Best foot forward

So this past weekend had some great rides with some great peeps.

Saturday, Miguel Jose Luis Hannandez (aka Michael Hanna) & Roger Phillips and I all headed up Deer Creek Canyon, then up North Turkey Creek Canyon Road to Evergreen. I haven't ridden this route in a VERY long time, and was looking forward to it all week. I forgot about the 13% pitches in scattered throughout the climb, as well as the nice quiet barely traveled road up to Hwy 74. We started at around 7am to beat the heat, and, by the time it was all said and done, I'd consumed 7 32oz bottles. Good for me! I was still dehydrated though. I took the Garmin along to practice using it. YOu can see our ride detail here, These guys absolutely throttled the climb and killed me. They are very very fast, but also some of the nicest guys around!

After the ride, I was eager to get over to PPC, to have some new pedals installed and also pick up a new pair of cycling shoes. I've been riding the Specialized Pro Carbon Road shoes for about 3 years now, and was looking for a change. I've typically bought them in a 44, but, they always were big. I was told, when first getting into cycling, that it's better to have a bit of room in there to avoid blisters. While I never got blisters, I did get some badly bruised toes after interval sessions as well as just a pair of shoes that plain old didn't fit. This time around, I was going to do it right. Jason suggested Shimano's R220, which is a semi-customized molded fit shoe, in a size 43. I jumped at the chance without hesitation because not only did the shoes LOOK super fly, but, Shimano has a reputation for making some pretty awesome stuff (don't worry, I'm still loyal to Campy!), and many people love their shoes. So, what the hell. After the custom molding/fit process, I could already feel these shoes were 30x more comfy than the specialized. Plus, for once, THEY FIT! Moreso, even fit like a glove. Next step was getting the Speedplay pedals installed, and the cleats mounted. The pedals are super dope being titanium and white, so they look great with the rest of the kit on the bike. The cleat positioning was far more involved than the shimano style cleats I'm used to, simply because of their lack of flexibilty of positioning. I never realized really how limited they are in their setup. Jason installed the Speedplay cleats and was able to dial the float down to where not only I wanted, but NEEDED to be. He was very detail oriented and really took the time to assess my position relative to the injuries I've suffered with my damn back. Needless to say, I walked outta there with a smile on my face, looking forward to putting these suckers to the test with a good ride on Sunday.

I hooked up with Jordo, and Miguel Hannandez again for a trot out to Golden. As soon as I stepped down on these pedals, I immediately felt a difference. It's one thing to "test ride" something on a trainer, or in a parking lot, but, when you're kitted up heading out for a group ride, it's like your body knows and is far more critical of everything. This time around my body was feeling very keen on these new pedals, and the position was really starting to work my left glute medial/minimus muscle which is critical to a good rehab...I have to strengthen that area. As we rolled out to Golden, the usual smack talk was flying, and the temperature was creeping up into the triple digits faster than it did the day before. We all knew it was going to be a shorter day on the bike for safety reasons...heat stroke/exhaustion SUCKS! So, we attacked each other here and there, and, the whole while, I felt like I was "one" with the bike through the connection at my feet. The pedals & shoes felt amazing, and I had very little discomfort with any of it. Eventually when the road went up, Jordan & Michael just opened up a can, and I could NOT hold there wheels...very rarely can I going uphill...so rare that it's never! I proceeded to get ahead of them after a breif pause in the riding, and put out some good numbers for me these days. I held about 300W for 12 minutes climbing. Sure, not very long, but, it was my 10 min max for quite some time. The shoes were noticeably stiffer than the specialized by a LONG shot, and the power transfer to the bike was significantly more noticeable. I was VERY satisfied with my purchase!!

I highly recommend the R220's and a pair a of speedplay pedals. Go to PPC and purchase them both, then, let Jason's mastery at positioning set you straight...