Yesterday dear hubby went out and bought me a speed and distance device and attached it to my bike so I can see how fast I am going and how far...So, excited and totally confident in my biking abilities, I mounted my purple mountain bike and set off to break land speed biking records this afternoon. You know all of the triathlon training videos and articles I have been reading have all said to train on your weakest sport. With that in mind, I have been trying to learn how to swim (more about that later). Biking is my strongest sport. I have been riding a bicycle since I was 5 years old and I have the calves and thighs of a bodybuilder...I got this one in the bag.
Dear hubby and two daughters in tow, we approached the park entrance. I had to stop and wait for dear hubby to fix the speed / distance device. While I waited, I read the park rules for decorum posted at the entrance. One line warned cyclists to keep their speed under 15 mph. I thought to myself.."We will see about that. I am training for a triathlon." Besides that the park was strangely empty for a Saturday afternoon.
Once the device was fixed, I pulled out in front of the kids and hubby. I figured I would race out a ahead and take a breather every now and then to allow them to catch up. I pedaled furiously and kept the bike in the lowest gear (or highest...don't know which one it is, but the gear that I am referring to is the second hardest gear...you know the one where you pedal harder and less). I was picking up speed and flying through the park. According to last years' Monster Triathlon times, I need to do 12 miles in about 40-45 minutes to stay in the middle of the pack. So, roughly 15+ miles per hour is my minimum speed. I looked down at my spedometer and to my dismay it was displaying 11 mph. I pedaled faster and got it to 13 mph. I was horrified. Now I know I just started training, but I also know I am in better shape than that. To test my theory (the one that starts with, "This bike sucks...") I pedaled as fast as I could down a pretty steep grade and got it to 14 mph.
I don't think mountain bikes are built for speed. I will keep training on my purple steed until I can raise the funds to buy a real racer, but that may take awhile. A good road bike can cost upwards of a couple of thousand dollars! Oh my.
One thing I did learn today is that one of the techniques I watched on youtube actually works. It is from the Pose technique. I will post the video below. The coach tells you rather than push down on the pedals with your legs, simply lift up off the downward pedal. It really works. When I remembered this technique and tried it, I noticed a huge difference. Cool huh?
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