Sleeping Giant December 27

It's sad to say that the sleeping giant reports are my ONLY ride reports these last few weeks. These days, it seems like Sunday is the only day I'm able to get out on the road. I'd like to get out on Saturday too, but the weather (ie. snow, rain, VERY low temps) has put a hold on that. My goal for Saturday is to get out VERY early before the family wakes, but it's hard to find the motivation when it's 12 degrees. Plus, I need to get out early because Christine has swimming at 9am. Soon Ian will have basketball as well on Saturday's, so my day will be entirely booked. I don't mind the indoor workouts, but with the season approaching fast, I need to get in more time on the road. Let's hope the new year will bring more motivation. I know there are other guys already logging in mega-miles and I'm probably already way behind them.

As for the sleeping giant ride this week, one word will sum it up...and that word is wet. Thanks to the heavy rains we had Saturday and Saturday night, the roads were completely saturated for Sunday morning. Well, at least most of the snow is gone and the temps were in the lower 50's, so not all is bad.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/21119914

Even though is was a smaller group than usual (about 25), the pace was ballistic at times. I don't know where all these guys get their winter fitness. Maybe they get out on the road more than once a week. I wanted to find a happy place at the back of the group, but that was impossible since guys were constantly being gapped in front of me.

The ride finally came completely apart on the prison hill when Pete P, clad in a neon orange ski hat, drilled it. About 8 or 9 guys rolled away and I was able to grab on. This group contained some of the local heroes like Mike M, Pete P, Brian G, Brian K, Julio, JI, and a couple other guys I can't remember. We rolled into the finish together.

On the way home, the rest of the guys chose to take the bike path, but I didn't want to deal with the remaining snow and ice, so I stuck to the roads. Overall, a good ride and my fitness is getting better each week. Now if only I can stay healthy. The Bethel and Plainville series are now a little more than two months away...unbelievable!!!

Thanks for reading...