Inadvertent 100K

Saturday's workout was to consist of a 3 hour ride, so Ashli and I decided to meet down in the South Bay for a 45 mile ride, starting in Burlingame, out to Canada Road, through Woodside, up Old La Honda and back.

I figured it might be a bit over 3 hours, but a good ride for us, nonetheless, to get ready for our next race -- California 70.3, to be held the first weekend in April in Oceanside.

During the week I recruited Dana to join us.

The ride started out with a misting of rain and me praying that it didn't start to pour, as riding in the rain isn't very much fun. After about 15 or so miles, the rain stopped and I thought we were in for a great ride. The miles were going by quickly and I felt strong, even though I have spent very little time on my bike over the last six months.

Even the 3.35 mile, 1290 ft. climb up Old La Honda went quickly, as Dana and I chatted the entire way up. It was a lovely way to pass the time of the climb. Better yet, for the first time on a steep climb, we PASSED people!

Climbing is always fun, as what goes up must come down! We started our decent down La Honda looking for our next turn back into Woodside to make our way back to Burlingame, but alas, we made a wrong turn. Instead of heading east onto 84 (a turn that was impossible to spot unless you knew it was there), we headed west.

West 84 consisted of a 6 mile descent, and a few miles beyond the descent sits the town of LaHonda (and a little bar called Applejacks that I must visit sometime!). As we passed through La Honda I started to question if we were going the right way. I was pretty sure we weren't. We rode on for a few more miles contemplating the unplanned 6 mile climb we were going to have to tackle in return for our error. Finally, about 10 miles out from our missed turn, we turned around to make our way back. I thought Ashli was going to kill me. (She didn't.)

Each of us rode in solitude as we made our way back the hill we had just descended. (I was sure Ashli was swearing at me the entire way back up.) Knowing that Ironman France has a 30K climb in the middle, I kept reminding myself this was a good experience for what awaits me in June (I have a feeling the France climb is much steeper... I am too scared to look). After regrouping at fueling at the top, we found our missed turn and made our way back to Woodside and then back to Burlingame.

What was supposed to be a 46 mile ride turned into a 70 mile, 5 1/2 hour adventure, but it was such fun. I always enjoy a good ride, and this ride was no exception. I enjoyed the company and the challenge, even if it came a bit earlier than planned in the season.

The ride wiped me out, however, as I was fast asleep not long after returning home.