A Little Perseverance

It’s amazing how a little perseverance can go a long way.  Or in my case on Saturday, it allow me to go a long way.  Saturday’s ride was a pretty decent effort at 50 miles and just over 4,100 feet of climbing.  However, this post will only be about the first 10 miles.

When I rolled down the driveway just before 8:00 am, I quickly realized something wasn’t right as I turned down Montgomery Drive.  Normally, I cruise along around 17 mph when I’m heading out.  Saturday, I felt like I was moving in slow motion.  I look down at the cyclometer to see I am riding along at a whopping 14.5 mph.  And, I feel like I’m working hard to maintain that pace.

This is already shaping up to be a piss-poor ride so I start thinking about my favorite coffee shops.  But, I do have a big ride at the end of the month so I need to push through this.  As I roll along I start to think about how I’m feeling and why my legs feel so heavy.  In the process, I came up with a ton of excuses all designed to make me head back home.

To begin with, I actually had no idea where I was riding until just before I got on the bike.  If it had been a team ride day I wouldn’t need to worry but since I was on my own, I needed to come up with a route.  In these cases I usually create a route earlier in the week and then spend the rest of the time getting excited about it.  I wasn’t really excited about today’s ride so that was problem number one.  Excited or not, I needed miles so I kept riding.

I also started running again this week.  Nothing crazy! Just little runs of 2.1 and 2.6 miles.  Still, it’s been a while so maybe that’s why my legs feel like lead.  If that’s the problem I should definitely head for coffee since that’s not going to get any better.  Instead, I kept riding.

I am now heading out of town and tackling the first major climb of the ride.  Maybe that’s the issue.  My goal was to reach 4,000 feet of climbing so maybe I was just psyching myself out.  Do I really want to do all of this climbing.  That’s when the internal negotiations began. You know what I mean.  That inner dialogue where you convince yourself it would still be a great ride without all those pesky hills so why don’t you go find some flatter terrain.  While this discussion was happening in my mind I simply kept climbing.

My reward for climbing!

I finally decided it was time to put up or shut up.  I was on a good climb on the way to one of my favorite descents.  To get rid of the dialogue in my mind I started looking around and enjoying the scenery on a gorgeous spring day.  To my legs, enough’s enough and I lifted the pace.  I decided at the top of the climb I was going to feel better or completely flogged.  

It worked!  As I was going over the top I started to feel better about my efforts. I thoroughly enjoyed my descent and instead of looking for flat land I headed to the next hill.  In the end, it was a great ride and I actually set personal records on both the Lichau and Sonoma Mountain climbs.

I know I will continue to have days, both on and off the bike, where I’m simply not feeling it.  When that happens I will able to reflect back on this ride and repeat the phrase - a little perseverance goes a long way.

Ciao!

Pressing Reset on 2015

As I mentioned in an earlier post (It’s All about the Base), this year is off to a slow start.  In fact, it was such a weird start that it was beginning to impact my motivation to ride.  So, this weekend I hit the reset button on 2015.  In a word, it was awesome!!!

Here’s some numbers to put this into perspective.  Prior to last weekend I only had 176 miles on the bike and my longest ride was 37 miles.  In 2014, I had already ridden 608 miles with a 73 mile effort in the books.  That’s a 345% reduction in miles.  I tried to get things started last weekend with a 50-mile effort and although I finished the ride I was exhausted and I still wasn’t feeling it.

Mustard in apple orchard.

As Saturday approached, I began to think about the ride.  I have an 75-mile event at the end of April that will include over 5,000 feet of elevation so I needed to climb.  At first, my club’s ride seemed perfect.  They were planning on 51 miles with 3,000 feet of climbing, which seemed like just what the doctor ordered.

However, there were a couple of reasons that I decided to head out on my own - the pace and the route.  As I watched who would be riding, I knew that the ride would be fast and I’m not ready for fast just yet.  And, while the route seemed to have the right amount of climbing and distance, all of the climbing was at the beginning where I wanted something more even.

Cherry blossoms in the forest.

Instead, I headed out on my favorite early season rides in the hills of Sebastopol.  In Strava, I named it the Hill Repeats without Repeating Hills ride.  This ride includes 8 climbs that are at least 1/2 mile or longer and gain over 100 feet.  In the end, it was 45 miles and 3,041 feet of climbing bliss.

Everything changed for me on this ride.  In addition to a great ride physically, it was also a great ride with regards to my motivation.  While it was still pretty damn cold when I rolled out (how about 41 degrees), spring is just starting show all of it’s glory, as you can see from the pictures, so I was treated to some beautiful scenery.  There’s just something about the combination of wild flowers in the fields and wood fires in the hearths that I find very appealing.

Wild flowers and a beautiful blue sky.

As the ride was winding down, I knew that I had chosen well.  As I rode, each climb became a little harder and each recovery was a little less effective.  I was really feeling tired on the last climb of the day, which is actually a good sign.  My motivation was back and I found myself once again loving the simple joy of riding my bike.  

As to the club ride, let’s just say I made the right call.  They rode 46 miles with 3,000 feet of climbing but, as expected, it was at a different pace.  While it took me nearly 3.5 hours to complete my 45 mile route they finished 46 miles in 2 hours and 40 minutes.  Oh yeah, I definitely made the right call.

Still, I did miss riding with my friends.  In April, we’ll go back to riding every Saturday so there’s plenty of time to ride, chat, laugh and maybe even trash talk just a bit.  Until then, I have the whole month of March to get ready.

Ciao!

Our Italian Soccer Expereince

It all started with the 2010 World Cup.  Like many Americans, Sherry and I did not really follow soccer, especially on the world stage.  Still, our love of traveling in Europe made us start to think a little differently.  I mean, to many Europeans, soccer is everything. So, we tuned in and were hooked from the very first game.

From the moment Spain hoisted the World Cup trophy as the eventual winner, we knew we would have to see a soccer game in Europe.  And, every trip since then we’ve tried.  Boy how we have tried.  Each time we looked into it one of two things would happen.  Either we were between seasons or the home team was on the road.  It seemed the soccer gods were rooting against us.

As the 2014 World Cup came and went, we were still looking for that first game.  On our current trip to Florence we found it.

Florence is home to the Fiorentina’s or Le Viola as they are called locally since their primary color is purple, which also happens to be the color of Florence.  We were able to buy tickets in advance online and were all set to see our first ever European soccer match.

However, we had to do a little shopping first.  I mean, if you’re going to cheer for the home team you had better dress for the part.  As luck would have it, there is an official Fiorentina outlet just a few doors away our apartment.  We went over the day before the game and walked out a few minutes later with enough hats, scarves and t-shirts to show our support.

Finally, it was game day.  After a minor delay concerning our tickets we were in our seats just about 15 minutes before the match began.  Now, we just need to learn the chants and songs as the excitement was building.  The first part was easy.  As the announcer introduced each Le Viola player, he would shout the first name and the crowd would shout his last.  Since the names were also on the scoreboard it was very easy to join in.  This also happened after each goal when we would shout out the scorer’s last name.

Next, came the songs.  I don’t know why but I really wanted to participate in the singing.  After paying very close attention, I discovered the main song went something like this - blah blah blah blah Fiorentina blah blah blah! Yeah, I only managed to learn the Fiorentina part but that was enough to join in each time it came around.

Of course, there was also a game to be played.  We groaned when the visiting team score first.  Then we cheered as we tied the game.  We cheered and then groaned when our go ahead goal was waved off because of an offsides called.  We cheered wildly when the opposing team player was issued a yellow card. 

As the game progress, we found ourselves settling into the rhythm.  We scream when the referee missed a blatant call or called some stupid little penalty against us.  We booed each time the opposing team took an obvious dive to gain a call in his favor.

Mostly, we just enjoyed the experience.  We enjoyed it all from the three 12-year boys behind us (who knew every song), to the espressos at half time, to walking out with the crowd in the glow of a win by the home team.  It was everything we hoped it would be.

We will continue going to games when the opportunity arises.  Hopefully, the soccer gods will now be a little kinder and we will see our next game before the 2018 World Cup.  If not, we’ll just sit at home wrapped up in Fiorentina scarves and try to pretend we’re at the game.

Ciao!

Barista Training

In 2012, Sherry and I spent 3 weeks in Italy and part of that time was in Florence.  The few days we were in Florence left us wanting much more.  Now, we’ve returned with an 11-day visit dedicated to learning the secrets of Florence.  

The goal for this trip was to go beyond the Uffizi, the David, and the Duomo and really get to know the city.  As we were researching things to do we stumbled across something on TripAdvisor that immediately spoke to us both - Cappuccino & Espresso Course & Tour.  

Coffee is more than a hot beverage for us.  We study it.  We are fascinated by ever aspect from growing to roasting to sipping.  So, when we see a course in Italy (delivered in English) that offers to teach us about the plants, how to blend, the perfect espresso technique, coffee tastings, perfect foam and latte art, our only question is how to sign up.

Gabriele showing his technique.

Our class was on Friday night and it was a blast.  As soon as we met our host and teacher, Gabriele, we knew we were in for a great night.  He was that perfect combination of witty and knowledgeable.  And, to make things even better, we were his only students that night.

After making us coffees, the course begins.  We learn about the 2 main types of coffee and why they are typically blended.  We learned about how coffee is priced for purchase on the stock exchange.  We took a tour of the roasting facility where we discovered that even with all of the science available, it is a real person who decides the coffee is roasted perfectly.

Learning how to create latte art.

After the tour it was back to the class where we made espressos from 3 very distinctive coffees.  Tasting the nuances between the coffees reminded us of wine tasting.  Then it was our turn to play.  I must confess I’ve always wanted to make a cappuccino on a real coffee shop size espresso machine.  Well, this was my chance.  Gabriele showed us the perfect technique and then Sherry and I both got to practice.  

In the end, it was a memorable night.  I think Gabriele enjoyed our passion for coffee as much as we enjoyed his knowledge about it.  

This may not be your typical vacation activity but it was a great evening for us.  After all, the purpose of this trip was to go beyond the main attractions.  If our espresso class is any indication, we are off to a successful start.

Ciao!

It's All about the Base

I am writing this post while flying 35,000 feet over Canada on my way to Florence.  As I speed my way towards another great European adventure, you would think my thoughts are focused on long walks with Sherry, good food, great wine, and fine Italian espressos.  While understandable, you’d be wrong.  With 8 hours of flight time still to go I have plenty of time to switch my thoughts to the romance that is Florence.  Right now I am thinking about cycling!!! 

Well, I am actually thinking about not cycling, as in I won’t be riding for the next 14 days.  And, to be honest, I’m not sure buying the cycling magazine at the airport is helping the matter.  The reason for this focus on cycling is that this season is off to a weird start and I’m concerned about my base fitness. 

I rode nearly 4,700 miles last year that included a lot of climbing and jumping in the occasional pace line that was way too fast for me.  The result?  I entered the off season in great shape and I was really looking forward to carrying the base into 2015. It was going to be the foundation for another awesome year.  Instead, I am off to a very slow start and that’s cause for my concern.

It all started going down hill in October.  This is when I usually start to back off just a little and then take some real time off to recover in November.  However, my company started a really cool wellness program last year and we began an 11-week cardio challenge in October.  This meant completing at least 200 in zone minutes per week to qualify for the championship.  So much for taking it easy in October and November.

Long story short, my team was in the final championship so instead of taking time off the first week of December I racked up 1,012 of in zone cardio time.  By they way, 1,012 minutes was only good enough for 7th place as I work with some very competitive people.  The top gun logged 1,316 minutes. However, my team did win the championships so it was all worth it right?

It was time for a new plan. After the championship, I took 2 full weeks off to recover.  The plan was to rejuvenate and then pick things up in January.  That plan died a hideous death when I strained my groin.  This kept me off the bike for another 2 weeks.  In 2014, I finished January with over 400 miles.  This year it was a measly 126 easy miles.  No big  climbs.  No rocket-fast pace lines.  Just me cruising along like I was going to get coffee, which I did on most rides.

Now, just as the strain groined has healed enough to get back on the bike, I will be in Italy.  

What does this all really mean for my base.  Well, to begin with I fully intend to enjoy the hell out of Florence and not really care that I’m not riding.  But, you can bet your bottom euro that when I get home I plan on hitting it hard.  That’s because I have a 75 mile event with over 6,000 feet of climbing to prepare for that is a short 7 weeks after we return.

Still, it’s all good.  I am pretty sure there is still a solid base in me somewhere.  I did manage to ride the Saturday before we left and I felt pretty good all things considered.  I am hopeful it all comes back quickly once I start riding on a regular basis.  If not, it’s going to be a long 75 miles.

Ciao!