Charlottesville Course

My short race season is over and its time to think about the off-season. But before I commit to another training plan I'm going to take some time to relax and enjoy workouts at my own pace.

With the weather rapidly cooling down and the days getting shorter I was lucky to get a beautiful day of riding in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains along the Charlottesville International course. I would have preferred to ride the Crabtree Falls route I frequent but my legs haven't been up to the task since the crash. I've realized showing restraint and moderation in my workouts is a good thing. So with that in mind I kept to the shorter 23.5 mile bike course I hope to ride next July.

The goal of the day was to push the pace and get a feel for the hills. I figured there would be a few steep sections and wasn't disappointed. I also wanted to get a good effort in the books to see where I stacked with this year's finishers.

23.5 Mile Bike - 1:14:38 (18.8mph)
This was a difficult course. The start of the ride is an eight-percent, half-mile climb just out of the parking lot. Once you get settled in you have two more decent climbs before you hit four miles. By the fourteenth mile I was kicked. Clearly I lacked the stamina I had built up back in May. I took it easy on the back stretch and powered home on the last climb. Here's how my Garmin recorded the ride:

I must confess I had to stop along the course twice to take photos to share with everyone. It was a picturesque ride on a warm October afternoon. I was also amazed with the clear, flat water of the lake. I regretted not packing my wetsuit.