Rainy Day Ramblings

Well, the rain is finally coming. As much of a dampener as it is on outdoor activities, the ground really needs a bit of the stuff. I was planning to ride tonight as an extra outing to get me a leg up or two between Monday rides, but it ain't gonna happen. I will probably accompany my wife and her friend to the local pathway and put in a good run. I did this last Tuesday with them and logged in 8.5 miles. I did have a little sprint at the end of it... There I was, a half mile from finishing and I hear pounding feet and some crazy gasping of breath. I assume someone was using me as a rabbit and chasing me down... I checked my breathing and it was slow and steady. I gave a glance back to see who was approaching and turned on the jets. The guy was about 15 feet behind me and panting like there was no tomorrow. After a little bit the pavement slaps and desperate breathing disappeared and I let up a little. But in no time, the pounding and the panting returned... and I turned on the jets. I felt surprisingly comfortable at full stride since I haven't done this speed for most of the year. I've been focusing on distance and endurance, so it is good to know I can still turn on the jets when I need them... even after 8 miles. Anyway, I reached the bench about 40 feet in front of the other guy. When he passed, he gave a "good job", under his breath. I returned a, "You too!" with a nod.

I picked up some HEED the other day to try out. I can compare it to the eLoad I currently am chugging through. The worse part is that I picked it up at the local shop and paid $3 more than direct from Hammer Nutrition and probably $6 more than if I used the affiliate 15% discount thingie from a guy on the MMBA forums. Hmmph!

I am also contemplating what to do about my cyclocomputers. With the recent bar change, I could not use my current computer... without resorting to some half-baked solution. So I started to do some research on them. The computer I had on the bike was a Cateye and did it's job admirably without fault nor failure. So I made sure I kept Cateye in the forefront of my digging. I also looked into VDO's offerings since they are a well respected instruments company out of Germany. While their wired units do well, I was interested in trying their wireless unit. I found it on sale but upon further review, it fell way short on the reliability scale, scoring only a 1.83/5. So off the list it went. I was also pointed into the direction of Sigma. Also a German company but dealing more in concise consumer-sports related products. They also offered a wireless solution; the 1606L DST with Cadence.

Mention of Garmin GPS systems was also considered, but like the thinking I went through several months ago with GPS devices... it would be used a few times and then sit on a shelf for an even longer period of time; much like my Polar heart rate monitor (HRM). From Cateye, they have 2 possible contenders. The Cateye Micro Wireless with similar, yet lower features than the Sigma and the Cateye Strada Wireless.

The Strada amazed me as I got to take a look at them at the LBS the other day. Amazingly small. Very simple to use. So to make a long story shorter, I am down to either the Strada or the 1606. The Strada from the LBS is $55 with no capability of cadence. The Sigma I found for $60 at BlueSkyCycling on the web... but then had JensonUSA price match them so I could still take advantage of affiliate linking (a good thing for this site). I would include the Micro as well, but I do not necessarily care for the aesthetics of the unit. Functionally, it would be second tier to the Sigma. Sooo... the Sigma is functionally superior to the Strada but the Strada is a tiny little marvel. Both give me basic functions and can accommodate multiple mounts. The coding used for the Sigma may throw it for a loop since I swap the computer on up to 4 different bikes and they only allot for 2 mounts. I would assume if I use a #1 mount on the road and #2 mounts on my 3 MTBs, I would be OK. I guess until I get another cyclocross bike... or a 29er. Yeeesh.

Well, that's enough rambling for now, huh? I'll get mentally ready for another long run tonight. Ugh.