I spent Saturday night with some pretty vivid dreams. I was helping family move back into my old neighborhood that I grew up in. There are only two ways to get to it, and both are hills. One is long and steady, the other is shorter but much steeper. For whatever reason, I volunteered to push a mattress support up to the house. This was maybe a mile or so of the heaviest and toughest haul imaginable (in my dream, anyways). I was getting there, but it was slow and steady. There was no other way to do it.

Cliche as it seems, this dream was directly related to where my head has been at in regards to randonneuring. There has been a lot of second guessing and fear at my lack of fitness these days. Last years slacking is definitely showing this year. I haven’t finished a 200K since November and every time I get to around 50 miles, my body punishes me. The dream was appropriate though. I just need to keep at it, slow or not. The goal will be achieved.

SIR’s Spring Populaire (100K) was on Sunday. We decided to ride out to the start since it was only 10 miles away. I surprised myself by actually waking up early enough to eat a decent breakfast and have coffee. Chris and I left a little earlier than necessary but it gave us time for even more coffee near the start.

There were probably around a hundred people, possibly more at the starting line. They organized a bagpipe sendoff for the group that was pretty surreal. If I saw it on paper, I might have thought it cheesy, but in person it was pretty amazing.

There were tons of people to talk to right off the bat. It is always great to catch up with friends(at least at the start and finish) on these rides. It was a stunningly gorgeous day, especially for a Seattle February. It threatened to get close to 60 degrees and everyone was in great spirits.

I felt strong out of the gates and figured I should hang on to that while I could. I’m pretty aware that I have a limit these days, so I might as well knock out the miles while I can. I dropped Chris for a little while and hung with some faster riders than I usually do.

There was a soul crushing climb near Cougar Mountain that really seemed to suck my energy quickly. I kept eating some homemade energy bars and tried to stay hydrated. It was near the usual Zoo hill climb, but not the same one. It was less scenic and the grade was more steady and headache inducing. It would make a fine training hill.

I kept attaching on with Joe Platzner, then losing him again. His fancy blue Pegoretti kept him one step ahead of me. I’m pretty sure that’s how it worked, anyways.

Somewhere along the way, my legs started to give me grief. Surely they were complaining at the lack of distance training and overall general neglect. The muscles were pinching behind my knees and acted up every time I hit a hill (and this was quite often towards the end of the ride). I had to stop and stretch three or four times. I lost the great group of guys I was riding with, but I knew that I just had to do it at my own pace. Much like my Sisyphus dream the night before, I had to get there one pedal stroke at a time.

My general mood was greatly enhanced by the wonderful weather and amazing ride support. No matter how many times I had to stop, I knew that I was getting there.

I caught a bit of a second wind on the bike trail leading to the finish. A child on a BMX bike started a sudden 180 and almost nailed my front wheel. I briefly considered just pushing him over. Is that mean?

Finally I got in, alone, to the finish at the Dog and Pony in Renton. Beer was in need to sooth my aching muscles.

It was great to see new and old friends. A big thanks to everyone that had a hand in putting together a wonderful permanent. The cue sheet was perfect, the weather was amazing, and the turnout was great.