no, NECX HOTM club...
Got October's in yesterday. Solo. Non-stop.
Looking at the weather it was kind of like the last day of decent weather when I had a full day mid-day w/o any obligations. One of those, shit get it done, kind of opportunities.
Plus side: it was sunny. Down side? It was cold and windy.
So i overdressed, except for my shoes. It worked out.
I packed one bottle of coffee, one bottle of water. Probably should have carried a third bottle with water. Half way through the last lap I started eye-balling houses, and garden hoses and wondering where i could get more water. I was also tired.
It started just fine, and due to the wind direction I wanted to take advantage of it on the longest straight stretches, so I wiggled up to Pine and Tremont via the flattest and most protected route I could find and then just hung out on Tremont until i got to Williams and then took that all the way in. I deliberately left the old fashioned bike computer thing displaying current speed and avg speed. Goal was to get this thing done in around 6 hrs. Yes I know. OMG it took you 6 hours to ride a century?
Have you actually ridden this bike? It is slow. Also it is vertically still and laterally still and long and i'm in CX position. AkA WAY UP IN THE AIR. Oh. And it is heavy, hmm maybe that's why it sucked at Fruitlands? BLAME THE BIKE! No. just kidding.
6 hr mark is just kind of that mystical magic number people throw out. Riding 6 hrs or more does great things, it fatigues most of the main muscles and requires you to recruit others and builds overall strength and neuro coordination.
Or something.
Usually my Hundo's involve a stop somewhere. Either to refill bottles, get coffee, talk to friends at turn around point, eat lunch. Something. This? This was pure non-stop pedaling.
I didn't have a clue how long the lap was, just hoped it was going to be close to 50 by the time i got back to Davis just north of 195/Rt 6. And it was. Downside, just a touch over 7 miles back to the house. Gonna be close (based on bike computer which was only programmed using a pre-set, not actually calibrated).
Got to Pond, ate my second omelet pocket (first one consumed just before leaving). And kept pedaling. Was a good handful of tenths over 17mph avg at the end of the first loop, but the wind picked up and that stretch back to Tremont was a struggle. Avg speed dropped down to about 16 or so over the next lap. Made it back home and only had a handful of tenths to go so I rode over to the beer store, picked up a six pack right at the 100 mile mark.
100 miles w/o getting off the bike for anything. A couple stops for traffic, stopsigns anthat stupid light on the bike path in Barrington. Moving time closest I've ever gotten it to total time for a ride that long.
I had some good mental thoughts, breakthroughs in a way. Thinking about mentorship and all that, trying to frame my head in a way that is positive, and allows progress and resolution. Still kind of really want full in person resolution, closure, but that's kind of out of my hands. More at peace with it now than have been for a while.
It was good.
the ride was fun actually. Loop was big enough that I didn't feel like i was riding the same stuff over and over again, familiar enough that I knew what was coming up (I know those f'n roads). and I surprised myself with the fact that I totally intuitively sorted it out w/o consulting a map and made a pretty damn decent and perfectly sized loop.
It was also pretty fatiguing. So much so that I decided to bail on CX trails this morning. Had a shit ton to do here.
Right now just sitting here looking ominously at the weather. This ride home is gonna be cold. I was a touch overdressed yesterday. A touch under today. Guess I am gonna have to go HAHD to generate enough heat not to totally get chilled. Dragging the trailer full of dog food (just one bag) will help with the going hard part, downside is it will increase the duration of the Hahdness.
This is what it looks like right now.
Yellow is moving to the east, aka it is gonna be f'n wet. At least it is over 40°F if only by a degree or two. And what little wind there is, is kind of maybe going to be a sort of a tailwind.
oh well. like Solobreak said... good loincloth weather... or something.
Must. Get. Ass. Moving.
BUT SO WARM IN OFFICE... and dry...
oh well... can't delay the inevitable. IceWorld's gonna kick my ass today. Yes, literally I just have thermal knickers, regular shoes, wool sock, gloves that are passably warm when dry.
Saving grace? Aquazero long sleeve jersey. Goddamn i hope that think lives up to the billing.
I'll find out very soon.
Heddwch
G
No comments:
Post a Comment