Seanholio

My riding season has started up with a bang. I decided to attempt the Solvang half century without much training beforehand. My winter was rainy and long, and with having to move and whatnot, I didn't get into the groove before the ride.

Unfortunately, I also forgot my shoes, which I discovered two hours down the road the night before.

After dropping my buddy off to begin the century, my wife, my buddy's girlfriend, and I drove up to Santa Maria to get me some shoes, pedals, and cleats so I could complete the century from there. As I was getting the pedals installed, a tandem couple walked in. During the conversation, she eventually exclaimed, "Oh! You're the recumbent who forgot his shoes!" Yes, I was infamous.

The ride from Santa Maria was nice. I was really slow on the uphills, my legs burning from an atrophying winter, and I flew down the downhills. I had a good ride until encountering a big, long uphill before the last SAG stop. It got to the point where I was riding 100 yards, stopping to catch my breath, and then repeating. On the far side of this was a lovely downhill where I screamed along at 35-40mph, until a truck pulling a gooseneck horse trailer nearly creamed me as he passed someone going the opposite direction. Once I arrived at the SAG stop, I knew I was defeated. There were only two more miles to go, but The Wall was in front of me, which is a short but steep hill before riding back into town.

All in all, it was a good ride, and educated me about the benefits of training. I'll be working harder this summer.

colinm

Did you ever feel like you were going to puke and pass out?