90 days to ALC, zomg

_posts/2019-03-04-ninety-to-seven.md

@@ -0,0 +1,48 @@
+---
+layout: post
+title: "90 days until the starting line for AIDS/LifeCycle"
+tags:
+- alc
+---
+
+There are **90 days** until the beginning of the week-long
+[AIDS/LifeCycle](https://www.aidslifecycle.org/),
+the 545 mile ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles to raise critically needed
+funds for HIV/AIDS-related services. For me, this means just under three more
+months to meet my **[fundraising goal](http://tofighthiv.org/goto/rtyler)**.
+Not only that, this means my fellow riders and I have a shockingly small number
+of weekends to get our training in order!
+
+Most of my training in February was inside on the
+[Peloton](/2019/01/13/peloton-worth-the-hype.html), around 180 "miles" but more
+importantly _manymany_ hours riding on the bike. My activity hasn't simply been
+limited to cycling however, as cross-training is very important. I have been
+doing a fair bit of strength and flexibility training alongside the bike. Over
+the past 60+ days there has been at least one form of physical activity every
+single day.
+
+
+We were fortunate to have some sunshine in February which allowed me to join
+some of my [team
+mates](http://www.tofighthiv.org/site/TR/Events/AIDSLifeCycleCenter?pg=team&fr_id=2110&team_id=19101)
+for a training ride in the East Bay. The 25-mile training ride was frigid but
+an important milestone: getting out on the bike with other real people in the
+real world. The whole experience was quite enjoyable and informative. I learned
+that my comfortable speed, likely due to my height, puts me in the front 25% or
+so. Not quite in the front or the middle of the pack, I spent most of the ride
+on my own, huffing and puffing up the hills north of Orinda.
+
+![ALCaholics in Orinda](/images/post-images/alc/alc-training-orinda.jpg)
+
+Since it was a social ride, there were a couple stops including a rather long
+stop-over at Peet's. After which my legs started locking up and became far more
+sore than they otherwise should have. I'm in good shape to keep pedaling for a
+couple of hours, but cooling down and staying warm for a mid-ride break I will
+need to work on.
+
+
+With the rain and the fog hanging low over Sonoma county this morning, it's
+difficult for me to imagine that it's only three months until I see much of
+California at a comfortable 20mph. If the training ride was any indication, it
+will be a challenging but fun week with some really great people from all
+around California.