Me & McDreamy

No, not him!

My new bike. I call it McDreamy. For the Dreamsicle color (orange and cream), and for the Dreamy feeling I have when riding it :)

We had a nice afternoon yesterday, just the two of us. We started out at Salvation Army and rode up Airport Road to Foy's Lake, an eight mile stretch in which you gain about 530 ft elevation-- not a whole lot, in the grand scheme of things, but it makes for a steady climb almost the whole way up.

We stopped at Foy's Lake to take a potty break, then continued our upward motion, up a 1.3 mile stretch in which we gained another 220 ft, taking us to the top of Lone Pine State Park (observation: when you're riding and you turn into a neighborhood with any of the following words in the title, "Lone Pine," "Eagle" anything, whatever "Ridge," or something "Heights," go ahead and shift down to Granny Gear and get ready to burn!)

We enjoyed the scenic vista for just a moment, then took off for a fun downhill ride. Fun for McDreamy, that is. Perhaps a little scary for me! Over the next 2.5 miles we lost all 750 ft of elevation we'd gained. Whee! Good things those brakes work well! Then a short, fast 3 miles took us back to the start.

It was a nice ride on a gorgeous not-too-hot afternoon, under bright blue skies with white fluffly clouds.

And today I'm sore. My glutes are feeling all that climbing. Not bad-- just a little extra sensation that says "you did something yesterday." Myback, on the other hand, is really feeling it.

You see, I did a lot of practicing yesterday of riding in a more aerodynamic position. My friend Regina mentioned to me a few weeks ago that when cycling, you're really using your core a lot. Huh? I thought you just sat on the seat and let your legs do all the work. Apparently not. I stumbled across this article that talks not only about bike positioning, but also your body positioning while riding.

So apparently, to get more aero, you should tip forward from the hips, keep the back flat, and keep the head and chest up, and enjoy the feel of wind whoosing OVER you instead of INTO you.

As I rode yesterday, I experimented with this new idea of positioning. My muscle memory harkened back to yoga class that morning where we'd worked on the same tipping-from-the-hips-with-back-straight in Padangusthasana and Parsvottanasana. It definitely does take a lot of core strength to hold that position, especially while riding. So yeah, my middle back is a bit sore today from the ride. Cool. I love being sore in unexpected places-- it's a good way to find areas that need more work!

McDreamy and I have one more appointment tomorrow morning for a Brick workout, then it's time for him to go in to the shop for his One Month Check-up :) And then just a few more weeks til we Tear. It. Up. on those hills at Whitefish in a new & improved riding position!