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Road thoughts

Another good ride at White today. Lisa Randall was kind enough to give me another tour, this time of the 45-mile route. I was worried about my left knee which had tendinitis all last week from a poor bike fit and probably too much mileage too soon on the new road bike.  I finally had the bike fit a few days ago and wow did it make a difference today!  No knee pain, shoulder tightness, neck tightness.  Only a little bit of lower back stiffness toward the end of the ride.
Had a banana, peanut butter, and peppermint mocha for breakfast then rolled in to White around 9:45 with a pretty high stoke level. I think this road riding is just what I need to break up the rough and tumble of trail riding.  Geared up and rolled out at 10am. It was about 50 degrees, overcast. I didn't need my jacket though packed it in my rear pocket anyway. Had my booties on and heavy duty gloves. Felt comfortable. Wind began to cut through me some so I was wishing I had my jacket on in a few spots. We ran in to some rain about 90 minutes in and it lasted about 15 min at most.The pace was quick (for me), about 17.8 mph this time around vs. 16.4 mph last time. I can tell I am getting slightly stronger and faster. Stronger due to a strength training routine that includes squats since Dec. 3 and faster probably because I'm biking less and more rested.
More cars on the road today than last time so that was a little dodgy. Chased by a dog who's owner reassured me that "the dog is slow." Well thanks for that comfort. The route included a section that had some pretty good rollers. I was laboring over those and was breathing pretty hard when we stopped at an intersection that had a convenience store. Saw a few bikers but not as many as I expected.  I began to lag behind Lisa about halfway through since she's such a strong rider and I was getting tired. My legs were really feeling heavy and thick on the last third of the ride. I couldn't believe it was 45 miles. It went by so fast. Also,  I missed that last long head-wind straightaway that is a cruel but satisfying way to end the ride. Apparently we can return to base using more than one way.
Overall, I am really enjoying my road riding and can only hope that it is helping my mountain bike racing in the long run. I am beginning to feel like a real cyclist.

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