Saturday, April 5, 2014

In the Desert - Day 3 & 4


Having learned the route and survived the menacing golf carts I felt pretty confident on Day 3 of spring training camp in Phoenix, AZ. Training camp was about to turn into boot camp - I just did not know it yet.

I got an earlier start, with temps in the 50s making me feel more at home and ready for anything.  Warm-up out to the White Tank Mountains felt good and then rolling out past Buckeye was one of my best mornings. 



I felt strong and fast at the 20 mile mark which is where I should have turned-around. I had a slight tailwind and a big headwind brewing.  Today, I wanted to see where the road intersected I-10 to the south (don't ask me why).

After my usual turn spot the road got rougher and less scenic but onward I rode.  I hit I-10 almost right at 35 miles - so flip a U-turn and spin back to the folk's place in Surprise - sounds easy.  No such doing.  The heat was rising quickly, and the wind began to howl.  Next 30 miles were brutal of slow, just grind-it-out pedaling.

I stopped at the convenience store to replenish my depleted water supply a few miles from home and asked the clerk about the wind.  "is the wind always like this?" I asked, the old fellow thought for a bit and replied "oh no, it is not - most times its worse" and had a hearty chuckle at my expense.

I rolled-out and endured the last 15 miles  of heat and headwind home totaling a 4 hour ride and 70 miles.

Day 4 - Avoid mistakes and do a little recovery - 51 miles out and back at tempo pace.  No snakes, witty store clerks or gale force winds.  Just tempo pace for the whole ride.

Total miles: 241


The next installment will cover my final 2 days of spring training camp and some thoughts about equipment and riding in the southwest.

Two Wheel Transit - Cycling for Life





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