This past weekend I attended a 4 hour bike skills clinic put on by the Velo Girls. Yes, I am such a sad rider that I decided I needed someone to teach me how to start, stop, turn, etc. It was actually pretty awesome and I'm really glad I went. A lot of things we learned about were things I think you know unconsciously, but once you are aware of them you apply them much more efficiently.I've had my bike almost two months now but have only ridden it about 5 times. I haven't even taken it in for it's complementary one month tune-up because I figured I hadn't ridden it enough for it to be necessary yet. So far my farthest ride has been 15 miles which is pretty weenie when it comes to cycling. One limiting factor has been my saddle. The thing was some sort of torture device! So I did some research and decided to do something about it (I have a duathlon coming up to train for!) and I bought a Specialized Jett Saddle. It wasn't cheap and hopefully it solves my problems. In doing research it seems finding the perfect saddle can turn into a lifelong quest for the Holy Grail and I'm really hoping I don't end up on that road.
In running news I had a decent 6 mile run today. I think my funk has psyched me out as I was paranoid the whole time that any second I was going to hit a wall. Just two weeks ago my training was going great and I was having a lot of fun on my runs. It's amazing how quickly your mind-frame can change after just a few bad experiences. I am cautiously optimistic that after a few more runs like today I'll be back to my old self.
2 comments:
That really is a nice-looking saddle. Getting the right one makes a huge difference, but don't discount the fact that even with the perfect saddle you'll have to build up some time on it.
Congrats on your good run!
Nice saddle! Don't feel bad...as soon as I read that you attended a course to learn how to get on/off a bike I started looking to see if we had something similar here. I am such a clutz getting on/off the bike that it isn't even funny! As painful as it sounds you definitely need a good number of rides to test out your saddle and you will feel sore for awhile. If you don't have padded bike shorts, I highly recommend getting a pair. Those make a big difference too. Good luck!
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