Sunday, August 9, 2009

Map My Ride

Due to the majority of my cycling group being out of town for the Sylvania Triathlon today, I was on my own for my long ride this weekend. I opted to try a new website to help me figure out a route that I could ride that would be at least 40-50 miles. Very cool site: http://www.mapmyride.com/ I was able to get a very nice route put together that gave me about 45 miles.


Unfotunately, I didn't check the weather prior to mapping my ride. It was hot, humid, and windy today. Although I didn't have an actual stat, I would have to guess there were 15-20mph winds with wind gusts greater than that. There were no relaxed flags today. At least this is what it felt like for most of my ride! And, unfortunately the route I chose only gave me tailwinds for what felt like 5 miles of a 45 mile ride. Needless to say, it was a very slow ride and I was whipped at the end. I am pretty sure I thought/said "this is ridiculous" and "why is there all this f***ing wind?"" at least a dozen times on my ride. In fact, my mantra by the end of the ride was "I hate wind." So, I try to tell myself that the wind will only make me stronger, help me train better, blah, blah, blah - I still hate it! I really hope that I don't have alot of headwind on either my Pelotonia ride or the Ironman . . .



As a reward to myself for doing this ride, I decided to try a new recipe inspired by the very large melon that my boyfriend has in the fridge. The recipe comes form a cookbook called Local Flavors by Deborah Madison.


Melon Salad with Thai Basil
1 large shallot, finely diced
juice and zest of 2 limes
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup cilantro leaves
1/3 cup thai basil
1/4 cup mint leaves
1 jalapeno chile, finely diced
1 tsp. minced ginger
1 small garlic clove, minced
1 TBS nut or olive oil
1 1/2 to 2 pounds melon, chilled
1 bunch arugula or watercrest



1. Put the shallot in a bowl with lime juice, zest, and 1/4 tsp. salt. Finely chop the herbs and add them to the bowl along with the chile, ginger, garlic, and oil. Stir and taste for salt.
2. Halve the melon, remove the seeds, and cut into wedges. Slice off the skins, then cut the melon into bite-sized pieces.
3. Pour the dressing over the melon and toss well. Season with pepper. Arrange the greens on small plates and spoon the melon into the center. If the melons are extra-sweet, add an extra lime wedge to each plate.




Stats for the rest of my week:
Wed: 60 min easy run
Thursday: 60 minute easy bike
Friday: 1:45 minutes on treadmill run (out of town for CEU)
Saturday: rest
Sunday: 45 mile bike (2:52) in the wind





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