Getting a tune up

The weekend of my bike brake-nut hunt my husband convinced me ("Here is money, get a tune up!") to get my bike in for a very long over due tune up. I decided that I would also obtain a professional bike fit that same day. I had heard in the past that just a generic bike fitting would be good enough for all but the most elite cyclists. Recently, however, it dawned on me that my knees and feet would thank me for obtaining a proper bike fitting before riding 10s of 1000s of miles. So I went over to the nice folks of J.R. Smith Coaching and had them pull out their fancy biometric tools while I sat serenely pedaling on my bike. The end result was raising my saddle 0.5 cm, changing my cleat position just a tiny bit on my right shoe, and pulling my aerobar uprights back towards the handle bars by several cm. The new position seems good so far, but I haven't ridden much since the fitting.

The tune-up was completed by Revolution Mountain Sports. They did a good job, the bike shifts better and the brakes are set better. Furthermore, they replaced my ratty bar tape. The new wrap job is excellent, for which I am very pleased.

I also bought new tires, since the ones on my bike had spots where the underlying threading was no longer under-lying. The new tires are very nice, and yellow! Now I have a pretty black bike with yellow tires and it looks sweet. I wanted yellow bar tape, too, but I failed to mention that to the shop. My bike also received a bath the night before the tune up. Surgical-prep scrub brushes are really great for bike cleaning.

Why getting a regular tune up is a good thing

Two weeks ago I was walking towards the elevator to leave work, wheeling my bike along when I noticed a strange squeaky noise emanating from my bike. As anyone with a bike knows, strange squeaky noises should be looked into immediately lest something break and you die. So I stopped and looked down to examine my bike. The cause was immediately evident. My front tire was flat. Very flat. Flatter than I can get it by letting all the air out through the valve. I always carry an extra tube and my bike pump so the flat did not worry me. However, when I went to pop the front wheel off, I discovered that one of the nuts holding my front brakes together was broken in half. Half was missing and half (okay a little more than half) was still clinging to the bolt. This concerned me. So I took TRAX (the local train system) home. Saturday I spent an hour hunting various bike shops and hardware stores for a nut that would fit. Unfortunately, as many bike manufactures do, the nut was proprietary and had a non-standard thread pitch. However I was able to find a nut that would screw on a little bit, and with a few washers to make the connection tight and a bit of duct tape to ensure the whole assemblage does not come loose from road vibration I was up and running (or riding) again.

Spring: The Best Time of Year

I love the spring. Currently we are having beautiful weather. It is getting into the 80s everyday and by the time I get out the door in the morning, it is already nearly 70 degrees. I am very fond of warm weather. Today will make the fourth day of riding in a row. I haven't ridden that many days in a row for quite some time. I slept quite well last night and when I woke up my heart rate was quite normal, which is encouraging. I hope to be able to ride tomorrow, too. Tonight I will go to the gym and weight train.

I have been leaving for home and work at odd times, so traffic has not been a problem this week. For the most part, drivers here in Utah seem to be extra courteous, which I very much appreciate. I think I have been getting better, yesterday at a stop light my HR dropped to 100 within one minute of stopping after 40 minutes of riding.

Wasatch

Well today I tried a new route in to work. I climbed up to Wasatch Blvd and followed it along until it emptied out onto Foothill. Actually, I followed the bike path from Wasatch to Foothill. Foothill was not as bad to bike on as I had thought it would be. However, it does go from two lanes, one of which has a nice wide shoulder, to three lanes with no shoulder. Fortunately, it was past rush hour and all the traffic elected to stay in the two left lanes to pass me. This route has more climbing than my normal route, but it was not too hard. I did take it easy, dropping down into my very utmost lowest gear numerous times. Wasatch Blvd is a nice road to bike on, it has a bike lane almost the whole length. Getting to Wasatch isn't so much fun since I, currently, use a route that takes me past a freeway entrance/exit. Perhaps next time I take Wasatch I will pick it up further south to avoid that intersection.

It was nice to see that my HR stayed in normal ranges with a max of 175 today. In the past, it has told me that my max was 238 or 232 or some such horrendous number. I don't exactly trust my HRM since often I look down and notice it is reading my HR as 0. Since 0 would be dead, and I am clearly alive, I imagine that electrical interference is causing problems.

I only put sunscreen on my bare legs today and I seem to have obtained a minor sunburn on my arms and face. I guess I will have to go back to liberal application. I just don't like the sticky/slimy/residue-y feeling that cheap sunscreens leave and I am too cheap to splurge on expensive sunscreens. Perhaps a fancy sunscreen company will deign to sponsor me so I can use good sunscreen for my races and training. Anyone know of a good sunscreen company???

Bad at Blogging

Okay, well it has been a month since I last posted anything at all. I guess I am not very good at blogging. However, since I suspect that no one reads these anyway, it probably doesn't really matter much. On the other hand, if I want to impress potential sponsors who may just find their way to this blog, I had better have a descent training blog or they will think I am a loser. Which, I am not. I am just a little be too competitive to be a loser.

Since I last posted the weather has become increasingly beautiful and warm, enticing me to ride more days out of the week. This week I only rode three days. My husband and I decided to go with a Gold's Gym weight trainer and this week we completed two strenuous workouts. I am quite sore. But it is the good kind of sore.... I suspect that these workouts and staying up rather late last night were why my heart rate this morning was rather higher than it should have been. I probably could have gone riding anyway, but I have plenty of time to train for the TTT so I don't want to ruin my training by pushing too hard right now. Last week I took an easy week and I think that I took it too easy. This is why it would be good to have a coach. While I did not complete my 100 miles this week I expect that I shall be able to complete it next week.

I find that going to bed at the same time every night is beneficial to my training. My body seems to like having a routine and I tend to wake up at the same time every morning anyway. Another thing I discovered this week is that if I eat a breakfast that has some fat and protein in it (ie not just a bowl of cereal) I do not bonk on my ride in to work. Although this should be obvious to any serious athlete, sometimes these things just take a bit of time to percolate into my consciousness.

I have spoken with one coaching company and I have sent merely one sponsorship inquiry out as of now. I will send out at least one more tonight and I may write a letter or two to be posted on Monday.

As a random side note, My husband bought a sewing machine for me for my birthday and I have been sewing lots of great clothes ever since.