NEGLECT....

In a word, that pretty much sums it up. I have neglected my bikes, my blogging and watching what I eat. If I neglected my job as much as I have neglected the things listed above, I would be without a job. If neglected a pet in this way, I am sure I would be visited by the SPCA, and if I neglected my relationships on the same level as the other things I have neglected, I would be a very lonely person.

So, now that I am aware of the neglect, and have confessed it here on the blog, I am working on a plan to pay sufficient attention to my riding, blogging and eating. I did ride on Sunday with Mike. We did a lap around river, which amounted to 30 miles. This is the first time we had ridden together in a while. As we started out I asked him if he wanted to hear the list of excuses I was using to stay off the bike, or if he wanted to hear the truth. He knew what the truth was. I have been lazy. Sure, I could blame it on work because I am very busy at work getting ready to do a datacenter virtualization project. I could blame the cold weather, because it has been unseasonable cold over the past couple weeks, but that is why I have Under Armour cold gear. On Sunday, when Mike and I rode, it was in the 30's and VERY windy, yet I was sweating when I got home, and did not feel cold during the ride. So, bottom line... I have been neglectful.

Moving on, the ride on Sunday was a struggle. I started from the house, which means that I get to climb UP Deep Creek Ave to start the ride. My legs and lungs were hurting and I had only ridden four tenths of a mile. As I was riding to meet Mike, the headwind was strong enough that I had to pedal down hill to maintain speed. That is VERY frustrating. I was telling myself that I did not want to ride around the river, I would propose to Mike that we just do an abbreviated ride due to the wind. Well, before I could mention my plan to Mike, he had already planned which direction we should go around the river to optimize the wind direction with the hills that we would face. OK, so I just shut my mouth and went along for the ride. This is the reason that it is always better to ride WITH someone. I had already talked myself out of riding around the river, but I did not want to be the "lightweight" who couldn't handle the wind. I am glad that I rode around the river.

Looking ahead, I have scheduled my 12th 200k for Friday December 10th. I will be riding in Windsor, VA which I hope will prove to be just a degree or two warmer than here in Maryland. There will be a ride report following that ride, and I am sure I will do an entry to re-cap my  twelve 200k's. So, stay tuned.

Below is my Garmin info from Sunday's ride. You will notice that the heart rate looks a little funky. I think that my heart rate monitor needs a new battery OR I need a new heart. As we were climbing the hill on Veteran's Highway I looked down and saw that my heart rate reading in my Garmin read 0.0. When we crested the hill (and I could breath again) I told Mike that either my heart rate monitor was malfunctioning, or my heart stopped on the hill. SInce I was still pedalling, I assume it was just the battery on my monitor.