Thursday, April 03, 2008

Fast Ridin' in Happy Valley

Yesterday I went on my first lunch time ride. I was a bit resentful, due to the fact that I have to change 4 times at work, if I want to workout during my lunch hour. But the weather was GREAT, and I know the only way I'll get faster on my bike is if I start riding with a group.

I had an awesome time. I went out with some pretty fast guys and they showed me a new route, with rolling hills at the foot of Lookout Mountain, GA and through Happy Valley (yea, weird name, huh?). The good thing about these guy's is they are older and wanted to make good use of a measly one hour lunch break, so there wasn't really any talking, we were riding pretty fast.

We covered 21 miles and it took right at an hour, which is a great pace for me, especially considering the rolling hills and traffic. Climbing Lookout Mountain has helped me considerably, just as running up Signal Mountain has helped me with my running. I once had a professor who claimed he qualified for the Boston Marathon by strictly running hills. I definitely think there is something to it.

1 comment:

Summer said...

JP Here (in case you were wondering):

I wish we were having weather we could ride in. We haven't been able to get on the "real" bikes since November due to cold and rain. I don't think it is ever going to hit spring around here. Got the first 10k of the season next week. Glad to see you made it through the trail run in one piece...minus the MONSTER blister!