Riding Again

Finally...finally...got back out on the bike again this morning. I hadn't been on the road since Tuesday Worlds and now I was going to do a long ride of 60+ miles. I needed it, I don't think I'd done a ride of longer than 50 miles in the last 4-5 weeks and that's pathetic if you ask me. Plus taking time off after busting my foot at the duathlon really dropped my endurance levels and it showed.

I rode from the house (which gives about 10-12 extra miles to my ride) and arrived at the church parking lot in time for the Saturday morning start. Our group was heading to Keatchie where some of the stronger riders were going to do the Deadwood Loop for a nearly 100 mile ride while others were doing the Four Forks Loop to get around 62 miles. I intended to do the Four Forks but I knew I wouldn't be in the main group the whole time. I wasn't disappointed...I finally got dropped about 25 miles into the ride when I made a chase after Jason and dragged the whole peloton with me. That took a lot out of me and when we climbed the hill soon after, I wasn't able to hang on. I rode the rest of the way to Keatchie on my own, stopped at the intersection there for a moment where John rode up to me. He had been dropped just a bit before I was. So the rest of the way we rode together but didn't talk much...he had his iPod plugged into both ears which I'm not too wild about. If you're going to ride with music, put an earbud in your right ear but leave the left ear open so you can hear traffic and other riders. Or when your gears aren't lined up right and making noise!

After passing the Keithville elementary school we wre held up by a flagman at a road construction site and we were joined by The Wife, Jonnene, and some of the local bike club members who had been traveling a shorter route but coming back the same way we were. After we got past the construction John, Jonenne, and I left everyone else and booked it back in. I turned to ride back to the house while she turned to go to the car at the church. I ended up with 72 miles all told with an even 20 mph average after a high of about 24 mph in the first third of the ride. Yeah, I kinda slowed down a bit after I got dropped by the pack! After a bit of rest at the homestead, the two of us went out to spend money at Home Depot and Lowe's, do some grocery shopping, and pick up a few things around town.

Tomorrow we're riding again, doing hill repeats up at Rocky Mount, and then I have to meet some of the Centenary kids for a ride in the afternoon. When I get back home, I'm going to lay on the couch and sleep for a while!!