Weekend and Monday

This weekend was not your typical Easter weekend. Saturday's ride was a little over 50 miles (53 I think). We went through some of the the most gorgeous areas of Spain imaginable. I was thinking of my parents riding their motorcycle out west because the cliffs I saw are just like the ones in their pictures. The switchback around and down each mountain just keep going.......you think you are done the climb but no, you have another 5-6k to go. Each stop was in one of the white villages that look like postcard snapshots. I can't really take a picture going 45-50 mph down a hill but I did take a few during the breaks. The cafe con leche, a little glass of coffee with steamed milk, was something we stop for during each ride, usually about 1.5-2 hours in. I have been practicing my Spanish at these places but vocabulary in a coffee shop doesn't have a big variety. Anyways, Saturday was a solid day on the bike and the weather was gorgeous. I was proud of myself for completing each climb just a few minutes behind the main Bike Doctor group.

Sunday's plan was a 70 mile ride. It really only came to be about 60 in the end but that includes 6500 feet! of climbing. One climb alone was this: switchback after switchback for 11K...that's a little under 7 miles. At the top, this town called Zaffaria, we looked out into the valley where you could basically see the road on which we rode...winding steadily up up up. Motorcycles with 3 wheels, trucks, tiny cars, other bikes all passed us on the way. The other bikes were going downhill. Total time was 45 minutes up. Lunch never tasted so good. Ted said he was so exhausted at the top that he didn't even know what was in his sandwich. Ha, it turned out to be an egg sandwich with lettuce and tomato but who cares when you are really really hungry.

Sunday's ride had another huge hill with a headwind just after a little tiny downhill out of Zaffaria. I rode most of that one alone b/c a few of the guys stopped for a "biobreak." In other words, to let out the water they sucked down and it's a good thing the sag wagon has toilet paper. At the end of that climb all through the quarry section, we stopped and for the next 30-40 minutes it was flat/downhill---That's how big these mountains are!!!

Back at the villa (the place is called Idlebreaks and I believe it's at Idlebreaks.com), I drank all this recovery drink the guys swear by and chowed on this amazing Easter meal. Sorry I didn't call/write home on Easter but I just couldn't find the energy to do anything but feed my face and lay flat. Remember, Dad, the night after snowboarding for the first time, when I couldn't raise my fork?? I felt that way last night.

Monday: Day 5

This was supposed to be our recovery ride day. I joked about it for awhile because the plan was to have a 20mile ride to the Time Trail spot. The time trail spot, a place called Puerto Del Sol, is a 7K climb that ends at a lookout of the valley. A time trial is where John, our sag/driver dude whose THE MAN, starts the clock at the bottom of the mountain, and then stops it at the top. You do everything possible to get a score faster than the ones on the wall back at the villa. Then the rest of the ride (no, the recovery ride is not over yet) was back home another 20 miles or so. THIS is the kind of people I'm with. They are much crazier than me. It's good for me though. I guess. SO, instead of doing this, weather.com told us that our only 2 good days for the upcoming week are Monday and Friday. So, everyone decided to do a long ride this day (monday) instead of the recovery ride. So, the long ride plan is to a town called Rute and back. You know, just 70 miles. Total climbing for that ride would be about 6500+. HA! So anyways, I started off great, clicked through about 35 miles until lunch. My knee (actually both knees) started to give up. I felt great but going up hills with 2 bad knees is not something I really enjoy. Thank God for Sag. I hoped in the van, sort of unwillingly but it proved to be smart in the end. I hope that I can ride tomorrow for it. Just 5 minutes after getting in the van, we stopped for an ice cream, some of the best I've had, and it was called Magnum, strawberry with white chocolate coating, plenty filling of course. What was really great was eating this in the 70 degree sun beaming through the window and watching the 7 guys climb 2 other deadly hills. Greg gets to the top and yells the John (the sag/driver and Ironman finisher x3 or 4 times)...I know where you live man and you better lock your doors b/c that hill was the from Satan. And they were gritting their teeth. All the way up the hill, my knees thanked me.

So here I am, back at the villa in the sun (finally good sun!). My body is feeling great all except for my knees. Even after an ice bath on the knees, they still feel like crap. I hope they will mend by 10am tomorrow!!! I'll knock down a few glasses of wine, sleep well, pop Motrin in the a.m. and get on. Tomorrow's plan is the recovery ride. Ha, hope I can handle it.

What's everyone doing at home? I heard it's raining? You can reply to these messages if you'd like. If not, that's cool too. I'll try to write tomorrow.