Nerd Alert

When was the last time I talked about training? I reckon never. Or else maybe back in the original TUSB days when I was a hardened (...foolish) New Englander not yet softened up by the lush Tuscan countryside. Times have changed, so let's nerd up to the table and chat training.A picture is worth a thousand words, right? As it turns out, similarly, so is a click on the "picture" below thanks to the fine folks at STRAVA.Jumping to Recap'ville, t'was a big day today. Actually, it started last night when I received a call from one of my sports directors telling me that I'm going to meet my teammate Sabbatini in a nearby town and then rendezvous with a team trainer for an LT climbing test. In my best Italian (wisely, as opposed to my worst Italian), I proceeded to explain that I haven't ridden my bike hard since the Giro di Sardegna and that I was a bit wary about doing an uphill LT test.However, with no knee pain in over a week and with ever increasing hours and effort on the bike throughout this week, I was okay with the possibility of going hard. No time like the present, right? Ready, set, rock and roll.So it wasn't a full test to maximum exertion, just increasing power each time up the short'ish test climb... up to 430 watts. Yup, that's 4.333-repeating standardish lightbulbs.Let's cut to the chase: NO KNEE PAIN! I would by no means say I'm 100% back, but actions speak louder than words, so to hear from my therapists that "things are progressing nicely with your knee, Edward" pales in comparison to having no knee pain on the bike for 4 hours with a handful of climbs.I am one happy camper. Again, thanks for all your patience, concern, and continued support. Yeaa bikes.