The previous week has seen the passing of some significant (to me?) milestones.
Achievement the First: A ride with no 'warmer' variants needed. Finally rode at a time when it was warm enough to expose the extremities to the public. May seems sort of late for this sort of thing, so it looks like I'm falling behind schedule in crafting the ultimate farmer's tan. Trips to the beach - now with 20% less gawking and staring!
Achievement the Second: I interacted with a bunch of animals on or around the road/trail. Geese have hissed at me. Raccoons have been startled. There was competition for space on the road with a rather large bird that was snacking on something meaty. Arguably the most exciting were the several close encounters of the squirrel kind. I've had a couple miss my wheels and one that got up close and personal with the side of my shoe. Not sure why the little guys run into the road when I'm riding by, but they better smarten up before someone gets hurt. If only there was some way to give warning of my approach....
Achievement the Third: I've learned to whistle. After many years of being whistle-free, I've hopped on the bandwagon. This has the dual effect of reducing squirrel mortality and increasing the chances of fitting in at construction sites.
Heading to Albion Hills tomorrow for some pre-ride action. Lately, the sensations have been good on the bike and in the interest of openness and transparency I would like to share one of my training methods.
Paola Pezzo had a copy of the 1996 Olympic mountain bike course built near her home in Italy so she could train in similar conditions to what she would be racing in. Emulating an Olympic champion can't be the worst thing to do, so I've scouted out a steep 150m long grass-covered hill so I can simulate riding up the green monster at Albion. Gold-coloured shorts were worn for maximum training benefit.
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