Pre-Ironman Ride

The pre-ironman ride was the most terrifying part of this weekend. I haven't ridden my bike in a week and I haven't ridden that bike since it came back from Lisbon 3weeks ago... but mainly because the last time I did a pre-ironman ride, I realised something was wrong with me.

Today I took a  turn out of the drive and under a disused railway bridge then set  off along a lovely quiet bike network route. It was a bit rough on my tt bike but the surface was ok really. Better than Cornish lanes.

I  was only supposed to ride for 20 minutes but as I said I have done nothing on the bike for ages so I gave it 30. Having reached the high point on the lane, The least I could do was drop it down to the river and enjoy the ride back over the hill on my return.

By the time I had ridden a couple of undulations and started worrying about exposure to some magical fatigue I was feeling really happy to be back to riding on small,  beautiful lanes. Well away from the race route and anyone else. It was like just being out for a ride! Can you imagine it?

After 15 minutes, despite not having reached the river, I turned around at a farmhouse and stopped for a moment to appreciate the silence, except there's always someone,  somewhere,  mowing a fucking lawn.

I  was straight back to a hill climb but unlike last time I just powered up it. Sure, with the lack of bike training, it was nothing special and I could feel my swimmers arms more than my bike legs, but I rode up every slope with my breath still in tact. I  also noticed that the massive boil I had on my bum which has prevented me from riding was no longer hurting in the slightest. Phew!

As I crested the final climb I realised where I was.  Right before me was that damn road. The grassy slope before me was the start of the last 10 miles of tomorrow. I took a photo and descended to lunch.

The green slice in the middle is the Dam