It sure was nice to trade in the rain gear for some sunscreen.
There was a little somethin' extra going on today. I wasn't feelin' particularly frisky, or even strong, for that matter, but I wanted to turn in a good hard effort today. If you've been following my blog for more than a year, you know that last year was a tough one. Of course it made me wonder, if I was losing ability. I had definitely lost some drive.
This year and particularly today I noticed some of that old drive creepin' back in.
About 7 of us showed up and we took off on the same route that Amy and I did a couple of weeks ago. This time, thankfully, there was no wind which needed to be dealt with.
I'm lucky. It is rare that a squirrely or inexperienced rider shows up on one of my rides. Today was no exception to that - all of them, excellent cyclists.
The ride itself was pretty uneventful, except we were riding hard and fast. I've been stopping at the same gas station in Belle Plaine for 13 years. Today - IT'S CLOSED! They didn't even ask me if that would be OK. So we've got to go traipsing around Belle Plaine trying to find a place that has the food I'm accustomed to. Finally we found a grocery store that had warm Gatorade. I couldn't find Rice Krispie treats, but they did have some Ho Ho's - they're just as good and tasted....well let's just say they may be the new refueling food. We were getting looks. Small town, shiney bikes, really wierd shoes and Lycra - yeah, I guess we deserved it. There was a flat tire later on, but that's just a part of riding.
The second half of the ride was the hardest. Three pretty good climbs, for Minnesota, with 55, 65 and 70 miles on the old hairy legs. It hurt! But like I said, I wanted it today... just put the head down and turned those cranks.
I call these rides Hammer Hundreds. That means 100 miles at a 20mph average pace or better. Yeah, 100 miles in under 5 hours. Years past I'd turn in 6 maybe 8 of them in a season. Last year I only turned 1 in. So far this year......3. 97/20.5
Thanks Amy, thanks a lot.
4 comments:
thank you Tom.
That is smok'n. Way to grind em. My midway pop machine was out of order today, so I feel your pain.
When I first started reading your blog 1 1/2 yrs ago, I didn't know what Hammer 100's were. Lynn explained that too me in a comment. Ever since that point, I've watched and waited for your Hammer 100 weekends.
As for your not feeling up to snuff. Hummmm Tom, you ate sweet potato fries and ate nachos Friday night.....then you washed it down with multiple brews. I'm just saying.......
TT-obviously Tom's "not up to snuff" is everyone else's "personal best ride". ;-)
I honestly always smile or actually laugh when I read his weekday posts, and they are always much faster than my weekend "fast" rides.
I think he worries about slipping-I'd guess maybe it takes more effort now to achieve the numbers he does. But if you just look at the numbers, you'd never know.
Tom-gorgeous day today :)
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