The Near Perfect Bike Ride

Yesterday I woke up super early as usual to get ready for the long bike I had. I was supposed to ride with Kim and her boyfriend Joe, but as I pulled up at our meeting place at 7am I saw almost 10 other riders. I was a little timid as the only other time I rodeh a group was at IM WI camp. I did not know these people and they looked like good bikers. All of them were super nice. The pace was perfect for going the long haul and the route was great too. The first loop was did was of St Paul with 2 really big hills. I should go back to those hills and do them next weekend! After about 2 hours we came back, some of the bikers were finished and we also added more people for the last part of the ride. This time we did my loop out to Excelisor and Chanhassen. It was so nice riding with other people, especially for the drafting you could do sometimes.

Two other things also made the bike fabulous. The first is the new cassette I got from Julie. I felt like I was riding on air. It was cleaner than my old one, but I also think a little nicer. I am now riding with a 25/12 instead of a 23/11. I don't think I would have made it up the hills in St Paul without this. I am so glad I got it put on. People were also telling me that I may want a 27/12 at Madison. I will have to look into that since Madison is so hilly.

My nutrition was also on. This is the first long bike where I didn't feel like I was going to pass out near the end. I decided to go with gels and water only. It totally worked! The energy drink I was using must have been upsetting my stomach. I also had to add the electrolyte tabs since I wasn't using the drink anymore. I will try this again next weekend and see how it goes. I was so happy the rest of the day.

I just felt like it all came together yesterday. I hope the feeling stays a few more weeks!