“Down to try tomorrow am for indoor ride?”
The cold-weather setup was ready.
I had spent the previous week moving bikes and trainers around, comparing what should stay in New York and what should go upstate. One room in the apartment was no longer going to operate as much of a bedroom. I had a simpler use for it: workout zone.
That required some editing.
The Pinarello had been sitting on an older trainer. A gravel bike stood in front of it. There were dumbbells on the floor, towels draped over saddles, shoes on the windowsill, and exactly enough open space to pretend the room was organized.
Then a new KICKR arrived.
I took a quick set of before-and-after photos. The older trainer and triathlon bike were headed upstate. In their place, I mounted the black road bike on the KICKR for the indoor season. The gravel commuter stayed beside it for fall rides outside.
The timing was useful. A few days earlier, I had started riding with a new workout buddy and was excited to establish a consistent cadence. The plan was three virtual rides a week at six in the morning. That sounds very disciplined when written down. In practice, the first attempts included setup trouble, a postponed session, and another message asking whether we wanted to try again before work.
This was part of why I liked indoor training. There was no train to catch, no weather negotiation, and no long trip out of the city before the ride even began. The bike was already clipped in. Get up, connect, pedal, shower, work.
By Friday I had managed the early ride. I did not make it into the office until later in the afternoon, but the ride happened.
The apartment still had too many bikes. At least one of them now had a permanent job when the temperature dropped.