The weather was on the warm side today. In the mid to upper 80's. Some overcast. Winds from the North West. I wore the standard kit. I felt average going out the door. I made it to Route 202 faster than it felt. By that time, I was sufficiently warmed up. I burned a few matches going up the Banducci wall. The remainder of the climb was mostly moderate/good steady tempo to the summit. No digs. The descent from Banducci to the base of OTR was mostly soft pedaling, but I wanted to keep my legs warmed up. I had a direct headwind making my way to the top of the descent on WTR. From there, it was mostly soft pedaling, and again, keeping my legs warmed up. Considering the heat, my legs felt pretty good. I saved my matches for the steeper sections. After reaching the Loop monument, I put it into moderate tempo to let my body recover. When I reached the second dip, I noticed that my left hip muscles starting to get sore. It persisted for the remainder of the climb. The last few miles up wasn't good for the ailments. I survived by trying all sorts of positions in and out of the saddle, stretching on every occasion. I was considering to pull over and let my body recover, but I chose not to because I knew my legs would get cold and it would take a while to get warmed back up. So, I grit my teeth and made my way to the summit. After reaching the summit, I slowed down to a crawl to let my body recover. I also stretched my left leg as much as I could and it helped. The soreness went away. Had this been the GranFondo, I would have been in the same pain, but able to finish strong. The remainder of the ride was fun and games going down WTR. Concentration was good today, probably the greater of things. I was in the zone and few lapses with almost no gremlins. Ailments consisted of left hip muscle soreness that persisted on the last few miles up WTR ascent. Some numbness in the right hand. Some soreness in the lower back. Balance and form was average. Gear is working well. No issues there. Other notes, there were about 4 or 5 cyclists crossing paths. There were some cheerful passer by-ing motorists. Always a welcome encouragement.

I got up late today after sleeping in a bit. I was debating whether to do Keene or add Banducci. I chose the latter.