The 10th Annual Rosedale Ride was today, starting at Samsung Austin Semiconductor in northeast Austin, and traveling the farm roads and county roads of eastern Williamson County.  The weather, surprisingly enough, was almost perfect for a bike ride:  mid 60’s to start and cloudy.  The only drawback was the wind:  20 to 25 MPH from the southeast.  But, as I’ve said before, that’s springtime in central Texas.  This is the fifth year in a row I’ve participated in the ride.  It’s well supported, the volunteers are helpful, and  everybody is happy to see us come out.  I’ll be back.

62 miles is no big deal considering what I’m about to undertake come Tuesday, but today’s ride was quite a challenge for a different reason.  Last night while I was playing with Charlie I stubbed my toe (second toe, next to the big toe) against a desk.  Hard.  Hard enough to make me think I might have broken it (the toe, not the desk).  I iced it last night and this morning taped it to the adjacent toes.  I had difficulty walking, but riding wasn’t too bad as long as I didn’t put too much pressure on my right foot.  It’s feeling better now, late in the evening, and I think it’ll be a little sore next week but not a problem for the upcoming ride.

I’ll likely be incommunicado for the next week.  Tomorrow morning I roll out at 6:00 am for my three day bicycle excursion to Harlingen, Texas.  Everything’s packed, checked, re-checked and ready to go.  Weather forecast is great, with light winds (less than 15 MPH) on the route all three days, and only one area where they’re forecasting scattered thunderstorms.  I’m packing everything I need for the ride in a backpack, even though Debra will be meeting me at the hotel on both nights.  She won’t be following along, so I still need the emergency supplies, and carrying two changes of bike clothes and a few other odds and ends doesn’t add much weight.  It certainly doesn’t add significantly to the 7 lbs of water I’ll be carrying.

The first night’s stop is in the hopping town of Kenedy, TX, approximately 130 miles from the house.  The second day is a comparatively easy ride of 105 miles to Kingsville, followed by a short 98 miles to Harlingen on Thursday.  If all goes as planned, three cadets from the Marine Military Academy will join us for Thursday’s ride.

I’m taking my digital camera in the hope of getting a few pictures along the way.  Debra’s bringing the laptop so if I have an Internet connection and some time (i.e. I’m not totally dead to the world), I’ll be able to post updates as I go along.  If nothing else, you’ll see it all here when I get back and post my notes for the next three days.

One benefit of my new assignment is that the building in which I’ll be working has showers and lockers.  Downtown Austin traffic being what it is, I’d much rather ride my bike to work than take the car.  At 25 miles each way, it’s a manageable bike ride:  about 2 hours each way with shower time included.  I can get my workout and my commute done at the same time.  I’m hoping to ride two or three times a week.

I’m not sure which part I like best:  riding to work in the morning or coming home at night.  In the morning I’m usually off the road by 7:30 so I miss most of the traffic.  I also don’t have to rush my morning ride like I would if I had to go back home and shower.  The thought of riding home sometimes seems daunting, but by the time I’m five miles down the road, I’m relaxed and have forgotten about whatever was bothering me at the office.  I’m a little tired when I get home, but I’m in a much better mood than if I’d been fighting traffic in my car.  If the office was a little closer (less than 20 miles), I’d probably ride to work every day.

Yesterday was my last long training ride before the big event that starts on March 30.  Since I hadn’t determined the exact route we would take out of Austin, I decided to go exploring today.  I studied the city bicycle map and maps of the county roads between here and San Marcos, and then set out on an all-day trek.  I hit downtown San Marcos at about 12:30, took a break for lunch, and headed back home.  I made a few other stops during the ride and got home right at dark:  7:00 pm here.  Total ride time was 10 hours and 30 minutes:  9 hours of riding and an hour and a half of resting at one place or another.  Total distance was right at 125 miles.  I felt surprisingly good throughout the ride, except for one bad spot at about 105 miles.

My training for the big ride is done.  Now it’s just maintenance rides, lots of carbs and lots of water until next Tuesday morning.