So today we did our hill repeats. I’ve never been in this area, and certainly never on the roads, so I didn’t know how steep it was or what else to expect. It turned out to be okay.
We met at a park about 3 miles away from the base of the hill. From there, we rode to a smaller parking lot near the base of the hill and regrouped.
The drill was easy: ride up a 3/4-mile hill in a line as far as you can go. You can pass each other, so the hill naturally spaces people out according to their ability. As soon as the leader gets to the top of the hill, he or she turns around and races down. When the person in front of you passes you going downhill, you turn around and follow. Then we all meet back at the small parking lot, regroup again, then head back up. Sounds simple enough — and it was.
We did Mt. Eden three times. The first time, I kept it mellow. I didn’t want to burn my legs out early and struggle, or cramp up, later. There were some steep parts and some not-so-steep parts, but the closest you get to resting are some short, flat sections. The second time, I went harder and passed some people. On the way down, I hit a bump and my brand new cycling computer when flying across the road. I made a mental note of where I lost it so I could look for it on the next run. On the last run, the coaches had a little surprise in store for us: everyone would ride to the top where we would take a picture before heading back to the first parking lot. This time, I let it all hang out (except for the section where I found my computer!). It was hard, but definitely not the worst climb I’ve ever done. And I didn’t have to get out of the saddle once! I think they choose this route just for that reason. It’s hard enough to give you a good workout, but not so hard that you have to stop spinning and start mashing the pedals.
While I did really well on the climbs, the downhills were a different story. I’m just not comfortable flying down hills. Never have, (probably) never will be. Fortunately, that’s not a big deal with this group. They’re more interested in safety than speed.
On the way back to the starting parking lot, I saw an all-white bike by the side of the road. It looked like it was propped up by a red bag or something like that. When I got closer, I saw that the red bag was really a bouquet. In front of the bicycle were two memorial plaques. I can only assume that that was the spot where a sleepy sheriff’s deputy killed two innocent cyclists. I’ll probably check it out closer next week.
Once back where we started, I got several kind words from the coaches. I guess I’m one of the stronger riders… and their praise only makes me want to get stronger!
Honestly, I gave credit where credit was due: the bike! It was amazing how smooth and easy it is to ride. Coming off of a mountain bike with ultra-low gearing, I was a little concerned about how I’d handle the limited gear selection of having ten sprockets, but only two chain rings. I think my mtn. bike’s smallest chain ring is 28 teeth and it’s biggest sprocket is 32 teeth. That means the rear wheel turns less than once for every rotation of the cranks. Doing a little math (32/28), that means it has a mechanical advantage of 1.143. The small chain ring on the road bike is 34 teeth and the biggest sprocket is 28 teeth. So, the maximum mechanical advantage I can get is 28/34=0.824. But it was enough for Mt. Eden, and I hope it’ll be enough for the century. I’ll just have to lose weight and gain strength!