I had a good night’s sleep. I got up exactly as I planned, 3:20 AM. It wasn’t too bad. The excitement got me going. I followed the morning agenda. I had oatmeal for breakfast. Without going into the details, I stayed busy. Doing exactly what I was supposed to. Getting the bike ready, putting the stuff in the car, etc. I shoved off around 5:00 AM. The only things I forgot were my shoes and a wash cloth. The commute was better this time than last. I wore my normal glasses that I normally have in my car. My vision was a lot better with that. I was a bit overdue on a bio break when I stopped at the Comanche Subway. I relieved myself as much as I could. I got back on the road and made my way to the start. The traffic was no issue. When I arrived, the parking lot was mostly empty. I found parking within the lot. I checked in, took a bio, got my stuff ready and then put on my gear. It was around 7:00 AM when I shoved off. Just in time. There wasn’t a mass group. It was more of a mass line of riders. I got the clothing right. I wore double arms, knees, head cap, thick and thin base layer and 3 sheets of newspaper in the jersey. Turned out to be the perfect combination. I kept all my layers on for the entire ride. The legs felt good to start. I let people pass me and I told myself to do my own ride. Navigation was a no-brainer. Only a few turns and otherwise follow the road ahead. It took about 1 hour to get to the base of the first climb. The first climb felt good. I used my easy gears, did in and out of the saddle efforts while tacking when needed. It was peaceful with minimal traffic and noise. I had my music going and that helped too. Before the climb started, I was fumbling with my watch to get the HR metric going. Eventually it did and I didn’t have to worry about it anymore. After cresting the summit, I noticed that there wasn’t a rest stop at the top like last year. So, I had to go into analysis mode. I went into the assumption that a rest stop would be at the turn-around. So, I proceeded as normal. I descended the mountain. It got cold in the canyon. The extra newspaper helped wonders. I stopped once to feed. Somewhere between 1:30 and 2 hours into the ride. I got back on the road and from there, it was non-stop to the turn-around. Somewhere around this time, the GPS power readings went haywire. It was announcing false readings. I was a bit put off by it, but it wasn’t a deal breaker. When I got there, I was greeted by the rest stop. I took a quick bio. Then I went to the feed station and grabbed some water. The poured some water into my bottles. I was under the assumption that it was plain water. (I will never know). Nevertheless, I mixed a powder drink with one of the bottles. Shortly after, I got back on the bike. The morale was good and so was the body. I had the general sensation of fatigue, but that was normal for me. I took some quick photos and then headed back. I kept the tempo moderate while alternating in and out of the saddle. I stopped about halfway to the last climb to feed. I fed a Clif Bar with some water. I was keeping tabs on my provisions since there were no more feed stations. After feeding, I got back on the road. About 15 minutes later, I was feeling some unusual deep tissue soreness in lower GI. It felt like my soft “sit” tissue was starting to cramp. No clue if it was my prostate, or just cramping in general. Nevertheless, I had to deal with it. It hurt more when I was riding out of the saddle and that confused me. Usually it’s the opposite. I was coaching myself to stay calm. I kept my mind concentrated by thinking there was just one climb remaining. The remainder is less intense. That helped. The pain subsided every so often. After cresting the summit, the descent was nice. Minimal soreness down there. After reaching the base, I was getting hunger signs. I stopped at the last turn around, China Grade Loop. I would have been crawling if I didn’t. Fortunately, the finished was just a mile or two up the road. I almost missed the turn as it didn’t seem there was a left turn lane. I’m glad I remembered where I started. After making it back, I checked out, took a bio, went back to the car, stopped the GoPro and called it a ride. Now, about the soft tissue cramping, it went away after about 20 to 30 minutes of getting off the bike. I tired to analyze what happened. It has never happened before. I did several big rides in Tehachapi with no ill effects. I can only attribute it to the water that was provided at the feed station. Perhaps there was some added minerals that had a bad reaction. Otherwise, I consumed provisions that I brought. Admittedly, I am a bit disappointed that it happened. It ruined what could have been an ideal ride. As it goes, almost nothing goes as planned. If it weren’t for my meticulous planning, it could have gone a whole lot worse. So, it was a successful ride in the sense that I faced some nasty daemons out there and held it together. Will I do it next year, I will see how my appetite feels.

Last thoughts…
Concentration was good. I had a few lapses here and there, but eventually the stress of the moments is what kept me a bit more square. The morale wasn’t too good with the cramping issue, but then again that’s what got me home. Balance and form was good. I felt good in and out of the saddle despite the “bad stuff” happening on the last half. Ailments, as mentioned. The legs were fatigued but no cramping. The back and knees felt good. I had sore hands now and again, but did not detract too much. I was able to relieve them by giving them a good wiggle. Nutrition was good. I had 3 Clif Bars, two bottles of sport drink and about two bottles of water. I could have used more provisions on the last half of the ride. Not my fault, but before blaming the organizers, I could have brought an extra bottle. Gear worked well, but had a few problems. The GPS Power metrics stopped working half way through the ride. Everything else worked ok. The GPS navigation was so so. I knew where to go. I was checking the map screen. The route didn’t appear green as it usually does, but it showed the directional arrows. I heard some announcements, so I guess it did work. The front brake was almost bottoming out. It was fine in the morning when I was putting the bike in the car. I am guessing the safety shim I placed in the calipers caused a reaction of sorts. I will have to bleed the front brakes. No fun. Other notes, people were nice with no altercations. The weather cooperated. The roads were generally well paved. I had no bicycle mechanicals.

Other notes, I started the GPS about half a mile into the ride. I'm not sure what happened, I guess I started it but hit the wrong button. So just a bit of metrics were lost.