Long distance riding and the Allez

As I've mentioned, I love my Allez. Nothing fancy. Just a good all-around road bike.

The aluminum frame is stiff, which is good for speed, but can be fatiguing. There are a few things that can help that situation. First and foremost, the tires. For winter I run Continental GP Four Seasons. Great tires, and they soak up some of the road vibration. A carbon seatpost would also go a long way toward making the ride a bit more plush.

A lot of these long distance bike rides are fully supported, and with that in mind I the Allez would be a great choice for something like Biking Across Kansas or RAGBRAI. I currently have three bags: A wedgie, a small bag that sits on the top tube (both from KoKi) and a smallish handlebar bag. These three bags are all you need for a day in the saddle. Tools fit into the wedgie just fine. Nutrition fits into the frame bag. Extra clothing such as a jacket fits into the handlebar bag and is light enough to not interfere with the steering.

I find a road bike very comfortable. You do need to wear a chamois, but I have no problem going with the human sausage look. You get to be my age and you just don't care.

Damn Chinese (food)

I was planning to ride this afternoon so I had Chinese for lunch. When I got out to the ride my blood sugar was 415! That's like a record for me. I am never that high. You are not supposed to ride when your blood sugar is this high and so I almost turned around a came home.

But I didn't. I just know it was that damn white rice. Sure enough, when I checked my blood sugar about 45 minutes into the ride it was 175. Which, makes me think that first reading was a mistake. In any case, do as I say, not as I do. If your blood sugar is above 250 when you start to exercise, be careful. If it's over 300, do something about it.

Anyway, I'm glad I rode. About 10 miles. It was another great day - 63 and sunny at the end of January.

Two things of note.

One, I love my bike, it gets better with every ride. The Continental 4 Seasons tires were a great choice for winter riding. They handle the rough bike path pavement well, though my back tire keeps coming out of true - likely because I'm the one who is tightening the spokes and, well, I've still got a lot of weight to lose.

The other Thing I want to note is that my endurance is way up. I do 10 miles now and I really do feel like I could go another 20-30 miles with no problem. When it gets warmer I'll have to do that!

Team Red Duties

I had a great time at the Kansas City Bicycle Club's Annual Awards Banquet handing out information about Tour de Cure and Team Red. I think we might have gotten a rider or two out of the event.

I met a lot of interesting cyclists and I have to say it's a diverse bunch. I even made contact with a guy who powder coats bike frames. Note to self: Find a cheap frame to build up a fixie.

The Kansas City and Johnson County bike clubs are merging into the Kansas City Metro Bicycle Club. They do good work.

The Johnson County Bicycle Club has a great ride calendar. Click here.

Join my Tour de Cure team (or donate). Click here.

Do I want to be doing this?

That's what I was thinking the first mile into an eight-mile ride. Another great day in the low 60s in January. We are going to pay for this weather. Or, are we making up for the past two brutal winters?

I ended up having a pretty good ride. I needed one. My mother dies on Sunday, and I have wanted to ride ever since to be alone with my thoughts. Or, maybe to just think about something else? The ride improved my mood and served to clear my head. The funeral will be difficult, but I'll manage.

I was feeling pretty confident so I got into my drops a little bit. I am happy to report that my gut no longer prevents me from doing this.

Furnace Creek 508 Tales: Engine Compartment Hot Dogs and My Trusty, Crusty Handkerchief (by Sponge Bob Paxson)

Here's a story about a diabetic who took on one of the toughest cycling races around. You can do just about anything when you are diabetic.

Furnace Creek 508 Tales: Engine Compartment Hot Dogs and My Trusty, Crusty Handkerchief (by Sponge Bob Paxson)

Long distance cycling and diabetes - Topic

Here's a good link to a discussion about cycling and being insulin dependent. I would pretty much say Plus One for all the diabetic posters.

Long distance cycling and diabetes - Topic

Riverfront Heritage Trail of Kansas City, MO/KS

Here's a link to Kansas City's Riverfront heritage Trail. Looks like I have some exploring to do.

Riverfront Heritage Trail of Kansas City, MO/KS

Recreational Trails Program Funds Crucial Link in Kansas City, Mo. - RTC TrailBlog - Rails-to-Trails Conservancy

Kansas City is a hub for all forms of transportation. This critical link makes it a hub for cycling as well.

Recreational Trails Program Funds Crucial Link in Kansas City, Mo. - RTC TrailBlog - Rails-to-Trails Conservancy

Hybris Challenge: change a bike tire in less than a minute

Tour de Cure

I am gearing up for the American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure, which is June 10. I am serving as Red Rider team captain and could not be more excited.

I think this is a great way to tell my story and be a real advocate for what cycling can do to control one's diabetes. I think I have a great story to tell - from hardly being able to get out of bed to riding 40 to 50 miles a week. Riding can lower my blood sugar by 80 to 90 points in just one half-hour of not really working very hard. What a great sport. Works for me anyway.

How I Blog

I have never been one for "journaling" but I had occasion to record my rides, basically as a means to see how my blood sugars reacted to riding. (I am my own little science experiment). That's how this blog began. I record my rides in a notebook, then transfer them to the blog when I have time. I'm old fashioned.

I have long been a fan of Moleskine, the notebook Hemingway used. They come in various sizes and are readily available at Barnes & Noble. I record my rides on the right-hand page with notes about anything out of the ordinary that might have occurred. On the left side, I record notes about other things - mostly my obsessive rants about what future bikes I want to own.

Moleskine also makes little paper notebooks that fit into a breast pocket nicely. I use this at work to record notes about patients.

So there you have it. Full transparency. Enough inside baseball for now.

Fast one

Not to toot my own horn, but man was I fast today. Mind you, I've been on the bike path a lot lately, so this isn't road miles. I was right at 15 miles per hour for the little loop I do, which is not bad considering one has to dodge walkers and for some odd reason the recumbent bikes that seem to plague this section of trail. For this reason I don't get off the small chain ring on the trail.

I am absolutely getting faster and with less effort. It's a good feeling.

I started this one out by freezing my you-know-what off. I was seriously considering turning round, but as usual my philosophy of just getting on the bike won the day. I was soon feeling great. The base layer makes a huge difference. My issue on this day was the fingerless gloves and lack of a beanie. How can 52 degrees and sunny be so cold. Probably the 15-mile-per-hour wind chill. At least.

Anyway, I did my whole little loop from Leawood City Park to I-Lan Park, which I manage to turn into about ten miles. I did not even stop for water at the turn around - I rode straight through.

It's hard to believe that six months ago I would be so gassed after a 20-minute ride at 10-12 miles per hour that I would hold onto the car for support. now I can do 40-plus minutes and feel great. Wanting more in fact.

I love my little Allez. It just looks fast sitting on the back of my car!

Feeling Strong Again

It's coming back.

I felt really strong today. The human body is pretty amazing. I'm constantly surprised at how easy it is to get back into shape. Assuming, that is, that you aren't way out of shape. The layoff over finals and the holidays was a long one, but I felt just fine today on the bike. I think was even faster than at the end of the summer. I guess that's what some rest can do for you.

On my ride today I passed the Leawood bike cop twice. He's the same one who lay in wait for me to give me a ticket for expired tags. How dare I park a non-compliant vehicle in his park! Oh the problems we have in the suburbs. I can't complain, though. One morning at 3 a.m. the Leawood Police knocked on my door to tell me my garage was open. Across the stateline the cops won't come unless the robber is still in the house.

The Blue Valley North cross country or track team was out in force on the trail today. They run in little cliques.

Speaking of kids. Apparently meeting up with your friends and getting high or drunk in the park is alive and well. Probably why the bike cop was out. Nice to see a new generation of hippies on the loose. They are our future.

The Turn Around Point

I usually ride out to a point then turn around, rather than doing a loop. Part of the reason for this is that I usually ride during the middle of the day and I don't want to deal with traffic, so I head to the park and ride the excellent bike path system we have around here.

The turn around point is my favorite part of the ride. Often I stop for water here. Here is usually a little park and there are often kids playing and people walking their dogs. It's quiet, relaxing, and at this time of year, a nice feeling to have the low afternoon sun warm my face.

What makes it even better! Why sucking down lukewarm water from a plastic bottle that hasn't been washed for a month, of course. I can feel every cell in my body thanking me for the hydration.

After the turn around pedaling seams a bit easier. The seat seems a bit more comfortable. It's almost as if the rest of the ride is physically down hill, no matter which direction I'm headed. I guess it is, figuratively.

Still, the rest of the ride is tinged with a bit of sadness, because it is nearing the end. Nonetheless, I enjoy this part of the ride best. I'm 44 now. I am changing careers and I work at a nursing home right now. I can't imagine being that old and liking life very much. Still, I imagine the next 40 years will be the best part. Hopefully quieter and more relaxing than the first part.

It can't be January

The car says its 65 today. It can't be January. In any case, it was a fantastic day to ride. I did a little extra in fact.

As usual, the first mile is always a bit tough for me. I'm not sure this is what I want to be doing at the moment. After that, you can't get me off the bike. I think it's a remnant of my past couch-potato existence. It's my body at a cellular level rebelling against doing something healthy. It's kind of like our appendix. It served a purpose at some point, but is now totally useless. Of course it can kill you, if you ignore it when it troubles you. Laziness can too, I guess.

I was having fun. I took a few chances cornering at speed. Did a few sprints. Even got into the drops a bit, which is something I'm not very confident doing and, until I lose a bit more weight, not very comfortable. Basically, I was really into it today.

I think part of the reason was that I didn't have to bundle up today. Riding is much more enjoyable when you don't have to spend all that time getting the gear on and you can enjoy being on the bike without so many layers.

I did have an annoying rattle, which I attributed to a spoke on the rear wheel coming out. I pulled out my handy spoke tool at the turn-around and was able to more or less fix it. The rear wheel is coming out of true. This is something I'll just have to deal with until I shed more weight.

Allez Upgradez

I love my little Allez. It is what it is, though, which is basically to say it's a basic road bike.

Doing a massive upgrade does not make sense. Still, there are some things that will make this a better ride for the long run as a trainer and winter bike. I think it makes sense to make little upgrades to mid-grade components as time goes on: Shifters, cassette, crankset and chainrings, front and back derailleurs, etc. Whatever groupset I want to go with, be it SRAM or Shimano, I want doubletap shifters. The cheap Shimano 2300s, while they do the job, are not fun or easier to operate.

A carbon-fiber seatpost and nicer saddle will go a long way toward making this bike more comfortable. Having said that, this bike is pretty comfortable as it its. The frame is aluminum and fairly stiff. It is really efficient at transferring power directly to the road. Not much is wasted in the frame.

Eventually this bike will sit on a trainer and be taken out in bad weather. I would lean more toward a Tarmac over a Roubaix right now. I really like this geometry. Of course, both (plus a Bianchi of some sort) are on the wish list. In any case, for fast training rides and short group rides I think a race bike is the better choice. Long event rides such as Tour de cure and gran fondos are better suited toward a Roubaix. Better get both!

Oh my!

This is a lot easier when you ride every day. My hands and back were killing me on the short ride I did today. I recovered quickly though, once I got off the bike.

My route took me down Ensley to 98th Street. I got lost again. These streets have no logical pattern in this part of the city. I came back via Delmar, passing my sister-in-law's house, where I paused for water at the end of the driveway. The house looked dark, so I did not knock.

I am used to riding the flat path or along Tomahawk Creek, which is sometimes not busy and basically flat because it follows the stream. On this ride there was one heck of a climb at one point early on. I am getting better conditioned to climbing, but it's always going to be an issue if I am carrying this weight. another reason to lose.

I am still pretty slow, I think. Not beginner slow, but I rarely get out of the small chain ring. Still, it felt good. I was plenty warm, despite the 46-degree weather and a west wind. At least winter is sunny around these parts.