Well, it's cooler, but the smoke is back. It smells like burning leaves, outside. So, I decided to do a Zwift ride that's been on my bucket list. Mont Ventoux. An epic 13 mi climb, with 5000 ft of vertical gain. I estimated that it would take about 90 minutes to reach the summit. I had to hardwire the France map in the prefs.xml file. Map #10. I got my gear together and hopped on! I wasn't exactly sure what to expect. It was nearly 100% uphill, with no respite. I kept my tempo nice and steady. No surges. I was out of the saddle most of the time. In the saddle to wipe sweat and hydrate. I was using my glass strap. So, minimal slippage on the glasses. Much better! There's not much to tell on the ride. It's a ride that feels like you are going slow-motion. A few miles into the ride, I realized that I forgot to update my weight. I thought, well, it can't be more than 2 lbs + or -. Turns out that it was set 1 lbs over. (So, no weight doping on this ride). I was able to settle into a tempo that I felt confident that I could sustain. It was around 3 W/kg. Less wattage in the saddle, more while standing. It was a bit intimidating because I knew I had to climb 5000 feet. When I was at 1000 feet, it played in my mind. I tried not to pay attention to the vertical distance climbed. I tried to listen to the music, and observe the surroundings. Also, I was paying attention to my metrics. Mostly my wattage, HR, and speed. The gradient was something to pay attention too. The climb had landmarks every KM. It shows the KM remaining and the % gradient in that segment. Most of the road ahead was out of site, and thus out of mind. So, it was easy to focus on the individual segment. I tried not to count each KM marker, but I couldn't help it. When I reached the 5KM marker, the morale lifted. In the meantime, I kept my tempo in the zone, HR and concentration. As I was expecting, The terrain shifted from a heavily vegetated scenery, to a moon-like landscape, in the last few KM's. As I was climbing, I noticed that most of the other riders were putting in much less wattage than I was. So, I was thinking... Where would that put me in the standing? No clue, didn't care much. I just kept my tempo going. In the last KM, I was able to push it just a bit more. Pretty much at my max. I was able to grab the KOM. (Keeping in mind, that there were only 400 riders on the map). I completed the climb in about 87 minutes. A bit faster than my estimation. From there, it was downhill to the finish. Mostly soft pedaling. I cooled down for a few minutes and finished the ride. Concentration was good. The music was loud. I was taken in by the new surroundings. Balance and form felt good. Ailments. The ball of my right foot became sore about half way into the ride. I adjusted my weight a few times and then it subsided. My right hand has a callus. I was having to change hand positions on the hoods. Gear worked well. I did throw my chain off once, maybe twice, otherwise, all worked well. Nutrition was spot on. I consumed all of my sport drink and some water.

Other notes, I was able to hold a higher HR as the ride progressed.