Happy New Year

Much like the complete lame-o that I am, I was in bed, asleep, when the New Year rang in last night. At 37, I just don't feel the need to go out and act like I'm still 25. That, and the fact that children under the age of 3 don't let you sleep in. They don't care what day it is...

Anyway, 8 intrepid souls met this morning @ 9:30 to do a nice, leisurely 3 hour ride...and that's exactly what we did. A trip out through Ft. Jackson and down into Lower Richland was the loop for the day. It was brutally windy today. The trip out was a beautiful thing. Chatting at 40kmh and just rolling along. The return trip, after our stop at the G-Mart, not so much.
We stayed in the trees until we got to Bluff and everything was hunky-dory. Once we got to Shop, the real wind made an appearance. I can tell you that close to maximum effort was being put down going across the overpass and we were rolling at MAYBE 25kmh.

I had been toying with the notion of selling the Powertap, so it's off the bike. I had forgotten how nice it is to actually just RIDE. No computer, no HRM, no wattage, just the bike. I never looked down at the bars, except to admire the beauty that is my Thomson X4 stem. I couldn't go hard today, as I couldn't stand to climb, chase or sprint. The ribs are sooooorrrre. Sitting on the tops was nothing, but standing, even for a moment brought shooting pain. Let's just say I got a good, grind, seated workout today.
I'm keeping the Powertap. I don't need to sell it and it is a useful tool. I just don't think that rides need to revolve around TSS scores or wattage. Sometimes, you just need to ride your bike and enjoy the day.

Doogie and I are riding Thursday night, downtown.
Normal Saturday ride time, but I may peel off and ride short because...

Sunday is the annual NYD Lake Loop p/b Toby Porter.
When: 10 a.m. departure
Where: Peak DMV
65-ish miles at a piano pace. As Toby put in his email, "This is not a race, so leave your ego shit at home"!!!

I'll be emailing everyone again with the specifics...