Check!

The first real long ride of the season, four hours was scheduled for me today, and I had been waiting all week for it. I have been hanging around 3-3 1/2 hours, but four hours is typically the stopping point for my half Ironman training. And here it is in January and I am at four hours. The injury memories are beginning to fade.

I stood in the garage and I looked at my options. Mountain bike, road bike, spinning bike, and 2 Time trial bikes. What is a girl to do. The only guidance form my coach was to ride for four hours, preferably outside so he is not responsible for the institutionalization of me. He knows if he says "four hours on the trainer." , even if it is 90 and sunny I will be on the trainer.

I took a deep breath and weighed my options. Then I made the decision to spend 2 hrs on the mountain bike and 2 hrs on the trainer. It was a good chance for me to get out and enjoy the sunshine, it was brisk and we are losing our precious snow. I remained primarily in Zone II as I got those good base miles in.

Switching over to the spinning bike for a little more fun, I completed a Chris Carmichael Audio workout, which involved progressive hill repeats. Since I had been given such freedom in the ride today, I was taking it and ... biking with it! Keeping it on the easy side I enjoyed 2 hours of climbing in various positions, and especially enjoyed the banter of Chris Carmichael and Bob Babbit, that you are entitled to hear if you have these pod casts.

I would rate today's ride as absolutely awesome. Not because i maintained some amazing speed or heart rate or wattage, but because it was fun. Not once did I even begin to think that I did not want to be riding today, because there was nowhere I would rather be during this time than right where I was. I feel physically terrific, emotionally well, and I felt happy about today's ride.

Now it's time to head to the bus stop to hear about the day of a kindergartner as only he can truly tell it. :-)

:-) Mary Eggers