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CRW Fall Century - Sunday, September 16, 2012 We've probably all heard some form of the saying, "A bad day _______ is better than a good day at work." Cycling generally fills in that blank as well as anything. No crashes or mechanicals for me, but otherwise, Sunday's CRW Fall Century proved the exception. I would rather have been at work. I started the ride in Littleton just after 7:30am with a with a group of riders that included a few whom I had ridden with before. The weather was comfortable--cool but not cold--and would only get better. The water stops were sufficient in number and ideal in location, expertly staffed as always by a great group of volunteers. I would keep myself well-hydrated and fed--no bonk for me. In short, all the makings of a wonderful ride. I still don't quite know why it wasn't. Early on, I was keeping up, but I didn't really feel comfortable on the bike. I hadn't been out since the prior Sunday's "The Flattest Century in the East," and had only managed to sneak in 60 minutes of spinning in a hotel gym during the week. Maybe jet lag was an issue--I'd come back from a business trip to Italy on Friday, and it wasn't a trip that wasn't exactly characterized by a lot of sleep. Maybe Saturday's nutrition wasn't up to par--pulled pork for lunch, burgers for dinner. Out on the road Sunday, the pavement surface was dicey too much of the time, and a combination of sun/shadow, smudged sunglasses, and many riders with whom I wasn't familiar had me hanging back rather than tucking in for the aero benefits. By 9:20am, after a wrong turn that cost us a mile or two, I dropped back on a climb and never reconnected. It was still the first half of the ride, and I was already regretting not doing the metric or even the 50. That "wanting to be somewhere else" feeling extended the remainder of the day. I slogged my way to the second rest stop and the base of the ride's main climb. As I eventually crested the top, several individual riders and small groups came together to form a paceline of 8 or so. We hung together for 10 or so miles (including another wrong turn) until the next climb (and the last of the day) splintered us. Save for a few miles of paceline later in the ride, the rest of my day was solo. For much of the ride, my arms were sore--that was a new one for me. Drops, brake hoods, crossbar--I couldn't find a position to relieve the discomfort. My legs weren't any better, but at least the heaviness was familiar, if familiarity has any value in such a situation. I kept my bike computer on time mode, not wanting to see the miles remaining. I didn't know if the century was 100 miles exactly or a bit more. And with the two wrong turns, I could have been looking at a total of 110. I decided I'd take a peek at my distance when the one o'clock hour rolled around--86 complete. I didn't know it at the time, but I had 18 to go. I promised myself that should the SAG vehicle happen along (it didn't), I wouldn't give in to the temptation. Somewhere along the second half of the ride, I started thinking about upcoming rides with considerably more "bite" than the Fall Century. If I had had to make the "go/no go" decision on Sunday, I would certainly have opted for the latter and possibly given my bike away to boot. Now, two days later, I can't wait to get back in the saddle. The great thing about suffering is how great a job the mind/body does of letting you forget. |