MS 150 ride was fun

What a crazy two weeks this has been. Work was busier than usual, and then I had "getting the race going" issues. Finally, there was all the logistics of pulling together my food (oh yes, and cycling equipment) for the ride. All of this consumed an insane amount of time in the two weeks prior to the ride this past weekend, and I found myself skipping a workout here and there and still going to bed way later than usual or desired.

I over packed for my food needs (I had packed a whole cooler for the weekend). I probably over - worried it as well. About a week before the ride, I discovered that my magic weight loss shakes were probably cross-contaminated with wheat (made on a line in the same room as another powder that contained wheat). I've reverted to "safe" foods, but it messed up my food schedule/plan. Overall, I probably spent as much time pulling my logistics act together as I did actually riding, which always seems like a silly allocation of time to me.

The bicycling went well. I was trained up and ready to roll. The first day I did a good amount of riding behind (never in front of) some "Cat 2" riders. Although I was well over my target heart rate and lost my sunglasses trying to keep up, I did manage to hang until the slight hills before the first lunch break. I figured it would be good training to "ride tired" for the last half. I over ate, thinking "lunch" meant noon. It wasn't even 10 yet, so I felt very full for the remainder of the ride. I pulled into LaGrange after 6 hours and 100+ miles (with significant drafting and a strong tailwind), so I think I need to be in better shape by September if this Ironman is going to be successful (with cushion and confidence). Good thing I have another five months to train.

To see what the start of the marathon might feel like, I went out for a 5k run after changing into running shorts. I needed to start slower out of 'transition,' but the rest of the run went well. Why my teammates called me "nuts" I have no idea...

The ride had been very crowded for the most part, but the next day I had a taste of what the Ironman biking portion might be like. We went through a park with some hills and a wider road where it thinned out. I frequently found myself on my lowest chainring, but never 'beat' by the terrain. I did drop my chain twice, which was very annoying and greasy. I mostly flew through it, being passed by relatively few riders and maintaining some momentum from hill to hill. It was the best part of the ride by far.

Last night was the first time I felt like exercising since Sunday. I was wicked-tired (post-ride listlessness and work, again), so I went to bed early and got 8+ hours sleep. I feel pretty good today.