Saturday Ride Up Mile Hill Road

For the second weekend in a row, I climbed Mile Hill Road in princeton. That is one of my favorite hill in MA and my favorite hill in central MA. The favorite hill is East Hawley Road, which is a longer and harder climb than Mile Hill road.

The last two weeks I've been riding every day and pushing myself on my lunch rides. Last Thursday I took a picture of the Rox at the start of the ride. As the image shows, my heart rate is 59.

I don't use the heart rate monitor every ride. Some days I forget. The thing I like about the heart rate monitor is it helps me monitor my progress. As I get in better shape, the heart rate drops and the recovery is shorter. Yesterday's climb up mile hill road felt easier than the previous Saturday. It is a lot of fun to ride in a pace line and take turns pulling. Yesterday I tried to longer turns pulling to push myself. Today my legs are a little sore, but it's a good soreness.

Eating properly

During the winter, I try to eat healthy, but the cold gives me the munchies. Once the weather warms up, I switch back to fruits for snacks and more veggies. This week I ate a banana every day before my ride. It makes a significant difference. Today it rained, so I had to go to the gym. Usually, I try to get in as many miles as I can in 30 minutes. Today I managed to average 25mph for 30 minutes and logged a little over 12miles. Over the winter I tried to do longer workouts on the stationary bikes, but I can't seem to do it. It is simply too boring.

Another thing I try to do during riding season is to drink water instead of juice. One thing I noticed the last 2 years is proper hydration before a workout makes a big difference. When I'm properly hydrated, I don't get cotton mouth and have a easier time recovering from a strenuous climb. When I don't drink enough water, I feel it in my legs, and breathing.

Leading a ride this Saturday

Last week, 7HW asked me to lead a ride. After I got the OK from the wife, I decided to lead a ride.



Find more Bike Ride in Holden, MA


I like to do this route on the weekends for a couple of reasons. The first 12 miles has a good amount of climbing, so it gets the legs and lungs warmed up. Once we get to route 62, it's mostly flat. It's a good stretch to recover and cruise. The big climb up mile hill road on Wachusett is one of my favorites. When I can, I try to do intervals there.
Last year I used it for my Greylock century training. In terms of difficulty, the climb to Wachusett summit is harder than the climb to Greylock summit. During the summer months, it is a popular climb for cyclist.

Spring glad to see you again

Today the weather was around 65 and my lunch ride was awesome. It is amazing how much easier in warm weather. The biggest difference between cold and warm weather for me is getting a good spin and maintaining it. When it's cold, I have a real hard time getting a good spin and keeping it.
On my usual Holden Reservoir route I was able to get a good spin and maintain it. Even though I gained about 8lbs over the winter, I still managed to average 18.2mph for 19 miles. If the weather keeps up, I hope to drop the 8lbs over the next 4 weeks.

So much for summer and winter bike

When I bought the Avail, I told myself "now I have a summer bike and winter bike." In reality, I rode my avail over the winter. The Avail is simply more comfortable. On a cold windy day, I generally want to get done quickly with as much comfort as possible. That meant riding the Avail. I still love my Dolce, but I use it more as a backup. My son has started using it, so it's basically become his road bike.