Ride report: I am SO slow

[CNY rider]

Rode about 20 miles today.
I commute to work (7.5 miles) on my commuto-cross all winter but have not otherwise ridden since November.
We had a great winter of skiing up here but it's finally melted. Now it's back to road biking.

I am painfully, pathetically slow right now. Despite being in good aerobic shape my riding has declined to depths not recently seen.

How slow you ask?

I think I saw a snail leave my driveway at the same time I did, and he beat me home.

I think I was outrun by drying paint.

I think I saw Supersonic Serotta Sandy blow by me and he wasn't even breathing hard.......

How was your ride today? Fast or slow?

[PoppaWheelie]

Today: 53 miles....and grass grows faster than I rode....

[CNY rider]

Today: 53 miles....and grass grows faster than I rode....

See, now you've cheered me up.
At least I didn't have to mow when I got home. :banana:

[johnmdesigner]

Don't worry Eric.
In a month you won't even remember this happened.
Just think how good you made Sandy feel.
Oh yes, on my 40 miles today I kicked butt. :p

[Karin Kirk]

How was your ride today? Fast or slow?

First ride of the year for me today, about a month ahead of schedule.
We still have tons of snow, but today was sunny and warm so I opted for a ride instead of skiing.

And I was very, very, slow. But happy to be out nonetheless!

[chuckroast]

Well, acknowledging that I am slow now implies that I am fast later.

Not so.

Maybe I am faster later, but I'm never fast.

So slow today that you could tell time off my shadow.

[Climb01742]

slow in march is ok...unless you're riding milan-san remo next saturday. otherwise, is all just nice wonderful money in the base bank. :beer:

2.5 hours of sweet base miles. and as little snow on the ground as we've seen in months. sorta warm too.

[KeithS]

I rode with a really fast group on vacation in Vero Beach FL. First outdoor ride since November 1. Ran out of gas about a mile from the end, but limped home.. It rained on and off for the last 18 miles. I still have a really big smile on my face, I hope to ride about 200 miles this week.

I have been spinning all winter, just wonder how much slower I would have been without that? Right now I don't mind any precipitation I don't have to shovel.

Spring is coming fast in MN, we have our first outdoor ride next Sunday.

[Bradford]

I was really fast today...when I was riding down hill. Being big and fat is so nice when gravity is on your side.

The rest of the ride was like watching rust form.

[97CSI]

Averaged 13.7mph for 35 miles. Surprised me to no end. Would never had thought would be that fast. Of course, no wind to speak of and very flat roads help a great deal.

[PCR]

[QUOTE=Bradford]
The rest of the ride was like watching rust form. <---- :D Now this is funny!

[thwart]

51 degrees; 57 miles.

First ride of the season that wasn't limited to some degree by temp or road conditions.

Not fast---but who gives a damn... it's freakin' March.

[RABikes2]

I rode 44 miles today at a steady pace through the hills and was happy as can be. :) A great ride with absolutely beautiful weather. The vibrant colors from blooming azaleas, dogwoods, wisteria, and cherry blossoms were bursting out everywhere. It's Spring in North Florida!!! :D :banana:

RA

[Dekonick]

Jeez - I rode 15 miles yesterday. SLOW - but because it was COLD and I couldnt find my booties... so every time I went much faster than 15mph I was extremely uncomfortable. Averaged ~ 15 but it was nice to get out so who cares? Fixed of course. I dont want to bother cleaning all of the salt and crap - gotta love Ti frames! : :beer:

[bironi]

Nothing in the tank today. 40ish temps for a 35ish semi-hilly fixed ride. My buddy wanted to go hard cause he's traveling to Chicago next weekend, and can't ride. I wanted to dog every climb. Some days are just that way. Sunday may be a different story, I hope. :beer:

Byron

[RABikes2]

I rode 44 miles today at a steady pace through the hills and was happy as can be. :) A great ride with absolutely beautiful weather. The vibrant colors from blooming azaleas, dogwoods, wisteria, and cherry blossoms were bursting out everywhere. It's Spring in North Florida!!! :D :banana:
RA
Not sure how wise it is to add this ;) , but it got into the high 70's at least today. Started w/ armwarmers and short sleeve jersey and the armwarmers came off after 45 minutes. :D

[thwart]

Not sure how wise it is to add this , but it got into the high 70's at least today. Started w/ armwarmers and short sleeve jersey and the armwarmers came off after 45 minutes. You know... once I'm able to get out on the road on a day like today, all those kind, generous and thoughtful comments from our members in the South and West about their nice, warm weather in the winter months just don't matter any more. :banana: :banana: :banana:

[Gothard]

Went out twice yesterday. Once in the morning for about 15 miles to test Cobbles, which works perfectly; and once in the afternoon with my bro-in-law and nephew. I adjusted the saddles on the Legend and Johnny Cash, and we went out as the Serootta slug racing team, for another 15 miles. I dicovered at my expense that a rear Neutron does not like having 230lbs for a rider. Loosen the rear brake, and the BIL rode it home without a problem, save for the wobble.

[soulspinner]

You guys make me feel better. I only averaged 12.9 but that included 30 minutes of 1 mph looking for my family in the ST. Pattys day parade. The other hour and change was better but boy was I knackered afterwards. 47 degrees and sunny and youd think it was the Bahamas...

[Bruce K]

Test ride of the left hand yesterday.

33 at ride start, up to low 40's by the end.

31 miles with the local group at a decent pace but still base type riding.

No asthma issues. :banana:
But shifting into the big ring using my right hand is a PIA.

Out again today and tomorrow 'cuz you never know about more yucky weather in New England... :fight:

BK

[BryanE]

Northern Mich temps were balmy with a high of 42!!
10-14 mph winds.
I thought it was time for a little test and did a hard brick workout.
17 miles at 19.1 MPH on the Roubaix followed by a two mile run
in 14:50.
That's all this 54 year old has in March.

Toady it is suppose to hit 50 and will do a sore and achy 25 miler.
Bry

[gman]

I am so slow it affects my motivation to ride, which is a vicious circle.

I tried to "turn up the gas" a bit yesterday and I felt like I had lead in my legs and someone standing on my chest.

[Ahneida Ride]

AR's site is going up faster the I ride ...

Heading out with the MASTER, Mr. Bedford on a ride today. ;)
My first ride of the season !!!!!!

[WadePatton]

I've not been out yet, since the battle with the trainer on Friday. Wet, damp, saturated, and foggy out there today-a bit like PNW I'd guess. I'm going I'm going. I'm faster than the old me but slower than the folks I race with.:rolleyes:

But I ride with enthusiasm. :banana:

[Steevo]

First ride of the season today. Mid 50's & cloudy - nice weather for the lower Hudson Valley in mid-March. It felt both great and a little painful to be out on the bike today. Typical first ride of the season - glaciers move faster.

First ride with the new AR leather wrap. It felt great - nice firm grip, not slippy nor sticky, and it looks great as well.

This is a fun time of year, when bike season and ski season overlap for a few weeks.

[RudAwkning]

Did the section in blue. Sierra sucked ass. What a grind. I can't believe the boys in the TOC climbed this sucker at 14?mph. It was a WALL.

[jasond]

I've been out five times now and am getting a little faster each time. I think it has more to do with the warmer weather than anything. What is really concerning is the fact I'm unable to keep my heart rate in zone 2 or even 3 for that matter. I looked at my TRIMP for todays ride and the majority of my ride was in zone 5. Basically I need to remember that I can't ride like it's August or September.

J

[whitecda]

The good news is that it's in the 60's today. The bad news is I started out a little early so it was cold. 1/2 way through I started shedding, and ended up looking like Quasimoto. But still, it was 60 when I got done :beer:

Oh, and I was slow the whole way. But it was 60! Off to some gardening....it's in the 60's!!!! :D

Don

[mikki]

I was really fast today...when I was riding down hill. Being big and fat is so nice when gravity is on your side.

The rest of the ride was like watching rust form.


LOL!!

My first time out after getting this cruddy upper respiratory/lung virus and it's really chilly. Unbelievably slow but glad to get out of my house!!

[1centaur]

Test ride of the left hand yesterday.

33 at ride start, up to low 40's by the end.

31 miles with the local group at a decent pace but still base type riding.

No asthma issues. :banana:
But shifting into the big ring using my right hand is a PIA.

Out again today and tomorrow 'cuz you never know about more yucky weather in New England... :fight:

BK

I thought that was you heading for BRB as I left it yesterday. I was hoping it was. No matter your pace, I expect you felt the ride a little sweeter given your fears of the last week.

As for not knowing about more yucky NE weather...oh yes you do :) Rain/Rain/Snow for the end of the week.

[Bruce K]

Actually, went out today solo. I felt like a slug for about 1.25 hours but discovered I had actually managed a pretty good pace.

The best news was that today I could actually shift the front derailleur with my left hand.

:banana: :banana: :banana:

I'm still crossing every finger and toe but steroids appear to be the short term answer.

BK

[tylercheung]

no no no you have it all wrong - you have to just ride to that steppenwolf song and call it "easy rider" speed...

[sngltrkjb]

took out my newly built up ottrott on her maiden voyage after 8 weeks of 7 twelves. and what do you know, she rode like a dream but trying to keep up to the pace line was a real b!@#$%. my legs are toast, but it was fun!

[Louis]

I have a stretch of road, from my house to a particular intersection, that I use to establish my "overall conditioning." Wind is obviously a factor, but it has one good little hill and lots of rollers, with trees on the side most of the way, so wind is typically not that bad. A time of thirty minutes is my benchmark. Above that I'm out of shape, below that I'm doing well. Today I did 31:30. The lowest I've ever seen (really hammering) was 28:something. Starting this coming week improved weather and the time change will allow me to ride after work, with a plan or riding 4 days per week. I'm guessing that by the end of the month I should be pretty close to 30:00.

I'm definitely in the "getting older every year" phase of my life, so this is a useful check. Because I've never been in super-great shape (e.g. the lowest I've seen my body fat has been 15%, and with all the hills around here, going down closer to 10% would be a huge help) I'm hoping I can forestall any huge decline in capability by working harder at it and resisting the temptation of snacks at work (easier said than done). Having that 30:00 benchmark to compare to over time will help.

Louis

[JBone]

Rode out this morning and tackled a fairly good climb here in San Diego called Mount Soledad. First time in a long time where I needed to stop and catch my breath, trying to keep pace with my buddy who is an extremely strong mt. biker. Needless to say, I need to keep riding...

[Ti Designs]

The best news was that today I could actually shift the front derailleur with my left hand.


Yeh, that was a problem on my ride too. I'm on my fixed gear, everybody else shows up on their race bikes with fast wheels, shifting those damn front derailleurs...