nuge

holy scarponi, i've been reseeded in VA - starting with the elites

i think you were meant to say: it's gonna be swell

been concerned about this one as well - it started off in the shoulder and over the last couple weeks has been creeping towards the centre median. there's no way it'll be sorted by the weekend. everyone should be slowing down to take the sharp right hand corner onto main rd (like this ever acually happens), so just take it easy down there guys

tell you what, do everyone a favour and arrange a meeting point beforehand with the family. pull over (after indicating to everyone around you) and have your banana at the side of the road (i.e. off the road) while stationary. if you're in a higher seeded group, people around you are going to be riding for time and will be taking it seriously, so try not to get in the way. just a heads up, otherwise enjoy the ride

better stay out of the portaloos at the start...

sounds like there are a few guys in A that would probably have been riding VA if that start group didn't start with the elites. A is going to be super fast.

try classical music, for example: for riding in L2 i would recommend something light, like bach's cantata, air, the soft bits from st mathews passion (stay away from any of his organ music and fugues) for riding in L3 mozart and beethoven are your friends, you know, 5th or 9th symphony, marriage of figaro, etc. then for high-octane anaerobic stuff - hit the rachmaninov!!! enjoy

in fact, i've found leaving simply the tyres off altogether reduces rotational weight and the risk of punctures

snap

last year it took me and the mrs about an hour to get around the course, taking turns carrying our little one and the plastic bike after madam decided that being carried was in fact the way to travel. was more racked after that than the next day around the peninsula. this year, i trust she's going to spend a little more time actually on the bike!

doesn't necessarily make them any easier. i thought, seeing as i'm generally stronger on the flats, i could chill in the pack, but racing doesn't work like that - so get used to riding your guts out for about 20mins and then accelerating from there for about 5mins or so, rinse, repeat, get the drill - will happen at every corner and pray you don't get crosswinds. i've only done a half season of league and i've found one starts to get quite emotional when you see the 1km to go banner!

luke, sounds like you need to get a bit wider to provide a better wake! great effort on staying away for so long, pity one of the cyclelab guys hunted you down up okw and brought the bunch with him - maybe if you had one more pair of legs in the break? (um, not me)

if your commute's quite far you could also try driving into work in the morning with the bike in the car and riding home that same evening leaving the car at the office. next day you ride to the office in the morning and drive back with the bike in the car that evening.

range of movement is back to being able to extend above the shoulder, just discomfort when on the bike due to the small jarring motion of the handlebars - getting out the saddle is not really an option. was concerned during yesterday morning's ride as i couldn't even reach down to my water bottle, but with a little help from some magic patches it's feeling a lot better this morning - so i'll be in the start chute tomorrow at sparrow's.

league ride so there'll be a few of us there, although this shoulder of mine is taking a while to recover after last week's crash... will have to see.

???

slow day, eh?

um, i missed point 1 - diesel slick at the left turn onto the R310 - had to forgo the other 998 points

1) primarily linked to volume with a lack of rest/recovery (either complete days off the bike or short easy spinning days). only riding on weekends shouldn't get one even close to being over trained. 2) can do both - depends on your symptoms 3) all of the above, although those symptoms can also be confused with other stimuli: stress at work/study, lack of sleep, relationship issues, impending illness. best to look at your "life state".

you guys do know you that, while cycling is invigorating for the body and mind, you can also use your bicycle as a form of transport too - park wherever you like in the city and, i dunno, ride to the start. just a suggestion, use it, don't use it...

the real issue here is the fact that the local media tends to play this one up and often overlook the issue that while everyone drives and behaves like buffoons on the road cyclists and pedestrians are the most exposed to serious injury or death every time they're out on the road. i took it a little to heart last year in a letter to a local community newspaper when they printed an article showing photo's of motorists disobeying the law around cyclists who were doing no wrong - the article blatantly defended the actions of the motorists - i was pretty pissed as it's this kind of public attention that makes it more dangerous for me every time i go out on the road on my bike.

thanks luke, maybe i'll have a chat to him tomorrow at killarney. i heard about the 200km sessions - apparently the guys got really bored and wanted to kill by the end of each session.

i've been trying riding an hour before breakfast once a week to see if it'll make any difference (not bonking though - it's just too early in the day and our kid wakes up before us) so far no difference - i'm still always hungry and haven't lost any more than normal. will keep you posted if i suddenly turn skeletal though

is there any other colour?

did this one last year - pretty wild