The first lap of the day was good. Weather was a nice surprise with the wind lightly gusting but very tolerable. It ended up being 19 miles in all with a lap around Sloan's Lake:
Lap 1
Didn't push it, just found a pace I knew I could sustain all day and felt good. It was going to be a long, boring day, but I was kind of anxious to just pedal and not really think of much else. The route changed last minute and all the samples went to a hospital lab. The possibility of STAT runs was also added, meaning that I had to drive if those came up. It was a bit of a Catch 22, however, as I was also paid double.
Knowing this, I armed myself with many alternative plans to keep moving for 12 hours. 24 Hour Fitness had locations at both ends of the loop and the spin trainer and treadmill were options if STAT calls came pouring in. Since everyday and everything is training for AZT 750 at this point, as much as I wanted to ride outside all day, the extra money and the chance for "game time" adaptations were ok in my mind. Bikepacking is all about adapting--to, well, everything you can really imagine. I had a good conversation the other day about going with a rigid plan versus winging it. The best we came up with is a structured and intelligent "blueprint" that leaves many options for the unknown variables.
Wow, how vague is that? But, you get the point. And I am rambling.....
So, the STAT calls came in at just the "right" times to prevent me from riding another lap, but after 3x1hr spin sessions and 2x1hr treadmill runs, 30 minutes of core work, 40 minutes of stair climbing and 1.89 miles on the rowing machine, I would say 24 Hour Fitness did not make any profit on my membership yesterday.
The next to last run of the day was another STAT at 5:30 and I had not been on my bike since morning, so I set off into the sunset (really!) hoping for a 10-15 mile cooldown around the Green Mountain area. This is how far I got before the phone rang:
Lap 2
Finished up an extremely antiepic day around 9pm and on the way home, I realized that it was, in fact, a good test of adapting and perfect training for those quiet, just-grind-along days that don't provide any thrilling tales or accomplishments. These are the days that sometimes suck and sometimes don't suck. Yesterday didn't suck.
I returned home to find the home sprouted quinoa project a HUGE success! Buying sprouted quinoa for twice to three times the price of bulk unsprouted is now a thing of the past. On to the rice....
No work today. Time to ride!
All day.
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