RCC- Sunday ride

My goal today was to ride 20 miles. It didn’t happen. It started raining on me before I could get them all in, but today’s ride was awesome anyway. I did my traditional ride to the gas station for a power aide drink. After stopping there I headed up Henriott to Frank Ott, to Alonzo Smith Road, in to a neighborhood and out the other side. Up the road, over the creek and in the direction of my grandmother’s house I pedaled on and on. Up the hills and down the hills climbing hard and feeling free flying down the other side.
Eight miles in and feeling pretty good after some decent climbs, I thought about going to grandma’s to visit for a minute. I changed my mind when I saw the hill she lived on. I wasn’t ready to tackle that one today. I knew the hill that was coming to make it back home. So instead, thinking to myself, “Maybe next week grandma,” I turned right into a neighborhood with more inviting hills and continued on. It was time to start heading toward an unavoidable hill I was trying to put off as long as possible.

“Pedal, pedal, pedal. Keep up the pace. Hell yeah this feels good! I’m getting closer to the hill. I see it coming. I’m a little nervous, but I can do this. I can do this. I am doing this. I think I can do this. Maybe I can do this. Holy crap this is hard. Really? You can keep a bike upright at 3.2 miles an hour. Is this hill ever going to end? Am I going to make it home on my own? Do I dare look up to see how much more of this hill there is? I think I may die today. Wait, wait. It’s getting easier. Almost there. Hell yeah the top!!! I made it to the top! I just reached the top!!”

The hill I rode is a mile of incline. The incline for the first six tenths of a mile is fairly gradual and light. The last 4 tenths is dang near straight up and down. I made it to to the top and am alive to type about it. I think I am ready to try Henriott Hill again after that. I’ll wait a few days first though.
It wasn’t long after my hill triumph that it started raining and I had to go home. I didn’t get 20 miles in like I’d wanted but I did still get 12 great miles in.