Stupid, but Fun

A shorter route today, and on my own. I was quite unsure what I was going to be capable of today, because I felt so tired all week. Yeah, well… it’s amazing what temps in the 70s, blue skies, and a morning of cleaning house will do for my motivation to get out there and bite off a big hunk o’hill.

This week, I made a vow to limit my duration or intensity a little more this season,  because looking back at my logs, I discovered that whenever I go crazy, I end up sick or wiped out the following week.

Though I kept to my mileage limit today, I did a little more than I intended, vertically – 2,000 feet of climbing in thirty miles on the Vaya, all of it on loose gravel, which certainly can add to the toll. This was supposed to be a recovery week ride, but what’s life for, if not making the same stupid but fun mistake over and over again?

Was feeling quite sluggish most of the climb, but I downed my new go-to energy food, an almond-butter-and-honey sandwich, and very shortly was climbing with considerably more élan. That’s the second time that stuff has put much-needed fuel in my jets, so I’m sold. Costs way less than a Clif Bar and tastes three times better than any awful gel, too.

I think I’ll be swapping out the 45 mm Vee Rubber tires for the original 35 mm Small Block Eights on the Vaya. The 45s make my pseudo-single-track expeditions a little more manageable, but everywhere else, they’re just an albatross. I miss the light, incisive quality of the 35s. As for cushioning, let’s face it: Miles of washboard roads is brutal, and five pounds fewer psi does little to ameliorate that. Especially when you’ve paid for that cushion with every turn of the pedals on the climb.

A gorgeous spring day, though a tad warm; temps reached mid-80s. My bod tends to run warm, and my favorite riding season runs from March through May. Typical May that is, if there is such a thing as typical weather anymore. Brooks sparkled and splashed under dirt bridges, birds flitted energetically and sang with brio, and the Vitamin Water at the halfway point really hit the spot.

Here’s to the next dumb mistake!