Haven't been on my bike (nor out for a run) since Saturday and I'm starting to get a bit irritable because of it. As much as I want to get a quick ride in, I just can't justify it right now with the amount of work I have to do on this current project I have. Last year I came dangerously close to putting my mountain biking above my work and I intend to not let that happen again this year. It sucks to say it, but if I can only get 1 or 2 days of riding in during my main crunch weeks with work, then that's the way it has to be. So this week I'll only ride once. I'll make up for it in a week or two.
I've already come to grips with the likely fact that I'm not going to be in as good shape at the Spokane 24 hour race this May as I was last year. Hopefully it won't be a dramatic difference, but I'm setting my expectations low for that first one. Of course, I say that now but since I ride regularly with at least 2 (and possibly 4 or 5) guys who will be soloing it for the first time this year I know my competitive streak is going to kick in and I'm going to will myself to be in good enough shape to beat them. Not that it matters, but it'd kind of look bad if I didn't do an extra lap considering I'm younger, I have the experience in that sort of racing, and by golly I'm better looking too. Although it's going to be hard to beat them when most of them show up for my weekly "Endurance Training Series" rides.
I would have reconsidered this whole ETS thing if I had known I'd be helping to train my competition. That's not true, misery loves company and I'd probably be riding less if it wasn't for that series.
I really do need to get the ball going a bit more though. This weekend's high-speed cruise on the Snoqualmie Valley Trail should knock some more rust off. We're starting in Fall City near the entrance to Tokul West and riding gravel rail-trail east into the Cascades until we hit snow and then we'll turn around and cruise pace-line style back home. Should make for a 45-50 mile ride roundtrip with maybe some singletrack tacked on at the end if it's not too muddy.
Was doing some reading last night during my down time (bathroom) in one of the National Geographic Driving Guide books I have and think I have a very, very tentative plan for the week we head down to Leadville. I'm thinking instead of driving down through southern Utah and over past Grand Junction, we'll instead take our time driving along the southern edge of Wyoming then cut down to Steamboat Springs (stop in and see the Moots factory) and make our way to the western entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park for two days of backpacking. From there, we'll head east to Boulder to see my brother for another day or so and aim to get to Leadville that Tuesday before the race. I'll probably do one or two short rides on the course to keep the legs fresh that week, but mostly just do some sight-seeing and relaxing with Kristin.
And to help with the whole acclimitization thing, I put a call into these guys for info about renting one of their altitude tents for the month before the race. I have no idea how much it would cost to rent for the month, but if it's not more than a couple hundred dollars I'm going to strongly consider it. After all, the alternative is to try and get to Colorado two to three weeks before the race... and that is not an option.
Speaking of not an option -- and not in any way related to mountain biking -- I was really hoping to go see Barack Obama tomorrow morning in Seattle, but I just can't do it. Didn't get enough work done today to justify the hours it would require considering I imagine I'd have to be in line well over an hour early to even have a shot at getting in to Key Arena when the door's open. And it will probably be an hour of standing around waiting before he takes the podium. Then another hour of applause and cheering before he starts to speak. He's going to pack that place tighter than if Jimi Hendrix and Kurt Cobain rose from the grave and anounced they were launching The Grateful Un-Dead reunion tour. It really sucks since even if he wins the nominee, I doubt we'll see him again here in WA during the run-up to the general election. At least not in western WA unless he needs money.
Oh well, the caucus should be fun though. I think I'll bike there.
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