On The Road Again

7/5/09- 52 miles, 3 hours 14 minutes, 2 tired legs, and 1 sore "undercarriage". It was a great day to ride, and Jenni and I set out from Alum Creek Beach planning on riding 27 and evaluating where we were going to go from there, because we both were tired. By the middle of the ride, we were feeling a little better so we kept going, and got a nice 52 miles in.

We rode a route with some rolling hills, and averaged 16 mph for the 52 mile ride. Our fastest average, and longest ride to date. It was a great day to ride. It was overcast and 70 degrees when we set off and became partlly cloudy and was 77 when I got off my bike. We really couldn't have asked for more. It was amazing to see how calm the water on the lake was as we rode over it. It looked almost glassy, before the boaters hit the water. I must have been pushing Jenni a little hard because she told me to ride ahead for the last 20 or so miles, so after a little hesitation, I did, and for not wanting to ride fast she only finished 1:30 behind me.

The route included the triathlon route from last weekend, and I'm so glad the skunk was dead on the road this week instead of last. I don't know if I could have handled that smell riding all out like I was last week.

I really try to keep myself hydrated during these long rides, but ran out of water with about 5 miles left on this ride, which wasn't very good, but I had a jug of ice cold water waiting for me in the car. Even after that, I lost 2 lbs of water during the ride. Maybe I should make myself drink every 10 minutes instead of every 15, and make sure there are places to refill my bottles on the ride.

Finishing the ride hot, tired, and sweaty, I couldn't have come into the park at a better time. I rode down the hill just as the ice cream man parked his van in the grass for the Alum Creek beach goers. I don't think anything could have tasted as good as that drumstick right after a long ride like that.