I normally train pretty hard I think. I don’t use a power meter or do interval/sprints or a structured workout, but I generally ride pretty hard. I’m in the wind a lot and don’t just ride around. But, I’m going to be just riding for a while now. Until I feel different. I’m not sick or hurt. Just in a funk. I feel it walking/sleeping/not sleeping, etc. So, yesterday in California I just rode around for a few hours, a couple times. I’m flying back to Kansas tomorrow. I have a ton of projects to do there. I guess I’ll get a jump on those, because I’m not racing around until I’m riding better. It’s too frustrating.

Historic house in Redlands climbing up to the Sunset Loop.

Looking down toward Redlands from up on Sunset. It is amazing how rural it is in places.

Views down on the coast in Laguna.

Laguna near sunset.

Someone sent me a link to the tweet below from Lawson Craddock. It got me thinking about racing now and 30 years ago and if there was a way to race myself of old, who would win. And I came to the conclusion that I’m better now than I was then.

I’m not sure I’m physically better. Probably not. I’m fairly beat up. But, considering the whole package, I’m a better bike rider. Experience in this sport is key. Learning from observation. Learning from mistakes. Learning in general. And retaining that information. Then applying that knowledge to different circumstances later, to have a better result. That is one thing that attracts me so much to the sport.

I still find the mental aspect of the sport interesting. After riding Redlands, I’m thinking about just using stage races later on in the season as training. I find the racing pretty boring. Free for all bike racing is much more interesting to me.

Like the end of Tour of Flanders last Sunday. I’m still thinking about that last 15 kms. I don’t understand it. Boonen launching Cancellara off the front. Then, Cancellara loosing a 45 second lead on one hill only to split the field right when the field reconnected. And Sylvain Chavanel pulling during the last 2 km, when he has Tom Boonen so close behind. There was a kind of weird hand shake between Chavanel and Cancellara in there somewhere that I didn’t quite understand. Pretty great bike race in general.

Anyway, I don’t remember racing against Lawson’s dad. But he must be a pretty good athlete because his son obviously has pretty good genes.