Rides Getting Longer

First I would like to apologize for the last post. It appears that the picture I posted only showed up using certain web browsers. If you were not able to see it, it was a picture of Annie, Jordan, and Buddy.
Yesterday was a beautiful day. Annie was going to a baby shower so I had to get my ride in early. Well early is relative, I was on my bike at the Ayer/Nashua Rail Trail at 8:30. That was after a trip to the dump and a trip around my lawn to fertilize and put down grubb treatment. I decided that I would do the rail trail like Wednesday but add on the ride home. I guessed it to be about 35 miles. Pretty good guess as it was exactly 36. It nicely broke up into three 12 mile segments. On the first 12 I concentrated on keeping my heart rate under 120bpm. This was pretty easy and I was still going at an OK pace. I am very concerned about going too fast too early at the PMC. I then picked it up a bit during the 2nd 12 miles, but still kept under 130bpm. The last 12 was on the hills of Harvard so the heart rate was all over the place. I felt great though. I haven't ridden that far since high school and was only a little tired after the ride. That may have been more due to not eating enough before I went out. Now I know why people wear those goofy bike shirts. If you are out for 2.5 or 3 hours you need to pack a lunch. Sunday was a day off the bike. Just a nice walk with the family, but hopefully the weather will break so I can try a ride home from work this week.

Thanks for reading.

Last week someone questioned why do people ride in the PMC. They said it was only for the 'party'. Having never done this, I am not sure what the party is. I know that I am doing it for the the family in the picture above. You never know when this disease will strike and I hope if it ever does strike, we have worked as hard as possible to keep the damage to a minimum. Anyways....
It has been a while since my last post. Riding has been going well. It is sometimes tough getting in the time with a new baby but luckily I have a pretty understanding wife. I was able to get in a 20 miler on Saturday, 16.5 on Monday night and a 24 miler this morning. Saturday and Monday were both very hilly and both included Pinnicle Hill. I feel better each time I go up it. On Monday, once I got to the top I turned around went back down and did it again. I keep hearing how tough the hills are so I will keep working on them till they are no effort. Today I had the day off from work. It was a day for Jordan and I to hang out. I decided to try out the Ayer to Nashua rail trail. It is a 12 mile trail that is free of traffic. No hills at all. It was nice to ride with out worrying about traffic. I averaged 16.5 mph for the 24 miles. I am pretty happy that my pace seems to be improving, even as I slowly raise the mileage of each ride. I am looking forward to going for 30 this weekend.

Back To Back

What a great week of training. I had my first back to back days of riding. Ran 3 mornings on the river. Just 3 miles each time but feeling better as each day goes by. Noticed by the end of the week more and more people were out. That is the signal that spring has arrived. I am sure if I made it over to Comm Ave, everyone would be out Marathon training. I will miss my yearly Marathon Morning run with Brad.
I got to ride twice this weekend. On Saturday I went 15 and on Sunday it was almost 18. Saturday's ride was cut in half for a stop at my parents house to adjust my seat and then ride out a 20 minute rain shower that included some thunder and lightning. The rest of the ride was wet but fun. It was a pretty warm day so I enjoyed myself and didn't mind getting wet.
Sunday morning I got up and mounted my new computer on my bike. Very easy installation and I was looking forward to trying it out. I got a ride in around 3:30. We first went to the Doyle's Road Race so Annie could participate in her first Pub Series race. She did the Gaebel family well and ran around 46 minutes for a hilly five mile course. She looked great finishing so I know she can run faster in the next Pub Series race. Jordan enjoyed the trip to Franklin Park. She even got to see a Canada Goose up close!
The ride was great. A little cold to start but my legs felt good. Pinnicle hill is a killer. I am curious how long the hills are going to be at the PMC. Some research is going to be needed.

Here is the Pinnacle Hill course.

Sigh of Relief

Finally... my letter went out. I must thank the few people who helped proof my drafts. Somehow I still managed to send it out with a typo. I guess that is life.... never perfect. I also must thank Annie for kicking me in the butt to make sure I finally got the letter done and mailed. Anyone who received a copy in the mail will be able to tell that Annie addressed all the envelopes. No bike riding this weekend. Another cold and rainy one. I did get a chance to get in a run with the entire family. Pushing Jordan up the slightest incline proves to be a challenge. It was fun for all of us to be out, even if it was at 6:30 am. Another run today and I am feeling much better.