2011 Addison Oaks XC

Well this is my second year doing this race as Expert. I improved over last year by 11 minutes.

Last year’s Addison Oaks time (Expert men 30-39):
Lap 1: 31:34 Lap 2: 33:43 Lap 3: 35:33 Lap 4: 37:31 Total: 2:18:20

THIS YEAR’S Addison Oak time (Expert men 30-39):
Lap 1: 29:32 Lap 2: 31:43 Lap 3: 32:13 Lap 4: 33:57 Total: 2:07:24

The race had a total distance of 28 miles. I notice that the first 2 laps were aprox. 2 minutes faster and my next two laps this year were 3+ minutes faster. My goal for next year is to not only be faster but to have more consistent times. I did a single lap and some 2 two track the day before which was 8.6 miles as a "warm-up".

Last night Pauly and I rode a portion of the Grampian Challenge course I got in 32 miles. The course is not even close to being as physically challenging as our normal routes.

YTD Distance: 3002.05 miles.

Keeping up, but still behind

I have been riding every week but not consistent in posting the miles where on my blog. But I did keep the spreadsheet (Google Docs) up to date. I have so far this year put in 2913.45 miles (mostly dirt miles).

The quick summary from the last post til now:
2011-06-25 (Saturday) 15.500
2011-06-26 (Sunday) 30.000
2011-06-28 (Tuesday) 39.000
2011-06-29 (Wednesday) 7.500
2011-07-02 (Saturday) 50.000
2011-07-03 (Sunday) 25.000
2011-07-05 (Tuesday) 40.000
2011-07-07 Thursday 36.500
2011-07-09 (Saturday) 30.000
2011-07-10 (Sunday) 50.000
2011-07-12 (Tuesday) 7.300
2011-07-16 (Saturday) 16.000
2011-07-17 (Sunday) 41.500
2011-07-19 (Tuesday) 40.500
2011-07-23 (Saturday) 14.000
2011-07-24 (Sunday) 13.000
2011-07-26 (Tuesday) 40.500
2011-07-28 Thursday 26.000
2011-07-30 (Saturday) 40.500
2011-07-31 (Sunday) 44.500
2011-08-02 (Tuesday) 40.500
2011-08-06 (Saturday) 26.000
2011-08-07 (Sunday) 24.000
2011-08-09 (Tuesday) 42.000
2011-08-11 Thursday 16.000
2011-08-13 (Saturday) 48.000
2011-08-16 (Tuesday) 40.500
2011-08-18 Thursday 7.000
2011-08-20 (Saturday) 49.500
2011-08-21 (Sunday) 46.000
2011-08-23 (Tuesday) 40.500
2011-08-27 (Saturday) 24.000
2011-08-28 (Sunday) 24.000
2011-08-30 (Tuesday) 40.500
2011-09-03 (Saturday) 28.000

Today's 28+ miles included 3 laps at Addison Oaks.

One mid-week ride, then I lost my riding journal

2011-006-21 (Tuesday): I got in 7.5 miles last Tuesday... I did record the miles there, and even though I would sometimes forget to update this blog I never forgot to add the miles there. Well my hard drive failed and I did not back up the spreadsheet. So now I have to recreate in. I will use an online (Google) spreadsheet this time. Being an IT guy I should have known better.

YTD distance: 1809.65 miles.

What's been going on lately..

You would think that with no blog updates that I must have been getting in a lot of miles. No I have just been busy with other things including work. This is about to change. I am getting back to the longer rides starting last Sunday. The following has been the extent of the riding since Memorial Day:

2011-06-02 (Thursday): One lap at Lake Orion HS Trail 7 miles.

2011-06-04 (Saturday): One lap at Lake Orion HS Trail 7 miles That night after this ride I noticed a flat... was a thorn in back tire.

2011-06-05 (Sunday): 3 laps at the Hanson Hills CPS XC race. My worse performing race this year. I lost my chain at least once on every lap and twice on the second lap. 30 miles.

2011-06-07 (Tuesday): Two laps at Lake Orion HS Trail 14 miles. This was a hot day.... I was exhausted afterward.

2011-06-09 (Thursday): 1 1/2 laps for the Lake Orion XC Race a fun race I got 4th place. 11.1 miles.

2011-06-11 (Saturday): A combination of The Red loop and Blue loop at Fort Custer for a total of 12 miles. I didn't do much riding... it was a TIRING weekend.

2011-06-12 (Sunday): One Full Fort Custer Timer Trail including warmup. 15 miles. I felt like I did alright but was not really happy with my placing. I did take a wrong turn that last couple miles which probably cost me a minute. Also I dented my rear wheel (not happy). I got 10th place.

2011-06-14 (Tuesday): One lap at Lake Orion HS Trail Just a brisk single lap, 7.3 miles.

2011-06-15 (Wednesday): Two Race laps at Lake Orion HS Trail and a 3rd Place finish in the Expert/Advanced class. I felt good and I recovered fast. I feel like I am getting used to the trail also seems like it takes to about this time every year before I get used to fast peddling. 14.5 miles.

2011-06-18 (Saturday): Three FULL laps at Lake Orion HS Trail I felt fine even after crashing, later that night I notices yet another flat! 22 miles.

2011-06-19 (Sunday): Back Roads and Addison Oaks for a total of 42 miles. A halfway decent ride... could have been more miles and more speed, but Pauly (my riding partner on the road rides) wasn't as fast as normal.... or maybe I am getting faster?

The YTD distance: 1802.15 miles... I am a bit behind in schedule... so I guess I have to get in more miles this next month!

Really good weekend of biking.

34 miles today. This means I exceeded my Memorial weekend goal by 12 miles. Today's ride was supposed to be a "recovery" ride, but the uphill sprints were just too temping. I was also really surprised at how I recovered from the other 118 miles. Trust me I felt the last 10 miles of my ride, and I was glad it was close to being done. Normally I sprint Heights Rd. all the way to my driveway (Mayer Ct.) but I just didn't have it in me. My weekend total is 152 miles.

Oh I almost forgot about the big group of Harley Riders on Lake George Road that were riding along side of us cheering us on. One dude said "Man you are making me tired" as he was doing a peddling motion with his legs. It was cool to be able to cruise along side them for almost 3/4 mile.

YTD distance at 1620.25 miles.

62 miles Yesterday. Total so far this weekend is 118 miles.

2011-05-29 (Sunday): Yesterday was a lot of Paint Creek Trail, Macomb Orchard Trail, back roads and scary and fast 32 mile road. Then I went through Predmore to Stony Creek Rd. to get to Orion, the Kern then back on Paint Creek Trail through town and home. Yesterday was mostly a concentration of high cadence peddling and maintaining a persistent tempo, except when we got lost. 62 miles yesterday. 118 total miles so far this weekend... The last 11 miles were a little tough, but I feel like I have recovered enough for a little more. I am about to do another 30 to 35 miles today.

YTD distance (as of 9:30am): 1586.25 miles.

Did just under 57 miles today. 89 more miles to go before Monday night.

If I am to hit my 140 mile goal for Memorial weekend I need another 84 miles. I just did 56+ miles today. So I will make it 89 miles to get in an extra 5 mile bonus. The first 10 miles were moderate pace to get the legs loosened up and the blood flowing. My legs were still sore from my leg workout at the gym Thursday morning. Once we got going we upped the pace a bit, we even did all the hills of Delano, Brocker, Big Fish, Fox Lake and Drahner Roads. I did something a bit different this time... I did extra miles after Pauly headed home.
YTD Distance 1524.25 miles.

NOTE: A bit sore, consuming extra amounts of protein for recovery.

140 miles this weekend?

I hope to get in some good rides this weekend. Sure I can't seem to find the time for a "Hundo" for a Saturday morning... or can I? I will try to get in AT LEAST 50 miles Saturday, then 50 Sunday and 40+ Monday.

a quick 28.1 mile ride tonight

Here is a link to the directions for today's ride.

YTD distance: 1468.25 miles.

a moderate weekend of riding...

Did mostly a combination of back-roads and Stony Creek.

30 miles on Saturday and 30+ miles on Sunday.

YTD distance: 1440.15 miles.

No bragging

2011-05-14 (Saturday): I am not going to brag about my 1st place in the Men 30-39 class of the Stony Creek 6 hour race. Why should I? It had a great turn out despite the rain and mud, but those who did not do this race did the Tailwind Brighton Stage Race (USAC). I will tell you that I did all my laps with just enough time to switch out water bottles and even trade bikes in the 5th and 6th laps. By the 6th lap I realized that not going to the bathroom before the race started because I really had to go. So every once in a while I will slow down expecting to go of the path to go... then I would see hikers or racers catching up... after a few times I decided I had better just keep going. When I finished my 6th lap I just missed the chance to do my 7th lap by just 40 seconds. I beat 2nd place guy by about 1/2 hour and 3rd place by one whole lap. I completed 61.2 miles in 5 hours and 29 minutes.

2011-05-19 (Thursday): Did a medium to easy 20 miles with Pauly... we did Markwood 2 times... that hill seems easier at times... and others times I feel faster. 20+ miles today.

YTD Distance: 1380.15 miles.

PLAYING CATCH UP

Ok time to play "catch-up" not only with my blog entries but with other racers and getting back to where I was last year before Iceman. I have been feeling slow lately and I know I can be faster. The Gravel Grinder 100k back road ride was around the last time I felt strong.... then I kinda went down hill from there on out.

2011-05-04 (Wednesday): I did 2 laps at the Lake Orion High School trail. The first lap was moderate and the second lap was much faster as I was riding with a fast teammate. These were 6 mile laps, I felt totally spent halfway into the second lap. 12 miles total.

2011-05-05 (Thursday): This was the first race at Lake Orion HS Trail (6 race series) about 10 miles which includes 1.5 laps. I felt worse than I did the day before.

2011-05-07 (Saturday): This was all bike riding with bikes that did not belong to me. I went to the Island Lake Bike Demo. ( did 2.4 laps with the first lap using an 2011 Epic 29'er and the second lap with an 2011 Epic 29'er Evo which was an awesome experience. I rode fast, I felt fast. 30+ miles.

2011-05-08 (Sunday): I did 2 6 mile laps at a moderate pace at the Lake Orion High School trail... I took Kristhal along with me. 12 miles total.

2011-05-11 (Wednesday): Today was the second race at Lake Orion HS Trail (6 race series). This was a 1.6 mile short track course. The Advanced Classes did 7 laps. I felt strong the first 4 laps, then I started to slack off on the remain laps. I had trouble keeping track of my laps so I thought I had more laps than I did. Of course thinking I had more race only encouraged me to not race at a pace I should have. Upon finishing my last lap it was at the last 70 yards I realized I should have been sprinting.... oops too late. I got 4th place. 11.2 total miles. I hope I am A LOT stronger in June!

YTD distance 1298.95 miles.

Next race is the 6 & 12 hour race at Stony Creek on Saturday.... I am doing the 6 hour race.

78.75 miles for the weekend.

2011-04-30 (Saturday): The Gravel Grinder (100k) ride was this weekend. I actually thought the ride would have been slightly more difficult since I have not done any 60+ mile rides this year. It was not as tough and I felt much stronger than normal. I was in the fastest group (or gang) of 7 riders. Dan Klein, Craig Morris Paul Bailey, Kurt Vogt and others... Kurt being young had some great speed on the sharper climbs and while at times I was leading the group other times I fell behind by as much as 50 yards. It was about 18 to 20 miles in that I started to feel stronger as if I got a "second wind". There was one Single speed guy with us for a while (I forget his name, but he wore a Specialized Jersey), but at about 22 miles or so in he kinda fell back a bit. After awhile I didn't see any sign of him. We got to Lake George Road quicker than I thought we would and at that point I was at the front with Pauly, he was strong the whole time. We got to the Subdivision to have some sandwiches and water bottle refills...etc etc... after eating one sandwich I was ready to rock... (we were just a about half way done). Pauly and I took off expecting the others to follow, but they did not leave when we did so we started off slow and kept looking back... after about 20 minutes we decided to pick up the speed and even made it a goal to be done before the others. We hit some great climbs on the way back to and it was on Brocker Rd. I felt fast.... I even raced Pauly up many of the hills... but every once and a while we would look back to see if anyone was catching up with us... at this point I was kinda bummed that no was was catching us. The most difficult part of the ride was the paved road through Waterstone area that got to me... the wind was strong and at that point I was not quite as strong. When we got to the parking lot We saw a couple people finishing the 50K ride... including Kurt who I thought for sure was going to do the 100k. We waited around until the other guys in our group arrived then Pauly and I rode to his house.... then he gave me a ride home... 65 miles total.... that was enough for the day.

UPDATE: I felt completely recovered with 20 minutes after the ride.

2011-05-01 (Sunday): Rode out to the Paint Creek Trail today as Kristhal drove there to get a head start. We were to meet Pauly for what would be a recovery ride for Pauly and I but a coaching session for Kristhal. I started from the house and arrived at the trail head I expected to catch up with them, but Kristhal must have been moving along pretty good. I was surprised at how fast she was going. Arrived at Dutton Rd for a few "ups & downs".. rode back with Kristhal. Thanks to Pauly for working with Kristhal coaching her on her first ever Dutton Road climb... Total ride for the day (for me) was 13.75 miles.

UPDATE: I ate only 4 pancakes then no lunch for this recovery ride.... but had a huge protein shake right after the ride.

YTD TOTAL: 1223.75 miles

recap of the last few rides and one time trial

2011-04-23 (Saturday): 20 miles which includes a warmup and cool down at the Pontiac Lake Time Trial (USAC). I finished in 16th place (Cat.1) in about 1:40:42 (lap#1 48, lap#2 51). I recovered within minutes of finishing... which means I should have pushed harder. I did wipe out in the first lap cutting my left leg.

2011-04-24 (Sunday): a 14 mile recovery ride in Wixon area out to Island Lake area, then had Easter dinner with good friends and family.

2011-04-26 (Tuesday): a excellent ride with Paul Bailey, we did the back roads and I got in 30 miles. The last few miles were at ball busting speed, at least it felt that way.... my heart rate was maxed for almost 10 minutes... I have less than that to get home!

Total YTD: 1145 miles.

Finally some singletrack!

The following were rides leading up to the Yankee Springs Time Trial:
2011-04-09 (Saturday): 45 miles back road riding, fairly fast pace.
2011-04-10 (Sunday): 45 miles more back roads, not as fast but more hills.
2011-04-12 (Tuesday): 32 miles with the guys of Paint Creek team. This ride was without Keith and probably a good thing since I wasn't up for a all out VO2Max ride.

2011-04-17 (Sunday):
Finally my first bit of singletrack riding was a 2 miles warm-up on the small loop 35 minutes before my time trial start. Then at 10:19:30am I started the first of 2 11 mile laps. I felt fine the first lap until I had to get off my bike and replace the chain, it took a few minutes to work out the tightness. Its best to keep pedaling until the race is done otherwise your legs will pay for it. The second lap the chain came off again and that's when I realized that my rear disc brake was dragging... so my bike didn't gain weight after all. I finished with 18th out of 24 in my class. 24 miles total that day.

2011-04-20 (Wednesday): 10.2 miles. Today was the most productive non-race ride so far this year. While I did not go all out, the hills were getting to me and I wasn't expecting that. It didn't help my spirits much to be following a singlespeed guy who's old enough to be my big brother. I couldn't keep up on the hills! It was 41 degrees today and the reason I am mentioning this is because I felt that 3 layers including my new thermal jacket was too much, I could have easily rode with one under layer and the jacket.

All in all I have a lot more to learn... while I have in the miles this year, I need to get in more higher intensity rides. This is where the rides with the fast guys on my team will help.

Total YTD: 1081 miles.
new goal: focus my interval training, and fine tuning my training strategy.

totally worth being pelted in the eyes by the sleet...

Today's ride was totally worth being pelted in the eyes by the sleet! Sure now I say this.. but during the ride I was wanting to kick someone's ass for this crappy weather. We started the ride at 11:20am, we were done by 2:00pm. We did a different route that took us to the northern parts of Clarkston, out to Fox Lake Road and back through Oxford. One of the reasons the ride was slower, is since I am "on-call" for work, I had to take a call... and arrange for a co-worker to do some computer nerd work for me since I was miles from home and my laptop (yeah I don't take my laptop on my rides with me) was at home safe and warm. Then it started to rain, then rain and sleet, then I got really cold, and yes even with high cadence pedaling you can still get cold... when your clothing is totally wet. I couldn't see more then 3 feet ahead of me... so that meant I had to stay on my training partner's wheel. He was hauling ass and if I wanted to make it home safe I had to keep up. For some reason my left eye was pelted with more sleet than my right eye. It's my left eye being my "good eye" this was tough as I might as well be totally blind in my right eye (legally blind in my right eye). For some reason my glasses were all fogged up and I had to wipe the inside of my lenses every 40 or 60 seconds... the last 1.5 miles I was really wanting to be done.. I was cold. Its been more than an hour since I have been home and I am just now starting to feel warm. With all this torture I had better be a stronger racer this year! I averaged 12.75 mph with 34 miles of total distance yes there were hills, as usual.

YTD distance: 924.8 miles.

15.11 mph average speed with the hills.

Saturday we did a 34 mile ride on the back roads, ended up at Stony did a lap with all the options. Then back through the back roads and home.. all in 2 hours and 15 minutes. I felt a little weaker on the last 8 or so miles.. was glad to be home. Bowling after in Oxford then walking around the mall later sure wasn't providing the rest I needed.

YTD distance: 890.8 miles.

A quick one while she was away!

Well since I opted out of the "Running movie" the others went to (in Oxford), I decided to get in a quicky. I was 90 minutes of dirt roads and hills. 19 miles today. I averaged 12.666 mph.

YTD total distance: 856.8 miles

Barry Roubaix weekend.

For many the Barry Roubaix is not only the start of the season but the start of bike riding for the year. For me it’s just a continuation of something I never planned to stop. With the exception of the 1 week break from training after last fall's Iceman Cometh race for an appendectomy, the ride continues. The cold February rides around the Lake at Stony Creek and more than tolerating the stinging winds and surviving the icy back roads fully prepared me for the cooler temperatures. What I was not quite expecting was the fast pace that was set by the higher numbers of competitors racing with Cyclocross bikes. I chose my 2010 Specialized 29 Comp.

The bike has been a faithful friend all year and was ready to take whatever was thrown at her. As we lined up at the Barry Roubaix start I scoped out other bikes taking note of the gears others were about to take off in. I had already decided that my take off gear was best as I felt strong enough to stay ahead of the group at least until the first sharp turn onto the main road was past. We got the "Go!" and I was off. I was at the front of the pack and intentionally as I did not want to get tied up with another bike. Getting a another derailleur stuck in my front spokes would not have been pretty, its happened before.

After we made our way onto the main road, I was in the big ring and the first 10 or 15 cyclocross equipped racers went past me... I was ok with that since I knew the fastest guys would be passing me soon enough. I was even more surprised that at the first 1 mile I was still among the front as far as other mountain bikes were concerned. As we got to the sandy two track some of the Cyclocross bikes got a little squirrely, but it was smooth sailing with the S-Works FastTrak on the front wheel. The climbs in the two-track were a little too easy for me... I realized as others started to pass, that I needed to get up out of the saddle and give an extra push. Those Cyclocross bikes were great on the straight-aways, but on the sharp climbs they just got in the way. We got to the dirt roads and even more cyclocross bikes passed. I tried to draft a few of those 'cross bikes but they either slow down on the climbs, or they were too fast so most of the next 18 to 20 miles I just went it alone. I noticed that on the downhill sections of the dirt roads that I had more confidence than I had last summer, my bike really did have great traction. Even though I was able to make the turns with very little speed loss, I found that accelerating on the exit of the turns were no match for the skinny tire 'cross bikes, I would use this opportunity to take a few swigs of my electrolyte drink.

The climbs, they kept coming, I thought I was getting to the top of a climb only to be disappointed that I wasn't quite halfway up. I experienced no cramps in my legs, but my heart was maxed on one stand-up climb to catch a guy I swore I had passed just minutes earlier. On the fast sections I learned how to appreciate a few moments of drafting, but they were just moments. At the last 14 miles or so finally got my break as I was really really tired, a cyclocross guy let me draft him for a while, he was pretty consistent with his pace which allowed me to not only catch my breath, but for my heart rate to finally settle down... we talked for awhile, he asked how I felt, I said "dead", but I was lying I felt alive and well, but just spent. At some point I got out of my saddle and sprinted up a hill I thought the guy I was following was right behind me which would have been cool, but when I had the chance to look back he wasn’t there, but I found a whole string of bikers following me... probably taking advantage of the same thing I had minutes earlier, a break from the wind.

At the last 6 miles (on pavement) I saw my good buddy's wife ringing a cow bell, so I knew at that point I was close to being done that gave me a little more motivation (albeit no energy), to get up one more time to feel the last burning as we climbed yet another hill. I saw the entrance to the Yankee Springs Park, WOW! I was relieved. As I made the left turn into the park, I decided I just had to finish on a high note. I got up and peddled past a few more bikers, the last stretch to the finish line sure seemed longer coming in than it did going out, the last few yards finished up in the saddle, I was done for the day. I finished the 35 mile race in 2:04:56, with an average 16.8 mph.

With the recovery ride from Sunday at 18 miles, I would say I had a good weekend.

YTD Distance: 837.8 miles

So I get miles in last weekend

Yes, I did do a short (30 mile) ride on the back roads last Sunday. I was not feeling 100% as my sinuses have been bothering me. I sure hope I get over this before Barry Roubaix http://www.barry-roubaix.com/ race.

YTD distance: 784.8 miles

no miles (technically) today.

I got in no miles, but I still rode my bike. I did 4 hours of spinning with teammates at Cycletherapy today from 11am to 3pm. I hope to get in 35 miles tomorrow.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

My first shorts ride and my first Thursday ride of the year! Also my first ride beating Pauly of some big hills! I got in 27.5 miles and I felt great! Time for a Guinness!
YTD Total: 754.8 miles.

I hate road riding..

Today was crazy. While we were finishing up the last 16+ miles of our 50 mile ride, a Jeep coming from the opposite direction (while passing a bunch of cars) came within 10 inches of totally destroying me and my riding partner. I hate road riding, but when its all I have for riding what can I do, not ride? I got in almost 80 miles for the weekend.

YTD distance: 727.3 miles.

29.5 miles on mostly road.

Today wasn't a good day for dirt road riding so we rode on the roads. A lot of climbs and straight-away sprints. The climbs were so steep that we were lucky to get upper single digit speeds, yet the straight-aways we got as much as 24 mph.

just over 2 hours at a 14.7 mph average I got in 29.5 miles.

YTD total distance: 677.3 miles.

Message to the assholes on the older maroon Ford explorer who threw garbage at us today: "Drive your SUV off a cliff, it will be better than me catching up with you!"

A modest weekend of riding.

43 miles on Sunday at Stony Creek. We did 4 laps that all included the 3.25 miles towards the nature preserve and other sections with most of the riding in the road and an average speed of 14.6 mph... had to make up for Saturday's rain.

YTD Total: 647.8 miles.

What's up...

Last weekend I got in a 27.5 mile ride with some teammates and Pauly. Pauly and I continued for another 10 miles to round out Saturday for a total of 37.5 miles. Sunday I did 33.25 miles, which includes five 6 mile laps around the lake at Stony Creek with the first lap including a 3.25 mile section towards the nature preserve area. I felt much slower on Sunday than I normally do, I should have had more sleep.

My YTD total: 604.8 miles.

I hope to get in a shorter Saturday ride then a normal Sunday ride this weekend.

My training at Lifetime Fitness includes 3 days a week with running on two of the three days.

34 brisk miles in today.

I got in 34 miles in just barely 2 hours and 15 minutes. I felt strong until we headed back on Lapeer Road and the cadence was above 100 rpm's for the full 3 miles.

This brings my YTD total to 534.1 miles.

500.1 miles in so far.

With a steady 36 miles of back roads today I have a YTD total of 500.1 miles.

A long day at Stony Creek

Pauly and I did 5 laps at Stony Creek around the lake. The 1st, 3rd and 5th laps included the 3.25 miles out to the nature preserve area with hills and back. Total miles today was 40 including the .25 mile cool down. I actually ride WITHOUT my helmet... I didn't realize I forgot my helmet until I was already there.. I wasn't going to turn back or skip the ride. I felt great until my last lap.

YTD: 464.1 miles

424.1 miles so far...

I have done a few more rides since the last post.

2011-01-29 (Saturday) 30 miles Stony Creek 5 laps around the lake.
2011-01-30 (Sunday) 30 miles Stony Creek 5 laps around the lake, felt weaker.
2011-02-05 (Saturday) 21.45 miles ..Rode Stony Creek with Rob with 1.5 inches of snow fall.
2011-02-06 (Sunday) 33 miles. 2.25 hours with one up hill sprint, I felt strong.
2011-02-12 (TODAY) 37 miles Picked up the pace a bit more today.

I have 424.1 miles so far this year... I feel great today.

A few rides in since the last post....

I got a few rides in since the last post:
2011-01-12 (Wednesday) 10.2 miles
2011-01-13 (Thursday) 20 miles
2011-01-15 (Saturday) 25.5 miles
2011-01-16 (Sunday) 24.5 miles
2011-01-19 (Wednesday) 6 miles
2011-01-23 (Sunday) 30 miles

I decided to cut back a little this week since I am doing other exercises. I do Stair climbing Monday mornings now and Running on Fridays.

YTD miles: 272.6

Another cold one...

Well I got in 40+ miles and I attempted to make another map but I left out one route through a subdivision in Lake Orion that would have lengthen the distance by maybe a quarter mile.

It was about 23 to 25 degrees out side.. I even stopped to take a photo of the "Enter Lapeer County" sign.

YTD total miles: 156.4

Google maps view.

Eight days in and 116.4 miles...

Wednesday (2011-01-05) I counted 3 of my 5 miles on the spinner.
Thursday (2011-01-06) I was able to get most of a complete lap in at Lake Orion H.S. Trail, about 7 miles.
Friday (2011-01-07) I did a repeat of Wednesday on the spinner and counted 3 miles.
Saturday (today) I did 26+ miles with Pauly...

YTD total miles: 116.4 miles.

2 days and 2 rides into the new season.. 33.2 + 44.2 = 77.4 miles of hurt.

Pauly and I started off strong... we ended strong... The last 25% of the ride at the top of Fox Lake Rd. climb was interrupted with a support call.., my legs started to cool off but my feet and hands warmed up. We were off and stopped at Tim Hortons for a bagel and coffee... then sprinted home.

Today was 44.2 miles.

YTD total miles: 77.4

2011... my first ride of the year.

I did 33.1 miles in 2hrs and 15 minutes, which includes traffic lights and asking for directions at a Gas station.

The Google map

I was late getting to Clarkston for the Polar Ride... I was really bummed. The more I rode around not finding other bikers the more annoyed I got. So I decided to just start riding.. faster and faster... I got lost.. but at least I made it home.

S Main St/Ortonville Rd

1.	Head south on S Main St/Ortonville Rd toward Waldon Rd	157 ft
2.	Turn left at Waldon Rd	0.2 mi
3.	Turn right at Laurelton St	138 ft
4.	Slight left at Paramus	0.2 mi
5.	Turn right at Middle Lake Rd	0.7 mi
6.	Turn right at Pinehurst Ct	0.3 mi
7.	Turn left at Lakewood Blvd	184 ft
8.	Turn right at US-24 N/Dixie Hwy	0.3 mi
9.	Turn right at Lakeview Cemetery Bd/White Lake Rd Continue to follow White Lake Rd	0.7 mi
10.	Continue onto S Holcomb Rd	2.8 mi
11.	Continue straight onto Bridge Lake Rd	2.2 mi
12.	Turn left at Kier Rd	0.7 mi

Kier Rd

13.

Head west on Kier Rd toward Gibbs Rd

0.6 mi

Kier Rd

14.	Head west on Kier Rd toward Jossman Rd/Oakhill Rd	180 ft
15.	Continue straight onto Oakhill Rd	0.9 mi
16.	Turn right at Dixie Hwy	0.1 mi
17.	Turn right at Wildwood Rd	0.7 mi

Wildwood Rd

18.

Head north on Wildwood Rd toward Top of Pines Dr/Top of the Pines

2.3 mi

Wildwood Rd

19.	Head north on Wildwood Rd toward Grange Hall Rd	269 ft
20.	Turn right at Grange Hall Rd	1.1 mi

Grange Hall Rd

21.	Head east on Grange Hall Rd toward S Jossman Rd	2.9 mi
22.	Continue onto Mill St	1.0 mi
23.	Continue onto Hummer Lake Rd	0.7 mi

Hummer Lake Rd W

24.	Head east on Hummer Lake Rd W toward Woodland	0.6 mi
25.	Turn left to stay on Hummer Lake Rd W	1.2 mi
26.	Turn left to stay on Hummer Lake Rd W	1.7 mi

Hummer Lake Rd W

27.	Head east on Hummer Lake Rd W toward N Hurd Rd	0.4 mi
28.	Turn right at S Hurd Rd	1.0 mi
29.	Turn left at Granger Rd	1.9 mi

Granger Rd

30.	Head east on Granger Rd toward N Coats Rd	59 ft
31.	Turn right at N Coats Rd	2.1 mi
32.	Turn left at W Drahner Rd	0.7 mi

W Drahner Rd

33.	Head east on W Drahner Rd toward Dnr Access	1.3 mi
34.	Turn right at Polly Ann Trail - Oakland County	1.5 mi
35.	Turn left at Indianwood Rd	0.3 mi
36.	Turn right	0.6 mi

Unknown road

37.	Head south toward Marina Pointe Blvd	187 ft
38.	Continue straight onto Polly Ann Trail - Oakland County	390 ft
39.	Turn left toward Heights Rd	0.6 mi
40.	Turn left at Heights Rd	0.6 mi
41.	Turn left at Bellevue Ave	0.1 mi
42.	Turn left at W Bellevue Destination will be on the right	138 ft

W Bellevue

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