'Warm' Weather & Spring

Yesterday marked my first ride outside of 2010 as 'warm' weather returned to WNC! We got almost the whole team out, and I rode my 'winter beast' equipped with a rear fender to keep the cold, icy road spray off my butt. Unfortunately this bike isn't ideal for climbing and I was paying for my warm, dry rear end on a 20 minute climb out of Bat Cave as my teammate Jason and Will Black set the pace up the climb. I wasn't going to repeat my mistake of last year (when I bonked), so I just settled into a comfortable pace and cruised up the climb and the rest of the ride.

This week also marked the start of childbirth classes (holy sh!t). So between work at the hospital, getting ready for the baby, and normal duties, I've been fitting in a couple of days of intervals as well during the week. At least 2 days a week I've gone back to riding Powercranks. While, like weight training, I'm not 100% convinced that they definitively are a training advantage, I think that the 2-3 months out of the year when I'm not racing, lifting and Powercranks have a place and help to make the most of the 3-5 hours of training time that I have. Of course I'm doing intervals on them!

What I can't wait for is the warm Spring days that allow me to get on my new Trek Madone that's about 10 lbs less than my 'cross bike set up for winter and has real cranks as well! This should coincide nicely with the birth of our first son. Like my wife's pregnancy, the hard work during the winter will yield results and happiness come Spring time!