Going Further

February 21st, 2015

Bellingham, WA to La Conner-ish and back

70 miles

1820 ft ascent/descent

Sunny, 55 degrees

Greg LeMond famously said about cycling: "It never gets easier, you just go faster." I've kept that in mind throughout my training. It seems like sort of a discouraging prospect, though it doesn't necessarily have to be. If you can push through the pain, it's so rewarding just to look back at what you've done. Today, I pushed myself harder than I ever have before, and was rewarded by getting to see my mileage meter on my cycling computer almost 15 miles higher than it's ever been. Seventy miles!

Today was a gorgeous day, and I must have seen at least 50 other cyclists out on my route, many of them in their own mini-pelotons. I'd love to try team riding like that sometime. There is a cycling team here at Western, so I'll probably check them out soon. In the mean time, I discovered a way to help the miles pass by easier--music! I've always been wary about using headphones while riding because I fear not being able to hear the traffic or any strange noises my bike might be making. The solution, of course, is to only use the right earbud. So, I found an old pair and lopped off the left side, then strung it trough the straps of my helmet to help keep it in place. I made a cycling playlist full of high-energy hardcore and dance music, and voila. It worked wonders, I tell ya.