I spent a lot of time on my bike this weekend.  After five and half hours yesterday, I went out and did another four hour, long ride today.  It’s a good job that I really like my bike.

My blog yesterday, was all about the importance of getting used to riding your bike in the rain.  It might rain on race day, so make sure you experience rain, when training for your race.  

Today I had to deal with another challenge on the bike … wind.  Throughout my ride, the average windspeed was 10-20mph, with gusts over 30mph.  In many ways, wind is tougher to deal with than rain.  When the wind is strong, you have to be constantly vigilant, because a quick gust can really impact you on the bike.  This is especially true, when you ride with deep dish race wheels, like I do.

There were several times today, when my bike was literally blown a yard or two to the side.  This is quite nerve racking and even more so, when this occurs at high speed.  Keeping control of the bike, when this happens, is very demanding on the body, particularly the arms and shoulders. It feels like you are wrestling with your bike all the time.

The other thing with wind is that, when it’s a headwind, it can be very demoralizing.  It feels like you are working twice as hard, to go half the speed.  This is where riding in the aero position really helps.  Getting your body out of the wind, makes a huge difference.  Of course, the bike is a lot harder to handle in the aero position, so you have to be prepared to get blown around a little.

Even though my ride was shorter today, in many ways I was more tired than yesterday.  That’s what the wind can do to you.  However, just like riding in the rain, it’s important to get used to riding in the wind. 

Not only was this weekend great for building my strength and endurance on the bike, I also gained invaluable experience in dealing with adverse conditions.  I just don’t want to deal with these conditions on every ride….