I'm really ready to get the training going again and am going to try being a little more structured this winter. I got in a new heartrate monitor/cycling computer this week. I got the polar cs300.
I'm still trying to figure it out but it's got a lot of cool features and some easy upgrades I can add to it as I move on through training like adding a cadence monitor etc. I have only used it a couple of times so far. The other nice thing is since I can wear it as a watch and mount it on a bike with 2 different settings for 2 bikes I can mount it to my road bike and wear it on my wrist for when I'm on my mountain bike( for some reason I don't like having a computer mounted to my my mountain bike) I can know keep track of my time, distance, speed etc. Like I said I think it will really help me have a bit more structured of a training plan. To add to that structure I'm thinking about using a coach. I'm just trying to figure out when.
I also had a new surprise today. It looks like I'm going to race again this season. I was working at the shop today and was hanging out chatting with the owner and we started talking about the local cross race that also serves as the state championship. Anyways he asked me if I was going to race it. I said I wasn't sure I had been thinking about it but I wasn't sure if I wanted to do it on my mountain bike. I mean I'm probably going to get smoked pretty bad and being on a mountain bike would only make it worse if I had a cross bike I could use I definetly would. So he then offered up the Surly Cross Check that is one of his many personal bikes that fits me perfect to use for the race. So it know looks like I'm going to be cross racing in a couple of weeks. Which means the next couple weeks of training for me is going to be on a cross bike with a lot of practice dismounting and remounting.
I took the cross bike out today for a ride through wilderness. With it's flat tight and twisty track a lot of people have said that it is a blast on a cross bike. They were right. The speed was awesome. It took a while for me to get used to it. Not having the full suspension and just the difference in bike geometry took a while to get used to but once I got the feel for it it was good. I still prefer the mountain bike but the speed is nice.
Today was also my first real cold weather ride of the season. Mid thirties with a nice wind was rough and a reminder that it is early and I got a while to go. The ride out wasn't bad but when I was on my way home and facing the wind it was a bit chilly.
Not sure what tomorrow has to offer yet. It's not supposed to be as cold and windy with a bit of sun but we are celebrating the kids birthdays with my wifes family so I got to work a bit of time in around that.
Harp
6 comments:
I have the same HR monitor and I hate to say that it is rather limited. One crucial feature missing is the lap times. You can't split the times so you have a start time and an end time. Also the download to the computer basically give you average readings becasue of this. You won't get a graph showing how your heart rate went through the roof on that last interval. If you are only wanting averages you may as well go for something cheaper. I realized this too late or I would have gone for the cs400 or cs600. One last thing, you won't be able to wear it on your wrist without it loosing the link to the heel for distance and speed...
I think (or hope) I'm going to be able to get away with wearing it on my wrist. I placed the sensor high up on my fork and when I tested it yesterday it was working. The lap times would be nice and I wasn't thinking of that when I got it. Thanks for the tips.
I was thinking about doing the cross race to but I might just watch instead. I really want try one out sometime. Good luck.
Awesome man! Sounds like the owner is one cool cat! Hope the race is awesome for you. Dismount remount is super important, watch the jewels!
Yeah for new toys. :-) And good luck in your race. Looking forward to reading about it. Nice bike shop owner you've got!
Cross is a blast harp.
-B
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