Biking to Work

I had this idea a few months ago that I wanted to ride my bike to work this summer.  I wasn’t sure if this was going to be a fleeting idea or if it was going to stick.  It stuck.  I think about it all the time and I am frequently scheming about how to make it work out.

Here is the plan.  I would drive my car from my house in Noblesville to the Monon trailhead at 146^th street.  I would need to leave my house by 5:30am and I would get to the trail and be ready to ride by 6:00am.  I would pack my backpack with work clothes and necessities and have everything ready the night before.  I think it will take me about 90 minutes to get downtown and that would get me there about 7:30am.  That time line should work as my official start time is 8:30am.

Now for the hard part.  I knew my office building had a gym and I heard a rumor that it was going to be open to employees very soon.  I got the email on Friday and I was super excited until I read that the facility doesn't have a shower.  Damn.  I really need a shower before work.

The second idea I had was to ride to NIFS to shower and dress in the mornings.  They offer a commuter package that includes a small locker for your stuff and use of the facilities for $30 a month.  I though that would be a fair deal.  I looked at the map and it is 1.2 miles from my office building.  Damn, that is just to far to walk in the mornings and still be fresh for work.  I crossed that idea off of my list.

I recently got an email from The Bicycle Garage and they announced that the City Market was going to open a bicycle hub in their location and it would include showers and bike lockers.  Woo Hoo!  That is a great location at a half mile from my work and a brand new facility.  I am excited about this idea…except that it isn’t slated to open until July 4, 2011 and they are still waiting on final approval.  Dun Dun Dun

Good news for the long run but nothing in the short run.  At least this exciting/disappointing news opened my eyes to another possibility.  The YMCA is very close to my work so it would be easy enough to go there in the mornings to shower.  I would just have to sweet talk my boss to let me keep my bike somewhere on our floor of the building as I wouldn’t want to leave it outside unattended all day.

There are so many variables that I would need to work out before I rode to work for the first time but I know I can do it.  

I got Inked

 Earlier this summer I decided I wanted to get a tattoo.  A friend talked about wanting to get an additional tattoo and I immediately thought that I wanted one also.  I guess that means that I am a follower;)   I have one existing tattoo of a flower that I got about 12 years ago and I have always had a desire for an additional tattoo but I never felt passionate enough about anything to put it permanently on my body.  I found and embraced that passion this year.  

When I first thought about a tattoo I thought about getting something associated with Star Trek. The best thing I found was the insignia symbol on my boob.  Sexy huh.

Ohh...but I do kind of like this wrist thing.  Hmmmm....maybe my next one.

I began to think about my passion and how I would like to incorporate that into body art.  I started looking for bike tattoos that were feminine and that were not too utilitarian in style.  It took some time but I finally found some designs that I really liked.  After I chose the initial bike design I wanted to put something pretty around the bike. I found another tattoo that had some pretty leaf work and I considered merging the two designs into one tattoo.

The tattoo artist didn't especially like the "pretty" stuff I brought.  He decided he was going to stencil on the image of the bike and he then took creative licence with the vines and flowers.  This is the photo of him drawing the design on my leg.

I 

Eeek...the needle has pierced my skin.

I think it was a good thing that I wasn't close enough to really see what he was doing.

Look at those delightful swirls.  It is coming along.

Look Look Look I got a new tattoo this week.   Isn't it pretty (I say this with a goofy smile on my face).

Thanks to Ems for taking all of these photos as well as Metamorphosis in Broad Ripple for having a great staff.

Quitting is easy….continuing through the WIND is hard

Another Biking Event

Is it possible you are tired of reading about my biking antics?  Are you worn out from the gazillion miles I have ridden and how every ride is harder than the last.  Yep…this is going to be more of the same.

Last weekend I attended the Great Pumpkin Metric in Evansville.  My companions and I drove to Evansville on Saturday morning (this might be considered afternoon to most people but you know how I like to sleep in on the weekends) past many cornfields and I got to see a gigantic peach out in the middle of nowhere.  We spent a pleasant evening with Em’s parents and went to bed early.

Sunday morning dawned quite early…um 6:30…yuck and I was showered, dressed and at the breakfast table by 7am.  Em’s mom made us a delightful Egg sandwich and on my second bite I managed to squeeze out yellow egg into my hair.  I knew that was going to be an indicator of my upcoming day.

When we initially decided to attend the event we were all excited to do the 100K, but we did have a choice to do either 25K, 50K or 100K.  Em kept talking about changing our minds and taking a shorter route but Z was determined to stay on course.  I think I could have been swayed to go the shorter route if that was the group opinion but Z never waffled/wavered so we stuck with the original plan of 100K.  BTW..100K is 62 miles.  That is right, 62miles on my bike.  Every time I even think about that distance it sounds slightly impossible.

The day was cold and windy and cold and windy.  I knew soon after we started that it was going to be a long and tough ride.  The temperature was 40 degrees when we departed and I heard that it warmed up but I never felt an increase in temperature.  There was some nice hills in the beginning and it helped my legs to get warmed up.  I arrived at the first SAG stop shortly after Em and Z and I was glad to see them again as I was worried they may have missed a turn.  The first stop was about 12 miles into the course and while I was snacking I took a look at the sheet and made a mental note of the upcoming stops.  One at 27 miles, 40 miles, 53 miles and then the end. 

We started the second stage and I quickly lost my companions.   The wind was pushing me back so I put my head down and I kept pedaling as I knew that it was going to take a ton of mental toughness to finish the event.  I wanted to finish.  I wasn’t interested in quitting.  Let me say this again I WASN’T GOING TO QUIT!  I just kept pushing up and down and during this stage my speed slowed down and I found what ended up being my consistent cadence for the next 50 miles.

When we hit the second stop at 27 miles I was exhausted.  There was a gigantic hill just before the stop that was .2 mile long.  I know that this doesn’t sound long but when you are almost climbing vertically it appeared to be never ending.  I think Z told me it was the equivalent to 3 football fields in length.  As I saw it I shook my head and I realized that I didn’t have enough strength to try and power it up to the top.  I gave a token effort and then I decided to walk the rest of the way.  Let me say that is was hard work to even walk to the top of the hill.  I was very out of breath and fatigued.  When I made it to the SAG stop I got my snack of trail mix and Gatorade and collapsed on the ground until I was told it was time to move again.

I kept up with my two friends for about half of the next section until we reached a hill and my legs told me that it was already too much for them to push through the hurricane like winds and they objected to a hill climb as well.  I didn’t walk up this hill but I stopped at the base and caught my breath and then about half way up I stopped again.  My legs just weren’t interested in moving.  I hadn’t realized that there was someone riding behind me when I stopped.  Oops my bad.  He got around me but it was a close call.  I made it to the top and I kept pedaling and pedaling and pedaling. 

It was about this time that I needed a distraction and I decided singing would help me.  The problem with singing is when I bike and I am working so hard that I close my mind to other things. It is in a blank gooey slate.  No talking, no daydreaming and no thinking.  Just existing.  So when I decided to sing I had a hard time thinking of songs.  The only song I could think of was “Darling Nikki” by Prince.  Seriously…I just kept singing it over and over.

As I was about to arrive at the next Sag stop at mile 40 I considered collapsing next to my bike until it was time to leave again.  I imagined that it was all I could do.  Since I was worried that my companions would insist that I take a van back to the start and not finish I chose to stay vertical and not give them any indication that I couldn’t continue.  So I arrived and pretended to be OK.  I wasn’t.  Then I had work to do.  They had a big banner set up that you could paint on.  I was only capable of writing my name as my brain was mush.  I pushed some food in my mouth and waited for my friends to tell me that rest time was over.  This sag stop only had people who were doing the 100K and I felt that there was some nice camaraderie while we were there.  Everyone looked extremely exhausted from the wind and grateful for a break.  I talked to a few people and then we pushed off.

As I was riding I kept looking at my odometer and wishing that it would move forward faster.  I wanted the miles to go by.  I was soooo tired.  My legs were only moving because my brain was yelling at them.  Do it..push…do it…push.  I was feeling miserable and tired and alone and about seven miles into this stage I saw a mirage.  It was my two friends on the side of the road waiting for me.  But it wasn’t a mirage they were really there.  I was so happy to see my people.  As soon as I arrived I told both of them I was so happy to see them and I wanted to give them great big hugs but I would refrain because I was dirty.  I guess I get a bit emotional when I am spent.  It really helped me have a change of attitude and increased my spirit to see them.  It gave me the drive to continue on to the next stop.  It was only 7 miles away.  Push…move my legs up and down…push the pedal.  Damn…it was hard but I was determined to finish.

Mile 53 eventually hit my odometer I arrived at the final SAG stop.  I saw the most beautiful thing as I was riding in.  CHAIRS!!!!  It was the best site ever.  I went to the food table and I loaded up.  I had cookies, chips, Gatorade, and some other stuff.  All I remember is I had a lap full of food to consume and I was starving.  I didn’t wear my heart rate monitor but I suspect that I burned about 3000 calories during the ride.  As usual the rest break was short and it was very hard to pick myself up from the chair.  Em looked at me and asked if I was was oK…I said yes…and then she said are you sure and then I said No.  But what could I do.  I was determined to finish and I wasn't going to wash out.  I DID NOT want to be driven back to the beginning at mile 53.  I would have hated that and I would have been a bear to live with.  I would have moaned about quitting and failing.  I am sure that would have put a damper on the weekend.

Soon the three of us reluctantly started the final portion of our long journey.  It took forever to finish.  The three of us stayed fairly close together for this last 10 miles and I think it helped push me forward.  Conversation was minimal and our only thoughts were of the finish line.  The best site all day was the sign for the Vanderburgh 4-H center.  I was so happy to be at the end and still on my bike.  When I got off my bike I jumped up and down with joy and gave everyone a high 5.  The day was a success.  Even though this was the most grueling ride to date the satisfaction I felt when we were done was surprising. I felt like I could do anything at that moment.  I finished the ride in 5 hours and 45 minutes for 66 miles. That was a long ass time to be on my bike.   

I got to wear this pinned to my back for the entire biking event.  On occasion someone would come by me and say my name and then I had to try and figure out if I knew them.  Nope...it was just friendliness.

Because he was Pretty

Humiliation is a humbling thing.  Especially when it happens to me.  This is a story of the worst possible pick up line in the history of pick up lines.

I was at a bike event on Saturday riding next to my companion and we were very close to the end when a very cute man passed by us.  I waved and said hi to him.  I was a bit taken aback and I even commented to my friend that I thought he was super cute.  This is something that I rarely comment on.  I see it and notice it but I don’t usually vocalize my appreciation.

A while later we had finished the ride and there was three of us sitting at the end of two tables enjoying our lunch.  We were talking and having fun when the cute man sat at the table next to us.  I should mention that two of us were at one table and the other person in my group was at the second table.  So my position in the chair was facing the other table. 

This is where my companions lost me in the conversation.  I just kept staring at the guy.  Creepy right?  I sat there trying to come up with an opening line.  Apparently, my brain lost its power to process information the longer I looked at him.  During my five minutes of contemplation I am sure I "appeared" to be interested in my conversation but right now I have no idea what we were talking about.  Bad Candy.  Sooo...finally there was a lull in the conversation and I had an opportunity to ask the cute man a question.  

Wait for it...this is it.  Eeek...this is really embarrassing to say out loud....ok...ok..

"Can you tell me about the charity on your jersey, living strong....I read a blogger called Fat Cyclist that is often advertising for them."

Soooo...there was about 3 seconds of shocked silence and then gigantic bursts of laughter from both of my companions.  I am pretty sure one of them was almost rolling on the ground in hysterics.

The pretty man mentioned that it was Lance Armstrong's charity (you know America's most famous cyclist) for cancer.

OMG..OMG..OMG..OMG..OMG..OMG

Then he motioned to the yellow wrist bands that he was wearing.  

  How could I possibly ask a stranger at a cycling event such a absurd question.  What the F is wrong with me.  The worst part was that I didn't really know the answer.

After this my friends closed the circle again and I really never had another opportunity to talk to the cute man.  There was no recovery.  Couldn't one of my friends help me out?  They were terrible wing men.  I need to train them better.  Or myself.

So it is quite apparent that I have no game.  I would even say that I have a -8 game.  That bad.  Why couldn't I ask some simple questions like:

How was your ride today?

How many poker cards did you get?

How long have you been cycling?

I told this story to a friend today and she offered to make me some index cards with appropriate questions for future events.  With my luck I would do something even worse like pull them out and read off of them.

I did learn two lessons on Saturday.  #1.  Keep it simple and don't think too much.  Act normal and ask normal questions.  #2.  I am now somewhat knowledgeable about livestrong.org.

***While I was writing this entry the song "Where Was My Brain" by Ted Leo and the Pharmacists played on my iTunes.  Irony at its best.

Don’t give up don’t quit don’t do it…don’t give up don’t quit don’t do it

I went on an organized bike ride a couple weeks ago with a group of friends to Harrodsburg, Indiana.  I was wavering back and forth about going and the decision wasn’t made until 9:30pm on Friday night and I had to be a friend’s house by 8am the next morning.  I am so glad I made the decision to go.  This ride was a bit South of Bloomington and a bit North of Bedford.  Basically, hilly country.

There were three routes we could choose, hard, harder and almost impossible.  I chose to go on the route with the group….guess what they chose.  That is right, Almost Impossible.  Sigh! 

There were five of us on this epic adventure.  I didn’t know what to expect when we left the start area and I am sure that was a good thing.  I just thought it was going to be your average 30 mile bike ride.  Not so, as I quickly learned.  The first three miles were eye opening.  Horrible.  Terrible.  Hard.  I mean really really hard.   What I mean by hard was a constant up and down.  There were no flatland.  Just long uphill’s and exhilarating downhill’s.  But honestly, all I remember are the uphill’s.  Those are the rides where I wished I had a fancy GPS cycleometer and it could tell me my total ascent.  But I don’t have that cool toy yet so you just have to believe me when I say there was zero flatland.

After the first three miles I resigned myself to the remaining 27 hard miles.  I just kept pedaling up and down and up and down.  I had assumed that the group was going to drop me quickly as I am a slow hill climber.  Not so…I would always find them waiting patiently(??) for me at the bottom of  descents or the crest of a hill.  I was always happy to see them in the distance and have a reason to keep moving forward.

There was a very awesome downhill section that allowed me to get my bike to 36mph.  Seriously…36mph.  The adrenalin was so worth the tough ascents.  I loved it.  Flying down the road at my top speed and enjoying the wind in my face and the carefree attitude of someone who thinks she is invincible.  I know this isn’t true but I still feel that I am.  Emotions have no logic.

Soon after the awesome downhill section I found the first hill that made me want to quit and cry.  It wasn’t particularly steep but just long.  It went on forever.  I kept telling myself to pedal. Turn the crank.  Move my feet.  The little cheerleader in my head kept repeating: “You can do it.  You can do it.  You cannot quit and walk.  You can do it.”  And I did.  I made it up the hill and I was so excited.  Spent but happy to be done.

Somewhere after the start of the ride one of my companions discovered that there was no sag stops on this ride.  None!  I don’t think anyone was prepared for this to happen.  I forgot my water bottles and thankfully someone loaned me theirs.  I brought no food and I ate a small breakfast.  The lack of food was a real problem around mile 20.  My body wanted it and I had none to give it.  This is where things began to go wrong.

We got to a beautiful section of the ride that crossed the dam.  It was pretty and we got this picture.  We took a little reprieve with little knowledge of what was in our immediate future.  We turned a corner and discovered a mountain in front of us.  I am not making this up, it was a mountain.  I found out later that cycling groups use this hill as training and they call it the “alps”.  W.  I knew quickly that there was ZERO chance of me making it up this hill so I hopped off my bike and I started walking up.  Walking..walking…walking.  It kicked my ass to walk up this hill.  I was breathing hard and my heart rate was very elevated.  I think three of the five members were able to ride up the hill. Kudos to them as it was not my time.

The last 10 miles were a blur to me.  I just kept telling myself to keep going.  My body was so done.  But as I never saw one sag wagon the only way back to my car was on my bike.  So I kept going.  At one point E rode up next to me and started a conversation.  I was talking but breathing really hard.  Really I think I was gasping and it was a little hill by comparison but I was spent.  He looked at me and told me it was OK to take a break.  It never occurred to me to take my own break. I was always concerned that the group was waiting on me and I didn’t want to hold them up.  I took a little break and it helped.  The little hill didn’t feel nearly as tough when I gave my heart and legs a bit of a rest.

There was one other hill that I walked up.  I don’t think it would have been too tough on a normal day but I was d-u-n.  There wasn’t much left in me.  I just pushed the bike up the hill and rode it down.  Close to the end we passed by a gas station and we could smell fried chicken.  OMG…it sounded so good.  I wanted to go in and stuff my face but I refrained and we kept going to the end. 

We parked about a mile from the building so after we ate we still had to haul ourselves back to the car and damn, it was uphill.  Suck!  But I made it back.  It was a good but very challenging day.  I had never been on a ride of that type and it was nice to challenge myself.  It felt good to know what I am(was) capable of doing when I set my mind to it.

Dieting Progress Report

I had an interesting conversation with a co-worker today and it made me think about my current approach to dieting and living a healthy lifestyle.
I have been able to lose 25lbs since the beginning of June. Since I have started this dieting and biking thing 2.5 years ago I have lost a total of 50 lbs. Please please hold the applause. I feel good about this progress. What I like even more than the actual number is that none of my clothes fit anymore. They just hang off of me. Even my shoes. Really my shoes are too big. The other part is that I now weigh less than my younger brother. I assure that hasn’t happened since we were children or maybe ever. I loved his competitive response to this news. He was all “let me starve myself for a few days and reweigh myself”. No sucker! I beat you!!!!

There are a couple things that have made this experience more successful than past attempts to lose weight. The biggest one is that I haven’t put any pressure on myself to succeed. I want to succeed but I don’t perform well under pressure. I have always lived this horrible cycle of failing and then being so terribly hard on myself. I then completely give up because the whole endeavor was just too hard. I never thought I could be successful in this area.

I am not keeping a food journal. You heard me right…I am not recording my food intake. I just can’t. This was one of the things that used to destroy my self-confidence. That doesn’t mean I don’t evaluate what I eat. I look at my daily intake before dinner and I determine how much I should eat. I want to keep my calories at 1800 or less per day. But this is a flowing number and I don’t beat myself up when I don’t achieve it. I just say to myself perhaps eating crap at the fair shouldn’t be repeated the next day. I try to make better choices when I eat out. I try to eat only two pieces of pizza and not four. I try to not stop for ice cream on a daily basis and I am strictly regulating the amount of dessert allowed into my house.

I have stopped pressuring myself to cook healthy and nutritious whole foods. That never really worked as I am usually too tired to cook when I get home from my fun evening activities. Instead I have filled my freezer with Lean Cuisines and Smart Ones and other such frozen delights. It isn’t always great but it fills me up and it prevents me from stopping at Taco Bell on my way home when I am most vulnerable to the hunger and exhaustion. I realize that this isn’t the best nutritional choice but it is calorie controlled and way better to the alternative (Taco Bell).

Last month a friend wrote a blog that talked about how bike riding is not the key to weight loss. I completely agree with her. It is more about the food than the exercise. But the combination of both has enabled me to be successful. The other part is I haven’t looked at the biking strictly as a weight loss tool. I look at is as fun first. My goals surrounding biking had zero to do with weight and more to overcoming mental blocks about what I can and cannot do. Yes, I can ride 1000 miles in a summer (I am way over that BTW), yes I conquered Riley Hill, and yes I can ride 50 miles in a day. I actually completed a metric century (62 miles) a few weekends ago. All of these things help tremendously with the weight loss but they are not the key factor to my current success.

I feel the key to my current success is to relax the pressure on myself. I think I will always struggle with the eating thing but if I can continue having a positive attitude and give myself a break every now and then, this could work for me.

The specific question that the co-worker asked me was did I have a weight loss goals. The answer is NO. I don’t want to lose XX by a certain date. I cannot look at it that way. I just want to continue to make positive progress. I feel if I decided that I wanted to lose 10lbs each month it would kill me if I didn’t achieve that goal and prevent future progress.

I prefer to look at it this way. The less I weigh the easier it will be for me to climb the hills on my bike and maybe one day actually pass one of my friends on the ascent. That will be worth celebrating.

Darkness Rules my Life

I accomplished my final and third biking goal of the summer on Sunday.  Woot!  Except that it seems a bit anticlimactic to me.  I have met my goals but I am not necessarily happy about it.

These were my three goals:
1.  Bike 1000 Miles
2.  Bike 50 miles in a single ride
3.  Get up the hill at Crown Hill without walking

I made the 50 mile ride on July 6th. This was a good ride and my average speed was 11.9 mph.  I was happy with this ride and it was interesting to see my speed improvement in the last month.  My current average speed is usually 12.8.  I also have a few 50 mile rides scheduled later in the summer and those will not include any breaks and one of them has a hills.  Eeek.

I completed the Crown Hill climb about two weeks ago and it was hard.  My heart was beating out of my chest by the time I made it to the top, but I made it.  I was very excited but I have no desire to duplicate this accomplishment.  I would prefer to work on street hills and increasing my speed on something I would encounter in an ordinary ride.

Sunday was the big day for the 1000 mile accomplishment.  I was really hoping to finish up in July but my schedule just didn't allow it so I made it on August 1, 2010.  I was proud of myself as I had originally given myself until October to complete this goal.  I had no idea that I would become even more passionate about biking this summer than I was last year.

The real problem in this story is that my pride quickly faded away to self doubt and being hard on myself.  I always think that I can do better on a given task and then when I do better it is not enough.  I had thoughts running through my head that said I should have accomplished the goals faster or quicker or at a faster speed.  I just don't know why I cannot be happy with my accomplishments.

I want to be able to ride faster and I have improved but I don't think that it is fast enough.  I started out the summer with an average speed of 10 mph and I am currently at 12.8.  I want to be better than that without killing myself.  I then fall into the trap of comparing myself to my friends.  They can do things better and faster than me and it makes me feel inadequate.  These are the reasons why I have avoided all things athletic in the past.  I don't like feeling inadequate and if I don't even try then I never have to worry about measuring up.

Uggg...I just don't know what to do with myself.  I want to be happy with myself and my accomplishments while still pushing myself but I don't want to feel inadequate.  How am I to get over these dark and unproductive feelings?  I keep trying to stay positive but the bad thoughts keep creeping back.

I had a conversation with a fellow biking friend this week that while good intentioned and necessary made made all of these dark feelings creep up.  This conversation was about an upcoming 50 mile group ride (Hope Ride) that will occur in mid September.  There are several of us attending this ride and all of us have varying degrees of ability and aptitude.  Unfortunately, I am the slowest member of our group.  I was told basically that I was going to have to ride by myself that day as they wanted to complete this ride at a challenging pace for them.  I understand this and I respect the need to challenge oneself but it still doesn't stop me from feeling bad about myself.  I could probably keep up for a while but it would kill me and then I would eventually fall behind.  I don't want them to have to ride slower for me.  They should ride their bikes the way that makes them happy.

I DO NOT like to fall behind!  So what do I do?  I have been rolling this around in my head for days.  Should I just not attend and miss out on the fun?  Should I attend and ride by myself?  Or should I attend and try to keep up.  My initial desire was to not attend any of these group rides but that seems like the extreme option. 70% of why I like biking is I like the social aspect of it.  I understand that I cannot have a companion for every bike ride but these are the kind of events where having a companion is good.

I feel like my confidence is in an extremely fragile state these days and I would like to steady it out again but I just don't know how.

Forrest Gump

Do you remember that scene in Forrest Gump where Forest decides that he just needs to run and run and run.  He runs all the way across the North America a couple of times.  Tonight I felt like I was channeling that Forrest when I was biking.

I met a few friends for a casual ride at 4pm.  We rode a 19 mile route mostly on roads to the Velodrome and back.  It was a good ride and it included some challenging hills but when we had completed our route I didn't feel like I had satisfied my biking need for the day.  My friends and I stopped at Subway for dinner and when we were done eating I asked them if they were interested in riding some additional miles.  I encountered blank stares and NO's.  No problem I thought to myself, music could keep me company.  As our little group broke up I went back to my car to get my iPod and earphones so I could put in some additional miles before I went home.

When I left my friends I had no plan and no agenda.  I just headed out North on the Monon.  As I was riding I thought I would ride out five miles and then turn around and come back to my car.  I put on my favorite biking music (Def Leppard's Hysteria) and peddled away.  Before I even blinked I was five miles away and I  decided that I would continue to ride North to 146th St.  When I hit 146th Street I felt like I should finish out the trail and go to the end.  I did.  I cannot remember what street it ends on....maybe 165???

I took a couple drinks of my water and I turned around and headed south to Broad Ripple.  As I was riding I looked at my odometer and I realized that I would finish my ride at 40 miles and I gave myself a smug little smile at my accomplishment.  When I began to get close to where I left my car I felt like I wanted to continue to ride and I knew I had 10 more left in my legs. 

The time when I made this decision was 9:05pm.  Hmmm...I am not sure the rational portion of my brain was working.  I continued South on the Monon and I thought I would ride five miles and turn around.  I rode three miles out and I remembered that I didn't want to be stuck in that neighborhood after dark.  Yes, it was pretty dark by this time.  I promptly turned around and headed back north and again I rode past my car.  I just didn't want to stop.

I went back North and I began to feel that perhaps riding after dark on the Monon was a VERY BAD IDEA.  Yet, I continued to ride.  The rational and irrational parts of my brain were at odds with each other.  I was thankful that I had a headlight and taillight installed on my bike but it still didn't stop me from having thoughts that every person I saw was a serial killer.  The serial killer thoughts were very intense because I was away from the crowd and in the woods.  That is always when the girl is killed.  Luckily I hadn't had sex in the last couple of hours so I thought I was safe.  After-all, bad things only happen to the slut girls in the woods.

I finished out my ride at 50 miles.  Woo Hoo!!!!  It was a personal best.  The most I have gone in any day was 42 miles.  But does it count as a 50 mile ride due to the hour stop for dinner?  I don't know if that goal has been accomplished.  The answer is yes, I am hard on myself;)

Interesting Stats:

50.22 Miles
11.9 Average Speed
2 hours 51 minutes - Time in my Cardio Zone
2581 Calories Burned
4 hours 33 minutes spent riding
662 Miles for the season (my goal is 1000 miles)

I felt good after my long ride.  Minimal fatigue and my legs were still pretty happy with me.   I think I am much better as an endurance athlete than as a speed athlete.  Am I allowed to call myself an athlete?

Forrest Gump: That's all I have to say about that.

Breaking Away

I had a rather heated debate with a friend a few weeks ago.  I wanted to write about it right away but I thought it should wait until I was cool headed and clear minded before I gave forth my points.

It all started when we were riding in the final leg of the B&O ride last weekend.  Em asked our friend E the following question, "What speed should you ride with a group of riders of various speeds?"  Ok...I may be paraphrasing her but I think that was the gist of the question.  Should you ride to the fastest, to the slowest or compromise in the middle?

Apparently this topic got me all fired up and I couldn't let it go until I felt I had my say.  I adamantly feel that we should ride to the ability of the slowest person in the group.  I think the slowest people cannot possibly ride fast enough to keep up the the speedy riders.  I also don't think compromising in the middle will work well because you may be asking too much from the slowest riders and the fastest riders will also be unsatisfied with the slower pace.  I feel that if the faster riders are not happy at a slower pace then they should find other fast riders to accompany them. 

This doesn't mean that I don't want to be challenged.  I feel comfortable at a pace of 10mph.  I am working more in my cardio zone at 11- 12 and I am at the high end of my cardio zone at 13 and above (unless I am going downhill).  When I am talking and having fun I like to ride about 11.  When I am trying to challenge myself I try to ride about 12.5 but above that I am unable to hold a conversation.

This means that when I am biking with my friends for fun I don't really like to go above 12 because part of the fun of biking for me involves talking and socialization.  I like the combination of exercise endorphins and great conversation.  It always makes me happy.  What doesn't make me happy?  When I feel I have to ride faster than I am comfortable in a given situation.  This is a sticky and floating speed because if someone doesn't make me go faster how will I challenge myself.

I think part if this comes from my insecurity. I feel that most of the people who I ride with can go faster than me and sometimes I feel like I have a hard time keeping up.  Then I feel bad that I don't have the same abilities that other people do.  I know that sounds dumb and the rational part of my brain tells me that we all cannot have the same abilities but that doesn't change how I feel.

So loyal readers what do you think? What speed would you choose?

PS...I feel the right answer is Candy's pace;)

PSS...I realize I have a one track mind.  Biking=Summer

B&O Bicycle Tour

I had an interesting experience on Saturday.  My new friend E suggested that we attend a group bike ride with the B&O Trail Association.  When it was first suggested I immediately said NO because the ride was to commence in the middle of the night.  Ok...9am isn't the middle of the night for most people, but I really covet my Saturday morning sleep and this type of event would really cut into weekend ritual.  But when I was asked for a second or third time I caved and I decided I would participate.

Ems suggested that we sign up together because "couples" got a price break.  Um...the price break was only $2 and it was a bit weird to sign up as a couple with my friend. I have decided that for future events perhaps I should just go ahead and sign up on my own.  We decided to meet at 8:30am at the event location in Brownsburg.  Do you know what time I need to get up to be in Brownsburg at 8:30am.  Ding...Ding...Ding...If you guessed 6:30am you would be right.  Seriously 6:30am.  I am pretty sure that this biking thing isn't a passing phase if I am actually willing to get up at 6:30am on the weekend.  I don't even get up that early during the week for work.  Sigh!

I  got up on time (OK...close to on time but who is counting).  I was almost ready to leave I get an email from E asking if we are still going to the ride due to the impending rain in the forecast.  After a 15 minute discussion we all decide to forge ahead.  I had decided since I was already up, dressed and awake there wasn't going to be much to stop me from moving forward with my plans.  This 15 minute discussion put me behind and I had to drive a bit faster than than I originally anticipated. 

As I was driving to the event I get a text that says, "I don't look like I fit in here."  Ugg...I immediately got all nervous and twitchy.  I was already a bit apprehensive about going to this event because I don't consider myself a real "cyclist" and I knew that this event would be a mecca for them.  I wasn't wrong.  When I arrived there were hundreds of people in their cycling shirts and shorts.  Yea...I don't have a cycling shirt and my cycling shorts are covered up with my regular biking pants.  I shook off those self doubting thoughts and found my friends.

Since we are talking about cycling shorts I should mention that I was a bit distracted by the plethora of men in their tight shorts.  Um...these shorts leave little to the imagination.  Seriously...little to the imagination.   I was contently reminding myself to look at the guys faces and not at their shorts but it was very difficult.  I donned my sunglasses rather quickly as to obscure my wondering eyes.  Just last week I read this blog post about a similar topic and it cracked me up.

When our group was ready we headed out.  This event was designed to allow people to depart on their own time schedule so there wasn't a mass shotgun start that lumped everyone together.  There were five of us that started together but we soon broke off into a faster and slower group.  Unfortunately, I wasn't part of the fast group.  Boo!!!!  We chose the 25 mile ride and the beginning of the course was very difficult.  The ride took us through the country side of Hendrick County and there was a series of 4 hills that kicked my ass.  They were very very hard.  It wasn't that a single one of them was too hard it was that there were too many so close together. 

I usually ride up and down the Monon trail so riding out on the open road was a totally different experience.  Even though the hills were not gigantic by most standards they were tough for me because I almost always ride on flat and even ground.  After we finished the hilly section the terrain flattened out but then we were riding right into the wind. The wind was blowing at about 10 to 15 mph because we were expecting a spring storm.  Then the rain started.  It was disconcerting at first.  I mean usually when it rains I run for cover but we just decided to push through it.  After the first five minutes of rain I got used it it and learned to live with the uncomfortableness.   It rained the rest of the morning and it stopped when we reached the end of the course.  It looks like we timed that just right.

The event has a SAG stop in the middle of the course that had drinks and snacks for us.  I was appreciative of the orange Gatorade and brownies.  Yea sugar.  I needed that boost of energy for the rest of the ride.  We stayed there for about 10 minutes and then we headed back out.  The funny part was when we were there we kept trying to stand under the trees and under the roof to stay out of the rain.  Um...we were just riding in the rain and completely soaked.  I guess it is human nature to try and stay as dry as possible.

We finished our 25 miles in about 2.5 hours and my average speed was 11.8.  That is really high for me and I pushed myself on this ride.  I usually ride at about 10mph but I guess the rain and the competition of the real cyclists spurred us on.  When we got back to the park the B&O organization had lunch ready for us.  There was pulled pork sandwiches, coleslaw, and fruit salad.  It tasted good after that long ride.

It was a good day and I am glad that I participated in this event. It allowed me to get over my nervousness of this new experience and hopefully enjoy future events.  The next scheduled group ride is at the end of June and is the Nite Ride.  See this link for the info on that event.

Biking Mis-Adventure(s)

I had a four day weekend scheduled and all I could think about was flying down the road on my bike.  I had several rides scheduled and and executed but there were a few funny moments.
Ems was going to meet me at my house on Friday afternoon for a ride to the Fishers library and back with a pit stop to feed some hungry felines.  We left my house and fairly quickly I began to lag behind.  Usually Ems and I ride at a similar pace but I just had a hard time keeping up.  I kept yelling at my body for failing me but it never occurred to me that the problem could be with my bike.  We were crossing the street about 2.5 miles from my house when my bike skidded to the side as I was making a turn.  It did it a second time.  Weird! 

When I crossed the street Ems noticed that my back tire was flat.  F-L-A-T!  Hm....that had never happened to me before.  I just looked at it with a dumbfounded expression on my face.  I looked at Em and she looked at me.  I began to process the various options through my head. 

I could walk my bike back to my house.  I could call Lou.  I could do nothing and see what happens.  None of these options seemed like a terribly good idea.  We finally decided the best option was to send Ems back to my house and for her to come back and pick me up.  I gave her my car keys, garage door opener and I sent her off to my house to get my car. 

I then sat on the ground like a princess.  It felt pretty good to have someone take care of me.  I sat there relaxing and texting my friends and entertaining myself with my phone.  I felt like I got the long end of the proverbial stick.  Yea me.

While I was waiting I encountered two very friendly and helpful citizens.  The first person was a guy in a white truck.  I saw him looking at me so I gave him a big friendly smile in return.  He asked me if I needed any help and I told him I was good and I had a friend on her way to pick me up.  The second person to stop was a lady on a giant yellow school bus.  Really, an empty school bus.  I gave her the same answer but I was very amused when I thought about putting my bike on the bus and catching a ride home.

When I saw my green car coming towards me on the road I began picking up my stuff and shoving it back in my bag.  I had to carry my bag and push my bike so I thought the best option for my helmet was to put it back on my head.  But why did I find it necessary to buckle it back on.  Really it could have sat there.  But no, I wanted to make sure it was securely fastened to my head for the 20 foot walk to my car.  Duh!

I loaded up my bike and we headed off to the bike repair shop.  They fixed the problem in 10 minutes for a mere $17.  $10 for the labor and $7 for the tube.  DONE!  I was so happy as I really didn't want to learn how to make this particular repair.  I was (am) perfectly OK letting someone else take care of this problem.  It turns out that it wasn't a hole in the tube but a faulty valve stem.

My total mileage on Friday was 2.5 miles.  O well, I made up for that on Sunday.

Sunday dawned with a new biking adventure.  We decided to try some new trails in Plainfield and they were very nice.  There are about 12 miles of paved and connected trails.  It was a very enjoyable and relaxing ride.  The funny part happened when we arrived.  I had picked up Ems so we were together in the car when I arrived at the meeting spot in Plainfield.  I decided to get the lay of the land and drive all the way around the parking lot.  Um...Twice.  Yes twice.  What I didn't realized was our other friend E was following me.  We thought we were early so I wasn't concerned with the time or my actions.  When I finally parked I noticed a "real" biker emerging from the car across the parking lot.  He had on a official biking shirt and he had a very nice bike on his rack.  I started making fun of this "stranger" to Ems.  Then I realized that this "real" biker was our friend E.  Oops!  I could not stop giggling.  I mean for like five minutes.

It was a good day!

I LOVE biking season!!!!!

Goals

I find the best way for me to accomplish tasks is to make them goals.  I LOVE biking and I wanted to make some summertime biking goals for myself.  I want to make them achievable but difficult.  Last summer I had three goals related to biking:

1.  Bike 500 Miles
2.  Ride a marathon (26 miles) on a single ride
3.  Get up the hill at Crown Hill without walking

Goal 1 and 2 were easily obtained.  I actually rode 700 miles last year and I easily rode the marathon on a sunny summer day.  Actually, the longest trip I went on was 42 miles.  But, I NEVER made it up the hill...booooooo!

Based upon what I achieved last summer I want to make this summers goals more difficult.

1.  Bike 1000 Miles
2.  Bike 50 miles in a single ride
3.  Get up the hill at Crown Hill without walking

I want to accomplish all of these goals by the end of October.  I know 1000 miles is an aggressive goal but I know I can do it.  If my math is right I will need to ride an average of 50 miles each week to accomplish this goal.  I plan on splitting up the 50 miles by riding at least three days per week.

I don't have a specific day set for the 50 mile ride, but I anticipate this being a warm July day with zero wind.  Hopefully, I will be able to convince a couple friends (hint hint) to do this with me and I am sure there will be some Bubs Burgers waiting for us at the end.

I think goal number 3 will take some perseverance.  When I was at Crown Hill last week I had a difficult time even getting up the base of the hill.  Practice, practice, practice!!!

Wish me luck!  And...when I tell you I cannot get up the hill tell me to shut up and just do it!

I'm in Love....

....with my new bike!



I purchased a beautiful new bike last weekend. It is gorgeous! It is manufactured by Giant and is a Sedona DX. It is silver and has 21 gears. I purchased it from a small independent shop near 21st St. and MLK called The Bicycle Hospital. It is run by a old hippy who loves bikes and is extremely knowledgeable. Moorewrites encouraged me go visit the establishment last week when she know I was serious about making a new purchase.


We took a long lunch last Friday and visited their small shop. I looked around while I waited my turn and there was bikes everywhere. Every time I go into a bike shop I am overwhelmed by the large quantity of choices. When the owner came over I told him what I was looking for and he immediately pointed to this bike. He said it was the #1 best selling bike the last six years. I took a test drive and he gave me instructions for 10 minutes on how to get on and off of the bike as well as how to use the gears. Off I went down this little hill and into a neighborhood. I came back a few minutes later and I was able to downshift and get up the small easily. I was sold!


I asked the guy about the differences in this bike and others I had looked at. Specifically why this bike had larger tires and many of the other Hybrid bikes have smaller 700 cc tires. He looked at me and said that those people had no business putting me on a bike like that unless they are looking for tire repair sales. I was a bit surprised by his bluntness but I appreciated his candor. I would rather someone tell me that I was too large for a bike than sell me something that is not a good fit.


I decided she was going to be my new bike and I handed over my two credit cards and ponied up the money. That is right, I split the cost. I paid for part of it with cash and the remaining part on my credit card. Take a deep breath here...she cost $520. This probably wasn't in my budget but I really NEEDED a new bike with gears.


I initiated her last Sunday afternoon. I took a ride on the Tow path with Ems and Lou and we headed south to downtown. When we hit the car dealership on 10th Street it started to rain. We headed past IUPUI in search of shelter and found it at a Qdoba. We had a meal and the rain started to clear out. As we walked outside it started to pour down rain again. We stood outside for a few minutes and then headed into Au Bon Pain for a dessert in hopes that the rain would stop soon. An hour later it was still raining hard. It just wasn't our day.


Ems tried to call two people for rides home and she was denied. So I made the decision that we were just going to have to ride back in the rain. I encouraged everyone out and on to their bikes. Somehow, I got in the lead and I started down the road with no idea of where I was going. Soon it became apparent that we were headed in the wrong direction so Lou took over and viola he found the path. All of a sudden he became Drill Sargent Lou and was demanding that we ride fast to our destination. I wasn't overly concerned because I was already soaked.


Riding on the sidewalk and White River path was fine but then we hit the Tow path and things went downhill. Do you know that the Tow path is made up of dirt? Do you know what happens when you mix water and dirt? You get mud. As in we were all covered in mud. We have some photos but I am not allowed to show them. It was all over my but, back and legs. We were dirty people and my brothers only concern was that we were not going to be allowed into his precious BMW in our current state.


We drudged back in the mud, and let me tell you it is much harder to ride in the mud than it is on the paved path. I don't necessarily recommend it. Ems lives about 20 blocks closer than where we parked our cars so she offered to drive us back to our cars. I do not like quiting what I start but I happily took her up on her offer. She also offered us towels for the car so I know there was no way Lou was going to let me reject her offer.


Some time later we were all settled and I arrived home. The first thing that I did was give my beautiful new bike a bath and a shine. However, she doesn't look new anymore. But, she gave me an excellent first ride.


Today I met some friends to go biking at Crown Hill Cemetery and I was excited to try her out on some hills and specifically Riley hill. I didn't make it to the top! I was so disappointed in myself. I made it much further than I have on any previous attempt but my heart rate was at 180 and I could no longer breath. I WILL beat that hill by the end of the summer. I did make it up the hill near the entrance twice and that was a first for me. I love that my new bike has allowed me to do things that I have never done before.


I have absolutely NO buyers remorse on this purchase. I am so glad that I bought this bike so I would have plenty of time to enjoy her this summer.

Biking Adventure

I have been reading two blogs recently and they have significantly increased my need for adventure. The first one is about Roz Savage and her adventures rowing her boat across the Pacific Ocean. I find this a scary and fascinating idea. I am willing to try most thing and I often throw caution out when I think of a great idea, but in none of my fantasies can I imagine traveling across the Pacific ocean in a row boat. It seems ludicrous! But I keep reading with fascination.

The second blogger is Ryan and he writes about running across Europe from Amsterdam to Athens. This is certainly an adventure that I could get into except that I really DON'T like to run! I really hardly like to walk places. But, biking is my passion.

Reading about these two people has made me wonder what kind of biking adventure I could have. As much as I enjoy riding about Indianapolis, I wonder where else I could ride. Could I plan a vacation to ride somewhere? Where could I go? Should I drive somewhere and then trek about? Should I pack everything that I would need on my bike and just go?

I would like to explore this idea more. Wouldn't it be awesome to take my new bike (I know....I know...I need to buy a new bike) on a trip across Europe next summer. What could I realistic afford? Could my body handle such a trip? How would I plan such a trip. Most importantly, who wants to go with me?

Tell me your thoughts on this idea.

Energy

I would like to tell you all the my energy levels have returned to normal today! I am so excited after feeling so lethargic the last three days. I don't like it when I feel so un-energetic. I want to do things and have fun every day. I am glad to have ME back.

I went on a 20 mile bicycle ride yesterday and Ems mentioned that she missed my enthusiasm. I missed it to. However, I find it astounding that I was able to go on a long ride feeling that way. Secondly, I am no longer having any side effects from such a long ride. My legs and butt were fine after the ride. I even went grocery shopping afterwords. I think that I need to add some challenge to these rides. Perhaps go faster? Or add some sprints or intervals? Ems did comment that my average speed has increased from 8.5 to 10 mph.

I had my 45 minute personal training session tonight. I think that I am beginning to really like it. I wish I could afford two sessions per week. I don't know how I am going to add it to my budget after my flex spending money runs out. I did 45 "big girl" push ups tonight. I was leaning on a bench that was about a foot from the floor, but I was not on my knees and I could push myself up and down. I was very excited at this progress.

I have relatives coming into town on Wednesday evening and I am sad that I am not going to have any bike riding time this weekend. So I have decided that I need to add some in on Saturday or Sunday. If any of my friends have time on Saturday or Sunday let me know because I think I will need the stress relief.

Concentration

I am not sure if any of you have noticed but I am easily distracted. I will be talking to you and all of a sudden my mind will wonder off in a different direction. While I am at work I often try to think of way too many things at one time. I think that I have made some strives to solve this problem. I think that using my energy for biking and exercising has allowed me a bit more focus. I feel that I have been less distracted by outside influences. What do you think? Have you noticed a change in this area?

Exercise Overload

I went a bit overboard on the exercise today. Let me start by saying that my sleep is all Fuc*ed up! I didn't go to bed on Sunday night until 3:30am. That is way too late for me. I worked all day and I was actually productive. Imagine that!

I then attended my first personal training class with Hadley. She was great and worked me very hard. She had me doing what seamed like an endless set of lunges. I think that they are evil. I felt good after our 45 minute session and then drove to meet ems and zlionsfan for a short bike ride. I think that short is a relative term. I traveled 15.3 miles and rode for 1:45 minutes. This was not short considering I had already had a hard workout for 45 minutes. But, I did have some fun with my friends. I was dragging a bit for the last two miles and zlionsfan had to push me along.

I traveled the shortest distance of my friends. I think that zlionsfan traveled over 40 miles. Isn't that incredible. I don't think he meant to but it just happened. We had some conversation tonight that involved me getting a new bike (I am seriously lusting after a new one with gears but it isn't in my budget) to make these long distances easier. We even talked about eventually riding a 100 mile marathon in a day. Doesn't that seem impossible...But I now know that it isn't. It would just take some training to work up to that level. Perhaps I need to increase my average speed above 8.5 mph.

Thanks for hanging in there for my biking obsession and consequent blogs relating to the topic.


Stats:

Distance: 15.3
Odometer: 164
Average Speed: 8.7
Max Speed: 13
Time: 1:45

More Biking Fun

Today I accomplished one of my summer goals. I biked thirty miles with three of my friends (we missed you Ems). Doesn't that sound crazy and impossible! We did virtually little training to accomplish this goal. Basically, it was just me saying last weekend that we should do bike a marathon and we did it. Up until this point my maximum distance was 16 to 17 miles total distance.

We met at the Greenway at 146th Street in Carmel and we biked to the end of the Monon at 10th Street. Everything below Broadripple was boring and uninteresting. We got to see several abandoned warehouses and the back end of the Indiana State Fairgrounds. We even passed a police officer twice as we were riding.

We finished the day at Bub's restaurant for a diet Coke, burger and fries. It was exactly what my body wanted. This was an excellent way to spend a beautiful Saturday afternoon.

Stats:

Time: 3:12 actual riding time
Distance: 30 Miles
Odometer: 136 Miles
Average Speed: 9.3 mph
Max Speed: 19.6 mph

Biking

I realize that there has been one or two or six blogs already about biking but it is one of my favorite activities. I think we have become obsessed! Ems, zlionsfan and I are able to talk about it for hours on end several days a week. I am not sure anything ever really comes of our talks except that we like biking and all of the accessories associated with biking.

I went on a biking adventure last night after work. When biking with friends I usually don’t care where we bike or if there is a specific aim involved but when I go by myself I like there to be a destination. When I went riding last weekend I went to the grocery store to purchase items to bake brownies. BTW…they were horrible because I am not a good baker…but that is for another blog.

My monthly book club was scheduled for Thursday evening so earlier in the week I decided that I would like to bike there from my work. I had a friend look to make sure that there was a sidewalk the entire length of 82nd/86th Street. I also did a map on my phone and it told me that it was exactly 7.2 miles each way. I decided that it was a doable amount of biking, so I told my friends of my intentions which cemented the idea in my head.

Thursday’s weather was dry but a bit cold, so when I set out I had wished for a longer pair of pants and a jacket but I quickly got warmed up. As I was leaving the parking lot I got several waves, honks and positive comments about my dedication to biking. I also think there were a few head shakes. I proceeded down the road listening to “The Cat Empire” and enjoying my quiet time as I was looking forward to this ride all day. I encountered my first problem at the fashion mall. The sidewalk ended. I stood there for a few minutes contemplating what I should do. Should I turn around and go back to work, should I try to find an alternative root or should I forge ahead. I decided to act tough and ride on the road. I had to ride about a ½ mile on the side of 82nd Street in front of the section where you enter and exit Keystone Avenue. I turned off my music and increased my awareness of my surroundings and proceeded forward. I tried to make eye contact with drivers and I made it safely to the next section of the sidewalk.

I was ecstatic that I had made it. Hurray for me…no one tried to run me over. The rest of the ride was nice and there were a couple obstacles, trees so overgrown that I had to duck to get by and hedges encroaching on the sidewalk so I had to ride in the grass. The ride there was athletically tough as I think that it was a very slight grade uphill and the wind was blowing against me. I was breathing hard often. I was very excited when I arrived because my phone told me I was 7.2 miles from my destination and my bike odometer said exactly 7.2 when I arrived. This means that it was probable calibrated correctly.

The ride back to my car was uneventful and I was able to coast a good portion of the time. These are my stats:

Time 1:40
Distance: 14.5
Average Speed: 8.6 MPH
Max Speed: 17.7 MPH
Total Odometer Reading: 88 Miles

Ems, zlionsfan and I were planning some of our summer biking goals today and we decided we needed to do a bike marathon. We think that we are ready to bike 26 miles in a row and with my average speed of 8.5 mph it should take us about 3.5 hours to complete. I think that we will need to make specific plans for this soon.

Some of my other goals include riding up the hill at Crown Hill Cemetery without walking and getting my total bike odometer to read 500 miles.

Additional Biking Story

Ems wrote a story about our biking adventure last weekend. Follow the link and read about our trek from her viewpoint.

http://ems0178.blogspot.com/2009/03/owie.html

Bicycle Riding Stats

I had another relaxing bike ride tonight after work. I caught the Monon trail in Broadripple and I cycled up into Carmel and back. It wasn't super fast or an extreme cardio workout, but I had great fun!

Total Riding Time: One Hour
Total Distance: 7.4 Miles
Average Speed: 7.4 MPH
Max Speed: 10.3 MPH