Test Riding ... Again

Afternoon workout: As of this past weekend, I am bikeless. :-( So now I really feel like I need to get serious about this bike-shopping deal. So today I stopped at Roch Cycling & Fitness and picked up a 56 cm Trek to test ride.

Well, I immediately noticed differences between this bike and the 30+ year old steel bike I'd been riding. Light. (It was very windy, and the cross winds were literally blowing me and the bike around.) Responsive. (What a different feeling when I get up out of the saddle.) Different gearing. (This one has a couple of granny/tree-climbing gears which I really appreciated going up Fox Valley Dr on the west side. I didn't have to get out of the saddle to climb.)  I just felt fast. (Going up that longish incline heading east out of Salem Corners was a cakewalk. Of course, I had a tail wind, too. But it was such fun to hammer!!) The geometry of this bike is more relaxed that a performance bike (longer head tube) and I need to decide if that's what I want. I'm going back tomorrow to try a couple others that have racing geometry. I didn't have a cycle computer on it, but I think it was about 16'ish miles and 52 minutes. Good enough on a windy day with flat pedals and running shoes. :-)

Morning workout: I met Lisa and Bruce at the Y at 5:15 for our standard issue Wednesday morning run. What a difference from how I my legs felt last week, which was lifeless. Today they felt GREAT. When we got to 14th Ave NE and Viola Road, I told Bruce I'd run him home which meant a climb up Viola Road. I went back to the Y through Quarry Hill and then down to Slatterly Park. All told, 13 hilly miles.

(I can't get MapMyRun to import workouts/maps from my Garmin. This map is done using the Garmin software, and the mapping function isn't very detailed. Sorry.) Back at the Y, I swam for 45 minutes. That feels so good after a hard run, as does putting my legs into the whirlpool for about 3 minutes.

Last night's workout: Again, what a difference from last week when I tried to crest the hill 5 times, but never actually made it to the top. Noah and I ran together, in the rain. We did 10 hill repeats, 8 on 10th St and 2 on 9th Ave SW. Noah commented on how much easier hills are since we've started doing hill work. I think we've all commented at one time or other how much stronger we are running, and I think our race results are the proof in the pudding. Hills hurt, but they definitely help. Noah and I also mixed some speedwork into the workout, as I did this morning as well. I also think I had a better workout after NOT having run 4 miles in the AM.

After hitting the hills, it was off to Beetles. We had 19 again last night as best as I can recall: Joe & Sara and 4 kids, Randy, Mike, Bri, Lindsey, Erin, Andy, Jim, Scott, Sonja, John, Jean, Noah, me. Glad for the good turnout! Somehow, I managed to blur most of these pix. :-(

It was the last day of school for the Ryan kids, so they were having lots of treats, including a trip to DQ before arriving at Beetles, and then they each had 2 of my cookies ... and a little dinner, too. :-) They're really cute, well-behaved kids.

I brought Oatmeal/Chocolate Chip/Brickle cookies last night and I must say that's a winning combination. I used the Neiman Marcus recipe (on my recipe blog) and for stir-ins used 1 package chocolate chunks, 1 package Ghirardelli bittersweet chips and most of a package of Heath brittle bits (or toffee bits or whatever they're called). I really liked the additionof those brittle bits. Yum. A winning combination.

Today seemed to be quite a productive day at home for me. The lawn got mowed, a few more perennials moved, I tried to wrap my cherry tree with bird netting, but it was just too windy, did some weeding, laundry, and actually did NO baking!! Supper was a delicious spinach salad with sugar snap peas, a peach, onion, soy nuts, and a piece of Energy Bread from Great Harvest.

I got a note from Gary Kadansky today, and YFC is again selling crates of peaches: Georgia peaches for July delivery and Colorado peaches for August delivery. They will also have pears in August. I've purchased them before for canning. They're very good.

Joann Johnson is riding MS Tram again this year to raise funds for MS. Her husband Dennis has MS. If you would like to contribute, here is the link.

Reminder: Team R.E.D. is running from the Melby home in Byron tomorrow evening (6 PM). The address is 245 10th St. NE. All are welcome! Membership is not required. Please join us! Bring a dish/snack to pass if you like. I plan to bring strawberry rhubarb crisp.

I'm going to close this post with Rule 1.1 from Mark Remy's book The Runner's Rule Book which I picked up at the Boston Marathon expo. I have to agree with him. RUNNING IS FUN! I'm so happy when I'm "on the run", especially when running with friends. It just doesn't get any better than that ...

HAVE FUN

   You thought I was kidding when I called this the first rule of running? No way. I'm serious about having fun.

   And before you smirk and flip the page, please take this first rule to heart. It is primary and vital, and without it, no other rul in this book is worth beans. No other face is so fundamental to running or so very easy to forget: Done properly, running is fun.

   In face, even when you do it improperly, running is still pretty fun (just like another animal impuse that we could mention, but won't). It is inherently, liberatingly fun. There is a fundamental joy in movement, in forward motion.

   If you doubt this, just spend a few minutes watching a child or even a dog in any wide, open space. Their glee is instinctual and undeniable. I believe it was Aristotle who once said, "Tramps like us, baby, were born to run." (??) In any case, remember this one primary rule, and you're halfway there.

   Running is fun. Indulge this instinct. Enjoy it. After all, there aren't many animal impulses that we can act on in public without getting arrested.