The Problem with An Out-N-Back Is That You Have to Make It Back...

It was nice to wake up today without the aid of an alarm clock and air raid. Ike and I actually woke up at 7:30 am without the usual 4 alarms and wearing off the snooze button. Since I've been sleeping about 12-15 hours a day for the last month I was a little surprised I woke up so early on my own without feeling like I had been run down by a mack truck in my sleep and felt a notch above semi-crappy. After some breakfast and bad t.v. I decided to give a ride a whirl...

I set out with 2 bottles and zero agenda. Well, my agenda was to survive. Started out towards Montclair. Got to Montclair and felt okay. Not so bad. I can do this. Rode around Brookdale a few times. Decided to do my Fairfield loop. About 1.5 hours in I could feel my legs going and I was getting tired. As usual I am always in denial and thought it would pass. I got to my usual turnaround point and headed towards Cedar Grove. I made it to the mental hospital (trails, that is. Mental hospital trails). I ended up heading up to Hilltop to ride on the hallowed training grounds of such local legends as Ledonne and Montalbano. Climbing up the "Turkling Trail" I looked to my left and right and felt dizzy. It felt like the woods were speeding past me. It was like when you're stopped at a light in your car and the car beside you moves and you stomp on the brake because your brain tricks you into thinking you're moving...I then realized there were about 3 hens and around 15 or so chicks. The woods were moving! I'm not having a seizure! It was wild!


I swear there are turkeys in this picture and they were talking to me...

I huffed and I puffed and made it to the bottom of the trail that climbs to Hilltop. I've never worked so hard to go so slow. Hilltop is either climbing or descending. It's cut on the side of a hill (Uhhmm..hence the name Hilltop). I made it up to the infamous "Lyme Disease" climb. Weeds. Weeds. And more weeds. Technically I was awful. The rocks ate me up. I was just soo tired I couldn't get my ass off the saddle. I flashed back to one of my first bike rides around the lake at Cannonball and joggers were passing me! Wow. I'm tired. Fight it. I did get a rest when I did a header over a log. Bike on oneside, body on the other. Bottles somewhere in between. I laid on my side for a moment or two and reevaluated my day. I came to the conclusion that getting my hair cut would have probably been a wiser choice.

Looked at my watch. Shit. I've been out here for 2.5 hours. I'm not going to make it home! Descended Hilltop (the best part) and ducked back on the rail trail to cut through the reservoir. I didn't have the legs to even granny up Francisco. I rode through the Mills and popped out on Normal Ave. Now, I'm out of fluids. I stopped by a pool and used the machines outside to fill-up. I can make it home. I think. I hope. I was thinking that I saw Stacey's car in the driveway on my way out. She would come pick me up. Would my bike fit in a cab?

I started to mentally check off landmarks in my head as to track my progress home. Starbucks, Gap, Dog Park...Roche, horrible Kingland and Main intersection, Target SWEET Target (we're rolling now!), Ahh Rutt's Hutt, the Rutherford Park, Stacey's house, yes, I'm almost there...one last hill. Jackson Hill. It's really not much but it felt like I was going to pull a hammy trying to get home. I stumbled deliriously in the door. That's more activity in one day than I've done in weeks! Nap time...