your daily bicycle log

Crashed into someone yesterday. Shared offroad bike path, she was overtaking someone, I chose to overtake her at the same time, she wobbled out slightly further than I expected. Mea culpa I guess. I came to a controlled stop, she hit a crowd control barrier, which toppled over but not before she'd headbutted it, no helmet of course. She was okay but pretty pissed off I think. If nothing else it brought home the perhaps obvious fact that Hyde Park in midsummer is perhaps not the best place to be charging round at 20mph with a 'take no prisoners' attitude.

Doing the rollers yesterday (too damned hot out after work, new place has central air), watching the last 45km or so of the TdF stage; rode of the rollers in sympathy with Frank Schleck. In general though I'm getting a much more natural rhythm through doing the rollers although I'm still trying to relax my grip a bit more and I'm no where near the stage of being able to do too much one handed, drinking is still a challenge.

Oh, and I'm having more problems with the back wheel of the surly rotating in the dropouts. I need to have a good look and see if I'm suffering from the same dropout opening issues as gbx was.

did my first club run at the w/end; 77mile round trip to kilcreggan along the banks of gare loch. longest I've ever ridden, amazing. riding in a bunch is like a whole new sport

Try a sportive next, cozen. You should be able to find one that is about the same distance - I did one that was 'only' 70 miles and another that was 94. Even the crazy long ones that are 120 miles or something usually have the option of a shorter route. You'll find you're in a bunch most of the time - if you lose contact with one bunch (either going off the front or off the back) you'll find another one soon enough.

You'll find you're in a bunch most of the time

Only done two so far, but over 190 miles I rode with more than two other people for only about 10 miles of that - most of my riding's been done in a pair, both with a friend and with a stranger.

NOTHING TO REPORT JUST WANT TO SAY IT LOUD AND CLEAR FROM THE BOTTOMS OF MY LUNGSACS:

I LOVE TO RIDE MY FREAKIN BICYCLE

GETTING OUT OF HERE ca. 3:30pm FOR A MUCH NEEDED "MELLOW" RIDE

JUST WANT TO KEEP IT REAL FOR ALL Y'ALL

GOAL: POOTLE LIKE A FREAKIN VICAR IIRC

I LOVE TO RIDE MY FREAKIN BICYCLE

co freakin sign

lol, so after dissing the gran fondo thing upthread im doing the boulder one. offer i couldn't refuse, etc. i predict carnage of various sorts in my future.

http://www.centurioncycling.com/pdf/CO100Profile.pdf

Hot Hot Hot. About 30C in the shade, tarmac melting and sticking to tyres, just under two hours and desperately thirsty when I got home.

pre-log... on my way out for something between 100miles and 200km. An all day low-zone pootle, with one planned stop to cheer on a friend racing in a mid-afternoon criterium nearby.

jesus christ hunt3r, that profile!

Found someone who is even more of an asshole on the bike than I am. Walking along the river path, cyclist coming towards us so we moved to the side, the right-hand side as it happens, and stopped. He continues barreling straight towards us and doesn't even slow down, we have to scatter to let him past. "Slow down!" one of us shouts. "You were on the wrong side of the road!" he yells. "It's not a road, it's a path!", our friend returns. Not a rejoinder for the ages but still otmfm.

I can has sportive?

how is that england, it's so....sunny

I'm very pleased with myself, I have shed 5 kilos. Much smother spinning as well, climbing is so much pleasanter, on with the next 5.

has anyone on hear ever ridden any of the tdf climbs?

here*

I've driven up the Galibier in a Ford Focus.

that'll do

second club ride today, nice and easy again, 53 miles at 16mph - thinking about trying the faster group next week but don't want to push it too early and wary of being dropped in the middle of nowhere

Jumped up to a faster group on my group ride today. Hung in the whole way, went over the top of some bumps at the front (I know I know, Cat6'n it up) but was suffering hard for the last 10 miles. Limped home, can hardly think right now. Ow.

has anyone on hear ever ridden any of the tdf climbs?

― kim jong-ill (cozen), Friday, July 16, 2010 5:01 AM (Yesterday)

i've pootled the champs elysees on foot. :-/

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/40956072

GRAN FONDO, FONDO, FONDO!

we took it easy, stopped a lot (total stoppage 65 mins!) i spaced changing my cassette to a 27, so i had a 39/23 ;_;

that is a gigante domingo

KNEES.OF.STEEL.

it was like a track stand for 4 miles.

i was beyond cooked. my head was like a frying egg.

I did some "light"* climbing with my new 11/23 and I had all sorts of twinges and newly discovered sore muscles the following day.

*"The Marshall Wall"... nice name.

Can't even imagine with a standard crank... u r a madman.

wait i have heard of the Marshall Wall? gr8 name

this looks pretty epic for the euros:
http://www.cyclingtipsblog.com/2010/07/letape-du-tour/

couple of dudes in the club are riding this but 'unfortunately' I missed the sign-up
http://blogs.dailyrecord.co.uk/ironman/2010/01/2010-a-race---the-bealach-mor-challenge.html

16 miles in an hour out to strathblane and back across a new route w/some heretofore unknown hills. felt good except when some tiny tanned alberto cat6ador (who I had only passed out of politeness to allow him to cycle with his group up the hill) attacked me on the col du milngavie and ripped my legs into wee pieces as I tried to stay with him up the hill. he beat me to the top obv but I held my own and beat the rest of his pack up the hills.

had some words w/him at the bottom of the descent in my pidgin luxembourgese to the effect that it's unsporting to attack just as my lungs have a mechanical...

Haha, nice.

do I go out on the club fast ride (~110 miles round to loch katrine) on sat: y/n

oh shit! don't kill yourself in the beginning. eat/drink/eat/drink!!! have a proper lunch mid-way.

man no cycling shoes means a pretty dire bike log

http://i486.photobucket.com/albums/rr222/Chass3ur/tempimg.jpg

top of first gran fondo climb

oh hell yes! but this was not the italian food themed one that i keep having dreams about?

restaurant comped our groups entry, but our kewl kits have not arrived from belgium, so i wore my most comfy shorts and vanilla-est jersey. on second loop we had a follow car with panini, biscotti, salt tablets, wine (which no one took)and oranges, heed etc.

Q_Q jealous Q_Q

hunt3r do u have....a moustache??

ha no, im unshaven on my chin and moustache for a few days there though. during shavedowns ive test viewed the moustache-only for yucks and i look sorta ned flanders :^O

btw i will rep for centurion, they did a magnificent job. there were TONS of staff and volunteers, copious amounts of grub- just really strong support. impressive, i'm surprised there weren't more riders. i sorta wonder if boulderites didn't participate as strongly as they could have since they can ride those roads any old time?

8^EO

i think i posted it on ilx in 2003 or so and got told i looked like a friendly cop. u_u

img down memory hole :(

dangit, ned

did the same route as above again this morning... thought I was going to collapse going up the climb - here's the profile... I'm a fat mantis :__(
http://img.skitch.com/20100722-dpq1dtbnc5ehhk5y6dui38yups.jpg
http://img.skitch.com/20100722-ppgmbpht2ces3fntnhnm6hi3pp.jpg

forgot to mention the pretty dramatic scenes that greeted me at the top, there was a massive fancy house fully on fire just where the red line finishes!