"Happy Birthday Michael"

Among all the  things that have ever happened to me, you are one of the most special.   Right from the get go you were the bearer of so many unexpected pleasures.  And you continue to be so, to this very day.  Happy 27th my son!!

What I want to know is, why did I need to pay for braces….twice???!!!
And when did you lose your hearing aids??  Oh yah!  I think when you became a teenager eh?

We had a wonderful lunch at the Mandarin, just Mike, Colby, Roo and I.  Apparently that was the 3rd time in a row we've met there for his birthday celebration, so I guess it's a tradition.  I look forward to the end of this PhD, so that he can start paying!!  Just kidding Mikey!  Actually, please save up your money in case I live beyond eighty!

And that was the highlight of my day.  My bike test didn't really go quite as I expected, or at least as I hoped.  Of course my expectation may have been out to lunch. I'm still thinking about it.  I was actually 5 watts under the test of 5 weeks ago.  While I knew that my revised aero bar strategy would have an impact, I guess I never expected so much.  I didn't feel great right from the outset, but whether it was an off day, whether I haven't gained any fitness, or whether it was primarily due to the commitment to the aero bars, I'm not sure.  I am however going to stick with the strategy primarily because of the one very, very bright spot from the workout.  My average cadence was exactly 100, which is absolutely phenomenal!  It is widely accepted that a high turnover is one of the key elements of successful long distance riding.

I suppose the good news is that my workouts for the next 5 weeks are not going to be any harder, and by the letter of the law could actually be a little easier.  I've made the decision however to enter the same number (from the previous test) in the calculator, and as such the next 5 weeks will be identical to the past five.

Game on!!

Computrainer test, 30 mins, 192 watts, 1:15 total ride

"The best things in life are unexpected - because there were no expectations."---Eli Khamarov

Love
Peter