Rain and Recovery
Yesterday I rode a ride that I should do while here but dreaded effort. Case of can’t vs won’t. I started from the Mack TH riding the last piece of dirt road to the start of Troy Built single track. The purpose of this route was an easier shorter climb to top of Mack Ridge to descend Hawkeye back to van. I knew of all the hike a bike for me parts ahead which is source of won’t. What I can’t make I would walk. An the in between climbing parts would elevate my heart and blow up my breathing. Today I put myself in the position of going for a ride for enjoyment of being outside and letting the can’t parts just be. THC before starting helped mindset.
Right at start of Troy I waited and watched 2 women riders pedal up what I prolly would have walked because of steepness. Challenging trail for me, as steepness requiring either endurance or a burst of pedaling to climb a feature has left the barn. Watching others succeed when I can no longer do…. … . Cope.
Desert riding, just invasive junipers for green. I learned that junipers are an invasive species because of man’s interference with Mother. The cows grazed down the native grasses opening vegetation for juniper which take over competing with natural grasses. In nature’s way the juniper adapted fire resistant locations. Suppressed fires allow juniper spread. I learned this from an article about a location, that to protect endangered prairie chickens, junipers were being uprooted opening land back up.
Troy ends at non maintained 2 track to climb Mack Ridge.
Looking behind:
At the top of this beat up road I stopped for a break. As I started to pedal away a woman rider rode up. She called me by name, it was Anne formerly of Hot Tomato owner. Short catchup while I panted and she smiled while “pedaling” an M-bike. 2 track trail to top of ridge to start of single track wending its way on top over to start of Hawkeye. Hawkeye, 2.9 miles long, descending 928′ but climbing 318′. The descent is not all downhill.
My ride was 9.54 miles climbing 1001′ pedaling for 1 hr 33 mins, average beats per minute was 124. Recovery time is 46 hours. This was 12 mins longer than same ride this spring. I do enjoy the 30T ring and lowered saddle. Nice day to be outside. Not crowded, encountered maybe 15 others.
Weather person is not consistently in step with what Nature delivers. Rain fell early morning thru breakfast clean up enough to create puddles. Clouds moved downwind opening up sunshine and drying.
Recovery, per Garmin EDGE, is 46 hours which is pretty long. Today is a recovery day to listen to computer to take care of my body.
Evidence is it’s the third night the mouse eats the almond butter off the trap trigger before springing the trap. This last mouse ate the bait 2 nights straight, third time did not end well for the mouse. Same number of days for the previous capture.
I’m reading Kristin Hannah’s newest, The Four Winds, which is set prior and post dustbowl time around Dalhart, TX. Writer Egan described town as epicenter of dustbowl. Man’s inhumanity to man based on haves against the have nots. I visited Dalhart 2X, saw green.