Paringa to Gol Gol Revisited

4.10.2006: Paringa to Gol Gol

Stats: 142.84km, 5hrs 24mins 39secs, 26.3km/hr
Weather: Started hot and got hotter, Cross winds

Two things can very clearly sum up todays cycling experience. Hot and windy.

On a day that saw us finish our West to East crossing of South Australia, enter and leave Victoria, pass the 3000km mark on our journey, and return to our home state of New South Wales. The primary topic of conversation at the end of the day revolved around the heat and the wind.

The on road temperature was measured at 42 degrees around lunch time today. With the open plains providing little protection from the beating sun. The roads seeming to magnify the heat as it bounced back up at us from the road surface.

An abundance of mechanical faults also dragged out our day. With a broken wheel, misfiring derailer,and numerous tyre and tube problems turning our five and a half hour riding time into a ten hour day. We feel it no coincidence that these delays and set backs occurred all during our brief time in Victoria.

No doubts we will see more days like today as we cross the expanses of the Hay Plains. Less than 1000km to home, ten more sleeps.

Punctures: Me (0), Group (12)
Brain Snaps: Mild (2), Moderate (1), Max (0)

4.10.2011

Im determined to concentrate on what I can do each day rather than what I can't do. Nothing annoys me more than the letter from home telling me a gnome can't doPE because they are sick/injured. My standard reply revolves around the statement, OK your sick/injured and will need to take it easy, what can you do?

It's often meet with distain as the gnome with the letter envisages sitting under a tree doing nothing. But the reality of injuries often are that we need to think of were we sit on a continuum. With complete participation on one end and zero participation at the other. With adaptions we can ore often than not do better than 'nothing'.

Today was planned as a double run Tuesday. However running is currently on the banned list of activities. As such, following the what can I do philosophy, it was out onto the bike instead this morning for 45km around the lower Mts. Then a trip to the physic this afternoon and a 40minute walk with Evie this evening. Much better than 'I can't do it Im injured'.

It's getting frustrating though I have to admit. The fact that this injury has coincided with the scheduled date to kick start the preseason macrocycle. I have set down just a hand full of objectives for this next few weeks:

1. Model the swim program that Im going to use in the final 12 week Ironman preparation cycle.
2. Build strength and muscular endurance on the bike.
3. Maintain basic half marathon run preparation

As such Im confident the first two will largely be manageable at this point. Given some minor adaptions to the swimming. However the running part is going to have to sit to the side initially. Potentially opening the door to focusing on the second objective a touch more than originally planned.

I guess if I could chose one area to have to sit back a bit on it would be the run. But even still it is already driving me mad not being able to amble round the standard runs that have been the only consistent aspect to my training over the past 5 years or so.

Can it be changed? I guess not, so on with it for now in its adapted format. So a song for Evie: