Shady Trails

There was a change of plans yesterday!

I hopped out of bed earlier than usual, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and ready to get into trouble, so I dragged Younger Monster out of bed and offered him breakfast at Big Boy if he would go shopping with me. He rarely turns down the opportunity for pancakes, so off we went.

While at breakfast, I expressed my desire to ride somewhere other than through the neighborhood. It's fine for the 5 and 10 miles rides, but after that, it's boring as hell. I thought about Greenwood Park, but Elder Monster says those are all dirt trails. Ugh. Younger Monster suggested the neighborhood behind Greenwood Park, but there didn't seem to be any pattern to the streets. I considered bussing over to the University Parks Trail, but he thought that would be a bad idea, because it was already 82 degrees, I'd be far from home, and alone, and if I had trouble, there wouldn't be anyone there to assist right away. (Recall, I have RA, and that sometimes attacks out of nowhere.) Plus, my bike weighs almost as much as the Prius.

I mulled all of my choices over whilst shopping, and after we got home and put the groceries away, I called The Vita Guru.

Hey, you work til 5, right?

"Yah?"

Wanna go over to Oak Openings again tonight and ride? It's too hot to ride in the neighborhood, and it's boring. It will be cooler there.

"OK, have Bubba start getting things together so we can just load up and go!"

So he arrived a bit after 5, we started loading up, and I was running about looking for my jersey.

VG, did you wash my jersey? (He does most of the laundry, I cook. It's an equitable split.)

"No, I didn't. It needs to be washed separately. I have extras, though."

I couldn't fit my tits into one of yours if I held my breath and tried hard.

"*GUFFAW*"

So I wore my orange Oberon shirt. *shrug*

It was glorious at the Preserve, even though it was still 85 degrees at 6:45PM. I cranked up the tunes and took off.

Wildlife spotted:

Baby woodchucks: 2
Adult woodchucks: 5
Wabbits: 8
Suicidal chipmunks: 17 It was seriously Chipmunk O'Clock, and they are fearless.
Horses: 2
Chickens: 3
Dogses: 7

There were also quite a few more people out - runners, roller-bladers, families on bikes, cohorts of Little Old Ladies out for a stroll, and even a wheelchair athlete. The trail is mostly shaded, so it was much cooler than out in the open, and the breeze was so wonderful! We broke at 9 miles for Amino Vital, Gu energy gels (that was...weird. Didn't taste bad, but the consistency was really weird), and some leg stretching, and I realized that I was a bit chafed where the elastic of my undies was. *grrr* It made the 9 miles back a bit uncomfortable, and forced a slight drop in pace, but I seem to have survived it just fine. We had steak and pasta and wine for supper, and I slept like a stone!

Today, I'm taking a day off from riding, and doing some exercise of a different sort - we're heading up to Pentamere Winery to help bottle Peach wine! There are generally more than enough people to handle the line lately, so I usually occupy myself with labeling, or jumping behind the counter to help Nate when the tasting room is full...or I just stay out of the way and drink wine! And today, we're barbecuing after the bottling is done, so I have made my amazing BBQ Beans and a strawberry, blueberry, and banana trifle.

Tomorrow, the Vita Guru and I are going to load up his panniers and head back out to Oak Openings, and try for 35 miles. I'm confident that I'm ready for the jump, and if I handle it without feeling like crap after, the Vita Guru will be satisfied that I'll be able to handle 50 miles a day without dying.

TWO WEEKS, you guys! The ride is in TWO WEEKS! Please, please, please hit the Sponsor link in the sidebar, even if you can only spare a dollar, and please spam my link far and wide. The National MS Society is a great organization, they do a lot of good for people who are dealing with a nasty, mean disorder, and they need all the help they can get!


-- Missy, the Fat Bottomed Girl