Made it.
56 miles up there, watched Matts Dissertation defense at Hahvahd, headed right back home (slightly different route at 55.4). First long ride since oh... August. Was worried i would be late. More or less headwind up there and I just pushed as much as I could. Left me kind of cooked for the ride home. Wore backpack so I could carry the lock (and all the cookies). It worked.
Left the house around 7:45. Home at 5:15. Ain't no land speed record, but given the wind, riding solo, and all the damn stoplights and traffic, no worries, ain't got no pride staked on some avg speed number. Today was about doing it. About saddle time.
Without Matt's defense it probably wouldn't have happened, and I'm so grateful to have had the chance to spend the day on the bike.
Heading down my bikepath on the home stretch (brutal crosswind at that point) Ode To Joy was what my brain cued on the music track. No, nothing plugged into my ears. Also, while I did record it on Strava, I did it blind, phone in pocket, no bike computer. The ride was what it was, and it was good.
Full winded?
So I've been kind of lamenting the inability to get away and ride this winter/spring. The days the weather has cooperated my schedule hasn't, and v/v.
A few weeks ago when I Matt set his PhD defense date and seminar the idea sort of crystallized, what better way to honor the total badass of endurance cycling and his science than by riding up to attend the seminar? I couldn't think of anything better. Matt is one of those amazing guys, you just can't help but like. So yeah. Anyway, here's a dude of music, bike mechanics, cyclocross, long fucking rides, and bioscience...
The only variable left out there was the weather. In this instance my only criteria was that it wouldn't be a deluge or snow. I've ridden to Boston and back and have been dumped on, had mist and sleet and freezing rain fall on me. As long as it was mostly clear for most of the day? I have clothing to deal with everything else.
Dean and I rode up last year into the teeth of a 20 mph wind. That was brutal. Esp when it shifted and we had a damn headwind once we turned off Bay all the way to Providence.
Weather was magically lining up.
Confirmed. It was going to be dry. not warm, not calm, but dry. That was enough.
It was on.
Back in March I wanted to try the Cookie ride. Fueling a 100+ miles on only my chocolate peanut butter cookies. That didn't happen.
So i made a batch Sunday night. This was going to be the March Cookie ride at the end of April. Why not.
Science, Cookies, bike ride. YES.
quick version, yes the cookies worked. ate 8 of them on the way up (okay six on the ride up and two waiting for seminar to start). and had 8 on the way home. Gave two of them to the Wilcox and had two in reserve. Perfect.
I tried to figure out how to carry the lock on the bike and avoid taking the backpack but i gave up. Loaded the seat bag, a tube or two, some stans, cookies, spoke wrench chain tool, multi-tool and that's about it. I did stick the warmer weather gloves and a regular cycling cap in there. Started off with the Ibex wool beanie under the helmet and my warm gloves.
It was cold at the start. Woke up to 35°F weather, warmed to 40°F by the time I left. 20 minutes later than I planned. Shorts, leg warmers, long sleeve jersey, winter jacket, but not winter shoes, thin liner wool socks and a bit taller wool over that. I stopped just after turning onto Bay to shed the winter jacket and the beanie and go for the lighter weight gloves.
The wind though. An unusual direction, could have been worse but it wasn't very productive. East-Northeast. Headwind to Bay, cross headwind to Boston.
The roll north wasn't too bad but with nothing to gauge time checks, progress, speed or anything I kind of just rode as hard as I was sustainable. I put coffee in the two big bottles for the start. Drank one bottle on the way up more or less. Finished the second during seminar, filled up both with skratch lab packets and water for the ride home. Had a little less than one bottle left when I got home.
That headwind. oof. head down churning the miles out. Reach bag, grab cookie, eat two of them, pedal on. Power through the wind.
Normal route, if you've seen the Strava track you know where I went. Kind of basically auto-pilot up to Blue Hills. Crane, Pine, Plain to Bay. I'm tired of Bay. so many close calls, coming home Easton School Bus 12 (212 bus id) was maybe 1 foot away (if that) from me passing at close to 2x as fast as I was going and I was ON the white line if not just on the ride side of it. No room. Tired of it. But I know it. Know what to expect. familiar with the pacing of the landmarks and all that. usually isn't bad on the way up in the morning but it is much busier on the way home.
So heading north, just battling the wind I finally took the jacket off and started motoring a bit up Bay. Pedal pedal pedal.
Got up past Blue Hill, rolled through into the 'Pan. And north. Plan was to turn on Morton and head up and connect with the SW Corridor bike path up to Longwood. Well. I missed Morton. not by a little either. Kind of felt a bit far but then when I hit Dudley I broke down and pulled out the phone. Of course it asked to use the GPS data and I said "later" instead of "now" and had to manage the map interface and guess w/o it telling me where I actually was (meant my three stops for orientation took longer). Headed left on Dudley, actually seemed to be about right. Cars weren't great on Blue Hills but I'm sort of used to riding with cars and know what to expect and they weren't bad and I didn't get clobbered.
Heading onto Dudley there was an old bearded dude riding an aluminum box section recumbent. Big red flag. He rode through every f'n red-light. Every Single One. Wove through traffic. I kept catching him and passing him. only to have him roll past and through. yes. I wait for red lights. I even waited for red lights through the long pedestrian crossing signals when all 4 directions are cars were stopped. Why? That's what I am supposed to do, right?
So my only previous time check before Dudley was Canton's clocks, 10:17 was when I rolled through there. Hit Dudley at about 11am.
Rolled down there until I got to the 7-11/Francis intersection. I recognized the New Research Building and my homing pigeon brain was saying I needed to go over in a certain direction, checked the maps, yeah okay, straight, then right... stopped again because I thought I should be near Longwood. Yes but I needed to take one more right and go another block or so. There it is. Got it. Found bike parking locked up bike, headed inside.
Saw a very different Matt, nervous, uncertainty, tension, but still smiling for people. Zoe was there, we met for the first time in like what 7-8 years, despite being at many races at the same time every year... connection in real life (or as the internet people say IRL) was made. The talk was good. Matt even included SEM, TEM and some fluorescence images! PICTURES. But then the graphs started. Despite my programmed brain death at the flashing of graphs in seminars I managed to pay attention and he was good. Was surprised that there were not more people at the defense. All the one I've been to have been packed with the whole department, grad students and faculty, they usually way out-number friends and Family. Felt kind of the other way around, but maybe that is how they do it up there in Hahvahd. The audience is no reflection on the achievement though, ain't shabby, huge props to Dr Matt. Love that guy.
At the end of the talk, in his acknowledgements he got a bit choked up with the slide of his parents, he got out "They put the tire in Retired, they have spent the last 10 years in an orphanage in Mexico" and that was it. This guy is genuine. Respect the emotions. And then he went to the next slide with merry and pippen and damn if he didn't get emotional talking about his cats, it wasn't quite enough but then he transitioned from his editorial staff to a slide of Mo. and then one of her CX trading card, covered in mud. And he pretty got as close to losing it as possible. And I will admit, I had to blink away tears of empathy and compassion. He ended with a slide of the BAA ribbon logo and asked that we all set an alarm to take a moment of silence at 2:50 to remember what happened last week.
it was time to head home.
Give everyone a hug. Talked with Wilcox (another one of the most amazing people EVER) as we walked back to the bike Corral. And headed out south. With a cold cross wind.
The bike path wasn't really any faster than the street but it gave me a chance to relax and ride, and reflect and center myself. Was good. Hit the Washington interchange and headed down Hyde Park. Over on Watch Hill to Blue Hills. And home. Except, I had to pee. Bladder was full. Damnit. But not painful. Just full. Hmm. At that moment I really wished Firefly guys hadn't moved. But I rolled on. And on. Cold cross wind. Was working as hard as I could and was just staying warm enough.
Wound up turning onto Plain or Crane or whatever it is off of Bay finally. Tailwind. Oh so glorious.
Just past the elementary school there was a plastic poop closet by the Little League field. SAVED.
Rolled the rest of the way home comfortably. But man turning onto Pine with the cross wind and the dark clouds and tall trees, it was cold. Before turning right on Crane i put the jacket and warm gloves back on and felt significantly better. Ahh. So nice.
Ticked the miles off, eating cookies, thinking. No headphones, no external music, no bike computer to display miles or time or any metric. Just me, the wind, the roads. The bike.
Rolled home with a stiff cross wind on the causeway on the bike path, same direction as when I left, just stronger. It was still there this morning on the ride in.
Fueling was great. Cookies worked well. No bonk. Legs were sore a bit but fine. contact points? no big deal. It wasn't the fastest 111 miles on a bike, but given the lights, the traffic, my lack of mileage, the wind, the backpack... I'm very happy with it.
I owe Dr Matt a huge thanks for words he said this spring and for scheduling his talk yesterday.
Now. To plan the next ride. New London? will it be the C2R3? Or the Tour De Cure? we'll see what strange tapestry the Fates are weaving for my future.
heddwch
G
parting shot of my companion for the ride yesterday
2 comments:
I always feel like Blue bikes should always be Blue. I guess that is too obvious. Nice to meet you too, sir!
Robin probably would have let you use the bathroom here.
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