Lisa Sabin’s - Running And Being

I ogranized a group of riders to take on the 7 Hills of Kirkland course. I had no idea what I was getting myself into, riding with this group. The group consisted of Steve, Eric, Dave, Brad, Tina and myself. Steve(legs of steel) is one of my clients who is a great cyclist and has done the STP every year for the last 22 years (one day). Spin Class Eric is a cyclist who became a spin instructor and typically cruises through the Snowqualmie Valley at speeds that exceed 22 miles per hour. I used to work with Eric at BPC. I tried riding with Eric’s group last Summer for Flying Wheels Century. I was quickly dropped from the peleton. Ironman Dave is a fitness trainer who has completed 7 Ironman events. Ironman Brad has been riding a few years now and takes to cycling, like a fish to water. He was able to ride the course in a fixed gear bike. Then there is Tina who did some track work outs with my running groups a couple of years ago. She is very fit after spending lots of time in Eric’s spin class.

I knew it was going to be a tough ride for me. I had only been out on my bike twice this year, last Saturday and then I rode a few hills on Tuesday. I was excited to have another woman in the group, because I thought that if the guys wanted to ride up ahead we could stick together. Tina pulled away from me on the first hill. I don’t mean to say that she abandoned me, she just had no problem staying with the guys. I thought, oh well I just need to get warmed up. We cruised down Market Street and headed up the second hill, which is Juanita Drive. Once again Tina easily pulled away. Spin Class Eric and I chatted about teaching cycling etc. My perceived rate of exertion was probably a 7 out of 10. Eric was probably a 5. I told him to feel free to ride up ahead. I didn’t want to slow any one down.

The group had to wait for me, but only in minute or so because I missed the light at Holmes Point Rd. We turned down Holmes Point Rd and sped down the hill. I had just ridden Holmes Point Rd on Tuesday, so I was familiar with the climb. It was a little easier this time. I had to go into my Granny gear, but I made it. I thought if worse comes to worse, I’ll ride by myself. I was able to keep up on the downhill and the flats, but was consistently dropped on the hills. I was usually back about .1 mile.

One thing Steve pointed out to me, and I have heard this before, is that I tend to ride in a big gear. I am using a lot of leg power, when I should be using a higher cadence, and taking advantage of my aerobic system. For some reason I like the feel of the pull with a heavy gear. I know I need to work on my cadence and then build strength, as I improve my fitness. So, that is my cycling goal this year, to work on riding a faster cadence.

We ended up riding 31 miles. We missed 2 of the 7 hills because of time constraints. I felt like I could’ve kept going, which is a good sign. I know I held people back a bit, but everyone was nice about it. It was a group ride, you’ve got to expect that not everyone is at the same level. Hopefully, next time I ride with this group, I won’t get dropped!