Cycle Blog 12/26: Bryan keeps up with an Ironman

By Bryan Mewes for the San Diego Century.

Bryan Mewes is a cycling blogger for the San Diego Century and Bike the Coast - Taste the Coast. He is preparing for the 37 mile route at the San Diego Century (though we’ll try to get him to upgrade to the 66 or 103 by May). Along with the San Diego Century he has a full schedule of 2011 events. To follow his training and stories from the road stay tuned to his regular blog posts at http://sdcentury.com and http://bike-the-coast.com

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12/26/10

Now today was a good ride and I really needed it.  And it almost didn’t happen.  I used to enjoy rainy days.  But now they drive me crazy and I think the rain knows it.

Last night I was at my aunt and uncles, who I rode with today.  We were sitting having dinner, talking about the ride we were going on and how I wanted them to break me.  They’re both triathletes and my uncle just finished Ironman Arizona 5 weeks ago.  As we’re talking I noticed it was pouring rain outside.  I had my bike and everything with me so we decided that I would stay there and we would keep our fingers crossed that it would be dry in the morning.  We eventually went to bed around 2am.  Mainly because we looked at the clock, said holy crap its 2am and we have to ride tomorrow…hopefully.  By the time we all got up it was relatively dry.  By the time we stopped being lazy and loaded up our bikes it was dry.

Now I wish I could tell you where we went on this ride, but I have no idea.  All I know is it was a great route.  It started out easy.  Mainly because the first 3 miles were down hill followed by more down hill.  Most of the route was along the coast which made for a great day on the bike.  I got a little sideways a few times along the way.  All the rain of the past couple weeks put a lot of sand and dirt on the road.  I was just barely able to keep my bike upright.  My streak of having not fallen yet is still alive.  I’m sure that my fall is coming…can’t wait.  Anyway, back to the ride at hand.  The pace was a pretty easy pace.  I think its cause my aunt and uncle were a little hung over.  I was a little disappointed at first but then I remembered that the first 6 miles or so were basically down hill.  So basically I had the last 6 miles of uphill to look forward too.  Holy crap it was a serious climb.  Well it was for me anyway.  It was 3 or 4 separate climbs.  I don’t remember how many because I think I may have lost consciousness and my body just kept going.

At the end of all this I came out with a time of 1:23:03 and an average speed of 16mph.  I feel like an hour of this ride was during those last few climbs.

http://www.mapmyfitness.com/workout/34511008/

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About the San Diego Century Bicycle Tour

The San Diego Century Bicycle Tour is a choice of 37, 66, or 103-mile bicycle ride starting and finishing with food, fun and music at MiraCosta College in Cardiff, California on Saturday, May 21. The cycling courses provide riders with an opportunity to taste the hills with both varying elevation gains and tasty cuisine at the Ramona aid station and finish line. Hills on the courses range from moderate on the 37 mile course to challenging on the 103 mile course. Proceeds from the ride support the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition — www.sdcbc.org — a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to making bicycling better in greater San Diego. Registration Info>>