Crow and Balance

With the weather being reasonable, I went out for a spin to Lennoxtown, to do a couple of reps up the Crow. Thanks to the location of my flat I get a great view out towards the west and I could see a stonkingly thick dark cloud gliding over this way, but I figured a) you can't choose race day weather, b) it looked to be a narrow band which would pass over quickly and c) man up or you'll lie around reading on the sofa all day. Since I was starting out in the sun, I jumped out with a base t & a cycling top. I couldn't find one of my arm warmers, so I just popped it in my back pocket rather than put it round my wrist

My route from the flat takes me through Bishopbriggs and rather miraculously most of the traffic lights were in my favour, allowing me to shoot through without having to shed speed often. From there it was a drop down into Torrance and then through, out and on towards Lennoxtown. At one point there's a hard right up a hill, with a farm house on the corner, and it was around about here that the dark cloud caught up with me. Starting off light, it quickly turned heavy and cold, verging on hail. Rather than stopping to put on my jacket, I decided to test my theory on the size of the cloud & just keep going. Mercifully, I was right. By the time I turned off onto the Crow it had stopped, so the jacket remained in it pouch and I trusted to the work I'd need to put in up the hill to burn away the chill from the rain.

Being the second time in a week to go up here, it definitely felt easier; I knew what to expect & I knew I could do it, so it wasn't daunting in the slightest, but there were sheep flaked out on the road and rivers of rain water running off the hill, so it was a little different.

Head down I spun my way up, trying my best to focus on maintaining a good, high cadence, and to use the full turn of the pedal to my advantage. I managed to keep a reasonable speed up (for me) and on a few bits managed to even pop up a gear or two. I took it all the way up past the car park to the top by the burn, before turning round and descending.

With the water all over the road, I never felt comfortable really opening up, and indeed someone coming up the hill gave me a warning about the water on the road, so I played it safe & stayed below 60km/hr. While I'd planned on doing a couple of reps, I managed to talk myself out of it on the way up the hill, as things just felt a bit of a struggle towards the top. On my downhill I passed a couple of folk going back up for another rep themselves, so I managed to talk myself back into going up with a promise of it only being as far as the car park and that I could have a wee sit down and a breather. Turning round just past the golf course, I started back up, internally telling the wuss me to just shut up and be quiet as this was happening regardless, getting myself up to the car park in about the same time as the last rep. Bonus.

Coming back down the hill, my mind started to think about the road home, and I decided that I wasn't ready for that quite just yet, so would extend the route out to Kirkintilloch & drop in on a couple of mates. Sometimes training makes it more difficult to get out and see mates outside of triathlon, other days it makes it easier, and I have to remember to use those opportunities when they arise, because its important to have that balance in life; the chance to have a blether and a catch up, to read stories to a toddler and become the human climbing frame and the horse, to remember that life can be simple and fun. I left their house with a bigger grin than when I entered and a strength in my legs to get me home in double quick time.