Two Wheel Blogs

Route: Belk Park Loop
Time: 1:00:40
Miles: 18.1
Pace: 17.8 mph

Riding Tunes

• Bob Marley & The Wailers, LIVE
• Afro-Celtic Sound System, SOUND MAGIC, VOLUME 1

But if you know what life is worth,
You will look for yours on earth:
And now you see the light,
You stand up for your rights.
Get up, stand up! Stand up for your rights!
Get up, stand up! Don't give up the fight!
~ Bob Marley, "Get Up, Stand Up" (YouTube)

"A Hard-Fought :59"

That was going to be the title of this blog entry -- until the last 50 seconds of the ride, that is. Actually, the decisive stretch that made the difference between finishing over or under the 60-minute mark occurred much earlier in the ride.

Some kind winds out of the northwest cooled temperatures down to the mid-80s, a welcome relief from the high 90s we've had pretty much non-stop since last week. I had only an hour to ride, so that's an automatic Belk Loop. And, as with yesterday's Marine Loop, I had no intent of going after a PR. I was just hoping for a decent time. For me, anything under an hour is decent.

I could feel the wind in front of me as I rolled west on the Watershed Trail. "This does not bode well for the climb," I remarked to myself, as I made the turn onto Moreland. As I did, Marley & The Wailers launched into the 7-minute version of "No Woman, No Cry," a performance so perfect that, in terms of its power and beauty, it rivals a Bach cantata. Under Marley's direction -- if that's the right word -- The Wailers achieve the contradiction of being both the tightest and the loosest band in the world. Like a school of fish, they move together as one, yet each instrument moves freely, independent of the others. From years of playing together, they listen to each other and know instinctively that, no matter where the song goes or what mood strikes Marley, they are ready to respond without missing a beat. "In the groove," I suppose, is the term for it. The Wailers are deep in the groove.

Not me. I was up on my pedals. I was aware that the wind was not my friend, so if I wanted to finish anywhere near an hour, it was up to me to do something about it. So I stood up an pumped to climb the Moreland hill, sitting back down once it flattened out. I tried to keep my pace up, but the wind made it difficult to keep maintain even 15 mph. "Get up! Stand up!" Marley now urged me, and I responded. I was back up on the pedals, pumping my way up the last rise before Buchta, where I turned left and headed west for the last time on the ride. From them on, the wind would either be at my back or neutral. I was looking forward to that.

I checked my Cat's Eye as I made the turn into Belk. It showed 37 minutes. On previous rides, I've been at the 35-minute mark coming out of the park. I was going to have to pick up the pace -- and hope that the wind would give back some of what it took away during the first half. I pushed the pace as I exited Belk onto Rock Hill, then onto Smith. For a stretch, I was doing a wind-assisted 24 mph, but that lasted only until the next turn.

I was back up in the pedals, trying to climb the last rise into town in hopes of breaking the 60-minute mark. "If I make this," I told myself, "it will be a hard-fought :59," creating the intended title for this post. I kept pushing it down M Street to 2nd, then onto Lincoln. One more right onto Eberhart, and I'll be in the glide path to home. A quick check of the Cat's Eye showed me I would not be breaking 60 today. Close, but not quite. "Oh well..." I sighed, but in that instant resolved "At least it will be under 61!" And I sprinted for home.

It was a good day to ride. And the best thing is that, several times during the ride, instead of just sitting and maintaining pace, I stood up and pumped in an attempt to climb rises faster than I would have if I'd stayed seated. That's something.