My 100 km today did not go so well…

But at least I finished. In my previous 100 km on May 18th, I finished in 4 hours and 55 minutes, averaging 20.6 KPH. I wanted to beat that today but I could not even match it. I finished in 5 hours and 38 minutes averaging 17.87 KPH.

I left home and headed south down HWY 60 to HWY 39 (a 30 km stretch) feeling good and making good time until I started heading west on HWY 39. As soon as you turn west, it is a 20 km stretch of road straight as an arrow to my turn around point. Unfortunately, the wind began blowing very hard out of the west. I tried to keep my speed above 25 KPH, but it was all I could do to keep it at 18 KPH. With only 15 km left to go before I hit the 50 km turn around point, the wind picked up and for long stretches I could do only between 12 and 15 KPH. I finally made it to the turn-around point just before Thorsby.

I realized then that I had totally burned myself out fighting the wind, but I hoped that with the wind at my back I could make up for lost time. I did make up for some time during the next 20 km with the wind at my back, but as soon as I turned north onto HWY 60 for the last leg home, the wind was coming out of the NNW. I had to fight the same wind for the next and last 30 km stretch. I was dead in the water. At that point I had nothing left and I gave up. I no longer cared about the time, just about finishing. For long periods, I was just crawling along against the wind at 9 KPH. But I had no power left. It was all I could do to keep going forward against the pain. I could sense that if I tried to apply more power I would rip a few muscles out from my knees so I just plodded along.

The moral of the story is: The wind is never your friend unless it’s at your back. It is yet another variable in the long road ahead that you have to try to figure out. A watched pot never boils. Look both ways before you cross the street. A stitch in time saves nine. Blah blah blah.

Better luck next time. Total biking distance this year = 549 km.