A learning experience

One of the things that makes cycling so much fun, is when it finally, clicks..... As the summer has progressed, so are my strength and abilities. Trying to do all the right things by doing intervals for speed, cadence and hill endurance, yet progress seems to be on a slower learning curve than I'd hope for.

Last Friday while I was taking a spin in Chili, looking more for a tempo ride than anything else, A rider came up along side me and we started to chat. Mike Corcimiglia, a member of GVCC , and I rode for a couple hours. Turns out he was raised in LeRoy!!!! Over the next 30 miles we (more like I) hammered and I received a great education. There is only so much one can learn from reading, or watching others , or trying to mimic what you think your suppose to be doing. There is no substitute for good coaching. While this ride was an easy spin for Mike, for me it was quite a workout....probably my best ride of the year for content. I was shown and received some valuable coaching advice on technique which I hadn't been able to put it together on my own.

On Saturday I applied my new found knowledge and practiced this on my ride to my brother Marks house, for our summers end picnic. Adding new habits takes some time, mostly because the old habits keep wanting to surface. Progress was made.

Normally on Sunday afternoons I have a open house somewheres. This eliminates my joining a great ride out of Churchville on Sunday's at 2pm. This past Sunday being a long weekend , past experience has proved that opens are poorly attended. SO...On to Churchville to ride with the big boys. Most of these riders are current or ex racers the rest are just plain, darn good riders. This ride would be a good gage as to how far I've progressed. In the past I get dropped in the first 3 miles and then spend the rest of the time playing catch up, along with being dog tired. Well, after 15 miles I'm still in the main pack holding up rather well. While I'm still being dropped from the main group on hills, yet able to pace back up with others. On the way back (20 miles in ) the pace gets stepped up as everyone wants to fly down 262 towards Byron. I'm in paceline taking my share of pulls with 3 other that's moving at 28 mph (or more). The speed gets stepped up to over 30 mph where I eventually fall of, then hook up with the next group moving in the high 20's . Yet for almost 5 miles I hung with that first group. That is something that would never had happened last week. What Mike taught me on Friday played a huge role in my new found abilities.

Who knows....with a few more weeks of training, along with practicing what Mike taught me, my goal of a sub 7 hour Lowlander is looking far more realistic.