Sneaky mid-week

The ingredients for a sneaky mid-week ride:

220 kilometres, 1 energy drink, 1 OSM, 2 Ham & Cheese sandwiches, 2 hitch hikers thumbing in choreographed unison, 20mls sunscreen, 1 iPod, 1 zillion school kids, 1 "gidday" to a runner, 1 pause to stretch, 600% humidity, 0 rain, 1 Power Bar, a dash of slippery fun, 25 kilometres of Rotorua goodness, 1 mystery muesli bar recovered from the bottom of backpack, 2 litres of water, 1 catch-up in the carpark, 1 burger combo, 1 call to *555...

A little break before heading through Tickler

I took another last minute trip to Rotorua yesterday, after some "will I, won't I?" when I woke up. I didn't think I wanted to drive that far to ride so little (drive for 3hrs for less than 3hrs riding!). I was a feeling a bit timid after the lightning and thunder that had hit Hamilton and didn't want to get caught in anything like that while riding. But I soon rationalised the situation (I checked the rain forecast and it looked clear until late afternoon) and decided it was a great idea!

I re-start work next week, and who knows where that will take me. I might not get too many riding opportunities, and whilst Pukete is a great facility to have so close to home... it can get a little stale if you don't get to ride in other places. ;)

The drive over was uneventful, except for the big grin brought on by the dancing hitch hiking pair, in perfect coordination. They were so good, I briefly considered abandoning my ride to drive them through to Taupo.

Another break before tackling Sweet & Sour

The day started hot and sunny and stayed that way. The only thing that changed was the humidity - it just kept going up. And my energy levels - they just kept going down. I couldn't decide what trails to ride, so headed out on Tahi and Creek as a warm up. There was too much school holiday traffic for my liking, so I headed up the road and out to A-Trail.

I passed Dave D running along Katore Road, carrying weights. Hard. Made me feel rather inadequate.

I got to ride Bunny Jugs again and loved it just as much as the first time. The ground was a bit slick in places today, after a bit of rain since Sunday's race. It was still pretty tacky though. I only clocked up another 25kms. It was pitiful, really. I found that my legs hadn't really recovered from Sunday's efforts. A sure sign that I don't have much 'condition' at the moment.

I headed back to the Core Trail Network via Dragon's Tail and Be Rude Not To. A couple of climbs up to Radio Hut Road and a meander through the old trails back to the carpark and I was done.

I can't wait for my next chance for a sneaky mid-week ride. :)

Steed