Once a Week Training Program

It had been around five days since I'd been on the bike, so I wasn't very surprised at the mental effort it took for me to get myself out the door this morning. By the time I clipped in I knew it was too late for a pre-Giro cup of coffee, so I just headed straight out to Robert E. Lee Blvd. to meet the group.  Although it was still on the chilly side, the weather has finally started to warm up around here.  Even better, the winds had likewise died down.  So even considering my recent once-a-week training regime, I figured I wouldn't have any trouble hanging in for the Saturday Giro Ride.  Of course, I had gone out significantly overdressed, as usual, but at least I was nice and warm as the group rolled eastward toward Hayne Blvd.  That road, by the way, is still quite a mess because of the ongoing levee construction, and the east bound Casino bridge was closed off today.  The lane nearest the levee is closed off with traffic barrels pretty much all the way to Paris Road, so although it isn't too much of a problem on the way out, coming back toward town is quite uncomfortable.  As a result, the Giro has recently been coming back on the I-10 service roads all the way down to Crowder in order to minimize the amount of time spent on Hayne.

Today the pace was pretty easy, by Giro standards at least. Since I was definitely feeling the effects of three weeks of minimal saddle time, this was perfect.  It was fast enough for a decent workout but easy enough to accommodate my once-a-week training program.  So things were going along nicely all the way out and most of the way back.  When we made the curve onto the service road I dropped back a bit and soon found myself almost at the end of the paceline. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed something coming my way.  One of those thin plastic grocery bags was being blown across the road and was on an intercept course with my rear wheel.  I tried to make a quick course correction but before I knew it was all tangled up in my jockey wheels and cassette.  The crank wouldn't turn, so all I could do was coast to a stop as the rest of the group disappeared around the bend at Bullard Avenue.  Fortunately I was able to remove everything without too much drama (I almost had to pull out my pocket knife), and was back on the bike a couple of minutes later, just in time to meet up with a couple of riders who weren't with the Giro.  So at least I had someone to ride back with.  Back on Robert E. Lee I caught up with Vivian for a little while before I turned off at Marconi.  My then I could see the remnant of the group that was coasting back toward Harrison Avenue, so I decided I'd stop at the Starbucks to get that cup of coffee I'd missed.  Max joined me and we chatted for a while before I finally had to head back toward home and reality.

So my mother is out of the ICU now and in the CCU where she is asking for Scotch (the doctor actually said it would be OK to have a little!), complaining about the pureed food, and planning on having someone come in to fix her hair.  She was on Vent just a few days ago.