New position!

Yeah. My new position looks just like that.

But, you know, not.

I've been feeling too stretched out on my bike lately, so I stopped at Sprocket's after my ride today (more on that later) and had Steve look at my positioning. Turns out I had it all wrong. I am now the proud owner of a 100mm stem instead of my old 110 and I moved my saddle up about a centimeter. Oh, and I moved my seat up a tiny bit. I only rode about two miles on it, but I feel a lot more comfortable, especially in the drops. I used to feel pretty bunched up, but now I'm a lot better. Hopefully power transfer will be better, too.

About the ride today - It was COLD. Really, really cold. And windier than hell. I knew I was riding with a good wind on the way down because I exhausted my 12t cassette no problem on an interval, but I was completely unprepared for what I encountered on the way back up. It was an unrelenting gale of bitter cold. Eventually, I decided to cut my losses and take inland streets back up north. It was like a 45-minute set of intervals. It was waaay more fun than gritting my teeth and putting up with the wind.

Taking tomorrow off from riding on account of my predicted major hangover. Look for more on Monday afternoon, when I might be able to function again. I love Chicago.

Ah.

Before we get into today's post, kids, let's talk about those shoes. Bettini complained to Sidi that the walk to the podium was too slippery in his custom-made cleats. So they grafted on a sole from one of their motorcycle boots so he could have podium shoes. How ridiculous is that.

Great ride today. I woke up nice and early to meet Bryan, who came over because I inadvertently stole his quick release after our trainer ride. He brought Jack, who was very serious the whole time. Dour, even. Still, that kid is hilarious. And HUGE! He's a bruiser. Gonna be a sprinter or a crit specialist once that new helmet comes in. Maybe a Classics rider.

Anyway, the ride. I don't have legwarmers since that unfortunate Southwest debacle, so I had to go out in kneewarmers and just coat my shins with Elite warming embrocation. God that stuff is just fantastic. I don't even know how cold it was outside, but I do know I had a base layer, a jersey, and a PI jacket on my top half, with two pairs of gloves. Then I had exposed shins, and they were perfectly warm. Good stuff.

Two weird things happened on this ride. One, I was hassled my a jerkoff in a big truck. Now this, in itself, is far from unusual. In fact, I would be amazed if it didn't happen on a two hour solo ride. What sets this encounter apart is the fact that after this guy leaned out his window and yelled "Pussy!" at me (which was strange, seeing as he was riding along in a truck and I was out climbing a godawful hill with exposed skin), he drove past and I saw the stickers on the back of the truck. The rear window was dominated my a huge cross, with illustrated beams on light emanating from it. Then there was the "What Would Jesus Do?" bumper sticker.

So there you have it, kids. Apparently Jesus hates cyclists.

The other weird thing that happened - on the way home, I was catcalled by what I could only call a gaggle of high school girls. They drove up beside me in their little Chevy Malibu and said all sorts of obscene things. I felt a little violated, but mostly confused. Here I am, sweaty, dirty, and looking like hell, wearing crappy shorts that sag in the back like a diaper, and they catcalled me. It was weird, man.

I can't wait 'til it's warm again

From WGN Chicago:
... Wind Chill Advisory Wednesday night and Thursday morning... The wind will be 12 to 18 mph which will give wind chills of 15 to
24 below zero by sunrise.

This cold snap is getting tiresome. I can't ride, but that's no surprise this time of year. The real problem is that I have to put on five layers just to walk to class, then take 'em all off once I get to my classroom. It's getting old. Can't we just have some of the 40 degree weekends Bryan keeps talking about?