Two Dozen

Up Tunnel, across on Grizzly, and around the world, clockwise (2:50).  After climbing Pinehurst, my friend Barry and I climbed Manzanita, from the easier tennis club side.  Tennis club side is shorter and probably not quite as steep as the fire station side, but after climbing over a mile up Pinehurst, which averages 6.5%, going up even the easier side of Manzanita is a kick in the pants.

I started the climb seated, then stood up, when I found myself repeatedly pulling my front wheel off the ground.  I stood for about 20 yards, but the foot didn't like that so I sat back down.  Being careful not to pull any more wheelies, I simply rested my hands on the bars rather than pull on them to gain additional leverage.  As a result I had to rely on my legs more, but they responded just fine.  It helped that I had a 30x28 low gear.  In a gear that low, I was riding slowly (5.3 mph), but I made it just fine.

I've noticed that since I've returned to riding, I've been avoiding hard efforts.  Part of it is intentional -- I need to rebuild a fitness base before I can start riding harder and hurting myself.  But in part, it's because, as Woody Allen, "Pain hurts," which aptly summarizes my riding in the past two months and some of the reasons for it.  In the evenings, my leg is still quite swollen above my compression sock (I should measure the two circumferences just for the hell of it).  But I think I'm ready for harder efforts.  Having undergone testing at VeloSF last week, I know now how hard to ride when in class and I am motivated to get faster again.

 P.S. If I'm going to do a century, I need to do at least a four-hour ride, I think.  Next weekend.