I know it was you Fredo

Shim, you are mentioned below.  But it’s really a bit part, so …

Also, not that it matters, but rainbow jersey wearing Mark Savery also makes a cameo.

Note:  Shim is always reminding us that he only pays attention to something if it starts with his name.

A strange combination of the weather, miscommunications and Brady have left me virtually “group rideless” this past week.  Weather because, well it was the weather.   Miscommunications because I often state my question (rather than ask it).  And Brady, because he wants to hear the Tonopah story.

Let me explain.  I was talking to Brady (maybe texting) on Friday about the possibility of a Saturday ride.  Rain was in the forecast and neither one of us was in the ‘riding in the rain’ mood.  That’s when Brady let me know that he might not ride even if it was sunny so I would have less chance of blogging about a group ride and more chance of getting back to the story of my dad getting into a skirmish with another vacationer outside Tonopah NV.

Well – it did rain Saturday.  Off and on all day.  I decided to just gamble on horses instead of ride my bike.  Then I got a text from Shim at about 5 or 6 PM, saying something like, “Cinco De Mayo ride.  Tequila, etc.”

I texted back that it sounded good if I could swing the timing.  This was the miscommunication part.

What I should have said (in my text) was “What time?”

Or, when I didn’t hear anything back, I should have later texted, “What time?”

Sunday morning, I got a text from Brady asking me if I ever dream about Kite surfing.  He didn’t mention any ride.  Brady rarely group rides on Sundays anyway, so this was not an unusual question for Sunday morning.    

The streets were still kind of wet on Sunday, but it was a really nice day.  I hung around the house and cleaned up a couple of bikes and just kind of goofed around all day. 

Later on, while I was on Strava reviewing all of the KOMs I had taken from Mark Savery recently, I saw the Cinco De Mayo ride I had assumed never happened.  My heart sank.  But my bikes were clean.

That’s when I realized Brady’s plan to keep me from riding.  Somehow he was able to keep me from receiving Shim’s follow up texts with the ride details.  I imagine Brady’s got a secret lair somewhere where he intercepts, analyzes and edits all text messages between area cyclists.  In this way he controls the rides as he sees fit.  Perhaps I’m paranoid, but you be the judge after I tell you what happened.

With the weekend gone and plenty of rain in the 5 day forecast, there was a pretty good chance that Brady’s master plan would be realized or come to fruition or whatever it is that happens with evil genius's master plans.

I understand that the idea that Brady worked out some elaborate scheme to keep me from group riding just so I’d tell a story about my dad getting into a confrontation in the southwest - seems more than a little farfetched.  On the surface, it seems completely ridiculous.  But don’t jump to conclusions my friend.  As a wise colleague once said, “That only makes a ‘jump to’ out of ‘conc’ and ‘lusions’.”

So where did this “ridiculous” idea come from?  Well, I won’t go into all of the details (because I’d have to dream them up) but I can give you a rough outline.

I confronted Brady about this “miscommunication.”  And this is exactly what happened:

Brady said, “You know; we’re not so different you and I.  We both want the same things.  World Peace.  Improved cycling results.”

“I’ll never be like you.  You’re a monster,” I protested.

Brady allowed a small chortle to escape his throat as he walked around the table and reached under it to retrieve a small revolver, “You will tell the Tonopah story or you will not leave this room.”

Thinking on my feet, I offered, ”Well, I mean, I was kind of going to tell it anyway, so.”

Brady was becoming impatient striking me across the forehead with the .38 special, “’Kind of’ is not good enough, Cubey!  All the details!  All the characters!  I want to know them!  I want you to breathe life into these people like you’ve never done before.  I will explain my reasons another time, but you sure as shit are telling this story!  You got that?  Or do I need to spell it out for you?”  He was now poking the revolver into my barrel shaped ribcage.

Then I had a thought, “Is it ok if I put if off until next week?”

Brady, scratching his head with the barrel of his revolver, thankfully acquiesced, “Yeah that works for me.  One Week!”

“Cool,” I said.

So with that out of the way, I’d like to talk about last night’s group ride.  

I am a slow learner.  This year I’ve worked harder than ever to try to understand how to improve my cycling.  I’m not really talking about structured training, I’m talking about some basics that are more important.  For example, I recently learned the importance of staying hydrated.  For me, this correlates to muscles healing 3 or 4 times faster than when I’m dehydrated.  Next I learned about eating.  When to eat. How much.  What kind of food, etc.  So even though it took me a dozen years or so to figure out that eating and drinking correctly are important to recovery, I learned both of those things within a month of each other.  So that’s cool.  It took Brady looking at a full water bottle for me to figure that out.

After Brady’s text on Sunday, I went and looked at his Kite Surfing history.  Holy Shit!  8 Hours of Kite Surfing!   I very rarely get more than 5.  Oh wait a minute.  When I say “kite surfing” I actually mean “sleep”.  I’m sorry if that wasn’t clear, but sometimes I’m not the best communicator.

So, yes, I know that sleep is an important part of recovery.  Not from experience or anything.  Just from reading about it.

There’s no way (as far as I know) that I could sleep for 8 hours.  Without an alarm, my eyes pop open after almost exactly 7 hours and it’s as if I’ve had 2 cups of coffee. 

So Monday and Tuesday, I tried to at least get another hour of sleep in from my norm.  I deliberately went to bed in time to commute to work and still get 6 hours.  I went hard on both days.  Silly, yes.  But also educational.  The legs felt about the same as always.  But I think the extra one hour of sleep helped me to endure hard effort for longer.

Last night’s furry wall ride was relatively slower paced with wet streets and lots of slop and flat tires, so it was generally easier overall.  And maybe I’m imagining it, but it seems like I was able to make myself hurt for longer.  Oh wait, I beat my previous best time up that last climb (during a furry walls) by 36 seconds (from 3:53 to 3:17).  So it’s not just me.

Of course, it’s not completely scientific, but I have felt pretty good on the days I get a little more sleep, even after hard days of riding. 

So in conclusion:  Eating food, drinking water and getting a good night’s sleep are important if you want to improve on the bike.  2 of these things, I learned from something I saw Brady doing.  I guess we’re not so different …     

Next week, I plan to learn about the importance of ribcage shape and its aerodynamic significance.  Just kidding.  I’m totally talking about the Tonopah incident next week.