Still recovering, took it easy this morning

Oh yeah, you guys need to check out commuterdude's write-up of wednesday night's ride. He's got a better way with words than I do when it comes to conveying the sheer awesomeness of a ride.

I set out into the almost-chilly air this morning. It was 62 degrees upon my departure. I pulled up to Monrovia (the street right along my apartment complex) just in time to watch the bus barrel by. I took off slowly, and missed my opportunity to follow it through the light on Quivira.

My legs are still a little stiff from Wednesday-into-Thursday's ride-o-death, so I've already decided that today is going to be more about keeping a slow, steady pace. As I approach some downhills, I decide that I'll shoot for a constant leg effort of about 60%. My "just breathe through the nose" power output level, if you will. I never left the middle ring for the entire trip. I spun up the hills, and used the higher gears on the middle ring to give me a little speed on the downhill sections. All in all, it worked well. I didn't sweat much if at all on the way in, but it came at the expense of a delayed arrival downtown and an average speed that's about 4-5 MPH slower than usual.

Despite my slower methodology this morning, I managed to catch up with the bus on Nieman, and rode alongside it for about half a mile of downhill road. Okay, I admit. I did push it pretty hard going down the hill to play leapfrog with the bus, although I never cut in front of it. And I hammered pretty hard once we started heading back up the hill. In the end, I let it fade off into the distance, then I took 67th down to Carter. Once I merged onto Merriam Lane, I was done with the hills and descents for a few miles and settled into a pace of about 21 MPH, which comes without a lot of effort on flat land. As I approach Johnson Drive, the bus goes by. The driver sees me and nods. Even at this level of effort, I'll be downtown before he can get there.

I rode up to the coffee shop just in time to see Lorin rolling in. Another multi-mode bike commuter joined us as well, coming in from the Plaza area on a re-built Trek 820 with a rack and trunk bag. He has a road bike too, but likes the mountain bike for urban riding. I don't blame him, especially given the construction.

When the buzz of my sugary mocha wears off, I'm going to press a batch of The Roasterie's boldest, baddest coffee, Dark Line Nitro. I haven't bought Nitro in probably six months. I've been experimenting with other locally-roasted blends lately, but I seem to always come back to Nitro. As I ground the beans up right before I went to bed last night, my whole apartment acquired a wonderful, dark aroma. I could actually smell it all the way from the bedroom as I drifted off to sleep. I'm really, really looking forward to this next cup of coffee! Yum!

Random Tunage:
Push - Strange World
Way Out West - Don't forget me (Slam Return To Mono - Vox Mix)