A few words on training

How does one prepare for a 38,000 mile bike ride? Damned if I know. The organizers say to ride 1,500 miles before starting the ride. When does that start? I rode 6,000 miles in 2007. Does that count? I never really stopped, so is it a continuous loop? This week I reached the “1,000 miles in 2008” mark. I guess that’s pretty good.

What’s the difference between riding and training? My cycle computer tracks speed, rpm of the pedal, heart rate, calories burned, total feet climbed, and averages where appropriate. Those are all used to train. When you turn the computer off, it’s just riding. (Not that “just” is insignificant. When riding becomes “no fun” then one has to turn off the computer and just ride.)

When one trains, it’s for any number of specific purposes. There are “base miles.” In January and February, I rode 200 miles a month just to lay a foundation. I’d expected to ramp up in March, but broke two ribs skiing with Chris, so that got pushed back a few days. On different days, I train for speed, or for rpm, or for endurance, or to ride into the wind. One day, I drove out to my starting point only to realize that I’d mismatched my cycling shoes. It could happen on the ride, so I trained for mismatched shoes.

There is cross-training. In addition to my road bike, I have a recumbent that I can ride without getting all my cycling gear on. There is also a “beater bike” that I used to ride to and from work and a tandem bike for when I need an extra set of legs. I also own a unicycle but don’t know how to ride it. Now is not the time to learn.

There is mental training. On April 1, I decided to ride every day for two weeks. On the ride, we’ll go out in the rain, in the cold, when we’re tired of riding, and when we just don’t feel like it. So I vowed to ride every day, rain or shine, feel like it or not. By day 14, I didn’t feel like it and was glad to have a day off. I didn’t ride on the 15th. But I had a really rough day at work on the 16th and couldn’t wait to get home and go for a ride!