The Week Before

The Saturday Giro, what there was of it, tip-toeing across the slippery steel atop the Seabrook drawbridge

Running a bit behind, writing-wise, but since nothing interesting has happened this week, yet, I'll write instead about last week. It was the best of weeks. It was the worst of weeks. I swear, I've spent more time riding alone lately than I remember doing in a long time. Of course, I don't remember what I had for breakfast, so perhaps it hasn't been all that bad. As is typical this time of year, the weather has been all over the freaking place. Monday in the 60s, Tuesday in the 40s, Thursday almost 30s, Saturday wet, Sunday windy. On Tuesday I was rather disappointed to find just a couple of riders for the morning levee ride. It was chilly, and a little windy, but when the others decided to turn back early, I pushed on anyway. Thursday, perhaps feeling bad about having turned early on Tuesday, they soldiered on for the full distance. But distance is one thing, effort another, and lately the latter's been in rather short supply. Then on Saturday the streets were wet but the temperature was warm which resulted in a really low turnout for the Giro. Just a handful of us did the full ride, and of course I got home wet and dirty and had to hose the bike down, but I was glad I'd ridden.

Small turnout for what turned out to be a really good ride

On Sunday I'd planned a 75-mile ride on the northshore for the Winter Training Ride series. First, though, was a long slow drive across the Causeway under fog restrictions, which means single lane, no passing, and 45 mph unless, as was the case, you get stuck behind someone going 35 most of the way. Up north of Covington it was pretty chilly and damp, and the turnout was predictably much lower than the prior week had been, but we ended up with a really nice ride all the way up to the Mississippi line that took in a few new roads. Of course I flatted somewhere out there as we were trying to figure out which way to turn at an intersection none of us had seen before. On the plus side, I did a fair amount of work on this ride and felt like I got a good early-season workout. It turned out to be the first week since November that I got to ride every day, and the mileage total came in at just under 300, so not a bad week.

This week hasn't really been much to write about except that Tuesday the temperature was in the 30s and it was super windy and of course nobody showed up except me. With my speed often dipping down into the mid-teens I turned around early, logging only 28 miles but glad to get home to hot coffee before my toes started to freeze.

This coming weekend should be interesting. I've got at Tulane meeting tonight, then the Friday coffee ride in the morning, after which I'll be picking up a rental car because Danielle has the Volvo up in Natchitoches where she'll be supporting Shannon who is doing the Red Dirt Ultra trail run. I have a LAMBRA meeting after the Saturday Giro, and then we'll be driving up there to witness the carnage as the runners try to finish the final lap of the 100 mile run. There will be rain, but at least the temperatures should be mostly in the 50s.