That friend being: My Fitness 
Back when I was a lad (from about 14yrs old, before that I rode and even raced BMX)... I used to ride a Repco Superlite. I rode because it gave me freedom and I enjoyed riding. At one point I was doing about 400km a week, which included riding over Mt Coot-Tha in Brissy every morn before riding to school in Ipswich (I lived about halfway between), and usually a 100-160km ride on the weekend. I wish I was that fit now....
At about 20 (I'm 33 in Nov) I stopped riding, started smoking, drinking etc. though I did keep reasonably fit training and competing in Karate.
4 weeks ago I bought a MTB, put some road tyres on it, and started commuting ~25km each way to work, 3 times a week after about 3mths of zero exercise. I stopped smoking the day I started commuting and haven't had one since. I try and get in the dirt on weekends, and swap the road tyres for dirt tyres.
Obviously my fitness has been getting better, but yesterday's trip home made me feel like superman. Normally my trip home is slower than my trip to work. My previous best was just under 25kmh avg (trip to work, best is 30kmh, I have a goal to do it at 35kmh). I noted that my legs felt pretty good during the day yesterday. There's a 1km hill beside the freeway that I normally do at ~17kmh. Yesterday I didn't drop below 20kmh up that hill. Then, going through Griffith Uni, I was changing up a gear going up a few of the hills coz I was finding it too easy. Then, going up 'heartbreak hill' next to ANZ stadium I got to the top without having to drop to the smallest chainring (it's a triple).
While stopped at the lights at Mains Rd, I was feeling quite chuffed with myself, but it didn't stop there. My legs just felt so powerful yesterday. I was sprinting from the lights, sprinting to merge with traffic doing ~50kmh in the middle lane to overtake stopped buses, and generally having a great time I got home and saw an avg speed of 27.5kmh on my computer. I was a very happy camper
Given that I pushed myself reasonably hard on the way to work yesterday, I don't know why I felt so good on the way home, but I'm NOT complaining.
I've been itching to start doing Mt Coot-Tha again, and I think my fitness is approaching a level where I could maybe start doing it on the way to work once a week (if I can wake up in time )
I'm really starting to miss my old roadie. I couldn't spend the min $1000 for a new roadie these days, and I couldn't find anything 2nd hand at the time, which is why I opted for the cheapish MTB. Which is OK, coz I'm enjoying the rides in the dirt as well. I'll get another roadie sometime down the track, but I'm enjoying it either way.....
Back when I was a lad (from about 14yrs old, before that I rode and even raced BMX)...
I used to ride a Repco Superlite. I rode because it gave me freedom and I enjoyed riding. At one point I was doing about 400km a week, which included riding over Mt Coot-Tha in Brissy every morn before riding to school in Ipswich (I lived about halfway between), and usually a 100-160km ride on the weekend. I wish I was that fit now....At about 20 (I'm 33 in Nov) I stopped riding, started smoking, drinking etc. though I did keep reasonably fit training and competing in Karate.
4 weeks ago I bought a MTB, put some road tyres on it, and started commuting ~25km each way to work, 3 times a week after about 3mths of zero exercise. I stopped smoking the day I started commuting and haven't had one since. I try and get in the dirt on weekends, and swap the road tyres for dirt tyres.
Obviously my fitness has been getting better, but yesterday's trip home made me feel like superman. Normally my trip home is slower than my trip to work. My previous best was just under 25kmh avg (trip to work, best is 30kmh, I have a goal to do it at 35kmh). I noted that my legs felt pretty good during the day yesterday. There's a 1km hill beside the freeway that I normally do at ~17kmh. Yesterday I didn't drop below 20kmh up that hill. Then, going through Griffith Uni, I was changing up a gear going up a few of the hills coz I was finding it too easy. Then, going up 'heartbreak hill' next to ANZ stadium I got to the top without having to drop to the smallest chainring (it's a triple).
While stopped at the lights at Mains Rd, I was feeling quite chuffed with myself, but it didn't stop there. My legs just felt so powerful yesterday. I was sprinting from the lights, sprinting to merge with traffic doing ~50kmh in the middle lane to overtake stopped buses, and generally having a great time
I got home and saw an avg speed of 27.5kmh on my computer. I was a very happy camper Given that I pushed myself reasonably hard on the way to work yesterday, I don't know why I felt so good on the way home, but I'm NOT complaining.
I've been itching to start doing Mt Coot-Tha again, and I think my fitness is approaching a level where I could maybe start doing it on the way to work once a week (if I can wake up in time
)I'm really starting to miss my old roadie. I couldn't spend the min $1000 for a new roadie these days, and I couldn't find anything 2nd hand at the time, which is why I opted for the cheapish MTB. Which is OK, coz I'm enjoying the rides in the dirt as well. I'll get another roadie sometime down the track, but I'm enjoying it either way.....
