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Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Lesson Learned

As you can see from the little ticker at the top right hand side of my blog there are 2 months and 2 weeks before Boulder 70.3.  That is not very far away!  While I have been training all winter and spring (if you can call the weather we have had "spring like") I haven't been very good about following my training plan. That is until last week. Of course last week happened to be a big volume week but so be it.  The biggest additions to my training have been my long bike rides in the mountains. I  have joined my friend and her cycling club for these outings which has definitely helped motivate me to take on these new adventures. While the climbing and hours in the saddle are challenging, I think that the most painful part is descending from anywhere from 7000-9000+ feet. I freeze when I do this!  You would have thought I would have learned from the first time a couple of weeks ago when we were in snow at 9000 feet and I was so cold that my teeth were chattering but apparently I need to learn the hard way. This past Sunday while climbing I had on a sleeveless cycling shirt and a vest (I had taken the sleeves off the vest).  It was very sunny and mild and with me being someone who sweats more then the average person, my head was soaked and drops of sweat from my hair had saturated the collar of my vest by the time we had reached the top of the climb ( sorry for the graphic description but I want to paint an accurate picture). Regrouping at the top of the climb, I put the sleeves back on my vest and was wishing I had brought my long sleeve shirt that I had decided to leave behind because it was warm (at the bottom).  A hat or bandanna would have helped as well.  I can only describe the decent as brutal.  Between the altitude, wind and speed, I was so cold that I actually thought to stop for a moment to try and get my body to stop shaking. If someone had offered me a ride down I very well might have accepted.  I finally went into my drops to help cut some of the wind which helped a bit and needless to say I was more then happy when we were at the bottom.  It is like being stuck on a boat while sea sick. You would give your right (or left) arm to just make it back to land.  So, I think I have learned my lesson this time and will pack accordingly for the next time. Now if I can just figure out how to store a small suitcase on my bike :)
Have a great week!

4 comments:

  1. That is a tough lesson to learn because we just expect the weather to be the same every where. However, it sounds like you got it figured out. FYI, I learn things the hard way as well so it would probably take me a few more times than that to learn my lesson!

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  2. I've definitely been there before. I rode up Deer Creek one time and on the descent I thought I was going to freeze to death. My teeth were chattering, my arms were shaking, and I was sooo cold!

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  3. Training is all about learning lessons. Some lessons are physical, some are psychological, and some, like the right clothing, is logistical.

    All these lessons will help you succeed. Painful? At times. Worth it? You'll thank yourself the day after the half.

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  4. Girl that is some riding your doing!!! With any luck the summer weather is coming and it won't be as much of an issue!

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