Must be spring in the Rockies!

Yup, more wind. Not only more wind, but stronger winds! When I saw wind speeds of 35 mph my riding moved indoors. Although my winter-season pass expired at the velodrome, I paid the hourly rate and put in a hard 18 miles. It felt great. It hadn’t been there in a couple of weeks since I started my commuting routine. I was afraid that moving back indoors would be awkward, or that I wouldn’t have lungs or legs for the oval. No worries! I rode strong, and when I wasnt riding “strong” I was still going wicked fast! I’d look down and expect to see 18-19 mph and see 22-23 mph! Also ran into Bob Unger and Eric (don’t know his last name) — it was wonderful to see them again.

I was still stoked when I got home and the wind had subsided some — now it was probably only 20-25 mph — so got Scooter and headed out for more fun in the …sun?  No, fun in the wind. It took roughly twice as long as usual to cover one of my regular routes. That was fine with me. This ride was all about patience and mental toughness. So far this spring, I’ve adjusted my rides to avoid big winds, rain and the real nasty stuff. Today I thought I should take this opportunity to make sure I really did have the mental toughness I claim I do. To my surprise, the wind really was not a major factor in my ride other than making me go much more slowly than usual. I did not get frustrated, I did not get buffeted all over the road (Scooter is incredibly solid!) and I didn’t get exhausted.

I do wish that I’d had my pocket camera today (Beth took it with her to a cancer benefit dressage show) because the flags were really whipping today. It looked like they were all struggling to get off their poles!

The wind actually added something different to today’s ride — the route was one I’ve done a couple dozen times this year but the ride itself was quite unique.

All in all a great success!