Lazy Bones

[Rooster1]

I've been cycling for a couple of years now, gradually doing longer miles at a faster pace.

Year on year, i've gone from doing 30-40 miles a week, to 50-70, to 100 + a week.
My speeds have gone from an average of 15 mph, to 16.5 and more recently over 18-19 mph over say 40 miles.

Today was a perfect demonstration of the fact that I don't really push myself hard enough and I can go faster, and further - if I really tried.

I was out for an hour solo lunch ride and doing a Cat 4 cilmb, the same one I do at least once or twice a week.
Today was different, I was with another rider who I got chatting with and we decided to do the hill together.
Problem was, he was going quicker - I was gutted - this was MY HILL. I have ridden it 100's of times.

So, without killing myself I, I pushed fairly hard, so as not to fall back.

And I get a PB! The rankings for the hill put me about 1200 out of 3000 people.

This is a winter ride, with a muddy, wet, leafy road, and some gusts of wind (not a tailwind, mind).

I'm so annoyed that I could be going faster and that all I really do is the same old routine, day in day out.

Now, I like solo riding, but I can see the benefits of having a cycling buddy, to push and be pushed.

Lazy Bones.

 

[TheJDog]

This is why Strava is good. If you don't have a buddy, you can motivate youself to push - tell yourself that top 33% isn't good enough. I tell myself top 10% is what I'm aiming for, and I can mostly get it with a lot of effort. Recent effort put me 135/4000 (74/3700 for the longer segment!) on a local hill cycling hotspot - not bad for a 44 year old

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

I have 2 cycling partners... one is my OH and I tend to be slower with him, don't know why except that he always sits behind me (usually too closely so I probably slow to compensate for him not paying enough attention), but the other is a former CC member and he tends to go in front and pace set when he knows I am having issues... he helped me complete my first 100 miler this summer and we did it in a faster time than I normally average a 100km with my OH... usually however I cycle alone, and find my average is usually in between these two!

Strava can get addictive though, you find yourself chasing yourself and it can get very confusing - so don't loose the fun side of things...

 

[young Ed]

This is why Strava is good. If you don't have a buddy, you can motivate youself to push - tell yourself that top 33% isn't good enough. I tell myself top 10% is what I'm aiming for, and I can mostly get it with a lot of effort. Recent effort put me 135/4000 (74/3700 for the longer segment!) on a local hill cycling hotspot - not bad for a 44 year old

i have a couple of local strava segments that i love, one of which i don't ride nay more really as it's rather dangerous but i aim to be in top 15 then top 10 then top 5
just checks and it looks like i have slipped to 24th as i haven't ridden it in a while so when the new bike comes i will get out there and thrash it along that segment!
at 15th on the dangerous one

the dangerous segment and the route in red

Cheers Ed

 

[young Ed]

Strava can get addictive though, you find yourself chasing yourself and it can get very confusing - so don't loose the fun side of things...

i find this adds to the fun! at least it does if you don't get obsessed by one route and have a few you compete for
Cheers Ed