Looking North

I really, really wanted to stay in bed this morning, but with the La./Ms. racing season starting up soon, and the chances of getting any significant weekend training under my belt looking dim, skipping my morning ride today would have left me guilt-ridden the rest of the day anyway. At least it wasn't raining, and there was even a little bit of sky peeking through the clouds. For a change, I wasn't running too late, so naturally I caught a train just before I got to the levee. Then the train stopped. I circled around practicing my track stands (like those ever work in real life!) until finally the road was clear and I could dash across to river road where I had to stop and wait again for a break in the solid line of cars that had been held up by the train. I guess there must have been some others who were delayed by the train farther downriver, because Big Richard and Luke caught up to us within the first few miles.

It was an odd wind today, gusting strongly from the east, and once we made the curve at the country club we had quite a crosswind to deal with. As often happens, the group split in the crosswind. The river is fairly high right now, thanks to all of the rain in the midwest and east, and there's enough water between the levee and the trees that line the riverbank to support a lot of waterfoul. All the way out to the turnaround, I kept looking down at that water and noticing that the wind was blowing strongly enough to make waves in it. It was looking like the return trip would be pretty hard. As it turned out, Matt and I rode the whole way back out ahead of the group. Matt was taking long steady pulls. My pulls were, well, steady at least. It was a good training ride, despite the cold feet and wind, but I still feel kind of sluggish on the bike. It always happens that way this time of year. January and February seem to be the low spots for me as far as training goes. I guess a lot of it has to do with the fact that I just hate riding when it's cold. Go figure.

I think that my favorite part of my morning training ride routine is the easy cool-down ride back from the levee to the house on the quiet side streets. It always reminds me that I am lucky to be living in a real neighborhood with real people. This part of Carrollton is a hodgepodge of houses from the tiny three-room shotguns all lined up in rows to the big raised Victorian homes on the corners, inhabited by a very diverse mix of people. It certainly keeps life interesting, anyway.

So we will be flying up to Iowa City this weekend, and as usual it will probably be about the coldest weather they've had all year. Somehow we always seem to be there for that special event. Somehow I will have to figure out a way to get some serious exercise this time. The track series starts in only ten days. I wonder if I will have the motivation to glue the track tires on this year. We shall see.