10 little loops. 10 agonizingly long loops. 10 boring loops. 10 not-so-bad loops.
I'll go with the last. It wasn't too bad. I did some out and backs, some normal loops, rode all the extra little roads that I could to add as much mileage as possible (4/10ths here, 7/10ths there- it all adds up).
I saw A LOT of people enjoying their morning workouts. Some people were out there for a very long time. Saw a group of soldiers in full packs hiking around the lake. I saw them lots of times as I passed them on 3 loops. I was going to see them again, but at mile 32 I heard the sound you don't want to hear: kkssssssssssssss....
Rear tire went flat (why is it always the rear I ask you?). Sounded like it was the valve, so no fixing that tube. Flipped the bike over, changed the flat, had trouble with the CO2 inflater so I couldn't get the tire fully pumped back up. Luckily I was close to home, so I rode home, took a rest stop and pumped the tire back up.
My ride was broken down into three segments:
30 miles- then rest stop at the house
40 miles- then rest stop at the house
30 miles- then finish!
I figured this would give me opportunity to refill the camelbak, the water bottle, and sit in the cool for a few minutes. It worked out well- better than I thought. I was thankful to be able to use my own bathroom, change my shorts after 70 miles, and re-apply chamois butt'r without prying eyes.
Here is my progression of pictures from the day:
Sunrise over the lake
Lap 1
Lap 2
sun getting brighter
Lap 3- still smiling
Lap 4
I wish I could go as fast as the cars on the highway
woo hoo- halfway done
number 6
Lucky #7
8- don't let the smile fool you- I'm hurting here- and two pedal strokes from tossing my bike over the dam
90 miles- almost done!!!
YES!!!! Done!!
It took me 7:03 to do it. Not great. I averaged over 15 on the first 50, but the last 50 was not good. My overall average was 14.1. It was hot and I was getting very tired.
Well, and the longest training ride I've done in the last 5 weeks has been 32 miles... so there you go.