Well, today was the T-Town 40 mile ride in Tehachapi. I went to pick up my check-in stuff yesterday. I had to accommodate the bib number on the front of the bike. It took a while, but I got it right. I put the bib behind the GoPro camera and attached it with zip ties. I had no issues. The only carveout was that the bib number was a bit obscured. But the timing chip was getting picked up by the time stations. I was good to go by the end of Friday. I got up early, as planned. About 4:10 AM-ish. I went through my usual routine. I had my que sheet and I marked off the steps until it was ready to go. We arrived at the old Kmart parking lot. The temperature was cool. I removed my knee warmers and kept my arm warmers on. The wind was mild, and going East-bound. There were not as many cyclists as I was anticipating. As I was getting ready, the GI was getting somewhat tender. I iced it for a few minutes. But, the thing that did the trick was to just take a few moments and do some deep breathing exercises. After doing that for about 10 minutes, the pains subsided and I was able to go about my business. My gear was already on the bike, so there was minimal preparation time. I took a bio before the start. When the announcer told the riders to assemble, I rode to the start line. I was a bit about 1/3rd from the front and I wasn't expecting the start to happen so quick. After the ride commenced, rode for about a quarter mile, then I decided to push as much as I could to get to the front. I could see the front riders in the distance about 300 yards or so, and they seemed to be pulling away. I passed most of the riders and managed to get within the top 20 riders or so. The air quality was bad. It was evident when I noticed the sun was hardly causing the usual morning glare. Perhaps the only advantage. It was very safe to move up. I spent most of the time on Tehachapi Blvd just moving up. When I reached Steuber, the field had already fragmented. I settled into a pace that I could sustain without burning too many matches. I made my way East, through Highline, WS road and Tehachapi Blvd. I knew the conditions of the road, so my placement on the road was done as I planned. At the turn-around point, no one stopped. I headed back. As I was making my way back to WS road, there was another cyclist that bridged up to me. He looked to be my better, so I hopped on my wheel with the intention to take turns pulling. We got back on Highline and headed West. I helped my companion by taking some pulls. There was minimal communication. We knew what to do. By this time, I was getting settled into a tempo that I knew I could sustain. The major climbs were ahead. When we reached the Highline climb, my companion pulled away. I kept my tempo going. The Banducci Wall went as planned. Minimal traffic mitigation. I was in my low gears and I think I brought back a rider or two. Then, Arosa. My climbing legs were warmed up, so I was able to hold high tempo. I had my music on and it kept me company. Playing the "how many songs do I need to get there" game. It worked like a charm. In the past 30-ish minutes, I noticed that the GPS was getting inaccurate readings. Something was interfering with the radio communication. After a while, it came back. I don't remember checking my HR at the summit of Arosa, but likely near max. Getting around the backside was quick. I used my low gears on the steeper sections. I reached the first rest stop. It went as planned. Mom brought the Gatorade bottle. I swapped out the GoPro battery. I removed my arm warmers and headed out. I made my way to the Banducci summit and headed down the mountain. It was a fast descent. The wind was mild and continued towards the East. I met up with a casual cyclist that was able to hold a good tempo. I was a bit surprised. We took a few turns until we reached Pellisier. I pulled away from him a bit. There were two other guys that bridged up to me. They appeared to be my better. I tried to hop on their wheel. I was holding on, but near max. I eventually let them go. My morale was lifting. All this time, I was taking mental notes about the next climbs, downhills and flat sections. The last major climb was up CVR. The legs felt good. No cramping or soreness. So, I put in what I had left. I was able to bring back one rider. I didn't see anyone ahead of me at this time. I went at my pace, mostly high tempo. When I reached the summit, I decided to feed. I was able to do it without stopping. I fed half my Cliff Bar. I was able to recover on the false flat, but I kept the tempo high. Route 202 had minimal traffic. I played it safe and used the right shoulder to let traffic by. It didn't detract from my speed. I made it to OTR. I descended as normal, trying to keep my position. I was mostly in the drops. Then Mariposa, the usual quick grind that hurts a bit. I'm used to it, so I just toughed it out. From there, I made a right turn on Country Club. This is where things go interesting. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to go straight or right. I decided right as that was how I memorized the course. This had my "upstairs" gears churning. I was half encouraged that the ride was almost complete, but I was also worried that I skimped on the course. Eventually, I realized that all I had to do was to check the GPS for the current mileage. It seemed accurate. By my calculation I would arrive at the finish by mile 40, give or take half a mile. I proceeded as planned. I tried to put the possible fumble, but it did detract from my concentration. I put it into high tempo up Westwood. When I reached Red Apple, the light was red. I had to sit there for about 20-30 seconds till the light turned green. When it did, I headed east till I arrived at Tehachapi Blvd. I timed the stop light better than the previous Gran Fondos. I wasn't delayed by much. The last half mile was flat. There was a time keeper about 1/4 mile from the finish. I had to yell out my number because it was partially obstructed by the GoPro camera. I arrived at the finish and I heard the announcer call out my bib number. So, I was happy to finish, but also relived that the timing chip was working as it should. I picked up my medal, met the folks and that was it. We took some photos and I cleaned up a bit. We assembled our gear. The folks went shopping while I was out there. We had to accommodate the goods. They got their stuff done while I did mine. Overall, I am very pleased with this ride. The body responded very well. My concentration was about as good as it could get. I was in the zone with my game face on. The only regret was the weather. It was filled with smoke in the atmosphere. I could feel it in the lungs when I was pushing it on the climbs. It didn't escalated till I got back. Gear worked well. Despite the GPS reading outages, that was the only issue. Nutrition was perfect. I fed half a Cliff Bar and about one full bottle of Gatorade. I didn't have to bio at the first rest stop. Balance and form was real good. I felt square on the pedals, and the body wasn't rocking. I felt good out of the saddle. Ailments were minimal. No signs of cramping. I think my left shin was getting a bit sore on Highline, so I adjust the pedaling to my right leg to alleviate it. It subsided and never came back. The next challenge, given that all things are well is the Spooktacular ride. Mission accomplished.

Other notes, looks like the wattage metrics were off by quite a bit.

Other notes: I reviewed the footage. It shows that the marker on the ground was facing straight on the corner of Mariposa and Country Club. So, those riders that followed the map went right and those following the markers went straight to White Pine and back. Somewhat of a botch, but oh well.