well, I have been warmer

Just a bit of ruminating today.

Cold weather has arrived in Southern Ontario. Suffering as I am from a cold, I am feeling it more than usual. Normally, I don't really mind the cold.  I deal with it by simply ignoring it. I spend most of my time outside when I can, and generally don't acknowledge the temperature (rain bugs me, but cold and snow do not).

Today? Being stubborn is not working very well. The cold seems to possess knives that no amount of clothing can shield me from. Being ill really does not impress me in a positive manner.

I am both glad and saddened by the fact that the major storm that struck Ottawa and points east has missed us entirely. Aware as I am of the damage that early storms cause when people have not yet performed their annual adjustment to winter conditions, I am glad that the storm missed. We don't need the problems that come with winter arriving all at once. A gradual approach tends to be easier on people and everything else. However, I do miss the snow. Strange thing for a devout cyclist to miss, to be sure, but it is true none the less. I am of the opinion that if we are going to have winter, we should do it right with lots of snow, lots of cold, and lots of outside playing (in my case, playing on a bicycle because that is what I do...).

Speaking of playing with bicycles, I am going to exit the upcoming winter in the best shape that I have been in for over a decade. What is different? I am rejoining the Goodlife health club this weekend. The main reason for doing this is that they offer spin classes. I spent a five month period over the winter when I was 29 attending spin classes - known then by the club as "powerpacing" and now as "rpm" - doing about five classes a week. Often, I would do a double - a 90 minute class with a 45 minute class as a warmdown. The result was a general leaning up of my physique and a reduction in weight from about 190lbs to 166lbs, an increase in lung capacity which made burst efforts on the bicycle easy, and a general feeling that the bicycle was powered by an electric motor and not me. I miss this. A lot. My wife says that she has never seen me so fit and kicked me in the arse to get me back into it. The classes did nothing for endurance (nothing replaces putting the km on the bike and just suffering when the day is off) but did do a lot for preparing me for a great season of cycling.

The other benefit of joining the health club for me is the running treadmills and access to some weight machines. I have no desire to build any bulk on my upper half (it is dead weight on the bicycle) but would like to tone up my core. I do not enjoy this kind of exercise but the truth that a solid core will help with cycling and help prevent injury is not up for debate. I have to force myself to do it. It will be worth it. Running is also something I dislike. I usually only run during the winter, and usually do my running outdoors. However, for some reason, running on a treadmill does not bother me. Weird, but true. Cross training there will help. Add in spinning on the trainer, and all the commuting possible to do, and spring should start off pretty fast for someone, like me, who does not race and rides just for fun and the general health benefits that come from being fit.

This decision to go ahead and rejoin the gym pushed forward a decision about what to do about my pedal system on my bicycles.

Honest, it did!

Currently, I use Time Atac mountain bike pedals on all of my bikes which have clip in pedals. I infinitely prefer to be clipped in when riding - I have been riding clipped pedal systems since 1984 - and do not want to do spin classes without riding in cycling shoes and being attached to the pedals. I ride using high end carbon composite soled mountain bike shoes from Giro. They mass about what the road shoes do from that company (a bit heavier, but not much), and are extremely stiff. The soles have no flex at all, and transmit power much better than cheap cycling shoes or (yuck) non-cycling shoes can. Previously, the gym would allow people to bring in their own pedals and swap them out for the classes. This is not allowed anymore...

I mention the pedals I use because the cleats on the bottom of my shoes which attach me to the pedals are not the same as the Shimano ones. This matters because the gym's spin class bicycles use the Shimano SPD system, which is a very popular system. Since I cannot bring in a pair of pedals anymore, this means that I would have to buy another pair of cycling shoes, and good ones at that, and a set of spd cleats before I could do any spin classes. Running shoes are not an option. This is expensive.

However, one of my Time pedals is broken, which means that I need to replace them anyway. That is also expensive. Turns out that I can buy one pair of Shimano XT mountain bike race pedals (no extra platform) with cleats included, and another pair of Shimano LX mountain bike pedals with cleats included from my local bike store for the same price or less than a replacement pair of Time pedals off the internet. The XT ones go on the cross bike, and the LX on one of the other bikes. And the spd cleats go on the good race shoes. Which fit with the bikes at the gym. Which, since I needed the new pedals anyway, and would have spent that money on pedals no matter what, saves me the price of a good pair of shoes ($200+) and cleats.

Yay me!

And as an added bonus, Shimano has built in huge float into their spd pedal system compared to previous decades. That is what drove me to Time - the ability for the heal to swing back and forth through a pedal stroke without unclipping or straining the knee. I have bad knees... The XT pedals, now mounted on my 'cross bike on the trainer, allow this float and are going to be fantastic in use. Later, after I use them for a bit, I will comment more on what I think of these pedals.

but meanwhile, it's just my blanket and me

Unlike Linus, I don't have a blanket. I do, however, have a much loved bicycle.

It is trainer time again. The salt is out, colder weather is settling in, and if I want any real exercise, it is time to sit in front of the TV and spin for about an hour a night and watch cycling on YouTube.

Thank goodness for Eurosport!

Note : must remember to lower the gear and therefore wheel speed but increase pressure on the rear tire to make up for it. The heat build up melted my tire a bit tonight (no, really, it did) since the rear wheel was spinning at about 45kmph on the trainer hub for 50 minutes. A lower gear will reduce the heat build up since the wheel spins slower for any given cadence, while a bit more pressure will keep my own effort the same. Each winter, I basically sacrifice a tire to the trainer, but I want this one to last to spring! (If it doesn't, oh well, but better it does I say!)

one rainy evening, imagination soared

One rainy evening...

Rain is my kryptonite. I do not enjoy riding in it. The cold and damp seem to seep through more than the coldest winter day (coldest here defined as -25 Celcius). Rain in the winter is the worst since temperatures fluxuate so much and so rapidly that hypothermia is a real danger if the weather catches you out.

The rainy evening in question starts with a rainy afternoon.

I met with a good friend of mine for a coffee before wandering off to the LBS to pick up my commuter bike which was in for a repair. My friend, a fellow cyclist, does not like using his trainer and since I do not own one, agreed to lend me his for the duration of the winter.

One rainy evening, I set up the cross bike in front of the computer and rode a piece of the 2011 Paris Roubaix spring classic. For forty-five minutes, I rode with the best.

One rainy evening, imagination soared, and my legs woke up from their commuter induced slumber.