Monday, May 27, 2013

Drumheller Cycling Trip


(That's me, fourth from the right.)

On the May long weekend, a group of 17 of us from my triathlon club went to Drumheller for a weekend of cycling. This is a weekend I look forward to because it's one of the first opportunities we have to do some real riding outside, it's such a boost to my training, and it's a wonderful time with great people. 

We rode for three days. We each take turns driving one of the support vehicles and that cuts into the mileage a little but I still managed to get about 270 km of riding in. We rode in hot sunshine on the first day, pouring rain the second, and a little of everything on the third but it was all still wonderful. 

The first day's route included a spectacular view of Horse Thief Canyon, a ferry ride, and a very long, steep climb. I did hit a somewhat low point at about the halfway mark that day but I eventually clued in that my dark attitude was probably related to a lack of nutrition. Sure enough, I ate something and things improved quite dramatically! Even when I was soaking wet and freezing on the second day, I still felt strangely happy to be on my bike. Later that day, the sun came out, we turned onto a nice smooth highway and flew home with the wind at our backs, finishing with an awesome downhill! And on the third day, we did the whole ride in a pace line, which is just the most beautiful thing. There really is no bad day on a bike.

In the evenings, we ate dinner together and then enjoyed some wine and beer and had some very good laughs. I am so lucky to have these awesome people in my life! 

It was a fantastic weekend!