Week 26

Date
June 27, 2015

Distance
111 miles

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Week 26

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Weather

Ride Report 
We had record-breaking heat in Reno on Saturday and I celebrated with a modified version of the LeMond loop. I rode both sides of Mt. Rose, then 342 and Six Mile Canyon. The day started out well and I rode a decent pace up the east side of Mt. Rose, but the west side was a different story. I don't know what it is about the west side of Mt. Rose, but it's probably my least favorite climb in the area. It should be a favorite. Its numbers aren't particularly impressive (7.5 miles at 6%), it has a nice bike lane for the entire climb, and there's often a tailwind. The problem is that I never seem to ride it with fresh legs. I have either just climbed the east side of Mt. Rose or I'm towards the end of a long ride and heading back home. There are a lot of long, straight sections that seem to take forever when I'm going so slow. I didn't have many miles in my legs by the time I rode the west side of Mt. Rose today, but the east side of Mt. Rose has its way of sucking the energy out of your legs and I did a slow ascent.

The rest of the ride was pretty easy until I hit 342. I was ready for a super hot ride into Virginia City, but a storm rolled in and things cooled off considerably. My timing was perfect. There were a few sprinkles by the time I hit Gold Hill, but nothing major. Things looked clearer to the east, so I did a descent down Six Mile Canyon and rode straight back up. By the time I made it back to Virginia City the roads were completely dry but the temperatures were still cool. Somehow I managed to have perfect timing.

Looking south from 341

I'll have a 3-day weekend coming up thanks to the 4th of July. I haven't decided what I want to do yet, but hopefully it will be something big.

Week 25

Date
June 20, 2015

Distance
132 miles

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Week 25

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Weather

Ride Report 
I did the east side of Lake Tahoe plus Luther Pass, then an easy 50 miles or so back home. Luther Pass just got brand new pavement on the south side, so that descent was silky smooth.

During the summer it helps to know where you can get water. I'll share a few that I use on this route. Preston Field is a convenient stop right near the bottom of Mt. Rose. There are some outdoor water fountains right next to the bathrooms, or you can just go in the bathroom to fill your bottles. I've had good luck with the bathrooms there during the summer. They always seem to be open when I stop.

Kahle Park is another good place that is right near the bottom of the west side of Kingsbury. There are bathrooms right here that have water fountains outside and running water inside.

(I haven't had good luck at the park in Genoa lately. The bathrooms were closed this winter, but I don't remember them being closed last winter. I've seen them open this summer, but I was out there Sunday morning and they were closed for some reason. The water fountains were on, though, so you can at least fill up your bottles.)

I'm cheap, so I prefer public places with free water when I can get it. When that's not possible, Save Mart is the next best thing. They have these machines where you can get 12-ounce drinks for 35 cents. That's a pretty good deal and you don't even have to go inside and worry about locking up your bike.

Save Mart

I'm loving summer so far. Get out there and enjoy it.

Week 24

Date
June 13, 2015

Distance
111 miles

Strava Link
Week 24

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Weather

Ride Report 
This is a great route with a little bit of everything. There's the long climb to Mt. Rose, the scenic views of Lake Tahoe, then some desert riding and the short but steep climb to Virginia City via Gold Hill.

The light at the end of the tunnel

It's starting to feel like summer out there. Temperatures were in the 90s and there were big crowds out at the lake. I haven't done much riding in the heat yet this year, so today was a bit of a shock to the system and I was out of gas by the time I hit Gold Hill. 342 is never easy. I hit it again the next day on a 4-hour ride and felt better.

Week 23

Date
June 6, 2015

Distance
100 miles

Strava Link
Week 23

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Weather

Ride Report 
After the 10-day block of training I took it easy for a while. This was my first long ride since then. My main goal for June is to pick up my climbing again, and this ride was a nice start. I did Geiger plus Six Mile Canyon x2 and 342 x2.

342 is back open

342 is back open after being closed for a while due to damage done during a recent rain storm. I'm glad to have it back. It's a tough short climb- one section of 1.7 miles at 9% with a killer finishing portion of 0.5 miles at 11%. On top of that, 341 (the truck route) has a lot less traffic now that 342 is back open.

I did Mt. Rose (east side) and Martis Peak the next day to continue the climbing training. My legs were toast after Martis Peak, so it was a successful weekend.