Whew Part 2: It’s All Good

I’ve been training since the scariest moment of 2011 struck last weekend and everything is okay. Although riding the trainer isn’t the most fun thing in the world, I enjoy it because I know I’m getting faster each time I hobble off that stationary thing.

Whew, That Was a Close One

I scared the shit out of myself today.

Randy and I decided to ride up to Niwot this morning so I met up with him and his neighbor around 9:15. About an hour into the ride, the bottom of my right knee cap started shooting pain in all directions. The sharp pain surprised me because: 1. I haven’t felt any knee pain at all since the team training camp in March when I finally blew my knee completely out. And 2: The pain was in a different spot than before. Before it was above my knee cap, directly in the center. This time it was below my knee cap in the center. I was confused. I kept on pedaling, putting more force into my left pedal than my right. I thought maybe it was because I haven’t ridden much in the last 6 weeks. I thought maybe I hadn’t placed my cleats correctly since I got my new pedals. Whatever it was, the pain lasted 3 to 5 minutes then subsided.

Another hour went by and the pain came back. Shit. What the hell is going on here? Same place, but this time the pain was more intense. I had to grit my teeth to get through the second bout. After a few minutes it left. Finally, at about the time we were back at Randy’s house, it started back up again. But this time it was so intense that I couldn’t keep it to myself anymore. I told Randy what was going on and he offered me a ride home. I said that I’d try to get through it once again. Besides, I was only a few miles from my house. Randy’s neighbor Don said that I should check my seat height since it sounded like that might be the problem. Hmmmm… Well, my seat height is exactly the same, but I did get new pedals. Granted, I went from the Ultegra 6700’s to the carbon Ultegra’s so I wasn’t thinking they’d have a different stack height. I thought about this possibility as I approached the final hill. My knee was throbbing with pain as I attempted to start the climb. Ouch. This was way too much pain. I went about 4 feet and had to get off my bike. I pulled over to the side of the road and sat down. I contemplated calling Randy up and getting that ride home. I sat there for awhile really freaking scared. I was thinking about losing another whole season to a knee injury. I’m not sure I could do that again. After 5 minutes of scaring myself, I got back up and back on my bike. I tried to pedal again but it was still too much. I went a few feet and had to get off. This time, I reached into my back pocket and remembered that I had my allen key with me! I figured, why not give the whole seat height thing a try. I remembered the rule of thumb: if your knee hurts in front, the seat is too low. If the knee hurts behind, then it’s too high. So I pulled my seat up about 2mm. And what do you know? NO PAIN. Problem solved. Yeah, it was a little sore from all the stress I put it through over the last 4 hours, but it was indeed a world of difference.

Whew, that was a close one.

Penn on Point

Couldn’t have said it better myself.

Stupid Hobbes

Circular Hobbesian irrationality.

Hobbes, you suck.

It’s a shame so many people buy into this nonsense to this day.