Mother Nature sent my nemesis, Wind, to try to slay me. Wind is relentless and implacable, but I am strong and resilient. It was an epic battle, but I survived unbowed. No doubt we will meet again in battle, probably sooner rather than later. I thought that I'd get in a classic metric century in preparation for the upcoming Cottonwood 200, and naively expected a nice day based on a casual reading of the forecast. Foolish boy. The wind really was relentless, and the nice ride turned into a horrific slog. The first day of the CW200 is usually like that though, so I suppose that I'm prepared. Wore the red Giordana jersey and PI Attack shorts. My new grey sweatbands are thicker and warmer than my old black ones, so the helmet strap needs to be a bit looser for comfort, especially in the heat. Oh, and Mother Nature must have expected me to fail, because I spooked a flock of turkey vultures just outside on Manhattan. Today they went hungry if they were waiting for me!