SUCKED!
You already know about the weather from the morning, and when I left work things looked great. It was partly cloudy, a light breeze and warm enough to not require knee warmers.
I left work late enough to not have any student traffic near, which is always a good and safe thing. Rode up the hill and turned left onto the road that will take me to the main drag. I even caught the light, which rarely happens. I was feeling good, and quickly approaching the long down hill. Usually I hit speeds around 35, without hammering, luckily for me I did not.
Just as my speed really started to pick up, I heard a noise and felt the awful feeling of no air in my tire. I slowly braked to a stop, got off my bike, and inspected my rear wheel. Turns out I managed to puncture my sidewall, and lost all air. The glue could not seal the hole, and that meant trouble.
As I said yesterday, I am the smartest man in my house, so I was prepared for an incident such as this...My wheels will work with or without a tube. I proceeded to take off the tire, clean out the glue, unscrew the valve, insert my brand new tube, and begin the process of re-seating the tire.
Getting the tire to re-seat was tough. I could not believe how still the bead was, but it make sense because there is no tube applying pressure towards the rim. I finally got the tire on, and started to fill the tube with air...The air would not take. Turns out that my brand new tube had a hole in it.
Now I am 2 miles from school and nearly 19 miles from home, with no way to ride my bike. My good friend E, drove by not knowing I was stranded and gave me a friendly honk. I really considered showing him my appreciation, while also showing him he was #1 in my book, but alas I did not. I called another friend, who shall remain nameless, but he did not have his phone on. I called another friend, but he was in a meeting. I called Bella, who works 45 minutes away, but she was not at her desk. I finally remembered my sister-in-law lived about 3 miles away, and called her.
Thank you Valerie for coming to my rescue, driving me 45 minutes home, and humoring the fact that a pasty, white, skinny guy in spandex was in your car.
I now need to get a new tire, and try to patch the current tire. I can easily say that the last 2 weeks have not been the best.
Good luck to all.
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Good weather...NOT!
After not riding yesterday, I carefully examined the weather report to today. Everything was looking good...Partly cloudy, and no rain. When the weather is good, DRY, I ride my race bike.
This morning I was moving on the slow side of snail speed. Add to it that I needed to still put some things on the Wilear, and I was way behind schedule. My goal is to be out the door, pedaling down the road, by 5:30 am. I was not even close today.
Being a the most intelligent man, in my house, I have learned my lessons (partly) and brought my rain cape...Good thing too. About 15 feet out of the driveway it started to rain, and I was on my good bike...Ahhhhhhh! In addition to being on my Wilear, I did not have fenders since I do not ride the Wilear in the rain.
I am officially at the point where I want sun, warmth, and no rain...I need summer to begin, and I need it ASAP!
Even with the rain, I still had a good ride. I averaged almost 20 mph, and would have been over 20 mph had I not caught a few lights. I earned my third best time on the Old Soldier's Home hill, and even carried good speed with the parachute that was keeping me dry.
Today's ride home should, cross your fingers, be dry. If so, I plan on pushing it and possibly doing AP Tubbs Rd climb and the climb back up to my house. If all goes well, I can move up the strava leader boards for the climbs.
This morning I was moving on the slow side of snail speed. Add to it that I needed to still put some things on the Wilear, and I was way behind schedule. My goal is to be out the door, pedaling down the road, by 5:30 am. I was not even close today.
Being a the most intelligent man, in my house, I have learned my lessons (partly) and brought my rain cape...Good thing too. About 15 feet out of the driveway it started to rain, and I was on my good bike...Ahhhhhhh! In addition to being on my Wilear, I did not have fenders since I do not ride the Wilear in the rain.
I am officially at the point where I want sun, warmth, and no rain...I need summer to begin, and I need it ASAP!
Even with the rain, I still had a good ride. I averaged almost 20 mph, and would have been over 20 mph had I not caught a few lights. I earned my third best time on the Old Soldier's Home hill, and even carried good speed with the parachute that was keeping me dry.
Today's ride home should, cross your fingers, be dry. If so, I plan on pushing it and possibly doing AP Tubbs Rd climb and the climb back up to my house. If all goes well, I can move up the strava leader boards for the climbs.
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Tuesday's ride to work
As everyone already knows, I am not much of a sleeper. If you add the fact that I went to bed at 8:30 (yes, I really said 8:30), then you can probably guess I was up EARLY!!! It was pitch black, Bella was sound asleep on my half of the bed, and I could hear the rain. I looked at the clock and saw 2 am, and I knew I was toast. I tried for about 40 minutes to fall asleep, but that wonderful bliss never occurred.
I started thinking about the classes I had to teach, how I still needed to charge my bike light, and the weather. Until July, the weather is always a concern here in the wonderful Pacific Northwest. As I lay there thinking, about all the above, I could not help but hear the heavy rain falling. This made me weigh how much I truly wanted to ride to work. I have already spent countless hours in the cold, wind, and rain this spring training, and I just was not that motivated to spend another minute. I finally decided to watch some races, from my DVR, and hopefully sneak a quick cat nap before I had to decide on riding to work.
When I record a bike race, I always set the DVR for an extra 1.5 hrs...I would hate to miss any action! I enjoyed the opening TT for the Criterium du Dauphine, and then received a special bonus. After the TT, one of my favorite movies was recorded...American Flyer's. I know it is a bit cheesy, but it is still a favorite movie of mine.
With each minute of the movie and the still falling rain, it was becoming less and less likely that I would ride to work. Bella sensing my mood to me to just drive, but I still felt the small urge to ride. I paused the movie and decided to get ready for work, turn on the news, and then make the decision.
After getting out of the shower I heard, on the news, the final piece of information to help me make my decision. Rain, Rain, Rain, and Wind, Wind, Wind. Turns out the wind was 14 mph, with gusts up to 20. It was at that moment that I made my decision.
I chose not to ride, and instead use my bonus time to watch more of American Flyer's. Evidently, I offended the cycling gods...10 minutes into my bonus time, the power went out. Now it was too late to ride, I could not enjoy any more American Flyer's, and decided I might as well go into work. What a total bummer, I guess I should braved the nasty rain and wind.
Lesson Learned.
Have a great rest of the day.
I started thinking about the classes I had to teach, how I still needed to charge my bike light, and the weather. Until July, the weather is always a concern here in the wonderful Pacific Northwest. As I lay there thinking, about all the above, I could not help but hear the heavy rain falling. This made me weigh how much I truly wanted to ride to work. I have already spent countless hours in the cold, wind, and rain this spring training, and I just was not that motivated to spend another minute. I finally decided to watch some races, from my DVR, and hopefully sneak a quick cat nap before I had to decide on riding to work.
When I record a bike race, I always set the DVR for an extra 1.5 hrs...I would hate to miss any action! I enjoyed the opening TT for the Criterium du Dauphine, and then received a special bonus. After the TT, one of my favorite movies was recorded...American Flyer's. I know it is a bit cheesy, but it is still a favorite movie of mine.
With each minute of the movie and the still falling rain, it was becoming less and less likely that I would ride to work. Bella sensing my mood to me to just drive, but I still felt the small urge to ride. I paused the movie and decided to get ready for work, turn on the news, and then make the decision.
After getting out of the shower I heard, on the news, the final piece of information to help me make my decision. Rain, Rain, Rain, and Wind, Wind, Wind. Turns out the wind was 14 mph, with gusts up to 20. It was at that moment that I made my decision.
I chose not to ride, and instead use my bonus time to watch more of American Flyer's. Evidently, I offended the cycling gods...10 minutes into my bonus time, the power went out. Now it was too late to ride, I could not enjoy any more American Flyer's, and decided I might as well go into work. What a total bummer, I guess I should braved the nasty rain and wind.
Lesson Learned.
Have a great rest of the day.
Sunday, June 3, 2012
TEARs Part 1 complete
Today I felt strong enough to actually get back on the bike. After dealing with food poisoning for a full week, I was concerned about distance and climbing. Turns out that I did not really need to worry about either.
In case you have forgotten, TEARS is an acronym I created to describe The Epic Annual Ride series. My goal is for each ride to be 50+ miles (hopefully closer to 100 miles), involve some good amount of climbing, and to hit high points in my area.
Due to the food poisoning, Terry and I thought 50 miles, the minimum, would be a big enough test for the day. We started in Greenwater and rode to Cayuse Pass and then onto Chinook Pass. Cayuse is at a lofty elevation of 4,675 ft, and Chinook Pass hovers at 5,430 ft. From Greenwater, the total elevation change was a tad over 3,900 ft.
Upon arriving in Greenwater, Terry, Roger, and I leisurely unloaded the bikes and geared up. The temperature was about 42 degrees F, the skies were cloudy, and I was cold. We did some small talk, and then finally decided to get the show on the road. The plan was to take it easy on the way out sticking together. Once past Crystal Mt. Rd., everything starts to go up, up, and away, and we agreed to "climb at your own pace" regrouping at Cayuse Pass.
As the road started to rise, I knew I was in for a good day. My legs felt strong, and I quickly started to open a gap on Terry and Roger. I settled into a good rhythm and enjoyed what I could see of the river and mountains. It was very cloudy, and sometimes foggy. The higher we climbed, the more the temperature dropped.
It did not take long before I was seeing snow on the side of the road, and then walls of snow. Last year, there were 20 ft tall banks of snow at Cayuse pass. I knew it would not be as high this year, but was still hoping for a nice bit of snow.
Once I arrived at Cayuse pass, I could see there was still quite a lot of snow. If you knew me, you would know that this makes me scream like a little girl receiving her first Barbie doll.
I immediately rode over to the snow, leaned my bike against the snow, and proceeded to take multiple pictures of the snow and my bike. What a beautiful site to behold...My sexy, gorgeous machine with a back drop of snow. I almost shed a tear!
Terry and Roger were about 15 minutes behind me, and could tell I was freezing. I could tell they did not really want to stop either so we proceeded to get a move on it...we still had another 800 vertical feet to climb and about 3.5 miles in order to get to Chinook Pass.
I started out riding beside Terry and Roger, making small talk when I noticed a car coming towards us. Next thing I knew the car was honking...Not a malicious honk, rather a friendly beep, beep, beep. I figured the person either needed something or wanted to ask a bike question. I looked over my should and saw the car slowing, so I turned around and slowly pedaled towards to car.
Who would have guessed. Turns out that the person driving the car was my teammate, Joe, who now lives in Yakima. He was driving and telling his wife how he was jealous that he was not biking. Then he said I know that guy, as he realized "that guy" was yours truly.
We made small talk as I again proceeded to get cold and started to shiver. After a couple of minutes we parted ways and I told him I now have a carrot to chase. I again settled into a good rhythm and quickly caught up to Terry and Roger. I said "hi" and they said "there he goes."
I reached Chinook and had about 4 minutes to wait before they arrived. At this point, it was about 39 degrees F and there was a very light snow falling. IT WAS COLD! We chatted for about 2 minutes, took a few pictures and then made the fast descent back towards Crystal Mt. Rd.
It did not take long before I realized something was seriously wrong with my bike...I developed quite the wheel wobble, but I was not going more than 25 mph. That is when I remembered that I never fully tightened my quick release after changing my brake pads. I pulled off the road, made the 30 second adjustment and caught up to the guys at Cayuse Pass.
From there it was smooth riding all the way back. Once we hit Crystal Mt Rd, I was able to remove my rain cape and get to business doing serious work at the front. Terry put in some real good efforts and split the workload with me. Together we made short work of the remaining miles back to Greenwater.
For the first installment of TEARs, I have to say it was a resounding success. We accomplished a goal, I was stronger than I expected after the food poisoning, I met a new person to ride with, and we had a good time.
Not sure when or where the next TEARs ride will happen, but I am already excited and scheming!
In case you have forgotten, TEARS is an acronym I created to describe The Epic Annual Ride series. My goal is for each ride to be 50+ miles (hopefully closer to 100 miles), involve some good amount of climbing, and to hit high points in my area.
Due to the food poisoning, Terry and I thought 50 miles, the minimum, would be a big enough test for the day. We started in Greenwater and rode to Cayuse Pass and then onto Chinook Pass. Cayuse is at a lofty elevation of 4,675 ft, and Chinook Pass hovers at 5,430 ft. From Greenwater, the total elevation change was a tad over 3,900 ft.
Upon arriving in Greenwater, Terry, Roger, and I leisurely unloaded the bikes and geared up. The temperature was about 42 degrees F, the skies were cloudy, and I was cold. We did some small talk, and then finally decided to get the show on the road. The plan was to take it easy on the way out sticking together. Once past Crystal Mt. Rd., everything starts to go up, up, and away, and we agreed to "climb at your own pace" regrouping at Cayuse Pass.
.JPG) |
| Natural Break and picture opportunity |
As the road started to rise, I knew I was in for a good day. My legs felt strong, and I quickly started to open a gap on Terry and Roger. I settled into a good rhythm and enjoyed what I could see of the river and mountains. It was very cloudy, and sometimes foggy. The higher we climbed, the more the temperature dropped.
It did not take long before I was seeing snow on the side of the road, and then walls of snow. Last year, there were 20 ft tall banks of snow at Cayuse pass. I knew it would not be as high this year, but was still hoping for a nice bit of snow.
Once I arrived at Cayuse pass, I could see there was still quite a lot of snow. If you knew me, you would know that this makes me scream like a little girl receiving her first Barbie doll.
 |
| I love Barbie!!!! |
I immediately rode over to the snow, leaned my bike against the snow, and proceeded to take multiple pictures of the snow and my bike. What a beautiful site to behold...My sexy, gorgeous machine with a back drop of snow. I almost shed a tear!
.JPG) |
| Some serious snow at Cayuse Pass |
Terry and Roger were about 15 minutes behind me, and could tell I was freezing. I could tell they did not really want to stop either so we proceeded to get a move on it...we still had another 800 vertical feet to climb and about 3.5 miles in order to get to Chinook Pass.
I started out riding beside Terry and Roger, making small talk when I noticed a car coming towards us. Next thing I knew the car was honking...Not a malicious honk, rather a friendly beep, beep, beep. I figured the person either needed something or wanted to ask a bike question. I looked over my should and saw the car slowing, so I turned around and slowly pedaled towards to car.
Who would have guessed. Turns out that the person driving the car was my teammate, Joe, who now lives in Yakima. He was driving and telling his wife how he was jealous that he was not biking. Then he said I know that guy, as he realized "that guy" was yours truly.
We made small talk as I again proceeded to get cold and started to shiver. After a couple of minutes we parted ways and I told him I now have a carrot to chase. I again settled into a good rhythm and quickly caught up to Terry and Roger. I said "hi" and they said "there he goes."
.JPG) |
| Roger left and Terry Right at Chinook Pass |
I reached Chinook and had about 4 minutes to wait before they arrived. At this point, it was about 39 degrees F and there was a very light snow falling. IT WAS COLD! We chatted for about 2 minutes, took a few pictures and then made the fast descent back towards Crystal Mt. Rd.
.JPG) |
| Me left and Terry right at Chinook Pass |
It did not take long before I realized something was seriously wrong with my bike...I developed quite the wheel wobble, but I was not going more than 25 mph. That is when I remembered that I never fully tightened my quick release after changing my brake pads. I pulled off the road, made the 30 second adjustment and caught up to the guys at Cayuse Pass.
From there it was smooth riding all the way back. Once we hit Crystal Mt Rd, I was able to remove my rain cape and get to business doing serious work at the front. Terry put in some real good efforts and split the workload with me. Together we made short work of the remaining miles back to Greenwater.
For the first installment of TEARs, I have to say it was a resounding success. We accomplished a goal, I was stronger than I expected after the food poisoning, I met a new person to ride with, and we had a good time.
Not sure when or where the next TEARs ride will happen, but I am already excited and scheming!
Friday, June 1, 2012
Take a week off!!!
What the heck??? I am not allowed to take a week off. My brain and body are not wired to take a week off, but that is exactly what I have/am doing.
From a previous post, you know that I caught a nasty case of food poisoning. Without going into all the crappy (yes that was intentional) details, let us just say it was not an enjoyable experience. As a result, I knew, and was not so gently told, to take time off. I told both Bella and the Doc that I could still ride, they both told me negative. I think Bella even mentioned the D word (D-I-V-O-R-I-C-E) would occur if I even thought of my sweet, sexy, two wheel steed (Wilear Izoard). In Bella's words, "I will not sit here and watch you kill yourself and then try to clean up the crap (intentional again)!"
So...it has been almost a week since I last rode and my legs feel great. I have also lost quite a bit of weight due to having food poisoning and my new diet, so I should soon be climbing like a mountain goat.
You are thinking..."wait you said diet." Yes I did. It is called the BRAT diet and consists of absolutely no variation, creativity, or even being filling. While I do like most of the food, I just cannot seem to get full and eating the same stuff 4,000 times a day gets old...FASSSSSTTTTTTT!
B - Bananas (as we cyclists say, it has natures wrapper)
R - Rice
A - Apple Sauce (I now HATE)
T - Toast
How much of each of these can you eat? Can you do that day after day after day? Meal after meal after meal? I am and I cannot wait to eat something BIG, FILLING, GREASY, and is anything other than a BRAT food!
Like I said above, my legs do feel very rested. This is perfect, as I am about to really increase my miles as summer comes. I also plan to do lots of climbing and hopefully put the hurt on Scott V and Brent. Especially Brent "I rode 8,000,000 miles" Nebraska.
Hope everyone has a great weekend.
From a previous post, you know that I caught a nasty case of food poisoning. Without going into all the crappy (yes that was intentional) details, let us just say it was not an enjoyable experience. As a result, I knew, and was not so gently told, to take time off. I told both Bella and the Doc that I could still ride, they both told me negative. I think Bella even mentioned the D word (D-I-V-O-R-I-C-E) would occur if I even thought of my sweet, sexy, two wheel steed (Wilear Izoard). In Bella's words, "I will not sit here and watch you kill yourself and then try to clean up the crap (intentional again)!"
So...it has been almost a week since I last rode and my legs feel great. I have also lost quite a bit of weight due to having food poisoning and my new diet, so I should soon be climbing like a mountain goat.
B - Bananas (as we cyclists say, it has natures wrapper)
R - Rice
A - Apple Sauce (I now HATE)
T - Toast
Like I said above, my legs do feel very rested. This is perfect, as I am about to really increase my miles as summer comes. I also plan to do lots of climbing and hopefully put the hurt on Scott V and Brent. Especially Brent "I rode 8,000,000 miles" Nebraska.
Hope everyone has a great weekend.
Monday, May 28, 2012
My weekend
What a crappy weekend for me!!! Rarely am I a "woe is me" type of guy, but today I am.
The weekend started so good too. I joined up with the Cyclopaths for a a great ride, on a wonderful Saturday morning. I then enjoyed some time at WB's and had burger before heading home. Next on the agenda was time in the driveway with my neighbors, enjoying the sun and chewing the fat...Shortly after is when everything took a drastic turn.
Around 8 pm, my stomach began to feel a tad sour. I went to bed shorty after, and woke up at 2 am to a very angry stomach. I began to worry as I was supposed to do a ride with my friend Terry, but wanted to hold off canceling in case I felt better as "go time" approached. Turns out I never did feel better and did have to cancel.
By 3:30, I was shivering uncontrollably from a fever and making frequent trips to the bathroom. At about 5 am I was sick to my stomach, still making trips to the bathroom, sporting a hefty fever, and developing a day and a half long head-ache. At 6 am I came to my senses and cancelled the ride, which turned out to be the best, and only, decision I could have made. I spent all Saturday sleeping for short stints, fluctuating between burning hot and freezing cold, making constant trips to the bathroom, fighting my head-ache, and trying to eat (unsuccessfully).
Saturday night I awoke about 6 times and would sprint to the bathroom. In addition, I awoke two other times, soaked to the bone from my fever breaking. After about 10 hours of sleep, way more than my normal 6-7 hours, I got up and tried to eat again. Nothing tasted good, or agreed with my stomach, but I forced bits down.
I think my fever is gone, for good, but my other symptoms are still present and dominating the days activities. I still feel pretty crappy (pun intended) and just finished a 2 hour nap. I also weighed myself and have lost 6 pounds since Saturday morning. Not sure where the weight loss came from, but I guess I do not need to get colon cleansing to lose any weight.
Bella being my loving, overly worried wife thinks I should rush to the doctor. Being a man, and like all men we know everything, I do not believe there is much a doctor can do. I think I got food poisoning from either the food at lunch or my dinner at a local Mexican restaurant.
What a wasted and miserable holiday weekend!
The weekend started so good too. I joined up with the Cyclopaths for a a great ride, on a wonderful Saturday morning. I then enjoyed some time at WB's and had burger before heading home. Next on the agenda was time in the driveway with my neighbors, enjoying the sun and chewing the fat...Shortly after is when everything took a drastic turn.
Around 8 pm, my stomach began to feel a tad sour. I went to bed shorty after, and woke up at 2 am to a very angry stomach. I began to worry as I was supposed to do a ride with my friend Terry, but wanted to hold off canceling in case I felt better as "go time" approached. Turns out I never did feel better and did have to cancel.
By 3:30, I was shivering uncontrollably from a fever and making frequent trips to the bathroom. At about 5 am I was sick to my stomach, still making trips to the bathroom, sporting a hefty fever, and developing a day and a half long head-ache. At 6 am I came to my senses and cancelled the ride, which turned out to be the best, and only, decision I could have made. I spent all Saturday sleeping for short stints, fluctuating between burning hot and freezing cold, making constant trips to the bathroom, fighting my head-ache, and trying to eat (unsuccessfully).
Saturday night I awoke about 6 times and would sprint to the bathroom. In addition, I awoke two other times, soaked to the bone from my fever breaking. After about 10 hours of sleep, way more than my normal 6-7 hours, I got up and tried to eat again. Nothing tasted good, or agreed with my stomach, but I forced bits down.
I think my fever is gone, for good, but my other symptoms are still present and dominating the days activities. I still feel pretty crappy (pun intended) and just finished a 2 hour nap. I also weighed myself and have lost 6 pounds since Saturday morning. Not sure where the weight loss came from, but I guess I do not need to get colon cleansing to lose any weight.
Bella being my loving, overly worried wife thinks I should rush to the doctor. Being a man, and like all men we know everything, I do not believe there is much a doctor can do. I think I got food poisoning from either the food at lunch or my dinner at a local Mexican restaurant.
What a wasted and miserable holiday weekend!
Saturday, May 26, 2012
The Puyallup Cyclopaths
The Puyallup Cyclopaths are a group of riders that like climbing. Uhhhh, let's change that to LOVE climbing. Leon, who I met though Strava, did Cayuse Pass repeats last Saturday. His ride totaled 74 miles and over 10,000 feet of climbing. Yes you read that right, 10,000 ft (3048 m)!
After exchanging emails and using his amazing powers of persuasion, Leon stroked my relatively small ego and convinced me to join him and the Cyclopaths on their Saturday ride. If I have read the email correctly, we will do somewhere in the neighborhood of 55-80 miles today. I am unsure how much climbing will be involved, but I know there will be some.
As you know, I just finished my "season" of designated races, and my legs are a little tired. I am a tad nervous about riding with a new group of guys. I do not know how fast they plan on going, how quickly they climb, and their group dynamics. However, as most cyclists know, riding with a group of people is usually much more fun than riding solo. It is not that riding solo does not contain its own fun, but sharing an experience with others is a welcome change from the countless solo hours on my bike.
UPDATE...
I arrived at the Orting "staging" area for the ride. It was a bit intimidating as there were at least 10-11 people clad in Lycra and red cyclopath jerseys. Turns out they are not as fearsome as their name sounds...I had worries of a sharp shank penetrating my rib cage had I not be an adequate rider. Turns out they are just good guys that like to ride and climb.
We rode from Orting to Lake Kapowsin, and then from there towards Eatonville. Before Eatonville we made a turn (please do not ask which way, I am Directionally Challenged) and headed out to Alder Lake and then back to Orting.
The climbs were nice, and I want to thank Scott Larson for pushing me (though he had no idea he was doing so) and all the Cyclopath guys for an amazing ride. I also want to apologize for making Tom nearly soil his gear when I heard "car back" as I was getting off the front...I never knew a road bike could do that well in cyclo cross!
With all said and done, the ride was 60ish miles and was beautiful. I cannot wait for the next opportunity to ride with the Cyclopahts, if they have me, and to live up to my reputation as an avid/adequate rider.
After exchanging emails and using his amazing powers of persuasion, Leon stroked my relatively small ego and convinced me to join him and the Cyclopaths on their Saturday ride. If I have read the email correctly, we will do somewhere in the neighborhood of 55-80 miles today. I am unsure how much climbing will be involved, but I know there will be some.
As you know, I just finished my "season" of designated races, and my legs are a little tired. I am a tad nervous about riding with a new group of guys. I do not know how fast they plan on going, how quickly they climb, and their group dynamics. However, as most cyclists know, riding with a group of people is usually much more fun than riding solo. It is not that riding solo does not contain its own fun, but sharing an experience with others is a welcome change from the countless solo hours on my bike.
UPDATE...
I arrived at the Orting "staging" area for the ride. It was a bit intimidating as there were at least 10-11 people clad in Lycra and red cyclopath jerseys. Turns out they are not as fearsome as their name sounds...I had worries of a sharp shank penetrating my rib cage had I not be an adequate rider. Turns out they are just good guys that like to ride and climb.
We rode from Orting to Lake Kapowsin, and then from there towards Eatonville. Before Eatonville we made a turn (please do not ask which way, I am Directionally Challenged) and headed out to Alder Lake and then back to Orting.
The climbs were nice, and I want to thank Scott Larson for pushing me (though he had no idea he was doing so) and all the Cyclopath guys for an amazing ride. I also want to apologize for making Tom nearly soil his gear when I heard "car back" as I was getting off the front...I never knew a road bike could do that well in cyclo cross!
With all said and done, the ride was 60ish miles and was beautiful. I cannot wait for the next opportunity to ride with the Cyclopahts, if they have me, and to live up to my reputation as an avid/adequate rider.
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