Back to Brickin'

I went to bed at 8:30 last night and it proved to have been a very good decision. Karin G. was riding at 7:00 this morning and I wanted to be on board, so it was nice to wake up before the alarm and be ready to roll. I knew I'd be in for a butt kicking by riding with Karin... and she had also invited a couple other cyclists who, as I'd predicted, were also wolves in sheeps clothing. Gracious, nice wolves, but wolves nonetheless. The predicted butt kicking ensued...

Karin, Johna, and I started out from Zoka just after 7:00 (me wearing several more layers than anyone else, of course) and all I knew was that we were going out toward Snohomish somehow...Johnna had the route picked out. The first few miles on the trail were easy and fast with lots of chitchat and I realized that Karin is brilliant to ride that early--no bike traffic on the trail. Then we turned up 61st in Kenmore and I assumed the chase position that was to be my permanent mode. Another wolf, Carrie, joined us around mile 15, giving me another rider to hope wouldn't get out of my sight. To my credit---or more likely, their kindness---I did keep them in sight and pulled up every now and then. Every time we approached a stoplight, I (the person who usually hates to stop) was thinking "please be red, please be red...." so I could catch up. So, of course, when a light was red for them, it was green by the time I got there, so no rest for me. There was no discussion of bathroom stops or where to fill water bottles. These girls-- who were all riding nice fancypants tri bikes--were serious. And I swear every one of them weighed less than I do and were even faster than me descending (wtf?). Fortunately, Johnna's route bumped into the TDC route on High Bridge after we'd gone past Martha Lake, near Everett and over part of the Lowell-Larimer Rd. They decided to flip for an out-and-back at about mile 30 and I took the opportunity to ride alone and not hold them back. I tried to maintain a good workrate without the gazelles in front of me and felt like I did OK, though I know it dropped off a little. I was going against the Flying Wheels route, so I saw lots of cyclists going the other way and scored the use of a porto at one of their rest stops. Went back out of the valley on the big Woodinville-Duvall hill/TDC route, to Marymoor, and back to Zoka on the trail...and held a decent pace. My stupid HR monitor was all jacked up on the trail and I didn't get an accurate reading---pissed me off since I was trying to push a little harder and wanted to know whether my HR matched my RPE or not. Oh, well. I got back to my car, grabbed my running stuff, and headed back out on the trail for my run. The first half mile was pretty tough, but then I felt really good and went a little longer than I needed to just because I was feeling strong. It was a good brick, and good proof (yet again) that I need to be a faster cyclist. Went to Zoka for a recovery soy latte...and just about then the sun started breaking through the clouds...dangit.

It was great to be done with the whole thing by 12:30...soon going to hang out with my new bff, Heather, who will probably get to have her first experience of me eating a TON of recovery food. We're hoping to find somewhere outdoors for some beers and the chance to manufacture the vitamin D that didn't get made on the bike.

74 mile ride:
4:29
Avg pace: 16.5 mph
Avg HR: Who knows...stupid gadget

3 mile run
25:34
Avg HR = 151 (the gadget rallied for the run)