I’ve seen a rider on the bike trail a few times who wears a motocross-style helmet. It has a built-in front piece that guards the mouth, jaw and lower face, but it has no windshield, just open air for his nose and eyes. I got to thinking about how he’d be more protected if he did a face plant off his road bike, than other riders with the typical road cycling helmet, which doesn’t protect the face. I’ve always believed helmets should be worn when riding a bike as a way to lower the chances of getting a cracked skull or brain damage in a crash. But this guy’s helmet offers face protection, an extra measure almost no road bike riders have. I have to admit, I wouldn’t want to wear this style of helmet, and would balk if it were ever a legal requirement. It made me rethink my stance on the whole helmet requirement issue. I have supported a bill in California to legally require all cyclists to wear helmets. It’s similar to how the use of seatbelts in a car is already required to keep drivers and passengers in a crash from getting thrown around violently and often fatally.
But now I’m thinking, I wouldn’t want to be required to wear a motocross style helmet on my road bike because it offers more protection. I’m willing to risk a face-plant injury, because a helmet like that would feel bulky and like too much protection.
So hey, like a sleazy politician, I’ve changed my mind. Upon further review, I think it really should be a cyclist’s personal choice, not a legal requirement, of whether or not to wear a helmet. Cycling has its built-in risks, we all know that. But it really should be up to us how much risk protection we want to have on a ride, and whether we wear a helmet or not. So if we do get a skull fracture or a smashed up face because we didn’t wear a helmet, or at least a fully protective one, we can only blame ourselves. ‘Nuf said.
Hey legs, how ya doin’?
Every time I go out on a long ride, it doesn’t take too long for me to know how strongly, or not, I’m going to ride that day. There’s really no predicting how it’s going to go, and it boils down to one thing: How do the legs feel?
No doubt, if they feel strong and fresh, a nicely paced ride is in order.
But if they feel weak and lifeless, well, for me it’s just time to ride for base miles, and forget about pushing the pace.
This past week I had the notion of working on developing a strong cadence to maintain a pace of around 18 mph. I did three 51-mile rides in three days. The first was slowish with a 17 mph average speed, the second ride was really slow with a 15.5 mph average, and the third ride was in the middle – still pretty slow – at 16.1 mph.
All three rides had mushy feeling legs in common. Hate it when that happens! Most times my legs will spring back at some point in a series of rides. They’ll feel galvanized, steely and strong, and it’s not a problem to push the pace. But when they don’t feel strong, pushing the pace might happen for a little while, but then suddenly they're done. They have no reserve power, they’re only good for slower pedaling.
I’ve tried to say “Shut up legs,” a la Jens Voigt, to whip them out of sluggishness. Sometimes that works. But when they're drained of strength, and no amount of cracking the whip keeps them at an up-tempo pace for long.
So for me it’s a welcome bonus on a ride when the legs feel strong and they have plenty of giddy-up. It would happen more often if I rode every day, but I’m already lucky that I can fit two to three long rides in a per week into my schedule.
So probably need to do more leg muscle workouts, right? Yeah, blah blah blah! I figure if my legs are feeling tired on a ride, just by putting miles on them in that state is workout enough. Yep, sounds good to me!
Working a riding schedule
As I write this, it’s 7 a.m. and I just saw four cyclist ride past my window, and one of them said, “Wake up early, get a couple hour ride, go back home and go to work.”
Which was funny, because that’s exactly what I was thinking of a few minutes earlier: What does it take to fit the riding you want to do into your work schedule?
I’m lucky, I’ve got a schedule where I work mostly late afternoons and evenings. That allows me to get a three and a half hour ride in without having to get up too early, which is pretty nice. But it’s not so easy if you have a 9-5 job. Then it means you have to get up crazy early to get in a good ride. And that can be tough. Still, it’s worth it, because even if the day at work is less than great, the overall day will be on the plus side if it started out with a ride. A ride is a great de-stresser, gets the tension out, lets the muscles air out, lets the mind relax. What better way to start work, physically and mentally refreshed?
I just had a day where I had to go to work in the early evening at about 5 o’clock. I had done rides the previous two days and so I had to ask myself if doing a third ride would just make me over-tired for work. But when the time came to either get ready to do a ride, or let it pass, I found myself doing my pre-ride routine of getting snacks and water to take along, pointing the bike at the front door in the living room, and putting on sunscreen. I did the ride, enjoyed it, came home and eventually went to work. And later, I was glad I rode my bike.
In fact, I can’t think of one time – well maybe when I’ve crashed, hit a squirrel, or gotten caught in pounding rain or hail – that I wished I hadn’t gone on a ride. But almost without fail, at the end of the ride, I’m very glad I went. You know that great post ride feeling, right? You're grounded, peaceful, and ready to handle any upcoming challenges. Can’t be beat.
Til next time, remember to strap on a helmet every time you get on the bike. Then, keep the rubber side down, ride safely, and don’t forget to have a blast.
-- Mark Eric Larson
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