Week 32

Date
August 4, 2015

Distance
178 miles

Strava Link
Week 32

Route Map/Profile

Weather

Ride Report 
This was Day 5 of Petoji, which was a pivotal day for me. I don't know why, but I wasn't feeling good early on in Petoji. I had a bad day on Day 2 in Yosemite (didn't eat enough), then Day 3 was slower than expected. Day 4 was only 109 miles and I hoped to recover a little bit for a long Day 5. That wasn't happening. The last 50 miles or so were into a strong headwind and that took a toll on my physically and mentally. If this was an "easy" day of 109 miles and not much climbing, how in the hell was I going to finish Petoji? On day 4 I learned that there was no such thing as an easy day.

That night I began to question myself. Day 5 was one of the longest days of Petoji at 178 miles and I wasn't sure I could do it. I wasn't feeling good physically and for whatever reason I just didn't feel like I was riding up to my potential. Even if I finished Day 5, how much would it take out of me and could I finish the rest of Petoji? What would I do if I had to quit? How could I live with that?

I didn't sleep well that night, but I decided that I wasn't going to quit unless I ended up in a hospital. I got an early start on Day 5 and headed out before the sun was up. I knew it was going to be important to stay on top of my eating and drinking. If I saw a gas station, I stopped.

The first food & drink stop of the day: E-T- Fresh Jerky

I ended up having a good day on Day 5. I would like to say that I responded well to the pressure and had a good ride when I needed it, but the truth is that I had favorable winds for most of the ride. I did the first 110 miles in about 8:20, which isn't that good. After that there was a good stretch of 40 miles that were either flat or downhill (with a tailwind) and I made up a lot of time there. Up until mile 110 I was averaging 14.7 MPH. For the rest of the ride I averaged 16.8. I got lucky with the profile and the weather. Most of the climbing was done early and most of the tailwinds picked up late.

I rode into Cedar City that night around 7:30 with a huge sense of relief. Maybe I could do this after all. In the moment I wasn't thinking about the wind or the elevation profile. I was under the delusion that I stepped up and had a good ride when I needed it the most. I can look back now with a clearer mind and a little more humility, but in the moment it certainly helped to feel that way. I had a renewed belief in myself, and that belief carried me through the rest of Petoji.