It was above 30F on Sunday with no snow Could you guess what I was doing...

That's right the training rides have begun again...granted this year I'm going to maintain my bike a little better so I'm not forking over $40 for a new chain ( granted Pro Bike Kit has them for $25 ..dang this site and Nashbar are more deadly than an ice cream truck dealing crack in a school zone.).

Yesterday I got in fewer miles than I hoped for a whopping 37 miles in 2:20 at 16mph pace, but for my first day back in the saddle I'll take it. I drove up to Waramaug because I wanted to survey the road up, just to see what there were like...I could have kicked myself for driving all the way out there as they were mostly clear with the exception of one or two icy spots...well next time I know. I started by doing loops of the lake but after one loop, decided to mix in some hills, so I climbed Hopkins Rd. and went up this steep ass grade by the Hopkins Inn and Vineyard. The restaurant was working full tilt as the smell of fried food filled the air around the place. After the ascent I had to take it easy on part of the descent as there was one large ice pack on one of the side roads. As I shot down the main road back by the lake I decided to ride part of the Nutmeg Half Marathon Route. I figured riding in a flat circle wasn't going to help me prep for the hills of Taupo so I had better kick my ass back into climbing shape in a hurry.
After riding up Flirtation Rd. ( Claire and I had fun with this name on her Easter Half Iron bike.) and darting across US 202 I made my way to the center of Washington. Not knowing how bad the roads were heading toward New Milford, I decided to tackle the last "clover" of the Half Iron course, it was nothing but clear yet pitted asphalt. Also this was a gradual up hill, so my climbing legs were getting a decent workout. I got back to the lake and I was at 29.10 miles I decided I was going to ride until I hit 30 becasue the sun was setting...but opted to tack on the extra loop. I managed to get to my car feeling like I was going to "let it fly" at any second. I didn't have my head lamp with me so my plans for a run were nixed, so I decided to drive to Marty's cafe in Washington to relieve myself and get some coffee to warm my dead but up.

It was a good ride but I need to improve. I hope to ride Next Saturday morning if the weather co-operates although the apocolyptic weathermen can't seem to agree on whether it's going to ice/ snow/ or rain on Friday and if it will carry over into Saturday. If all goes well and the plans for wintry mix are foiled I'll get a 62 miler in, if not then it might be 3 hours on the trainer...ugg...I can only do so much work on the trainer...and then maybe a trip up to the casino with the homies, granted I'm thinking it might be wiser to stay home.

The Warrior of the Wasteland.
R.D.