Character Building

I'm in the base building phase of my bike training right now. Translation: I'm building my aerobic endurance through long, steady, moderate aerobic efforts. With my 'fair weather' riding mentality, this has meant hours inside on the trainer. Fortunately we have a dvd shelf full of all available Tour de France coverage, all of my favorite movies (and then some), and every episode of the Simpsons and Nikita. But even though I have no shortage of viewing material, the trainer can get boring during Calgary's long winter.

So, when I saw that the forecast for this weekend called for temperatures above 10 degrees Celsius on both Saturday and Sunday, I figured it was a great opportunity to get some volume in outside. I've been wanting to spend some time with my TransRockies partner (our schedules are not particularly compatible). Since she spends her weekends in Canmore, I figured I could combine these two objectives by riding my bike to Canmore. 100km each day seemed about perfect. Plus, with Erik away this weekend, a night in Canmore seemed a bit more exciting than a night home alone.

This time of year is always a bit windy, especially when we get the westerly winds bringing in the warm weather. I knew I was facing the prospect of a headwind on the way out. I know I will need to challenge my fair weather riding mentality as I prepare for TransRockies. I definitely did that today. On a ride that should normally take no more than three and a half to four hours, after five and a half hours into a strong headwind, I made it to Canmore. I'm not just base building, I'm character building.

In a sick sort of way, I liked it. Maybe it's because I'm deprived of fresh air and sunshine. Or maybe it's because I expect I'll have a tailwind tomorrow.