Cartwrong

Well I'm off to a wedding in a couple days, so I'll be away from the bike for a while. I came to that realization today and decided to push myself on the way home. So I decided on Cartwright Road. Never even driven it before, but I've heard about it and Google Maps has a terrain map that clearly shows some pretty beefy hills so I knew what I was getting myself into . . . more or less.

Good grief. I was already a bit fatigued after a fairly climb-intensive workout with Gatlin this weekend (When he reads this he'll call me a baby but that's only because he's a punk.), so I knew I wasn't gonna win any races; but I wanted to push myself. And boy howdy did I! Probably the steepest stuff I've ever ridden. By the time I got to the top of the second climb (about 540 feet over 1.3 miles - ~8%), I was gasping for breath and my legs felt like Jell-O. Pulled off right at the top for a couple minutes' rest.

The other interesting part of this ride was Dry Creek Rd, a little further along. I knew when I planned the route that it was a rough gravel road, but I figured it was time for a Roubaix (a road bicycle race including a significant portion of cobblestone and/or gravel roads). Geez, the washboard was terrible. I have a headache now just thinking about it. The loose sand & gravel would have been tolerable . . . downright enjoyable even if not for that.

Anyway it was a good experience (topped off with a planned stop at my boss's house to refill my water bottles), and I'm glad that I'll have a few days to recover.