Tuesday, July 3, 2012

back to it

After the ride, a bit of ennui set in. So much prep and worry, the event was a blur, then you're just done and home. I gave Major the week off, but then it was back to riding.

what? back to work?

I did a fun ride with friends. They think Major is fast, he has the nickname of "Rocketman." Which makes me off-tune hum the Elton John song, or sometimes David Bowie's "Space Oddity" (a personal favorite)...Ground Control to Major Tom....

OK, focus now. Maybe Major isn't the only space cadet right now. I have vacation brain. That's because in a couple weeks I get to take Major camping up to Loney Meadows, which I explored on foot the other day. No words except gorgeous!


Loney Meadow wildflowers
Lindsey Lake
near Carr Lake view

I'm still fitting a few rides in, though without the pressure as before. I'm not planning an endurance ride until the end of August, so just taking it a little easy. I'll be crewing for an experienced Tevis rider (12 buckles!!!) more info on that to come.

I did take Major out to run with the SO. He is getting awesome at trail running, anyone need a ride-and-tie guy? But Major does think he needs to stay with his friend, and was an idiot tripping down hills, not paying attention, trying to catch up. I wasn't expecting the bad behavior, so had to step up the law enforcement, which was fine in the end. I also took Major on that ride sans boots, wanting to see how he did on the summer-baked rocky trails. He powered over the hard ground, no problems. Being in his irrigated pasture doesn't seem to cause any issues.

Major: Waiting for my friend to come up the hill!
Major: OK, he's the leader, that's cool.

I also was adding up my mileage for the Big Bad Blogger's Distance Race (most people have dropped out/never participated. Too bad, fun way to track stuff. A couple people are way ahead, but I think it is fun anyway). But I realize I have 574 miles for the year. OK, some people ride lots more than that, but that's pretty far for me! Not just long rides, but lots of little rides add up pretty quickly too. And now we can all sing "500 miles" (or not, you seriously don't want to hear me sing).

Out for a ride tonight in the heat, then Major gets a holiday and I spend a few relaxing days on a lake. With a boat. And good food. And a book. And a few fireworks thrown in too.

2 comments:

  1. Ya, it's tough to get back to real life after a 50! ;) Are you doing Tahoe Rim or EHSC?

    That lake looks beautiful. I am thinking of going camping with Cers and Dixie later this month; I need to call the Stanislaus rangers and figure it out...

    I promptly dropped out of the BBBDR because I realized I didn't care how many miles we did. We've done our LSD year(s) - 500+ miles in 2010 - but this year is all about no junk miles for me. :)

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  2. Hoping to do Tahoe Rim. That should be a gorgeous trail!

    There is lots of camping in the bay area it seems like, though I'm only familiar with north of SF. The Sierras are hard to beat for sheer beauty.

    With BBBDR I don't care at all about "winning" the contest, it was more a fun way to see how everyone else trains, find some new bloggers, etc. I've inspired some friends too, just for personal growth, which is cool. I probably do plenty of "junk" miles to a serious endurance rider, but if I couldn't do a 5-mile after work jaunt to relax, or a 10-mile ride for fun with friends and a picnic, I'd lose one reason I ride, just to be with my horse and friends (or by myself). Probably why I'll never be truly a serious competitor! 8-)

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