Sickweek

As someone who plans far in advance, nothing is more frustrating than when a well-conceived plan goes awry. I've been sick all week, so I've taken time off the bike to focus the energy I have on coaching my tennis team. We had a great victory Thursday, which after 3 hours came down to the final set on court, a tiebreaker that went to 10-8 before our guy could close it out. Exciting as that was, it was tough to miss a week of training.

Today, I was scheduled to do the Solvang Century, a 100-mile event with 5,000ft of elevation gain. I did manage to get out with my girlfriend Johanna for a nice little ride of 26 miles with 3,200ft of elevation gain. We drove to Ojai and parked at the base of the section of Hwy 33 that heads north into the Los Padres National Forest. This is one of my favorite climbs, as it never gets too steep, features quite a few switchbacks, and has some excellent views of the ground covered and on into the ocean even as far as the Channel Islands. It's also a favorite of motorcyclists. In fact, shortly after starting the ride we were passed by all manner of emergency vehicle and finally came upon a fallen motorcyclist. He looked to be okay, definitely breathing, but they were putting him into a neckbrace. None of that for us!

In the past, Johanna has never tackled a climb more than a mile in length, so today was a big milestone for her. Not only did she make it up the climb, she did it pretty easily. Before long, I'm going to have a training partner in her, as well as a recovery or fun-ride mate. I'm excited about that!