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Comment by john mills on June 26, 2012 at 23:35

Very envious Michael! I see you did Cornishman's twice. Well done! But you wimped out a bit mate when you rode straight past Williams Road LOL.

Just looking at the profile, it looks like the most challenging section might have been along that steep part of Medlow Road.

Well I haven't got the compacts, but wouldn't mind giving that a shot myself one day. I think I will sleep well afterwards!

And 26.1 is a pretty good speed for such a hilly route I guess. Well done.

Comment by Michael Wetherley on June 26, 2012 at 21:19

Well while you guys were putting along the SOB I was doing this Route http://www.bikemap.net/route/1665923?134070047662493#lat=-34.710124... needed to be home bit earlier then normal and took advantage of my bike being in the small ring.

Would have been spinning like mad with you guys anyway.

45.1 km seemed further Avg. 26.4 but take into account 40km/h was stop speed then couldnt spin anymore.

Comment by john mills on June 26, 2012 at 20:37

Good news Andrew. I was wondering how you pulled up.

Yep, I enjoy my swimming too. I swim with the Elizabeth Otters at the Aquadome. We have a couple of coaches and they set up a program. So we do a different program each Wednesday and Friday nights, involving all four strokes - freestyle, backstroke, breastroke and butterfly. Plus a few other fun exercises thrown in to keep it interesting, and various drills - kicking only, double armed backstroke, . . . .

We start at 6.30 and go through to about 7.45.

You might like to join in now and then and break up your regular routine. it is a bit of fun swimming with a group. The numbers vary between 3 or 4 on a quiet night, up to 7 or 8. These numbers are for the 'fast' lane. Although there is a range of speeds in the fast lane. We all find the position in the line to suit our own speed. That way hopefully no one is holding up any one else.

There is also a slower group in the club that do their own thing in the lane adjacent.

Warmer times finds me down the Adelaide beaches two or three times a week, doing 2km, 3km or 4km swims between various jetties. I love the freedom of swimming in the ocean. Not having to turn every 50metres. And often I have the whole coastline from Brighton to Largs to myself, especially in the late spring and autumn months. Its a great feeling! Like being out in the middle of Australia with no one else around. Also get to see some wildlife - crabs, dolphins, stingrays, pelicans, . . . . There's also the variety with the changing wave and wind conditions from day to day. The rougher it is the more I like it. Great getting tumbled around by the power of mother nature.

But its also nice when the sea as calm as a millpool. The incoming tide can make for some fast times between the jetties, just like a tail wind on the bike. And swimming against the tide, or into wind driven big waves, offers a good challenge also. Like riding up a steep hill. Exhilerating!

The beach swimming has a lot to offer compared to the pool. But the pool offers the comaradie and friendship that we appreciate in the GW group.

Enjoy your swimming. Its a great way to keep fit. (But watch out for shoulder injuries if you overdo it! On the bike it's the knees, in the pool it's the shoulders lol)

 

Comment by Andrew M on June 26, 2012 at 18:23

well, I managed that 20-ish kms basically without pain, definitely the fastest I've ridden since crash-day 2 months ago, so seems I might be on the road to recovery now.

Comment by Andrew M on June 26, 2012 at 12:42

Appreciate that, John.

I wasn't really planning to try the full distance, I was just going to gently ride in and then return home to Gawler.  My plan is to then grab my speedos and head off for a proper workout in the pool, which is what I've been doing for the past 6 weeks or so now.  Cycling, for me, is/was a way to push my limits and my fitness, so if I can't do it the way I want to right now, I'd rather do something else!  On the bright side, I have maintained or possibly even increased my overall fitness -- on the other hand I've put on 1.5 kilos in the form of upper body bulk (some will say I needed it).  I do an hour of pretty quick, flat-out freestyle most nights.

Anyway, if I'm completely pain-free at the start today, maybe I'll try a few extra kms.

Comment by john mills on June 26, 2012 at 9:01

Bad luck about that knee Andrew. We are all feeling for you. We can see that you are so frustrated, as you should be! Hope to see you out tonight, and that maybe if you just take it easy you will pull up OK.

Maybe we can muck around a bit with how we progress along the SOB, so that you can go at your own speed so as not to stir up any pain. We coould stay with you for a while, then race on ahead for a couple of kms to give ourselves a huff and a puff, then do a U turn and head back to meet up with you again for another chat, etc etc. After all, there is no loss in not getting to the other end and back in the 'regulation' time. We turn back whenever and where ever we see fit.

Comment by Pete (repeats ?) Roberts on June 24, 2012 at 22:49

There I was thinking that after 2 consecutive Tuesdays at the Dentist, I Would make this ride, but NO. 
My Son decides that his Birthday is more important, & I should be at home doing the Family thing, instead of out enjoying myself.

What's worse, is I have another Dentist appointment this Thursday :(

Comment by Andrew M on June 24, 2012 at 17:36

hmm, just went for another extremely mild and short ride, with my kneecap all taped up to one side for the patellar maltracking and an extreme bike setup to take pressure off the anterior injured knee - no pain, really.  I am hoping to at least ride out to the start to say hi on Tues and go from there!  On the other hand, after a harder ride on Friday I had quite a bad feeling afterwards, so we'll just have to see.  

Definitely the worst sporting injury I've ever had - and I've had quite a few.