Suffering...

Well, there is a reason why I am squinting in the photo -- it was bright as heck! Amazing that I even did the ride, considering I almost coughed up a lung last night! I have battling something all week -- a cold or the pollen. I knew I probably shouldn't ride, but Kevin showed up, and Eddie rode 29 miles from his house. I couldn't let them down. I did finally change my cranks from 172.5mm to 175mm -- what a difference!!! I know that 2.5mm doesn't sound like much (1/10th of an inch), but the extra leverage definitely helped! Not only could I sprint/climb better, but I could really tell the difference sitting in the saddle -- so much more power. I think Eddie could even see the effect. Other than being drained from being sick, I felt like my old self again. Plus, I didn't spin out -- I always felt that I had more power available.

We cut the ride short (26 miles). Kevin had family obligations, Eddie had to ride the 29 miles back home, and I didn't want to make things worse on myself than I probably already had. It was a great ride, albeit chilly and windy. Is the hot weather coming?

Finally -- warmer weather!

The ride Sunday was good. As Will would say, Chris dropped the hammer from the parking lot. Maybe it was the warm weather, maybe it was just trying to up the average speed, but he was on a mission. It was Chris, John, myself, and Alan. The problem with the ride is that the hills definitely make the ride appear to be slower than it really is. Nothing wrong with that -- it is just that the numbers don't seem to correlate to the effort we put in.