Doing it the hard way….Or, The Great Debate
As Pam and I pedaled out Sunshine Street toward Turners Station this morning, I decided almost on a whim to get out of the rut we were stuck in and ride the route backwards. I know…that involves a complete change to a comfortable routine, and as we talked about it later we decided this was only the second time we’ve ever ridden it in that direction on the tandem.
The question we started debating was whether it was a harder ride to do “frontwards” as we normally ride it or backwards as we were doing today. Granted, it will cover the same roads, turn around at the same point, and end where it started, but it seems like there are some longer sustained climbs when you do it backwards. For example, the climb up the back side of Turners toward Four-Corners is about 1.25 miles long, followed by another pretty long climb while the front side of the Turners hill is steeper for a shorter distance.
I personally think it is harder going backwards, and Pam was undecided. She remembered the first time we did it as being harder but thought today was easier. We finally decided that it was objective, and the best measure would be to check our average speed when we got home. The verdict….16.7 mph. That’s exactly what we’ve been riding this route at for the past four mornings we rode. I guess it really is a wash!
As I pulled up to the stop light at Chestnut and Fremont on the way to work I could hear the Central Kilties Drum and Bugle Corp practicing. For some reason, I’ve always enjoyed the sounds of a drum and bugle corp, and the Kilties are the oldest in Springfield. My aunt was one years ago, and more recently, my neice was a Kiltie! I’m always impressed that these high school kids are so faithful to get to 6:00 am practices all summer.
The Kilties
In all, it was a good morning for a ride. You know what, though. That’s always my opinion!
On the way home tonight, I spent way too much time sitting at the light at Bennett and Glenstone. While I was waiting, I amused myself by watching the sunglass guy desperately trying to make a sale!
Working hard for a sale!
God bless…
TW
Explore posts in the same categories: bicycle, Bike Commute, Cycling, Fitness, tandemTags: bicycle, Bike Commute, Central Kilties, Fitness, tandem, Turners Station
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June 26, 2009 at 12:09 pm
http://www.tulsaworld.com/opinion/article.aspx?subjectid=65&articleid=20090626_65_A13_OnTues640266
You did wait for the light, good job.
I thought you would find the Tulsa World letter of interest
There has been a lot news about the 2 cyclist that were killed while we were Free Wheel. The comments are the best
June 26, 2009 at 12:25 pm
Jerry, Good to hear from you. I’ve been seeing some stuff about that tragedy, and knew it was generating that kind of “buzz”.