Training for Bright gets going and I can get delirious...

Monday, rest day usually, but I am off to do a few kilometers. It is one of those things with being a competitive but amateur cyclist. I have to go to work. We have to go to work to be more precise, but having to work at some weird hours sometimes entails (and allows) being a little flexible with the training.

Hence, I am riding today and resting tomorrow. The good side, I can get out in the middle of the morning, a time when the parents of this town have already dropped their kids at school and should have their 4WDs already parked in their suburban garages, or equally suburban, shopping centers. Either way, it equates to slightly safer roads. That's what we need, amateurs or professionals.

Now, the important part, training for Bright is coming along nicely. After the two-week struggle, when just getting on the bike was an issue, this last week has been good. I have done 340 km and 3,500 m of climbing. OK, nowhere near what I was aiming for but good enough to get the systems going and not falling sick again.

I did start the week with a few repeats on Mt Coot-tha but it was more like a test of the new computer, a Garmin 500. Nevertheless, I did a 9'05" on the 2.3 km/9% climb, slower than my PB last year but not by much.

A commute to work followed by a sprint session with a few club members on Thursday added a bit more speed and fun to the training. I like to do those sessions and be the lead out man, I believe it is more beneficial for my racing and let's be honest here, sprints haven't been my thing for a while.

My week is never completed if I don't do a Bunya loop, so I did. It's quick, it can hurt and it's beautiful. Add the Mailmans Track to the loop and the pain threshold begins to get a serious workout.

The highlight of the training week was the Sunday ride when I headed to Dayboro for a couple rides up Ocean View Road. And talking pain threshold, this road has some pinches. I could even have been a little delirious at the time as I watched the numbers going... 15, 17, 19% on the Garmin (nice little feature!) as I climbed the first few hundred meters.

But more delirious I felt when the vision of a Deux Chevaux popped in front of me. I wasn't, the little blue car was coming down the hill, driven by a French looking guy (believe me!) who, smiling, beeped the horn and yelled. I was somewhere in the French Alps for a few seconds, and it felt good.

Ocean View Road, Dayboro

So, the training is happening and that's what matters. Next week should be bigger. I better get on the bike before heading to work and before those sugary Cafe Lattes are finished and the roads get filled by the speeding 4WDs again...