10 March 2009

I sort of rested yesterday, slept in till after 11am; I was wiped out from Sunday's long ride, followed by staying up too late. So, I took the day off (from cycling) and didn't ride. Today, when I did get back on, I was still tired. Worked it out though, and got in 25 miles. I feel a little tight in the hamstrings, but good. No retreat, no surrender! Besides, I have only 68 days left in preparation for Mt. Mitchell. I am studying elevation graphs and trying to determine strategies, and figuring out what I need to carry and what I need to leave behind.
Kind of like the guys in the WWII Airborne Divisions, except the chances are pretty good no one will be shooting at me. I started watching "A Bridge Too Far," a 1977 movie about Operation Market Garden, an effort to win the war by Christmas and get our soldiers home. It was a bold, aggressive plan that failed because of lack of supplies and reinforcements. When you are jumping out of an airplane, there's only so much you can take with you. Therefore, what you take had better be necessary. There will be a lot of climbing involved and I am a big guy; between just me and the bike, I have a LOAD to carry up those hills, several up to 9% and some up to 11%! So, I need to figure out how much of what so I can make it to the top. Because when the serious climbing starts, I'll already have ridden over 80 miles. I am still excited to do it. Bring it on, because this is what I have worked and trained for, and I will be ready.
Be blessed, be safe.