a great person and a friend. It’s just funny, that’s
all.

There’s a few bike items I need to keep things moving along with the
training. This list is just to help me organize and prioritize them. A
shopping list, if you will.

Yellow wind vest. Or a Pink Veloshop one.
Bike shorts (3 pair)
Knee/leg warmers (1 pair)
Jerseys (3)
Cyclocomputer/HRM for Black Bomber
Bar tape
Rack
Waterproof panniers
Revive-X spray-on waterproof treatment (for my gloves)

Amanda needs a few things, too, depending on how much commuting she does
by bike this winter.

Shoe covers
Jerseys (2)
Leg warmers (1 pair)
Commuter bike w/ MTB pedals/shoes

I need to install lights on our bikes, too. The days keep getting
shorter, dang it.

————-

So yesterday, Amanda and I went for a ride in the morning. We were
planning to meet up with some VeloShoppers to ride up to Alpenrose to
watch the first Cross Crusade, but it was early, cold, and a Sunday
morning, so everyone flaked. No biggie.

But it was such a brilliant morning. Very brisk, and the sun wasn’t
quite up yet, so there were lots of loooong shadows, which made the
brief streaks of sunlight all the more welcome. And it was just kind of
nice, you know? Blue shadows and red sunlight. Pedalling along at a good
clip, sipping some steaming coffee outside of Stumptown, and just being
happy that we were together.

I dunno. Just nice. We weren’t out for long — maybe an hour — but it
was perfect. Great way to end the weekend.

Recovery Ride

Duration: 1 hour

HR: didn’t wear it.

Speed: No cyclocomputer yet on the black bomber.

Route: Across Hawthorne, north to Belmont. 20 minutes of coffee and freezing my butt off at Stumptown. Then south on 34th to Lincoln, to 26th to Sellwood. Cross through Sellwood and back on the Springwater Corridor.

Ho-hum. Still a little sore from lifting. Was very tired all day. Considering a day off tomorrow, but I will be off Saturday and Sunday of next week, too, so… I dunno. Do I push through for five more straight days so I can take off two days next weekend? I’m tempted to. Maybe tomorrow is just another easy roll on the flats for an hour, plus some sit-ups. Or maybe tomorrow is just strength training, assuming I’m not sore. I dunno. I certainly didn’t do much today, but then again, I did ride for an hour this morning (easy).

*sigh*

I hate it when I can’t figure shtuff like this out.

I think I’m gonna skip it tomorrow. C’mon. It’s frickin’ October. Chill, dude.