Miles and Hills and Finally Sun!

The sun finally arrived this weekend past as Team South Jersey rolled along the by ways of Monmouth and Middlesex counties. For sixty miles we rode up and down hills once again pushing our bodies as we prepare for our rendezvous with the switchbacks and long inclines of Lake Tahoe. Five practices remain before we ship the bikes west.

On a warm day back in late January I noted that my bicycle’s odometer was nearing the 900 mile mark. I wondered how long it would be before I hit 1000. That milestone came more than 700 miles ago (and a couple hundred more on the bike locked in my trainer). In the last two months we have racked up the miles as we count down the days ‘til our challenge.

I have ridden in two centuries completing the Seagull last October and breaking off the New York City in frustration after 82 miles of pedaling, walking and carrying bicycles along a poorly planned route. I know the miles are not the issue. It’s those damned hills. I am paying the price for a lifetime of indulgence. Growing up in the 50s with cigarette puffing idols it was inevitable. For nearly 40 years I puffed happlily, ignoring the warnings and in later years lacking the determination to stick with my quit plans. Even a diagnosis of Leukemia and 5 months of chemo 4 years later were not enough. It was not until I decided to sign on for this challenge that I actually stopped completely, and while I feel better and better each day I do not have the lung capacity of a non smoker. Of course being a smoker also means I ignored my cardiovascular fitness as well, so even though I can ride the flats at a good clip, I am going to be huffing and puffing as I grind it up those hills. But not as much as I used to. Hills I once had to shift four times on, then stop at the top to wait for my breath to catch up are now just slow steady grinds.

The finale is around the corner and the "rehearsals" are getting more and more intense. This week the coach laid out the plans for the remaining rides. Miles and Hills, Hills and Miles! I will remind myself half way up that never ending hill, or when the road ahead of me seems to stretch forever, of Frank's rule, "we train harder than we ride". For every mile I push through now.. Tahoe will be that much easier.