Week 37

Date
September 12th, 2012

Distance
158 Miles

Time
10:53:48

Route Map/Profile

Weather

Picture

From Jacks Valley Road in Carson City

Ride Report
Today's route was two rides in one- the Mt. Rose + Kingsbury loop that I've done before and a shorter Six Mile Canyon loop that I like to do on shorter ride days. Similar to last week, I threw in some steep stuff (Six Mile Canyon) towards the end to test the legs.

Double Planning  

I'm happy to report that the double is on. Next week (September 19th) I'll head to Northern California and try to do a solo double. I've done doubles in the past and I'm no stranger to solo riding (all but 3 of my centuries this year have been solo, and those 3 were California Triple Crown doubles), but I have never mixed the two. I don't feel like I should be nervous about it (I know I'm physically capable), but I am. I know that it will be more difficult mentally, and even on a group double I almost always get a strong urge to quit somewhere between 160 and 175 miles in. It's tough to throw in the towel when there are a lot of people around and you know your name will show up on a list with the dreaded DNF next to it. It's never easy, but it's a little bit easier when you're out there by yourself. Even though nobody reads this blog, I hope it can serve as a little bit of extra motivation. I don't want 4 weeks of posts on here about a double that ended up being a failure.

In hopes that a change of scenery will keep the day more interesting, I planned a few routes out of town. I was planning routes as a "+" so I can keep plenty of food and water in the middle and so I'll never be too far away from the car in case things go horribly wrong. I had one good route planned near Ely, NV and another north of Bishop, CA, but in the end I decided on a route near Burney, CA. It's flat but not too flat, and the scenery should be pretty good.

The planned route.

The route is ready. The legs are ready. (I'm not in top form, but I'm good enough to finish.) I can only hope that the mind is ready. I just need to eat/drink properly and push through that tough stretch towards the end. I don't plan on breaking any speed records, but it should be a fun ride and I'm looking forward to it.