Fog or trainer or wind oh my!

Currently, I am doing interval training on Tuesdays and Thursdays as Coach Tim helps get me ready for Levi Leipheimer's Gran Fondo. These intervals usually consist of speed workouts, hill repeats or power intervals. Occasionally, I get to ride my time trial route and even less frequently he will throw in a mid-week recovery ride. This means that on almost every Tuesday and Thursday ride I have a decision to make. Am I going to deal with fog, the wind, or the monotony of the trainer.

My "normal" work hours are supposed to be 9 - 6 although it is frequently more like 7 -6. Plus, Coach Tim's workouts are very intense but only last 60 -70 minutes. This means I can ride the road, either before or after work, thanks to the long days of summer. So where does the decision come into play? As it happens, Northern California has a very predictable weather pattern. Every night, the marine layer rolls in and every afternoon the winds kick up from the coast due to heat generated in the Central Valley.

Thus my dilemma. If I ride before work I have to deal with fog. Riding after work means dealing with the wind. And riding the trainer means an hour of enjoying the four walls of my garage. In order to make a proper decision, let's take this opportunity to explore each option starting with the trainer.

I don't like working out indoors! I never have and doubt I ever will. My previous job had me traveling 2-3 weeks a month so I did my share of workouts in hotel gyms and health clubs. At health clubs, I always seemed to be lucky enough to be sandwiched between a woman who apparently bathed in Calvin Klein's Obsession and the guy who had asparagus with a garlic curry sauce for dinner last night. No thanks! I tolerate indoor workouts in the winter when there really isn't another option.

I have discussed the fog in a previous blog - Fog!!! (enough said) - so I will just provide a quick recap. The marine layer can range anywhere from a thin layer of clouds that is gone 30-minutes after the sun comes up to a very thick layer of misty clouds that require you to use your windshield wipers and hangs around all day. Bottom line, fog makes me feel cold and miserable.

That leaves the wind. I am not talking about the kind of light summer breeze that makes you want to sit on the porch sipping mint juleps. I'm talking lane-changing, bitch-slapping, make you cry for mama wind. The wind speed normally averages between 10 and 15 mph and can regularly gusts up to 20 mph. Nothing else makes me feel like I am working so hard to go so slow as the wind.

Sorry, but I need to interrupt here with a rant about tailwinds. Where the hell are they? How is it that I can go in a complete square and not have a single tailwind? I mean, logic would dictate that if I take 4 consecutive 90 degree turns that one leg should be with the wind.

Alright, I feel better now.

There you have it. My daily decision to deal with fog, the trainer or the wind. I can tell that currently the wind is winning.

Ciao!