GREAT RIDE TODAY!!!! I think I'm back.

I had a great ride this morning. I was psyched because my friends Beth & Andy also decided to ride the Sharon course this morning. Beth e-mailed me last night. They planned to do 3 big loops; I planned to do 5 big loops. (The course has two loops. A big loop at 11 miles and a small loop at ~4.5 miles.)

I was a little late and I called to tell them to go ahead and ride. But, since they are so nice, they waited for me. They also were fixing a flat tire, so that made me feel better.

We took off and I figured I'd stay with them for one loop, then drop back (not that I would have wanted to drop back...). I had mentioned that I was going to do 4 big loops. (Internally, I was deciding whether to do 4 loops or the originally planned 5 loops.)

We had a great ride and we rode the first three big loops together. I was going to take a left into the parking lot with them, exchange my water bottles, say goodbye and then do one or two more loops on my own. However, they started to take a right.

"Where are you going?" I shouted.

"To do another loop," they replied.

"But you did three."

"Yeah, but you're doing four!"

And they rode a fourth loop with me! How great is THAT?

Half way though the loop, I silently decided that 44 miles would be enough and I would end the ride with them after this fourth loop. I thought to myself, "They planned to do 3 loops; I planned to do 5. We'll all do 4 loops."

Just as I had that thought, Andy said, "OK, when we finish this loop, we'll do one small loop for about 50 miles total."

"Huh?" I thought to myself. "Uh, okay", I replied.

So, we did. It was a great ride. Great weather, we held a conversational pace the whole way. Andy checked our average mph after each big loop. 15.7, 16.2, 16.3, 16.3. After ending with the small loop as a recovery loop, he checked again. 16.2 average.

I just walked over to check my bike computer from today's ride.

Total miles: 50.58
Time: 3:06:03
Average; 16.3 mph

Conversational pace. Yeah!

Thanks to Beth & Andy for riding with me the whole way! It was a fun ride and a nice morning!

I needed this ride.

Hmmm..... after today I think I just might be able to do that 3:10 on Sunday... despite the 16 day hiatus, and despite being doped up on meds that give you cotton mouth. I'll have finished the meds by the end of Thursday. And I'll also have finished the planned 20 mile easy ride. I'm back on schedule with the bike.

3:10 will be tough, but if I have a good day that day, I think I can do it. Cocky, no, not really. Actually no, not at all. Just regained optimism coupled with a heady goal.