Spousal Support

The great thing about living in Vermont  is that we have natural beauty all around us. You don’t have to run a five minute mile or be a cat 3 racer  to get out and enjoy what is around you. The great thing about this area is there is lot of diversity for outdoor activity. From hiking, cycling, running, or fishing.

My wife has been running for some time now and though she loves it she often tells me how hard it is. Every summer we watch the Tour de France and she “admires” how fast Mark Cavendish is. She has always tossed around the idea of getting a bike and last spring she purchased a road bike only to discover what suffering is all about. Even though our rides were not that long, she realized that hills and head winds can really suck. “How do those cyclists ride a 100-plus miles everyday?” she would often say.

This winter she was able to experience the boredom of the fluid trainer while she watched me fumble around on my newly purchased rollers. We would watch the movie Chasing Legends documenting a season of Team Columbia during The Tour de France (featuring Cav). During the sprint sections of the movie we both noticed how much faster we were pedaling as we gazed into each others eyes. I told her that when you she gets really good I will be her feed zone B–(person). She just laughed.

We’ve been out a couple of times this spring and the improvements Renée has made are awesome! Last spring the longest we rode was around 12 miles. Today we did a pretty hilly 20 miler, although she did do a lot cursing on the climbs telling me how mean I was! She also started drafting off me which was pretty cool.

In the beginning a road bike can a totally different feeling to get used to. Your on super skinny tires, cars are passing you, and the descents can be fast and scary at first. It can also be an intimidating sport to get into with all the different bikes, components, and price points. Don’t let that stop you, Vermont is too beautiful to not tour on a bike!

I told Renée that by the end of the summer we would do a century, she looked at me funny. “Fifty?” I said. “Maybe …” she replied. Little does she know that I am secretly molding her to became a racer. In the next couple months I’m going to secretly introduce her to intervals and hill repeats.

See you in the feed zone!

—Greg