cycle 600 miles in July

Hardly worth recording – dropped off the car at the start line for STP, then rode to the Montlake Flyer Station, caught the bus, and rode home through Microsoft Corporate Campus.

The usual in-to-work-and-back.

That might be the last ride for the week – I have to use the car Tuesday and Wednesday, and then I usually want a day or two off before the big Seattle-to-Portland ride.

In to work, then out via the Farmers’ Market with David. I got a little competitive wild hair, and really did a strong spin up Bel-Red, leaving my poor husband in the dust.

I got a lift up to the office from my husband, with the bike (and helmet, gloves, shorts, and shoes) in tow.

It kept on looking like it was about to rain. I worked until 5:00, then picked up a pack of tofu at the QFC. Coming out of the shopping center, it started to rain.

I hadn’t planned on it raining, and not only did I not have a jacket, I was just wearing a lousy cotton t-shirt. The shirt first got wet, and then downright soaked in places.

As I rode over the freshly-poured asphalt near Marymoor, it was steaming in the pelting rain.

Once I was at Marymoor, I figured I could bail if I wanted – I could ride to the bus stop and take a bus home. But the thought of having to ride an extra half mile out of my way to the bus stop (and another half mile home from the bus stop where I’d get off)...and to wait maybe as long as 20 minutes for a bus, when it only would take, at most, 20 minutes to ride home…

I decided to ride anyway. So I did. Deity Hill now I can ride up the first two stair steps without getting out of the saddle, but the final steep step – all that slippery moss? In the rain? I dismounted and walked up.

Despite the risk of chilblains, I took a hot bath when I got home, scrubbed the road grime off of my shins.

Monday, I was playing dodgeball on West Lake Sammamish Parkway. First off, it’s garbage day, so everyone had their bins out. Then, there were two (illegally) parked cars, and on top of that, three cyclists coming the wrong way. To get out of the way of two of those cyclists, I had to cross over into the main traffic lane. Since the main traffic lane is concrete, and the shoulder is asphalt, and the two do not join up well, I nearly lost out my back wheel. Then, because of a curve and the trash bins, and mutual inattentiveness, I nearly collided with the guy going the wrong way – probably only my Scream of Death got him to dart out into the main line of traffic and save my life.

So, this morning, I decided not to go on the City of Bellevue portion of WLSP, and instead, ride down to the Redmond portion, where there is fresh-ish blacktop and a bike/ped facility on both sides of the street, instead of one.

Not only was this route much less trafficked, and with no bad pavement or close calls, the climb up to the top of the plateau via Louis Thompson road was much easier (8% rather than 12% grade).

I’m sold. Yes, it’s yet another mile out of my way, but I’m going around the top of the lake now for both going into work and riding home.

The only downside is that this week there’s road construction at the east exit of Marymoor Park. This morning’s solution: I cut through a parking lot, then slung the bike over my shoulder and bush-whacked it to the unpaved trail. I then rode along that until I was out of the construction zone. Well, I always wanted to do cyclo-cross!

No mudguards. Rain. Puddles. Mud. More mud. Rain.

The good thing is all that grit in my face means I don’t need to exfoliate (not that I ever do, of course) – plus, the mud should moisturise, no?

I may be a scary 50-year-old covered in mud… but I’ll have great skin :D

Today I learnt: keep my mouth shut passing the riding stables.

26 miles today; 219 for July; 1938 for 2008.

God it was cold this morning in the valley; I really wished I’d brought gloves with fingers. By the time I got to the estuary it was scalding: cloudless and clear. Not a soul to be seen excepting the rabbits.

I’d intended to cycle further but I haven’t quite perfected my positioning on the bike – ^{did I tell you I have a new bike? :D} – and my knees were getting sore. It’s too hot now anyway. Picnic?

36 miles today; 193 for July; 1912 for 2008.

Riding home in the sunshine, just turned the corner to start mounting the hill, when

crunch

and the shifter stopped working.

I rode down to the bike shop (a mostly level ride back to Marymoor Park, and then on the trail on up), where they found that the cable was broken somewhere deep in the housing. No chance of just fishing it out, replacing it, and letting me go on my way. Since they have a lot of bikes to work on, they’ll deal with it some time tomorrow. So the bike’s in the shop overnight, and they’ll call me about when I can pick it up tomorrow.

Straight from work tonight to the sea. I was really slow coming back: 200 calories for breakfast, 370 for lunch, nothing else – I need to focus on this again.

25 miles tonight; 157 for July; 1876 for 2008.

I thought I’d be at a new, higher platform of fitness after the tour. So I started sprinting up 212 like Lancette. Unfortunately, before I got to the penultimate stair-step, I pooped out. How bad? I had to get off the bike and sit by the side of the ditch until I could get my breathing back under control.

“Mark ‘Improve my bicycle hill climbing’ as complete?” I thought to myself. “What a joke!”

But this evening, after riding first to a barbecue and not heading home late, I decided to take the most direct way home from the event, which was up 24th. This is another side of multi-deity hill. The grade is 11.3%, and very steady, unlike the deity route which is a stair step of very steep, and then not-so-steep. Anyway, I made it to the top without difficulty, so who knows what was up this morning.