Instead of a Race

What was supposed to be a race weekend turned into a weekend of riding with teammates, and a good amount of hours and miles put under the legs. 73mi+ on Saturday and just under 50mi on Sunday puts this weekend's riding up a notch from the past this year.

a humble man's bike shop

It just so happened that I made the newbie mistake of registering too late - though I thought I had registered weeks ago - for the William & Mary Tidewater Winter Classic. I was put on the waitlist, and such as it is, I did not feel particularly motivated to drive down to the race and be potentially turned away from being abl to line up. Yet, my motivation to ride did not fail. I took my bicycle out in race-ready form (tubular wheels and no saddlebag) to the Clifton group ride. It always helps when teammates begin chatter on the emails about the weekend ride options. The cold was not quite deep enough to turn me away, and I wanted to try my new frame out with the carbons and sprint efforts along the way.

old bike, but with an old friend

We had good numbers at the Clifton ride. For the teammates that were there, we rode hard, communicated, took sprints from the die-hards, and enjoyed the cold outing. As motivated as I was, teammates were ready to roll as well. I put my efforts in for what I thought would be a 55-60 miles ride. They added a bit more than i anticipated. I bonked hard 65 miles on to the end. Luckily a teammate gave me a lift home to save me the uphill to my place from his, and ending with more than I was ready for is not all that bad for how fun it all was.

Sunday provided a bit of a different pace. I rode to a teammate's place and we rolled out to the roads by Mason Neck State Park for measured, interval work. It was a bit more than I expected, but it was just what my legs needed. A bit more work and effort to drive home the weekend's riding was great. Not to mention the warm, sunny 60s weather the area enjoyed. I now recline very tired, but glad with where my legs are. There is a lot of room for improvement, but I learned a lot this weekend and look forward to the races coming up.

Anyway, I want to get back in the habit of grabbing a few pictures for this place. Hopefully I'll have a few more to spruce up the posts with next time.

Thanks for reading.