Riding in Kansas

We finally got a bike rack for the car just in time for our trip up to Kansas for my sister's graduation from the University of Kansas. I was very nervous about having the bike on the back, but it got here with no problems. I finally made time to ride on Saturday evening near my parents' house in Shawnee, and it was great. There are several bike trails in the area, so I only had to be on the roads for maybe 1/2 mile getting to and from the house to the trail. Unfortunately, I've only been able to ride once since we've been in town because of all the graduation festivities, etc. I rode about 5.1 miles, almost all of it clipped in! I'm getting a lot more comfortable with the pedals, but I'm still hesitant. My wrist is doing better since the fall two Saturdays ago, but it still gets really sore sometimes. That's all for today. Back to work I go. :(

My first fall

I went out today, fully intending on riding the full ride my trainer had scheduled for me. However, at about the 5.1 mile mark, I fell for the first time, landing on my left wrist with the entire weight of my body and my bike. Luckily, that's all I hit. I have no scratches or other soreness, so it could've been much worse. See what happened was, I was stopped at a light, and I had unclipped from my right pedal and stepped down to the right light I was supposed to, but when I got my foot on the ground, the weight of the bike went slightly to the left, knocking into my left leg and pulling me down to the ground. I got right back up (giving the "I'm okay" sign to the lady in the car behind me) and rode home, where I called my husband to come downstairs and carry my bike up because I couldn't lift it. I couldn't even turn doorknobs or barely get through my shower. My mom told me that if I have any tingling in my finger or if my wrist swells at all, I should probably go to the ER to get it x-rayed. I don't think it's swelling, but I had tingling almost immediately. I have to watch the Spurs game, but I might go to the ER afterward if it's still hurting at that point to make sure there's no torn ligaments or anything like that. At least I have my priorities straight! ;)

The ride was very productive overall, even with the fall. I got my first fall out of the way with no major injuries, so I guess there's the silver lining in that. I also got completely clipped in, not just one foot...both feet. FINALLY! It's what caused me to fall, but it was SO worth it. I felt such a sense of accomplishment, and my legs really aren't as sore. I also rode up a hill while standing up! I couldn't believe I actually did it! When I got to the top, I was like...wow, did I really just do that?! So all in all a productive day, even though I didn't go as far as I wanted distance wise.

Fundraising is going well. I'm still officially at $1010, but we made $60 from our garage sale and $15 from aluminum cans (our cans, and cans from our neighbor's work) which we haven't sent in yet. That puts my unofficial total at $1125 with pending donations, etc. Can't wait for LIVESTRONG Day!

Going backwards...

I haven't ridden since I got my new pedals over a week ago, and I haven't worked out either. I'm totally slacking off in my training. I was very excited to go riding today, and was scheduled for 9 miles. However, since I haven't ridden in a week, I only managed to get 4.3 miles ridden. My legs are KILLING me! I feel like I'm going backwards in my riding. I was up over 6 miles, and now I can barely finish 4. I was going to ride farther, but it had started to sprinkle, and I had my iPod shuffle on my bike, so decided to ride home rather than risk it getting wet.

Before I went out, I was very excited to ride with my new pedals and shoes, to finally clip in to the pedals and use the force and strength of my entire leg, not just my quads. Once I got outside with my bike, Ryan was holding the bike so I could learn how to attach my feet to the pedals. I got the hang of it, but I got really scared, so I didn't ride clipped in today. I still rode with my new shoes, but I just didn't clip in. I mostly used the back side of the pedals. The shoes did kinda clip in, so I got the basic idea. I also tried not to take my feet off the pedals or move my feet at all so I could get used to "being stuck" on the bike that way. I'm afraid of falling. I know it's going to happen at some point, but I don't like getting hurt. To be honest, I'm a baby and a complete wuss when it comes to injuries. I hate blood and I don't want to break anything. So I think that mentally it's going to take me a while to be comfortable with these new pedals, with being "stuck" to my bike while I ride. I'll get there I'm sure, but I'm scared and nervous about it.

On a more positive note, I actually pushed myself today! There was a hill that I'd gone up before, but only once (with Shelly). I was hurting really bad, but I kept thinking about what Shelly told me on another hill when we rode together... take one pedal stroke at a time. Count them in small groups. I did that, and I made it to the top! I was SO proud of myself! Hopefully, next time I'll be able to ride farther, and maybe even clip in for part of the ride. We'll see!