I just got back. I had lunch. I'm tired. Let's take it from the top. I got up when I planned. Just after 6 AM. I followed my morning check list in textbook fashion. It's proving to be near infallible. I cooked some eggs on tortilla. I was only able to eat half of it. The stomach just didn't permit more. I had to gulp some Pepto to calm it down. I spent some time in the bathroom, allowing my body to equalize. The soreness subsided and so did my morale. After getting ready. I put all my stuff in the car and headed out. I made it to the start point in good time. No mishaps or close calls. As before, no one was parked on the backside of the Post Office. I took my time and got all my gear and carry-ons ready. I went through my departure checklist. I did not forget a thing. An ideal start. The legs were a bit heavy. I had hours ahead of me, so plenty of time to get warmed up. The temperature was excellent. I wore exactly as I should have. Arm warmers, knee warmers, 1 thick base layer. I brought 3 bottles. 2 Gatorade and one water. Food, 3 cliff bars. Suffice it to say, I had plenty of provisions. The legs felt better after about 10 minutes into the ride. The morale felt good. I had a tailwind, my music going and plenty of miles ahead. I played it by the landmarks. Mostly the homes and mini animal farms. The miles went fast. I think it was about 30 to 60 minutes into the ride that I had to bio. I found a discrete place and conducted business. Very important not to hold it in. I've learned no to let the ego get in the way, in this regard. There were some wild life out and about. I got it all on video. I made it to the cafe about 15.5 miles into the ride. I approached the door to read the sign posted. It said that the business was closed and that a different one will open in an non-disclosed time, to my recollection. Will have to consult my photos on that. After getting back on the road, I was thinking of what lay ahead. The next segment was chock full of steep climbs. My plan was to pull over at the base and feed. That's what I did. I found a nice place and fed about 3/4 of a Cliff Bar. I saved the remainder for when I reached the summit. I was trying to count the risers. I think I counted about 6 in total. The right calf was complaining about half way up. So, I was having to mitigated it by tacking more aggressively. The climb was somewhat forgiving. It undulated between climbs. That gave enough time for my ailing muscles to recover. As I was making my way up the last two risers, a rider bridged up to me. The gentlemen and I briefly spoke. He explained that he lived in the nearby area. Only one mile into his ride. He seemed to be escorting a friend or family. His companion was a bit behind us. He mentioned that they don't get very good cell phone reception, and internet service is horrible. But, they do have telephone land lines. Very interesting. He went on to say that he's counting on Star Link to service his area. Sounds like the perfect place for such. After reaching the summit, I pulled over into a turnout. I fed the remainder of my Cliff Bar, texted dad (I had phone reception at that point). The only thing I forgot was to check my car's location with the smartphone. I was a bit distraught about it. I was hoping to find a place later in the ride to check. Shortly after, I made my way down the mountain. At this point I had a headwind. At least it was mostly downhill. This part of the ride is the most boring. Going into a headwind, straight roads, fields that go on forever. Fortunately, it's about 5 miles or so till the road turns into the mountain. I pulled over another time to bio. I think that was the last time. On the previous time doing this ride I fed before the last climb. My energy levels felt good. I pulled over to poor my extra Gatorade to my primary. I was preparing for the last climb. At this point, the quads were a bit sore, but tolerable. The last climb took some time to get the legs going. I decided to feed after reaching the summit. I think the climb was a bit longer than I recalled. After reaching the summit, I found a nice place to feed and fed a Chocolate Mint Cliff Bar. That settled the hunger signs. The next thing I was thinking about was to find an opening where I could get phone reception. I found one such spot. I checked my car's location, but it showed that it was parked at home. I guess the car was not transmitting its location at the Post Office. I was a bit concerned, but I was wise enough to know that all is well and concentrate on the ride. I decided to send dad a text message from this point.
I was about 30 minutes to the finish. The descent was a treat. I was going into a headwind, so braking wasn't extreme. It took about 20 minutes to get to the base. I reached the base and kept going, no stopping. The remainder wasn't anything special, other than knowing that I was going to complete what I set out to do according to plan. The car was right where I left it. Undisturbed. That was the end of the ride. All went well. Concentration was good. There were some places that felt desolate. So important to maintain concentration when that happens. It's so easy to get discouraged. It only takes a slight distraction. Today, that was my music player. Balance and form was good. Ailments, some right calf soreness during the half-way climbs. It subsided and never returned. I had some quad soreness in the last hour, but it never escalated, and got better in the last half hour. Gear worked perfect. Although, I had to swap out a GoPro battery. For some reason, the battery bank wasn't charging it in the last two hours. I don't think I lost any footage. Nutrition was spot on. I had all the provisions I needed. I fed as planned and staved off the bonk. Other notes, I saw three cyclists today. After making it back to my car, there were no other cars parked in that area. A bit surprised given the ideal conditions that it was today.