Saturday, January 22, 2011

Entering The Frozen Zone

7:55 AM | Posted by |
I have decided that I need to change up my plans again. Doh!

Since New England has already had more snow by today than it usually has all winter, the landscape has changed dramatically. Specifically, there is nowhere to put all of this snow. Parking lots look like snow fortresses and there is localized flooding when sewer mains are still covered over with snow and the solar heat of the day starts melting these icebergs.

This presents serious challenges to motorists so you can imagine what it would do to a cyclist. Street corners are not just frozen with leftover plow sludge, but the snow banks are so hight that oncoming traffic is no longer visible as well.

A mountain bike clearance deal at a local bike shop nearly pushed me to change the plans to re-vamp my Fuji Monterey.That is, until I was driving home from work one day, cautiously pulling up to an intersection and nearly getting hit by a car anyway, that I realized it would be insanely stupid to try and get out on these roads right now. I can't imagine that the bike paths are clear since the parking lots that access these paths aren't clear either.

So for now, I'm keeping most of my training indoors and will look for a hill with a plowed sidewalk that can help me keep my legs fresh.

Two days ago, I spent 30 minutes on the elliptical at an heavy incline and then jumped on the recumbent bike for 50 minutes, holding a cadence of 80 RPMs. Yesterday, it snowed again! Double Doh! So I stayed in and just did some strength training with resistance bands, kettle bells and threw in some ab work.

In the meantime, my Army/Navy thermals finally managed to get down here from Vermont this week. It seems to be the real deal. The jacket itself is worth the price of the package and I've been wearing the glove liners all week. On top of that, I'm surprised I actually purchased clothing online that fit.

The next couple of days will be the real test. The temps won't break freezing so I plan on seeing if this stuff actually keeps me warm while walking around. If it does, then I'll feel more confident about riding when it's 35 - 40 degrees.

2 comments:

  1. Roy and ChristineJanuary 22, 2011 at 10:06 AM

    I can't imagine getting out in weather like that. We are so spoiled that our group has a rule that the temperature must be at least 55 or no ride.

    Christine and I will be riding this afternoon as we have a forecast of 64.

    It sounds as if you are doing well working on your core. That will come in handy when the weather breaks.

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  2. EdieJanuary 22, 2011 at 1:33 PM

    Roy, I am soooo jealous of your 64 degrees! 55 or higher is what I am used to doing but that's what keeps me inside for months on end and I can't afford that much time off the road this year. I hope you and Christine have fun.
    As far as core work goes - there's no excuse not to work on abs. My theory is if you can get a brew out of the fridge, you can just as easily roll onto the floor and do some ab work.

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