Mother Nature brought rain this morning thus sparing me from any guilty feelings of not getting up for an extra-early ride. And I didn't have to make the long commute drive today as my class agreed to use today as a work day so I could be home to help my two dancing children attend their morning dance rehearsal in full regalia, which included putting their hair in a bun around a bun form. My hubby is talented in many areas but bun formation is not one of them. It is not exactly one of my fortes either but with enough bobby pins, hair nets, rubber bands and hair spray, anything is possible.
Thankfully the temperature today was cool so an afternoon ride was not a problem. I decided to try a new trail and started off on the North Cedar Lake Regional Trail, which heads a bit north and runs parallel to the trail I was on for my last ride. I discovered that I could, in theory, ride my bike to Target! The major problem being that I would have to have luggage racks to hold my purchases. Anyway, the trail has a few more rises and falls than the other local trails I've been on but flattens out once you get within a couple miles of downtown. It was my plan to hook up with a trail that heads south but I missed the connection and ended up backtracking a bit. Unlike many of the other trails which are built on old train beds, this one runs alongside the still used tracks. As I was backtracking a train was heading west out of Minneapolis. For a while it was ahead of me, but soon I was pedaling fast enough to pass it. My kids were impressed when I told them I rode faster than a train (see my cape flying out behind me?!). True, the train was probably only going 10 m.p.h. but, hey, it sounds good.
Once I got myself reoriented and heading south I found my way to Lake of the Isles. Riding there is enjoyable as there are all sorts of carefully tended and lovely gardens in the yards of the spacious houses that surround the lake. It fills my head with grand ideas of how to transform my yard. And truth be told, I toyed with the idea of sneaking back under the cover of darkness to steal chunks of some of the funkier hostas to replant in my yard. But I have too much pusillanimity to actually follow through with that crazy notion. Although my courage was tested when I came to a section of trail that was surrounded by my biking arch nemesis, Canada Geese. I almost drove off the curb and into the road in order to avoid running the goose gauntlet but thought that would not be the wisest option. Instead I sallied on, pedaling a little faster so as not to give them much chance to attack and wishing I could momentarily turn invisible. Perhaps they had filled their quota of attacks for the day by the time I rode by because (thankfully, oh so thankfully) they let me pass unscathed.
My goal today was to surpass the max distance I've ridden, so after the lake I easily found the connector to the Midtown Greenway and rode that until Hiawatha Avenue, when I turned and headed for home, enjoying the tailwind. Now for some unknown reason while riding my toes fall asleep. One would think with your heart beating harder that the blood would be flowing all over your body and there wouldn't be parts falling asleep. But they do, and it is annoying. The longer the ride, the harder it is to keep them "awake". To alleviate this I hang one foot at a time off the pedal and shake it to encourage the blood to relocate the seemingly forgotten arteries and veins.This works for a short while and then must be repeated off and on for the duration of the ride.
As I neared home and my favorite two hills (cough, cough), it was necessary to get off and walk my bike for a couple hundred yards to get the blood flow going again so I could pedal that last amount. I remounted, headed up the hills and was quickly shifting into the "grannies"...some bike term that Terri used for those gears that you pedal like crazy but only move a tiny amount. But it worked and I made it to the top again gasping for air and uttering expletives, which really seems to help, a lot. Today was a 27.13 mile ride and my knees and some little muscles in the arches of my feet are still reminiscing about the trek. Perhaps tomorrow the memory will be a little sweeter for them and the soreness will subside.
It's just over two months until the La Crosse ride, which will hopefully occur on a heavily overcast, sixty degree day in August (what are the chances?). Funds are still needed to help meet my minimum goal of $2000. Please let friends, family and people you don't know that they can donate to a worthy cause by directing them to http://www2.jdrf.org/goto/gjengdahl where they can give any amount, big or small to help find a cure for type one diabetes. My family thanks you, my knees thank you, my sore foot muscles thank you, and the rest of me thanks you too.
(I've been listening to Don Quixote on my commute to work the past four weeks and Miguel de Cervantes uses a lot of fun-to-say 'p' words in his writing. Pusillanimous, peregrination and profundity are my three favorites.)
Friday, June 10, 2011
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Biking Before Breakfast
It was very tempting to turn off the alarm that went off a little after 5:00 a.m. I didn't want to get up. The motivating thought however, was that Annika, and all the other kids (and adults) with type one diabetes probably didn't want to wake up and still have diabetes either. That worked as impetus enough to push me up and out the door, albeit a little groggy and sleep deprived and with a deadline to get back in time to get ready for work.
Today I decided to head back to one of the trails where my training started about six weeks ago (and I didn't drive there either). And not that this is new news but as I studied the bike map to plot my route it really became apparent that I live in a hub of bike trails. Yeah, tax dollars! From the LRT trail by my house I rode through Hopkins and caught the Cedar Lake LRT trail which heads east through the 'burbs and into south Minneapolis. The Cedar Lake LRT trail is asphalt and the rhythmic cracks that run perpendicular to my bike tires compelled me to fine tune my seating position and locate the posterior sit bones in a hurry as they are able to take the bumps, lessening the need for all the wincing.
The plan was to zip around a lake or two and then head home. However, there is bridge construction going on on the trail and I unintentionally rode past the turn off to the lakes as its usual landmarks were obscured by orange pylons and fencing. Going straight on the trail quickly hooked me into the Midtown Greenway portion of the path, which was new territory. The Midtown Greenway runs through Minneapolis down a former railroad corridor. It is pretty cool as you ride at a subterranean level. This path is well-used, even in the early hours of the morning, and a lot of bikers with fancy clothes and bikes whip by at high speeds, never once saying "on your left". (I only heard that once today by a fellow cotton shirt-wearer. Although, truth be told, all the other cotton shirt-wearers didn't say it either.) The Midtown Greenway, if taken due east, leads to the Mississippi. I got awfully close to that today but had to turn around as time was not on my side. However, riding today felt almost easy. I zoomed (for me) into Minneapolis, helped by a tailwind that I discovered upon my return trip. But even then it felt as if I was a well-oiled machine...although my knees could still use a little more oil. Whatever the circumstances that led to that feeling, I hope they repeat themselves for each bike ride. True, I was back on turf that didn't have hills, just gentle rises and falls, but everything was working well, more or less.
This past weekend Terri, the coach, had talked about figuring out a riding cadence and which gears to be in to maintain that cadence. Today's ride may have been improved as that notion of a riding cadence was starting to sink in and the gear placement was matching, and the lungs were working, and the legs were pumping. And not to be undone by a hill, as I had made it to the top of that dastardly bridge in St. Paul during the weekend training ride, I made it up both hills at the end of today's ride that lead to my house. It wasn't pretty, and I was almost undone by a giant pinecone that tried to throw me off balance, and my lungs were about to burst, but I made it...24.0 miles.
All of this craziness is being done in the name of raising funds for Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), in which I have a vested personal interest in the form of an eight-year old, as they work towards the cure for type one diabetes. The La Crosse Ride is August 13th and my minimum fund raising goal is $2000. If you or anyone you know cares to donate any amount that you are able to help JDRF please go to http://www2.jdrf.org/goto/gjengdahl
Today I decided to head back to one of the trails where my training started about six weeks ago (and I didn't drive there either). And not that this is new news but as I studied the bike map to plot my route it really became apparent that I live in a hub of bike trails. Yeah, tax dollars! From the LRT trail by my house I rode through Hopkins and caught the Cedar Lake LRT trail which heads east through the 'burbs and into south Minneapolis. The Cedar Lake LRT trail is asphalt and the rhythmic cracks that run perpendicular to my bike tires compelled me to fine tune my seating position and locate the posterior sit bones in a hurry as they are able to take the bumps, lessening the need for all the wincing.
The plan was to zip around a lake or two and then head home. However, there is bridge construction going on on the trail and I unintentionally rode past the turn off to the lakes as its usual landmarks were obscured by orange pylons and fencing. Going straight on the trail quickly hooked me into the Midtown Greenway portion of the path, which was new territory. The Midtown Greenway runs through Minneapolis down a former railroad corridor. It is pretty cool as you ride at a subterranean level. This path is well-used, even in the early hours of the morning, and a lot of bikers with fancy clothes and bikes whip by at high speeds, never once saying "on your left". (I only heard that once today by a fellow cotton shirt-wearer. Although, truth be told, all the other cotton shirt-wearers didn't say it either.) The Midtown Greenway, if taken due east, leads to the Mississippi. I got awfully close to that today but had to turn around as time was not on my side. However, riding today felt almost easy. I zoomed (for me) into Minneapolis, helped by a tailwind that I discovered upon my return trip. But even then it felt as if I was a well-oiled machine...although my knees could still use a little more oil. Whatever the circumstances that led to that feeling, I hope they repeat themselves for each bike ride. True, I was back on turf that didn't have hills, just gentle rises and falls, but everything was working well, more or less.
This past weekend Terri, the coach, had talked about figuring out a riding cadence and which gears to be in to maintain that cadence. Today's ride may have been improved as that notion of a riding cadence was starting to sink in and the gear placement was matching, and the lungs were working, and the legs were pumping. And not to be undone by a hill, as I had made it to the top of that dastardly bridge in St. Paul during the weekend training ride, I made it up both hills at the end of today's ride that lead to my house. It wasn't pretty, and I was almost undone by a giant pinecone that tried to throw me off balance, and my lungs were about to burst, but I made it...24.0 miles.
All of this craziness is being done in the name of raising funds for Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), in which I have a vested personal interest in the form of an eight-year old, as they work towards the cure for type one diabetes. The La Crosse Ride is August 13th and my minimum fund raising goal is $2000. If you or anyone you know cares to donate any amount that you are able to help JDRF please go to http://www2.jdrf.org/goto/gjengdahl
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Keep on Pedalin'
Today's post is brought to you by the letter 'H' (highway, hand signals, hydration, helmet, heat, humidity, hills, home handyman special) and by the letter 'S' (sunshine, sunburn, sunscreen, sweat).
Today I gathered my courage, put on my extrovert hat, and joined a group of JDRF Minnesota riders, known as the Loon-a-tics, for the weekly group training ride. My fear was that they would all be experienced riders (which they were), with all the right riding gear (which they had), and all the right riding attire (which they wore), and were all ogres (which they weren't). There were five experienced athletes and me, the burgeoning athlete in her cotton shorts and t-shirt. Amongst the riders was Terri, the coach, whom I had emailed but never met. Terri tells me that cotton is the least comfortable fabric to ride in...no wicking action. She introduced me to her husband Jim and the other riders, Christine, Matt and Josh. Terri and Jim's youngest son was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2004 and this is their seventh year riding. Christine was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when she was 32 and has been participating in JDRF rides for the last eight years with her husband Matt. Josh's four-year old son was just diagnosed in February and this is his first ride, although he trained as a runner previously. Terri, Jim, Matt and Christine participate in more than one JDRF Ride per year and have ridden in Vermont, Lake Tahoe, Tucson, and Death Valley as well as La Crosse.
The initial goal was to undertake a 35 mile ride today. This concerned me as I was only able to get one ride in this past week as Mother Nature thwarted my chances on Thursday and Friday to keep on pedalin'. However, I am told that I just have to let them know when I've had enough and Terri will ride back with me. As we started out of the JDRF parking lot in Bloomington the hand signals are explained to me because we are going to spend part of this ride on the road. I have become one of those obnoxious bikers that hogs the driving lanes! Most of it is just courtesy stuff, like pointing out potholes and manholes and other potential hazards, as well as signaling your turns. There are the verbal courtesies as well, such as "passing on your left" (as you zoom by other road/trail users), "clear" (when crossing a road), and "bike up" (which means get in single file as there is someone heading toward us on the path and there isn't room for riding side-by-side). Terri also adjusted my helmet so it wouldn't slip back on my head, which I knew it wasn't supposed to do but didn't know how to fix it.
We weren't on the road for too long when we picked up a trail near the airport that runs parallel to 494. Riding next to the highway is not particularly fun as it is loud and dirty. The path started with a nice downhill glide but then turned into a long uphill climb. This was the start of my realization that training on old train routes, which may only have a 5% grade, is a lot different than training on a route that has hills. This was really driven home when, after riding through Mendota, Lilydale and into St. Paul, we rode up a long, steep bridge. Terri and I were bringing up the rear throughout the ride and she was behind me making suggestions about which gears to be in at which point of this challenging ascent. That was helpful, and an iron lung might have been helpful too. But somehow I made it without the need for Josh's EMT training to be put to use on the streets of St. Paul. These weekend training rides are not races and the riders stop every few miles to regroup and drink water and eat some carbs. Being the last one to the regrouping stops made me have the shortest amount of recovery time as well. And, note to self, Fig Newtons in a baggy that have been shoved in the little storage bag under the bike seat, do not make for cool snacking along the way.
The temperature and humidity were the warmest I have ridden in and, although I attempted to be prepared by attaching the additional home handyman special water bottle carrier that Hubby made from wide velcro strips to my bike, it was still not enough water. I did not realize this until the last four miles of the ride when the headache kicked in. Apparently retaining water like a camel isn't enough, one must drink it as well. Before I ride again on a hot day there will be some additional water bottle cages attached so I will have plenty of water handy.
At about mile 18, I had to decide whether or not it was time to head back or if I could press on for a 35 mile ride. I opted for the heading back as the heat and hills and lack of an additional ride last week had slowed me down. As it turned out, the whole group decided to head back and we ended up with a 23.86 mile ride, which was plenty. The hill that was so easy to glide down at the beginning of the ride was my undoing at the end. I made it across the long part of the bridge but had no more mojo left for getting up the remainder of the slope. Terri and I walked up the last bit and that gave my toes enough time to regain circulation and my quads to uncramp. At the top of the slope we remounted and rode the last half mile or so back to the starting point.
One of the other things I learned today was that when you are riding in the sunshine you will get sunburned if you don't apply sunscreen. Guess who feels all hot and glowy on her arms and cheeks? After the ride was all done and we had said our farewells back in the parking lot where the ride had started, I hopped in my car and cranked the air conditioning as I was sweaty - not a feeling I enjoy. When I arrived home and saw my face in the mirror there was white scaly gunk all over my face. Had all the salt leached from my body? Was this the look of congealed sweat? Whatever it was it had the power to exfoliate while being washed off to better show off my pink nose and cheeks.
Thanks to Daddio for taking care of the kiddos on a Sunday morning so I could participate in the training ride. It's taking the village (ooooh, some more 'H's'....Heidi's Helpers) to make this JDRF Ride possible for me.
Today I gathered my courage, put on my extrovert hat, and joined a group of JDRF Minnesota riders, known as the Loon-a-tics, for the weekly group training ride. My fear was that they would all be experienced riders (which they were), with all the right riding gear (which they had), and all the right riding attire (which they wore), and were all ogres (which they weren't). There were five experienced athletes and me, the burgeoning athlete in her cotton shorts and t-shirt. Amongst the riders was Terri, the coach, whom I had emailed but never met. Terri tells me that cotton is the least comfortable fabric to ride in...no wicking action. She introduced me to her husband Jim and the other riders, Christine, Matt and Josh. Terri and Jim's youngest son was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2004 and this is their seventh year riding. Christine was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when she was 32 and has been participating in JDRF rides for the last eight years with her husband Matt. Josh's four-year old son was just diagnosed in February and this is his first ride, although he trained as a runner previously. Terri, Jim, Matt and Christine participate in more than one JDRF Ride per year and have ridden in Vermont, Lake Tahoe, Tucson, and Death Valley as well as La Crosse.
The initial goal was to undertake a 35 mile ride today. This concerned me as I was only able to get one ride in this past week as Mother Nature thwarted my chances on Thursday and Friday to keep on pedalin'. However, I am told that I just have to let them know when I've had enough and Terri will ride back with me. As we started out of the JDRF parking lot in Bloomington the hand signals are explained to me because we are going to spend part of this ride on the road. I have become one of those obnoxious bikers that hogs the driving lanes! Most of it is just courtesy stuff, like pointing out potholes and manholes and other potential hazards, as well as signaling your turns. There are the verbal courtesies as well, such as "passing on your left" (as you zoom by other road/trail users), "clear" (when crossing a road), and "bike up" (which means get in single file as there is someone heading toward us on the path and there isn't room for riding side-by-side). Terri also adjusted my helmet so it wouldn't slip back on my head, which I knew it wasn't supposed to do but didn't know how to fix it.
We weren't on the road for too long when we picked up a trail near the airport that runs parallel to 494. Riding next to the highway is not particularly fun as it is loud and dirty. The path started with a nice downhill glide but then turned into a long uphill climb. This was the start of my realization that training on old train routes, which may only have a 5% grade, is a lot different than training on a route that has hills. This was really driven home when, after riding through Mendota, Lilydale and into St. Paul, we rode up a long, steep bridge. Terri and I were bringing up the rear throughout the ride and she was behind me making suggestions about which gears to be in at which point of this challenging ascent. That was helpful, and an iron lung might have been helpful too. But somehow I made it without the need for Josh's EMT training to be put to use on the streets of St. Paul. These weekend training rides are not races and the riders stop every few miles to regroup and drink water and eat some carbs. Being the last one to the regrouping stops made me have the shortest amount of recovery time as well. And, note to self, Fig Newtons in a baggy that have been shoved in the little storage bag under the bike seat, do not make for cool snacking along the way.
The temperature and humidity were the warmest I have ridden in and, although I attempted to be prepared by attaching the additional home handyman special water bottle carrier that Hubby made from wide velcro strips to my bike, it was still not enough water. I did not realize this until the last four miles of the ride when the headache kicked in. Apparently retaining water like a camel isn't enough, one must drink it as well. Before I ride again on a hot day there will be some additional water bottle cages attached so I will have plenty of water handy.
At about mile 18, I had to decide whether or not it was time to head back or if I could press on for a 35 mile ride. I opted for the heading back as the heat and hills and lack of an additional ride last week had slowed me down. As it turned out, the whole group decided to head back and we ended up with a 23.86 mile ride, which was plenty. The hill that was so easy to glide down at the beginning of the ride was my undoing at the end. I made it across the long part of the bridge but had no more mojo left for getting up the remainder of the slope. Terri and I walked up the last bit and that gave my toes enough time to regain circulation and my quads to uncramp. At the top of the slope we remounted and rode the last half mile or so back to the starting point.
One of the other things I learned today was that when you are riding in the sunshine you will get sunburned if you don't apply sunscreen. Guess who feels all hot and glowy on her arms and cheeks? After the ride was all done and we had said our farewells back in the parking lot where the ride had started, I hopped in my car and cranked the air conditioning as I was sweaty - not a feeling I enjoy. When I arrived home and saw my face in the mirror there was white scaly gunk all over my face. Had all the salt leached from my body? Was this the look of congealed sweat? Whatever it was it had the power to exfoliate while being washed off to better show off my pink nose and cheeks.
Thanks to Daddio for taking care of the kiddos on a Sunday morning so I could participate in the training ride. It's taking the village (ooooh, some more 'H's'....Heidi's Helpers) to make this JDRF Ride possible for me.
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