Mission Accomplished

Epic day out on the bike today. Epic for a number of reasons.

First it was the furthest ride I have done this year. Secondly it was the most climbing I have done this year. And finally, it was the first time I have ventured into the Perth hills alone and not got lost.

The ride today was always going to be a big day out. A 180km ride makes for a long day. I have been doing 150km+ rides for a few weeks now, but taking that extra little step up to 180km is a significant mental step. Ironman race distance. Whilst I have been getting similar mileage done over the last little while, you always have to respect a 180km type ride. You never want to head out too hard, or not carry enough nutrition etc. That was doubly true today since I am still a bit tired from my time offshore. I slept well last night, but I am still catching up I think. As such I just wasn't sure how the legs were going to hold up.

Spending a long time in the hills often means you end up with a fair bit of elevation gained. After all, the further you ride in the hills, the more hills you ride up and down. So I guess it is not surprising that my longest ride of the year also had the most elevation gained. Just nudging on 2000m which isn't bad for me.

Given the personal milestones in distance and elevation gained I was pleasantly surprised by just how good the ride felt. I am feeling it now, but I felt strong for the entire ride. I didn't fall in a big hole or anything, getting back home still feeling like I was riding well. At least part of that was due to a nice tail wind for the final 40km which took the edge of how hard I was having to work in the last part of the ride, but I am hope it is also an indication that the bike strength is building well.

The other milestone of this ride is that it was one of the first time I have headed to the Perth hills by myself. I don't ride the hills that often and in the past I have spent most of my time out there wondering where I am. However, in the time I have spent in the hills over the last month or so I have gradually started to learn my way around. Still plenty of roads I don't know, but I am familiar enough with the roads to be able to plan today's session.

I have been keen to hit the hills solo for a few weeks now. I have been really enjoying riding with others the last little while, but sometimes it can be a bit limiting. Riding in a group you are restricted to the speed of the slowest person so I have been spending a fair bit of time waiting at the tops of hills. Plus riding in a pack means you spend a lot of time sheltered from the wind, meaning you don't always do much work on the rides. For these reasons I was keen to get out, ride at my own speed, push my own wind, spend less time waiting and more time riding. That was exactly what today's ride was. It made the ride a tough day out, but it also meant that by the end of today's ride I knew I had done a good, honest session.

Pretty stuffed now though.

Yesterday I had had some plans of also going swimming today, but that was before I had really thought through the realities of a 180km ride. By the time I got home I didn't have the energy to head out swimming. More importantly I realised that I had been away from home for 6 days during the week, 6 hours during the morning and I was just about to walk out the door again for another session. Sometimes there are more important things than training and I realised that today spending time with my family was definitely one of those things.

Running in the morning. Could be an interesting time out on tired legs.