Getting it right....
With the heat and crappy air quality, it seemed like a good idea to ride the dirt last night. Talk about "shite", to quote Hambini. Going over from Cutler to the south side just didn't flow. The climb seemed harder than I remembered. I couldn't seem to find good lines on the way down. Overall, I was very disappointed.
At the overlook, I kind of had this moment, the kind that makes you really doubt.....everything. The ride down just seemed foreign - not natural. When I pulled into the garage, I took an little extra time to burn off some frustration, for what it was worth.
From the moment I got off my bike last night, all I could think about was doing it all over, but getting it right this time. I literally fell asleep thinking of the technical details as if I were riding it over and over again - in my own mind. When I got home from work, I check the emails and saw a donation from a former fellow co-worker; my favorite Bobcat. That is really the thing that provided the motivation. There is just something about seeing those messages that get me going. It really works.
After taking care of a few obligations, I rolled out of the garage and headed to the single track, over near Cutler. Lets just say the focus and attitude were 180° from last night. Straight to the top, with considerably more time in the faster gears. I still spend too much time in the bailout, simply trying to conserve some gas. I really need to index more in the upper parts of that climb. I ran into a little race coming out of the park. Good fun, but when I got to the house, the power was out - leaving stuck outside. With nobody else home at the time, I had a little trouble getting into the house - given the garage door opener was on hiatus. Still, I'll give it a B+, with still some room to improve.
Course Updates
I talked with one of radio guys this evening. They drove the entire course last weekend and said most everything was looking great. A stretch of road construction north of Hoeback, where we'll get off the highway for a bit, and follow another side road. Sounds like we still have to traverse a little road work, but nothing too serious. He also said the Sportive ride ending at the high school is about 197 miles this year. Also said there was a lot of changes in some of the feed zones, particularly up Snake River Canyon. I told you it would be a different race this year.
The Bobcat
Aw, the old kitty. Yes sir, my favorite Bobcat made a donation to Huntsman today. Quite a guy he is. Before he retired last year, I think I had worked with him since the Lincoln administration.....kind of a blur. Another guy that worked with us for all of those years retired a few years earlier. Unfortunately, the Big-C took him not long after he retired. I suspect, this may have had some influence on his decision to support Huntsman this year. That, and of course, being such a darn good guy..............for a Bobcat that is. Thanks Pedro. It was a big boost tonight.
Huntsman Link
It occurred to me this morning that the Link directly to the donation page does not easily appear on the mobile app. Not sure how to fix that at the moment, so I'll post it below and with every post going forward - until race day. Please take the time to pass this along and perhaps visit the donation page.
Ride HARD!
