Bike Bake and Beyond

You know who I’m talking about. Don’t deny it.

Bike summary for the week ending Sunday, 20 February:

121 miles
5 days in the saddle (missed on scheduled day)
All indoors
54 miles, 2:59 longest ride (one whole disc, four episodes, of Lost)

Do you have to do a 54 mile ride? No! But get off your duff and do something!

140 miles, all indoors

6 days

2:27 longest

Until hooking up with nephew Ben on plans for a century, I had a mental barrier of about 90 minutes on the indoor exercise bike.

Today, I crushed that — 44 miles in just under two and a half hours!

That was enough to get through the entire disc from from season 4 of Lost and then some.

I’ve been working my way through the Lost series, working my way to season 6, which I have yet to see. Last year I was working through Heroes, making it through season 3. When that series was cancelled without wrapping things up, I lost interest in it and final season remains unwatched.

What do you do to help pass the time while riding indoors?

I’ve been thinking about doing a century ride (100 miles in one day, one single ride) but because I ride solo the vast majority of the time, the thought of that distance all by myself has always discouraged me.

Then late last year, my nephew Ben added “Cycling” to his list of activities on Facebook. Over the holidays, I asked him about it, and it turns out that he really got into cycling last summer. Then he says he’s thinking about riding a century sometime in the summer od 2011! So we agreed to ride one together. We’re both psyched!

I mapped out a couple routes and pending visual inspection, we’re leaning towards a ride that takes us around Lake Delta and Oneida Lake.

I also found a couple training programs here and here (both are pretty similar).

In the past, I’ve been very much a fair-weather rider. I’m going to have to get out there and start riding on days that aren’t perfect. (Once spring hits and the weather at least warms up some, of course!) And on days that I don’t ride outside, I’m going to have to make sure I do so indoors on the exercise bike.

Miles last week: 134.

This week’s inspirational message:

What does not destroy me, makes me stronger.
—Nietzsche