Got That First Century Ride Under My Belt, Today

Slow and painful describes the ride pretty well. I spent over 7 hours on the bike, a bit more than 8 hours out on the trail. Now, I am never real fast on a Century. In fact, that time is about average for me.

Usually, however, I don't ride on trails that look like this for 35 or 40 miles out of the 100. The effort required to not only stay upright, but to just keep moving forward, made this more of a mixed-terrain ride than the normal paved ride I would have preferred.

There was a constant wind from the northwest, which translated to a head wind for much of the ride. The temperature was about 10 degrees cooler than yesterday, and the 35 degree F temps plus the wind made me feel chilled pretty much the whole time I was out.

Perversely, the effort required to deal with the snow and ice made me sweat to the point that everything I had on was soaked. Luckily, the wool and man-made wicking materials I was wearing still provided some warmth.

If you look at the large version of this picture, you can see the Denver skyline just over the rack on the bike. This is from the opposite side of town compared to the same shot from yesterday.
This shot was taken on top of the hill at Bear Creek Lake State Park.

Here's a shot showing some of the clouds which apparently dropped some snow, up in the mountains. Down here, they just shaded us and kept the temperatures low. (Looking in the opposite direction from the same spot as the photo, above.)

The route was mostly paved bike path, with a few miles of connector roads from and back to my house. In short: Cherry Creek Trail south to the 470 Trail. 470 Trail to Bear Creek Lake State Park and on to the Bear Creek Greenway. Bear Creek to the South Platte Trail. South on the Platte for a few miles, just to add some mileage, then back north to Confluence Park. From there, Cherry Creek Trail South, past where I turn to go home. Added some miles before turning around, to make the mileage come up to 99.68.

And, no, I am not going to ride around the block to make it exactly 100 miles. Close enough, for me.

Now, to collapse on the couch, and recover.

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