Sometimes the best is saved for last, and today’s ride was no exception. As we came to Canada Road we spotted these kids with a large “FREE ICE WATER” sign. At well over 90 degrees, this seemed impossibly-well-timed! But why would they be giving away free ice water? Because that was just to draw you in; their cash cow was lemonade at $50/cup. But Kevin just wanted ice water, and thought what these kids were doing was so cool he contributed $10 to the cause.
Kind of makes the rest of the day seem insignificant! But for the record, Kevin needed some miles, ridden at less than a killer pace, and I needed to burn off the remnants of Wisconsin cheese and brats that I was wearing. Santa Cruz was out of the question; Kevin’s just not back in shape for something that challenging right now, so we settled on the usual Pescadero/Tunitas loop, adding in Los Lobitos for good measure.
Making the ride tougher for me was my decision to try and ride it entirely in the saddle, instead of my usual “style” of standing for most of a climb. Two reasons for that; first, I wanted to try using some different muscles and see what effect it would have on my breathing, and second, the video from my camera is much easier to watch when it’s not constantly swaying from side-to-side.
What really surprised me was a new record Strava time for Old LaHonda. When I say record, that means since early 2008, when my first rides posted on Strava.
Back in the day, I was a lot faster than 21:17. Now? I’m either a slow fast guy, or a fast slow guy. The other surprise was that I had to wait a couple times for Kevin to catch up, leaving me to wonder how much faster I might have otherwise been.
Beautiful day out there and more cyclists on the west side (coast) of the hills than I’ve seen in ages. Very encouraging!
The climbs up Los Lobitos and Tunitas were at a fairly leisurely pace, which allowed me to continue to stay in the saddle and not stand. Main problem with doing that is that you get a bit stiff and even a bit of saddle pain since you’re riveted to one position on the bike, but I’m looking forward to seeing how it works on Kings Tuesday. Since I got a good time on Old LaHonda, why not try it again?
