Climbing Against the Wind
After farting around for quite a long time, I got on the road this afternoon at 4:30. I was simply dreading the weather, because of reports of substantial winds. On windy days, I almost never end up with tail winds. It’s always from the front or the sides. Today was no exception.
I headed out, taking the usual route toward Cupertino along Junipero Serra, but opted to climb Arastradero from Foothill, instead of Page Mill, the route I took on the last Saturday I rode, almost a month ago. Arastradero is a little steeper than I remember it being, particularly since I had a breezy day, but it was quiet and had little traffic.
My climbing against the headwind toward Portola Valley reduced an initially manly 18.9 mph average speed by more than two miles an hour by the time I stopped to refill my water bottles at Triangle Park in Portola Valley. The breezes kept my average speed down as I galloped toward Woodside, but I gained a little bit on my clock. By the time I reach Woodside, I decided to deviate from my usual course and head up Cañada Road toward Filoli Estates and take Edgewood down the hill. Pounding against strong crosswinds, I lost a little more of kick, but I ate a Clif Shot and climbed under the freeway and began my beautiful descent down Edgewood.
Edgewood sheds several hundred feet of elevation in two miles with big beautiful meandering curves. Before I was at the crest of the hill near the I-280 off ramp, I had already shifted into my big ring and was ready to push my top speed record. With the wind at my back, I leaned down, got close to my handlebars, and started spinning the gears up for my Trek’s first ever descent down Edgewood. 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, come on, 45 miles an hour! Yes, I just set a personal best.
A quick run down Alameda de las Pulgas / Junipero Serra / Foothill and back completed my half-century today, saving the ride for par (at 18 mph) despite battling headwinds and crosswinds for so long. The blistering descent down Edgewood and that luscious 45 mph (72.4 kph) top speed was the payoff for all that climbing.
Today: 50.25 mi; 2:44:56 (18.3 mph avg; 45.0 mph max)
April: 202.76 mi; 10:52:11 (18.7 mph avg; 45.0 mph max)
2005 : 1933.17 mi; 104:16:45 (18.5 mph avg; 45.0 mph max)
Goal : 5000.00 mi (3066.83 mi to go : 38.66% complete)
No Comments Yet