Cool Down
I'm sitting in the Gulfport, MS airport, waiting for the plane that will start my journey back to Alaska. I'm not usually a huge fan of flying, but in this case I'm eager to get on the plane and back to some cooler temperatures. A 40 degree shift will be most welcome.
Yesterday I did my last ride in Biloxi. I took the long way out to the local hammerfest, and immediately knew it was going to be a tough ride. The temperature and humidity that had abated the day before after a short but intense rainstorm had come back with a vengeance. I was draining two water bottles an hour, and was still reaching for more. The sweat was dripping off my face with frightening regularity.
Halfway through the group ride, the faucet really opened up, and I had solid streams running. It's been a while since I've sweated like that, and I knew it was only a matter of time before it got in my eyes and I would be blind. Not a great attribute when you're running at 25MPH in a paceline, with your front tire inches from the guy in front of you. As I pulled off from my turn at the front, I noticed the guy in the back of the line had let a small gap open up in front of him. He waved me into the slot, and shortly afterwards I saw he had continued to drop back. He was cooked, and I saw my opportunity to gracefully exit the torture session before anyone got hurt. We linked up, and slowly I stopped pouring sweat all over the bike. We still made good time, but not anything like we were making before. The guys on this group ride might not have been the strongest climbers, but there were some serious diesels in there. The last thing I wanted to do was take one of them out because I was too stupid to know when I'd had enough.
By the time I was done, I'd ridden 75 miles that day, bringing my 12 day total to 600 miles. One of those days was a rest day, which means I averaged over 3 hours a day in the saddle every day I rode. For me, that's a lot of miles. For a decent endurance rider, that's a good start. If there's one thing I've learned this past couple weeks, it's that I'm not built for endurance riding.
I'm ready to be back in the land of mountains, cooler weather, and no humidity. I'm ready to spend a little time with the family. I'm also thinking about riding a little less.
Yesterday I did my last ride in Biloxi. I took the long way out to the local hammerfest, and immediately knew it was going to be a tough ride. The temperature and humidity that had abated the day before after a short but intense rainstorm had come back with a vengeance. I was draining two water bottles an hour, and was still reaching for more. The sweat was dripping off my face with frightening regularity.
Halfway through the group ride, the faucet really opened up, and I had solid streams running. It's been a while since I've sweated like that, and I knew it was only a matter of time before it got in my eyes and I would be blind. Not a great attribute when you're running at 25MPH in a paceline, with your front tire inches from the guy in front of you. As I pulled off from my turn at the front, I noticed the guy in the back of the line had let a small gap open up in front of him. He waved me into the slot, and shortly afterwards I saw he had continued to drop back. He was cooked, and I saw my opportunity to gracefully exit the torture session before anyone got hurt. We linked up, and slowly I stopped pouring sweat all over the bike. We still made good time, but not anything like we were making before. The guys on this group ride might not have been the strongest climbers, but there were some serious diesels in there. The last thing I wanted to do was take one of them out because I was too stupid to know when I'd had enough.
By the time I was done, I'd ridden 75 miles that day, bringing my 12 day total to 600 miles. One of those days was a rest day, which means I averaged over 3 hours a day in the saddle every day I rode. For me, that's a lot of miles. For a decent endurance rider, that's a good start. If there's one thing I've learned this past couple weeks, it's that I'm not built for endurance riding.
I'm ready to be back in the land of mountains, cooler weather, and no humidity. I'm ready to spend a little time with the family. I'm also thinking about riding a little less.
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