1800 miles (plus the runs)

Like CGB, I have not posted this summer. But it's not been for lack of training; I simply haven't had much to write about. We left Alabama for two months in June and July (one of the luxuries of my job is that I can take it with me when classes are out) and stayed with family in New England. We spent June with family in the Boston and the Sakonet River areas, and I spent nearly the entire month on the bike. It rained a lot, and several days I ran just so that I wouldn't have to clean the bike after riding on wet, sandy roads. But whenever the weather broke, I was in the saddle. I rode 400 miles in June and ran another 60-ish.

Oh, yeah... and I did this. Did I mention that we won?

We spent July with family in Maine, and I was all about the trail runs. I ran at least 120 miles in July (and rode another 100). Very few of my runs were on roads, and almost none of were flat. One run in particular, which I must have done at least 20 times, was a 3-1/2 mile lollipop loop with over 500 feet of elevation gain. I love trail running more than anything, so I was out no matter the weather: rain, fog, drizzle, torrential downpour... all the different types of weather that Maine had to offer in July. (The sun was conspicuous by its absence.)

Now we're back in 'Bama. I've been mixing the runs and ride a little more evenly, but I'm still favoring the bike, mostly because I have lots of people with whom to ride. In fact, I never ride alone anymore in Alabama unless I'm doing intervals in my neighborhood or hill repeats downtown, or I'm commuting to work. For some reason, cycling has become hugely popular in the last several months here, and now you can't throw a water bottle without hitting a guy wearing Lycra on a bike with skinny tires. In addition to my usual hodge-podge of students and friends from church with whom I ride on occasion in various combinations, I now have three groups that I ride with quite regularly.

On Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 5:30 AM I go out with a group of guys from the neighborhood, who are mostly competitive mountain bikers, and who use our training rides on the road bikes for conditioning. The rides are usually pretty laid back, 25 to 30 miles, under 20 mph. It's a great way to start the day and to get base miles into my legs, and it doesn't take away from work or family time. The fam is usually waking up just as I return, so I get to enjoy breakfast with my brood before starting work.

On the weekends I have choices, choices, choices. On Saturday mornings, several groups of cyclists go out, including two groups of multi-sport athletes, an A group and a B group. The A group typically rides 40 to 80 miles at 25+ mph, while the B group rides 30-ish miles at 20 mph. I'm the strong guy in the B group, so if I want an easy training ride I can go with them.

I am decidedly middle of the pack in the A group. So, if I'm looking for a heart attack I go out with them. If you've never done it, riding 25+ mph in a paceline is a killer workout. When you're second in line, and the lead guy peels off, and it's now your turn to pull, you feel like you just rode into a brick wall. On the other hand, when you're done pulling and you drop to the back, it's like being towed behind a race car. It's pretty fun to go 27 mph while barely peddling.

Throw in intervals and hill repeats, and I've been working the bike a lot this year. I had 1500 miles at the end of June, and I just passed 1800 today. I'm still running, but my running has been very strategic: almost all speed work, hills, and recovery runs. We'll see whether this works. I need to run another 10k to see how I've come along. When I do, I'll post the results.