Is it Spring Yet?

I finished up my first week of Friel training yesterday. My week included eight hours of riding and three strength training sessions. I felt pretty good about sticking to the plan, especially since it meant riding on Christmas Eve and Christmas when I just wanted to play with my new toys and party.

On Saturday, when the temperature freakishly got into the upper 50s, I looked out the window and thought "I'd ride outside if it wasn't raining." Stupid. I forced myself through an hour and a half trainer ride, looking at my watch every two minutes.

Needless to say, by the time Sunday morning rolled around and it was 30 degrees with something like 25 mph hour wind gusts, I decided I couldn't take my scheduled 2 hours and 45 minutes on the trainer. So, I bundled up and left the house, determined to do as much of my ride outside as I could and finish up on the trainer when I couldn't take anymore.

My plan was to hop on the River Trail, since I thought it would be a little more sheltered from the wind, and my ride was supposed to be low intensity. It was a good idea, but as I suspected, my ride on the trail was cut extremely short by flooding. I turned around and headed toward the MSU campus. At this point, I realized that I had forgotten my balaclava and my shoe covers, but I knew I wouldn't go back out if I went to the house to retrieve them, so I kept going.

Miraculously, I didn't get lost on campus, which I usually do. The roads were deserted since the students are on break, so it turned out to be a perfect place to ride. It was also a good way to avoid wide open spaces where the wind might blow me over. I finished up my ride by tooling around some neighborhoods near my house. I ended up with 1 hour and 45 minutes on the road and was able to slog through the rest on the trainer. And, with the exception of my toes, which were ice cold and actually painful by the time I got home, I stayed quite warm.

Today I get a break from the saddle, since my schedule only calls for strength training.