Days like today make everyone want to shake their fists at the weather gods of Scotland, to put it mildly. 6-7ºC/42-44ºF, the second full day of rain (driving at times), and 15-20 mph winds. We literally had these exact conditions in February. Even January. And December. In fact, for the most part that was the average weather for the whole winter. But after a long riding-free exam diet, I'm looking to boost mileage as much as possible before my racing season starts in the summer, which destined me to get in the saddle as miserable as it was. With this type of weather its difficult, nigh on impossible to get the legs warmed up, despite starting out with the wind at my back. I turned to head up to Martyr Road (opposite the Strath High Road on the other side of the Low Road) and made my way to the Mossmuur where I was greeted by a large truck doing some form of cleaning, and taking up the entire road. I was forced to unclilp as we squeezed past each other, taking away every last ounce of crucial momentum for the nasty wall in front of me. The first section of the climb had me pushing straight into the wind as I was trying to get back up to speed, luckily as the climb really picks up it also turns, giving me a solid tailwind. There's no other way for me to get up the final section of the Mossmuur except to grind, and grind away I did. Turning back towards St Andrews meant more headwinds; throwing in the rain and cold made it feel like thousands of needles were pricking my face as the rain had picked up and was lashing away at my body. Thankfully I ducked into a forested area for a little respite before finally rolling home.
No comments:
Post a Comment