Riding, lots of riding!

So, after what seemed like an eternally wet spring, the trails are finally dried out enough to go ride. And I've done lots and lots of riding, both in a car and on the bike. After the last post, Lauren and I jumped in the car and drove to MArquette for Whitney's graduation, and commencement ceremonies. I'm still really proud of her for finishing her nursing degree. Yay Whit!

Lauren and I drove home on Sunday (the drive from Marquette is a day long endeavor) and the next morning I set out for Tremont, Illinois to visit my friend Brad. This time, I brought my mountain bike. 18 miles of brutal single track on Tuesday and another 14 miles of easier riding on Wednesday were really good training. Then another day-long drive home on Thursday.

After a chore day on Friday, we drove up to my parents (only a short 2 hour jaunt) for Whitney's Bridal shower. Then back home again Sunday night for a total of almost 2300 miles in 10 days. My butt hurts and not from riding my bike.

Yesterday I went for a long ride. Well, at least that was the intention. I wanted to do a 5-6 hour ride, but in the process of waiting for my new biking shoes, I didn't get out the door until uch later than I wanted. About 15 minutes in I went over the handlebars and cut some good scrapes and bruises. No serious damage but it definitely made a big difference in how I attacked the trail. It also put a nice little hole in the sidewall of my front tire. The Caffelatex sealed it right up, but I forgot to do something really basic - check the air pressure. It turns out that the tire dropped from 30psi to about 10 psi while the puncture was sealing. That 20 psi difference made the front end feel like a boat anchor by the time I was working on my third lap.

So, after three laps I called it quits. 33 miles in 3 hours and 10 minutes wasn't too shabby in my book even though I was hoping for 40-50 miles.