Hey! How was your schoolyear?

i totally talked myself into this ride. all week I’ve been blathering to anyone foolish enough to listen that I was going to ride this, laying down a dirty full-fingered glove in challenge. Somehow despite dealing with both kids and a stressful week of work and not finding time for dinner til 10pm, i managed to both not drink anything and rally at 4:30am.

can’t beat the time-effort ratio of this ride: out my door, ~70 miles, 5k climbing in 4 hrs.

The hurting began immediately. I haven’t done this in a year, or been on my roadie for more than 3 hrs since then. I was slogging through the deceptively not-flat first 15 miles when around mile 8 the Brumby club rolled by me, and I effortless found myself in their slipstream. Its been almost 2 years since i’ve been in a pack, and I forgot how cozy it feels, along with my ability to signal road hazards or not grab my brakes. oops…sorry y’all.   and I was quickly at mile 20 when the pack blew up and most of them dropped me descending to Canyon Lake. I trod onward while the club gathered, dispersed, caught me, repeated, and I wound up finishing before all of them despite thinking myself the weakest. Tis my idiom. It was neat to do that huge climb with so many riders scattered about,  and it gave me motivation and companionship and solitude all at once. I was a little bummed when I had to lemon-squeeze the brakes at 46mph on the DH, skittish I was running out of room to maneuver around the other riders – fair price for crashing their party, though I think I mighta broken 50 with the snappishness my tuned wheels have provided.

All along the top of the climb the century plants were in full bloom. I’ve never seen anything like it, except for the giant trufular trees. I’m hoping they will be there for a few more weeks so I can get a picture of the expanse.

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G put the final nail in the camera’s coffin last night (in addition to spilling pudding on the couch, and bonking Alana on the noggin), so these are the best photos I got of the ride:

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More fun and less painful than I thought it would be. I know I got gifted a win, but I don’t feel bad about it, I had another 20 minutes of effort in me.   Last year de-intimidated me about this route, as I’ve discovered all the places to rest and to rally.   Its like coming back out to the swim team every summer: I’m still the bottom compared to the kids who do this year-round, and every one has grown up a bit.

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