1. It was something like 75 degrees this morning at 9am– the second or third day of what I would consider nice weather– and yet when I got to the parking lot, I realized that I was the only one not wearing some combination of arm and leg warmers, a windbreaker, and honest-to-goodness booties. Booties! On a 75 degree day! The mind boggles.
2. This ride is fast. I deliberately chose this one over the Tucker ride, since this one was described as Moderate/Strenuous with a mix of flat, rolling, and hilly terrain, while the Tucker ride was classified as Strenuous/Training, over hilly terrain, and described as “where the big boys and racers show up to play.” I can probably count on my hands the number of times I’ve been on my bike this summer– and none very fast– so I was under no illusion that I could hang with the “big boys.” But, I thought, the Six Flags Ride. Described as “really fun.” This is the ride for me!
2a. Well, the ride was in fact really fun, but it was also really fast– at least for me for right now. It begins over hills like we don’t have in New York: short and steep, where it makes more sense to stand and crank up them rather than to shift into an easier gear and spin. The hills lengthened out a little after the first few miles, which was a relief, since I’m much better at those long, steady climbs than I am at those that require short bursts of speed. I should note, though, that it was never, ever flat– not like the stretch that you get between Piermont and Nyack, or the last couple miles to the GW if you take 9W, that are such nice reprieves. Which leads me to
3. What actually happened: I clung to the main pack for the first 16 miles, averaging 20+ mph. I know this because the turnaround was at mile 21 or so, and at that point– riding 16 miles with the group and 5 without, my average speed was still 19.9. And presumably I slowed down considerably once I’d lost the big group. At the turnaround point, I stopped to chat with the person who’d been behind me, and his friend, who’d stayed with the main pack but had stopped to wait for us. We took a few minutes to regroup, then headed back the way we came. It was a nice pace– strong but doable– and even though I started to flag towards the end, we still finished up with a pace of 18.6mph overall (42 point something miles). Not bad, all things considered, which makes me think:
4. I could actually do this if I were in shape! It may take through the winter, and I suspect that I’ll have a rough time at the start of cross season, but I know I can get there. It’s nice to have a goal.
