I discovered something...

I've ridden more this week than I thought...
I gathered up all of my clothes to do a load of laundry and noticed that most of my riding stuff was in the pile. 5 jerseys, 5 bibs and 5 baselayers...did I ride 5 days this week? Yes, yes I did...
Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Today!
I didn't race Saturday in Augusta, and feel moderately guilty about it, but I really didn't feel like driving almost 4 hours, roundtrip, solo. Instead, I got up and went out to do a 2 hour solo ride with some tempo-ish efforts. It was 70 and drizzley when I left the house. It was actually quite nice outside, especially the 300% humidity.
I did my normal 2 hour loop, but completely forgot that the State Fair is still in town. If the fair where you live is like the one here in South Crackalacky, then you'll know that it attracts the flotsam and jetsam of society.
Anyway, once I got down within about a mile of the stadium and fairgrounds, the weather changed, and not for the better. The aforementioned 70 degree drizzle turned angry. The wind shifted from a cross/tail to a bloc headwind...and the RAIN picked up. And by 'picked up', I mean that it began to come down in sheets, at a 45 degree angle. The temperature probably dropped 10-15 degrees in the course of 800 meters. It got epic in a hurry!
I decided then and there that I was ready to get the hell home, so I put my head down and went as hard I as I my big ass could go.
Between the weather, the fair/football traffic and the dumbf*ck Columbia cop that stepped out in front of me, it was the closest I've come to death in a long while! I made it home, kissed the Ridley for making it through, and said a small prayer to La Madonna Del Ghisallo.
I figure that my penance for not racing had been paid in full.

This morning, we rolled out on the Il Prof ride and met Ward and Clive from Glory Cycles at the gate. For there, the bunch rolled out on a meandering tour of Lower Richland. It was a really good, uneventful, drama-free ride. It wasn't a deathmarch, but we didn't exactly fiddle-dick around either.
It was nice to talk to Clive a greater length as well. We've ridden together before, but never had the chance to really talk about bikes, life, and all of the other BS that come up on a ride. AND he was riding a completely BADASS carbon Merckx. I'm getting a new bike for my 40th birthday in the spring, and had planned on just getting another Ridley Helium until I saw Clive's Merckx, and talking to him about it. Thanks for throwing that spanner in the works man...!!!

Time to go to the Merckx website and start figuring out geometries...