It’s That Time Again

I relegated the road bike to the trainer in the basement tonight. I did a decent 50 minute workout. 15 minutes of warmup, 25 minutes of interval work, 10 minutes of cooldown. One thing that can be said for the trainer, is that you can just zone out. You can put your head down, close your eyes, watch a movie, read…whatever. No cars to worry about, no trees to hit, it can be very relaxing. But it still doesnt compare to being out in the sun, or out in the night. Riding is meant to be done outside, and one of the great attractions to cycling is the freedom of exploration. There is nothing better than turning down a piece of single track for the first time. The anticipation almost equals the feeling at the start of a race. Except without the nerves, and the nausea, and the doubts, and the…and I digress.

From this….
…to this

It was cold today. The winter here in the mountains can come early. We are getting into that period of time where winter likes to remind us that it is not far off. Saturday on the ridge trail there was frost on the ground. Today the highs were the lows of a month ago. Snow is forcasted for the high mountains this week. Riding in this time of year can be spectacular. The trails are less dusty, tighter, and colored with fallen leaves. The air is crisp, and taking a deep breath almost feels as good as a drink from the camelbak. The fall is by far my favorite time to ride.

I want to thank Bikeblogs for choosing this blog as the October blog of the month. Thanks guys! If you have not checked out Bike Blogs, it is definatley worth bookmarking. It is fast becoming the best cycling related blog on the web. They list about 200 (and growing) cycling related blogs from racers, builders, mechanics, and from people who just love to ride and write. If you found me via Bikeblogs, welcome to my site!

On a sad note, Allan Butler, a Utah cyclist, was killed in Las Vegas while he was attending the Interbike show. I didn’t know him personally, but this kind of news his hard to swallow. Cycling is a community sport, and those who are a part of the community automatically feel kinship with other riders. There is a memorial ride on October 8th in his honor. My thoughts and prayers go out to his friends and family, and especially to his wife and young daughter. This year Allan was recognized as Utah’s top road racer for the second time in his career.

Well, that is all for now. I need tome ZZZ’s.