Stationary Bikes and California

So I didn’t get to ride up Mount Diablo like I had hoped. Instead, it was a trip to Napa Valley and San Francisco that trumped the sketchy ‘buy the bike and sell it to me when you get back’ tactics of the California shops (and at a price of about $120/day for an entry level off-brand road bike). California was a great time, but I certainly lost some cycling fitness although I did manage to spin for about an hour each day there.

Oh the dread of a stationary bike at 5:30 in the morning. Wake up in the city (office park) of Pleasanton, roll out of bed, put on the same workout clothes you wore the day before, stroll outside into a crisp morning twilight, walk into the 14x14 jam-packed exercise room, say hey to the same guy that’s there every morning, pop on ESPN, spin, spin, zone out, spin, wait until SportsCenter repeats itself, and leave. Not a lot of thought goes into it, but I suppose that’s the key.

I’ve realized that I’ve become a stationary bike snob. When I started riding, I didn’t suspect riding on a trainer or a stationary bike would be any different. My biggest peeve with the stationary bike is that the resistance is so inconsistent. If you put it on setting 3 (a low setting), it takes a surprisingly large amount of effort to turn over your first few strokes but becomes incredibly easy soon thereafter. With minimal effort you quickly begin over-pedaling as if you should start shifting into a higher gear. If you put it on setting 8 (a higher setting), it takes a ton to turn over those first few pedal strokes, but its resistance becomes manageable to sustain once you start going. 1) It doesn’t react like a normal bike, but more importantly 2) it makes it near impossible to do intervals unless you’re fine with tearing up your knees turning over the pedals to start every burst. I can’t do intervals on a 3 setting as I’ll fly off the bike, but I don’t want to do intervals on an 8 setting because I want to be able to walk when I’m 30.

Going to California also gave me the opportunity to get some reading done. I finished up the book ‘The Rider’ by Tim Krabbe. It’s a quick read about the intricacies of one fictional bike race. Very poetic and very well done. I have a date this weekend on my new balcony with ‘A Dog in a Hat’ by Joe Parkin.

So, anyways, I need to get my fitness levels up. I’m going to take the weekend off from racing and will go on a beast of a training ride on Saturday morning. The rest of this week will be riding with some quick efforts. So, that means my next race is this Wednesday, the Soldier Field Criterium #2. I hear it’s fairly technical and important to be near the front. There’s also apparently a pothole in one of the more dangerous turns. Have to do it. So, we’ll see what happens.

Until next time, here are some pics from the trip:

Mount Diablo in the distance