Today, however, I was able to mix Vineman and Lodi Masters. The plan was for HS and I to show up an hour early so I could get one loop done before the rest of the group showed up to ride. Unfortunately, after a restless night of sleep (Aunt Flo ruins any chance I have of a full night's sleep) I woke up at 5:58am. It took a few minutes to sink in that in order for us to get to North Shore by 7am we were going to have to hustle. We should have been out the door at 6am, not just waking up!!!
I filled the water bottles, aired my tires, got dressed, woke up HS, and finally stuffed my mess of a hair "don't" into a ball cap. We were on the road by around 6:30-ish. We made fairly good time and got to North Shore Camanche about 7:10. Eric decided to join us and was there waiting (that's a first LOL) About 5 minutes later we were rolling down the road.
Loop No. 1
The first loop wasn't too bad. Since we were behind schedule, we didn't dilly dally at our normal re-grouping areas. It was during this first loop that I realized how tired my legs actually were. I had asked my coach to flip-flop my rest week and the next training week because of my schedule...so last week, instead of taking it easy, I kept training. All I can say is UGH!!! I need a break!
Loop No. 2
When we came back to the start, +James was the only one there waiting for us. While it's not the same as the times when we get 10+ members from our group riding, it was still great to have James joining us. James has committed (on Facebook) that he is doing the Santa Cruz triathlon in September...so I get the feeling we'll be seeing a lot more of him in biking and running gear, instead of just a Speedo.
Which brings me to my next point...I know that James has worked hard to become a Masters swim coach and he is a very good swim coach...HOWEVER... and this is just my opinion...he has done much more for me as a cycling coach. Even today, he rode up next to me and told me to drop my elbows. Everything he has told me about cycling has stuck with me and I am a much better cyclist than I was 2 years ago. Much, much, MUCH better!!!! Please keep the comments coming, Coach!
Missed my 2-1/2 to 3 hour goal...oh, well. Also of note...I hit my fastest "max speed" ever...only tapped on my breaks twice on the big descent on the second loop and managed to hit 33 mph!!!
The Run
The first mile of the "off the bike" run was AWESOME...and it was completely, 100%, straight downhill! I think I ran my fastest mile split ever! Not bad considering I had just rode almost 30 miles. I made a pit stop at the restroom and then caught up with HS and James. Our destination today was the gazebo where we normally take the Tri 101 class to do open water swims. Everything looked the same, the only thing missing was the water. I walked down to where the water normally was to check out the dried up weeds that used to tickle my toes. Looks like we won't be swimming here anytime soon :-(
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| Lake Camanche 2012 |
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| Lake Camanche 2015 |
Today was great....I loved riding with our group again and I hope more people show up next time. I definitely think there is a pancake ride in the near future :-)
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