Today in two weeks, I will be climbing Mt Mitchell... Actually, I am hoping around this time, I am already done with it. Are you guys already sick and tired of me talking about Mitchell? Just two more weeks leading up to the big day and then maybe around two weeks to process the big day and we are all done... Promise! ;-)
Anywho, since I am still in training and played in the mud Saturday, it was time to get some cycling miles in on Sunday. 55 miles to be exact.
First, I thought about riding around Donaldson Center again, but then I decided to ride from the house to safe me the 30 minute trip to other side of town. I rode towards the mountains, which meant rolling hills... Or good training.
During the first 15 miles of the ride, I rode down a little downhill and already saw a dog at the bottom of the hill. I slowed down some and the dog veered over to the side of the road.
The dog didn't seem to be mean spirited, but then I saw three more dogs coming out of the foods and had an "Oh @#$%%^" moment. But fortunately, they were pretty good natured as well. PHEW!
I mapped out the ride before and the plan was all along to climb Paris Mountain on my way home, just around my mile 50. But after those two hard efforts, I really questioned doing Paris at all, I just wasn't feeling it anymore.
Eventually, I did the climb, but it wasn't pretty. Two guys passed me on the way up and they just made it look like I was pedaling in place. Once I was at the top, I had to stop and regain my composure for a little while.... This felt super hard today... The "oh boy, I think I have to throw up" kinda hard, but fortunately, my stomach settled fairly quick again.
If you never did the Paris Mountain climb from the Altamont side, here is a little visual for you. It's a time lapse video that I recorded today, to give you a little of an idea... 2.2 miles of pure bliss climbing! Enjoy!! ;-)
glad those dogs were uninterested in you! pretty fancy video there - does it strap to your helmet?
ReplyDeletewe will definitely have to ride post-mitchell... and add some weights to your bike to give me a little more advantage, haha.
Thank goodness the dogs didn't bother you! I feel lucky that I haven't had any encounters with animals, but most of my cycling is done in-town rather than on country roads like you! (I'd love to ride some country roads some day!)
ReplyDeleteAre cars in your area cyclist-friendly? It's super BAD here & I won't ride unless there's a bike lane. Drivers just don't want to share the road down here!