Train Hard, Rest (is) Hard

Who says cyclists are nothing but a nuisance to motorists?

This past Tuesday, I attended the Tuesday Night Worlds ride to put the final nail into my training block coffin. It was my 5th day in a row of hard rides (which is now being followed by resting just as hard) and I showed up worked. It was getting hard to speak in complete sentences so I figured the TNR was a great place to milk one last hard ride out of my body before I rested up for the Firecracker.

The group headed down Fall Creek Road and the lead group took off...without me. I wasn't even close to hanging on. But, a wicked wind storm had just blown in and the lead group quickly came upon a stalled car and an aspen tree that had just fallen across the road. Freaky. I've never seen a kookier sight than 20+ spandex sporting roadies, clicking their shoes on the pavement and putting in one heck of a hilarious team effort to clear a fallen tree out of the road. It seemed to be a close call, but it did allow me to catch back on.

On a side note, it's too bad that all the pissed-off motorists that passed the group didn't realize that we, the spandex-clad army they love to hate, had made their drive home possible. Oh well. When the ride resumed, I got dropped again anyway. I also got dropped on the return trip, too.

When the ride turned back into Jackson, I put on my tunes, refilled water and headed in the opposite direction towards home, to the top of Teton Pass where my car was parked. I had parked at the top figuring that it was one less trip up in my car and that I could enjoy the 6 min., and at times 55 mph descent down into Wilson, all while knowing that there was a rough final leg waiting for me at the end. View from the last switchback on Old Pass Road.

I hadn't ridden up the Old Pass Road (or the pass itself) all year. It also occurred to me that in the 10+ years I have lived in Jackson Hole and Victor, I have never once stopped to take a picture of the quintessential Jackson Hole photo opp. so I did:


Right now, I'm chilling in Frisco, CO eagerly awaiting the Firecracker 50 on Sunday and mellow is my mission. Wimbledon, a great, almost finished book, some estim and my dog's company are helping that effort. It took a LOT of discipline to not go out for more than an hour easy spin this morning, as there is soooo much good riding here in Summit County. No worries, I get to ride a ton next week!