What a fun race! My knee was kind of sore at the start but I just rode it off. The weather was actually decent for the race, but with the past week of grey, rain filled days the mud made it's presence known from the get go. Farmall Hill mud is not drivetrain friendly! One hill was literally un-climable. Not a single racer cleaned it. I was actually more covered in mud tonight then after the Rambler this past Sunday. I managed to not make any major mistakes until my last lap, when I tagged a tree head on. The mud down this particular windy and steep decent was just too treacherous for the speed I carried into it. I think because it was my last lap I just got a little overzealous and carried way too much heat into it's last little twist. Note to self-don't be stupid! I'm happy with my finish too. Honestly I think that if a certain some one had been there I could have put up a good fight, I pulled first over all. :)
I quit my Garmin cold turkey tonight!!! I realized after this Sunday that while the Garmin has done amazing things for my training habits I am just not the right personality to have all that data in front of me while racing. From now on it's going to be out of site for races. It's such a great training tool and I can not imagine training without it, but the last thing I need while racing is something beeping at me telling me i'm trying too hard. I had so much fun tonight just riding my bike. All the stresses in the world were swept away for a couple hours, and I remembered that's the reason I ride in the first place. It's such a great escape. It just feels so good, so incredibly euphoric. Not a care in the world. I just rode in the moment and gave it 110% without worrying about exceeding thresholds or maintaining a proper cadence, pace, ect. I hucked a few things too, and I think that even though catching some air is slower then keeping the wheels grounded; for me to have fun i've got to ride my own way. I'm really glad I got all this sorted out. Back to the basics, just ride!
Up next- the Highland Hex six hour. Last year's Highland Hex was my first ever solo endurance race and I managed to pull a 1st for my category. This year the competition has become fierce so i'm ready to really dig down and give it my best effort. The forecast as of now looks great-70's and sunny. Now that I flaunted that i'm sure it will be 40's and rainy lol. Last year it was so hot. Just brutal sun and heat. After the first couple laps it was 0 fitness and pure will power to even keep the pedals spinning. I fell more times then I even remember due to pure exhaustion.
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