It’s a great day to get out. I tried to get out as early as I could. I dragged myself out of bed after the morning nap. The weather is nice and cool. In the upper 60’s. Winds from the North West. Perfect for going to SS. I wore arm coolers, and a thin base layer. The legs felt pretty good to start. I made it to the top of OTR in good time. I had a slight headwind at that time. The Banducci Wall had some traffic mitigation. So, I was on 6 O’clock alert. I was near max going over the top. I was able to recover on the flats. I finished the remainder of the climb doing no less than moderate tempo, doing in and out of the saddle efforts. After reaching the summit, I pulled over and recovered. I let traffic by and then made my way down the mountain. As I started the descent, there were cars from behind, so I decided to let them pass. After that, it was non-stop descending. The calm wind conditions made it safe. As I was reaching the base, I felt something go inside my jersey and I felt a poke of some sort. So, I stopped after I made my way down the mountain to see if I could free the bug before it got worse. I never found the bug in my jersey, but I opened it up and gave it a good shaking. I felt no stings after that, so I guess it found its way free. When I crossed the water grates, the GPS mount tipped upwards. I waited till I made it to Pellisier on the way to SS. I pushed the GPS mount back to level. I’m not sure why it tips upwards instead of down. Very strange. From there, I made my way to SS. I made my way around the backside and then into the descent. I put in a good sprint on the downhill. I need to work on my form. At the end of the sprint, I need to immediately get into a tuck. More difficult than it sounds. I stopped at the local park to take a quick bio. Shortly after, I got back on my bike and made my way into town. I think I passed the tunnel in around 1:03-ish hours. I stopped at the local mini-mart to mix a sport drink. There was a cyclist at the table that I usually go to. We chatted for a minute or two. He was very friendly. Shortly after, I got back on the road. The return trip through the farmlands was quick. I had a nice tailwind on the way back. I passed boss hogs in around 1:26 hours or so. I gave up a couple minutes, not too bad. The last climb went as plan. I did no less than moderate tempo. After reaching the summit, I pulled over to feed a Clif Bar. Then I got back on the road and finished the ride. Route 202 had traffic mitigation. I was having to sprint to the left turn onto OTR. Descending off OTR was fun and games. I was able to relax a bit and enjoy the ride. I pushed over Mariposa and shut it down once I reached the top of Weston.

Concentration was good. I had stuff to think about. I had few lapses and no gremlins worth mentioning. Balance and form were good. Ailments were minimal, just the usual hand soreness. Nutrition was good. I fed a banana and grapes before the ride. That held me over. I fed a Clif Bar during the ride. I went through most of two bottles of sport drink and some water. I choked a bit when I fed, so I was having to wash my throat with water for a few minutes. Gear worked flawlessly. Other notes, there were no other cyclists on the road, just the friendly at the SS mini-mart.