A year in Biking

Part 2: Cycling...

Ahh, the joys of being on 2 wheels... This year, I can confidently say that I made the most progress on the bike than any other discipline...

And here's why:

Keep chasin' that shadow...

And I guess it makes sense that I improved as a cyclist this year, considering I logged roughly 21% more miles this year than last (2,068.26 mi in 2011 vs. 2,506.53 mi in 2012), roughly 24 more hours, and was on the bike 33 more times in 2012 than in 2011... 

Big numbers mean one thing... 

Big gains... 

And the big number to brag about is lowering my avg HR from 155bpm (2011) to 146bpm (2012)... I'm damn proud of that... I am becoming a more efficient cyclist through HRZ training... I finally "caved" and started paying attention to what Kendrick was assigning when it came to HRZ training, and it paid off big time... 

I have yet to take the leap into using a Powermeter, but that's not far off... hoping to make the transition in 2013, provided I can get my finances straight and be smart about another big ticket purchase...  

Here are a couple of memorable rides of 2012:

1. Dam Triathlon Bike Split: point blank, this won me the race... This was a decisive bike split for me-- it taught me that despite what I had told myself, I can race hard on hilly courses... But I have to be smart about it... On the 2 loop course, I took the first lap easy, then pushed the second, resulting in a stellar negative split (Miles 1-10~ 21.44mph, Miles 11-20.70~ 22.94mph, Final bike time: 57:48, avg of 21.5mph)... I came out of the water in a pretty poor position, but was able to use the bike to my advantage... Took the fastest bike split in the Clydes and hung on for the W...

2. Post Dissertation Defense Ride with Hammond: Dunno what it was about it, but this sticks out in my mind as one of my most memorable rides... it wasn't a hammerfest, I didn't PR anything, there was nothing really special about it, other than the fact I had done my final defense earlier that morning... I just remember riding down Sanders Ferry with Hammond, chatting about how we'd both miss Tuscaloosa when we both inevitably moved away, how we both wished we could still be on the Bama team, how we knew that they'd end up screwing things up without us, and really, how far he and I had come as friends since we met...

3. Longest ride of 2012 (63mi, 3:40): Yet again, this one involved Hammond... Saddle time being what it was, this was by far the longest ride I did in 2012, and believe it or not, probably one of the most enjoyable long rides, mainly because it wasn't a hammerfest... In truth, I wasn't supposed to ride as far or as long as I did, but it was one of those days where things were just clicking... all pistons were firing and the legs were feeling pretty good, so we just kept going... Hammond had become my new Shayne-- my go-to guy when it came to rides, and my go-to guy when it came to solving all of the world's problems while on those rides... I hate the fact that he's in Miami now, but that just means one thing... Road Trip!

4. New Bike! It's amazing... buy a bike for the money you have and you make it work for 3 years, posting up some great times and even better memories... buy a new bike, with money you really don't have, and instantly get mad at yourself for not doing it sooner...

Words cannot express how happy I am with my Shiv... My old Cervelo served me well... very well for what I paid for it and how hard I rode it.... But my Shiv... Oh my little Shiv... Riding this thing is like Christmas morning every day... I no longer dread long rides, because I know my back will be just fine coming off the bike... My run off the bike has improved as well, now that I'm not using my damn knees to generate power...

The first ride I did back on October 7th confirmed that I shouldn't have waited as long as I did to buy a carbon bike... But, I'm glad I did, because it made buying the Shiv all that sweeter... I still have yet to add all of the bells and whistles (like a Powermeter and race wheels), but that stuff will come...

5. Post Double Oak Duathlon ride with Shayne: Out of all of 2012, this was the only ride I was able to get in with my original PIC (partner in crime), Mr. Shayne Gervais... Shayneo moved up to Bham last year and despite having the best intentions, I never made it up there to ride with him, based mainly on 2 things: me writing a dissertation and him being hemmed up with his now fiance'... It's not that we didn't talk about riding... We did... all the time... we just never did it...

Shayne met me out at Oak Mountain for a spin after I did the Designated Last Place Finisher for the Double Oak Duathlon... this was just a pedal fest.. nothing intense, nothing extreme... mainly because Shayne hadn't kept up with riding and I had... At any rate, it was great to get back in the saddle with Shayne again...

If the roads could talk, I'm scared of what they'd repeat from me and this guy...

I"m probably most excited to see where I take the bike in 2013... I feel like I've done an ok job so far of getting to know the back roads of Columbia, but I know there is so much more out there for me to explore... there are millions of cracks in the pavement for me to count... there are miles of white lines to follow to nowhere... 

Here's to big numbers in 2013!

Thanks for reading...