The Bad Days

Hey y'all. So one thing I've learned from my Ironman training so far is that you will have bad days. Yesterday was one of those days. I started out on what was supposed to be a 2-3 hour bike but because of missing a workout I was really just pushing for 1 1/2 hours. I had planned everything so that I'd be out the door and riding at noon when the weather was warmest and the forecast had told me there was only supposed to be a very light breeze (like 6 mph).

Murphey's law: The Forecast Always Lies.

I went out on the bike only to discover that the wind was actually blowing at 14 mph with gusts of 20 mph intermittent throughout the day. I also discovered the wind was blowing from the North. Directly. My bike route runs down Highway 50, which turns towards the NE/E for most of my ride. So I battled a crosswind for most of the ride and a headwind for another good portion. Not only that, but about a mile into the ride I discovered that I had forgotten my sunglasses back at home. So I got to turn around and ride the mile back, pause and grab my glasses, and then back out onto the highway. I was livid.

After that, nothing seemed to go right. I averaged 16 mph (my usual in a crosswind) for the first 7 miles. But that last 5 were pure hell. The last 5 I had a strong headwind and no matter what I did I couldn't shake it. I tried pedalling down in the drops, I flattened myself out in to the aero tuck, I did everything I knew to beat the wind, including shifting into a smaller chainring and pedalling at a higher cadence. At that point, the wind started pushing me back so I had to shift back up and mash the gears to fight it off.

And it sucked. Brutally. I made it one hour in the ride before I called it off. And I was depressed. And miserable. And I felt like the worst Ironman candidate ever. But here's the thing.

YOU WILL ALWAYS HAVE BAD DAYS! It doesn't mean anything. Your bike will break halfway through your ride, you will lose your favorite water bottles, you will fall off and bang yourself up because that stupid semi wouldn't move over six inches. It will happen. And it will get better.

Sometimes a bad ride is just a hard ride. My ride was something like that. A strong wind is actually one of the greatest simulations you can have for hill workouts in a flat area. It's actually a good thing.

So take the small blessings along with the big ones. And always remember, go out hard...finish harder.