As a change of pace for my Saturday ride, Shelby sent an email and asked if anyone wanted to ride in a rally in support of Ataxia FA. The long ride was 51 miles and I was looking for 3 hours so I decided to jump in. The ride would be supported and had aid stations plus I was going to cover new ground. Win, win all the way around. Seemed like the wind was 10-15 from the north. We were starting at UNT in the stadium parking lot heading north to Lake Ray Roberts and back. Shelby decided to do 25 since his foot was still bothering him. We were going to stop at the first aid station and send him back. After the first 4-5 miles, I could see the lead peloton about a quarter mile ahead and several chase packs between them and me. Marcel was riding with me today and knew the course so he was good company. Just north of Denton, we settled in with a pack of about 40 or so and it offered excellent protection from the wind. Marcel and me were towards the front of the pack as we passed the aid station. I waved at Shelby and told him I was staying in the pack. We were running 18-20mph into the wind and it was hard to throw that away. I stayed near the front until around mile 16. I decided to pull a little and go to the front. I was really saving energy in the pack and thought it would be nice to help out. Away I went thinking this a big help but Marcel says I was pushing to hard and the group eventually thinned out and broke into several smaller groups. I would like to think it was my doing but was probably the crappy road we were on and the wind. I found myself with 4-5 people who were really moving. When we hit the lake, one of the guys went in front of me and I jumped on his wheel. I was losing steam and was glad to see someone else up front. He hammered out a 20+ pace until the turnaround. We stopped at the halfway point aid station and Marcel caught up with me there. After a few minutes, we started the trip home with the wind. It was a much more comfortable ride home. The cross winds were rough in some sections where we headed west but anything was better than going north. My moving time was 2:47:34. Not bad. Outback Steakhouse was a sponsor so I had a cheeseburger and headed home. These rally's are great alternatives for long rides. I am going to have to find some more of these in the summer.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/469610721
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