Friday Road Loop with the VV

Usually on Firday's I am spent. No matter how hard I try or what ride I plan, I'm never able to carry through with it because by the end of the week I am spent mentally and physically from work. I usually come home, crash and have a little nap. However, this past week being a short work-week, I must have found some energy in reserve and managed to get out for a ride before being overcome with the temptation of falling asleep on the couch.

With a ride planned with The Vegan Vagabond, I was committed to getting ready and my arse out the door. Little does she know, cause I never told her, that when she came by the house to get going, I was actually laying down on the couch and very close to sticking a note on the door for her to go on without me. What can I say, I am a creature of habit.

After getting changed quickly we were rolling out the door by 3:30 pm. It was nice and warm out, but the wind was howling for the entire ride. Nice on our arses, but slow going into the wind (most of the return trip). Tanya being a slight wee thing is useless to me to draft off of, so I pulled pretty much the entire way. I on the other hand act like a barn door for her. It actually worked out for the both of us cause I wanted to do some tempo and LT interval stuff and she wanted to stay in her zone one - just the right combination for sitting on my wheel.

Our South Ottawa/Manotick tour was quite nice and we stuck to the quieter roads, avoiding as much traffic as we could. During the ride I had been thinking that this could quite possibly be my last ride out this way until next spring with the roads opening in the Gats. The straight stretches and flatter lands are boring to ride in comparison to the hilly and scenic routes across the river into Quebec. However, the flatter roads on the Ottawa side of the river are perfect for training rides when trying to control how long and how intense you stay in your power zones. That's much more difficult in Gatineau Park with it's constant fluctuations in terrain and many hills. So, looks like I'll be out this way lots over the season.

The Vegan Vagabond's take on the ride.