Happy Birthday Kate

My friend Kate celebrated a birthday over the weekend so naturally that meant a nice long birthday ride. She knew the route she wanted to take but the wind in our area has been brutal lately. The forecast wind speed over the weekend was 30-40 mph. I like adventure but I'm not crazy. Luckily the wind today was only supposed to be 10-15 in the morning and lower speeds after lunch. We looked at the weather sites and checked the timing and direction and everything was a go for our ride: decreasing north winds at 10 mph.

Three of us hit the road headed to a neighboring down 17.5 miles to the west. We were flying! My new shoes and clips made me feel very secure on my bike and I was setting a very nice pace. I felt pretty proud of myself until we stopped and ate lunch at the little cafe at our destination. You guessed it, the wind had shifted out of the east and was pushing us the entire time. It was easy riding, but now we had a headwind the entire 17 miles back to town. Yuck. It wasn't a huge wind, but any wind on a bike makes a big difference.

We enjoyed our burgers and my Hubby stopped in to eat with us. It was a nice break but eventually we had to head back to town. The going was tougher, but not as bad as it could have been. Our pace was slower but I was able to keep it steady. When we returned to our starting spot we felt really good about our accomplishment. This was a record distance for one of our riders and the other celebrated her birthday with a really good ride. I felt really good at the end and wasn't too tired at all. No burning foot pain! Even my legs felt fine and not like wet noodles.

They felt so fine that I decided to go for a swim. At least I tried to go for a swim. The Y was closed for the holiday (Memorial Day), and both outdoor pools were packed for their opening weekend. At least I had good intentions. Now I'll need to get creative with my workout schedule for the coming week. Everyday life is throwing a kink into my plans.

That marks the end of 6 weeks of training. 4 more hard weeks then race week. I can't believe how much stronger I've become in the water and on the bike. The run still kicks my tush but I'm working on it. Here comes Week 7!