Well, putting better judgment aside (as usual) I decided to head to PA to do the French Creek endurance race. My theory on the whole thing is that I went to the doctor on Wednesday; got a bag of new asthma meds, so why not put them to the test…
5 minutes after stepping out of the car it began to pour. 9 am start. Fantastic. I actually love to ride in the rain. That wasn’t the issue. It just was a little nippy in only the jersey and shorts waiting at the start. It rained periodically throughout the morning. I had no control over my heart rate and breathing right from the start. Other riders were complaining about the crap in the air and how it was affecting their breathing. GREAT. I had to back so far off that it was pathetic. I couldn’t push, I couldn’t do much. It was frustrating but at the end of the day I got in a 6+ hour workout.
Lap 1 was really slow. After Lap 2 I decided to go to the car and get my inhaler. I had visions of an asthma attack 5 miles in and then I would be screwed. Now I’m looking really cool.
Was it the best decision I’ve made? Clearly no. I should probably wait until all these allergens calm down before I attempt to even do an endurance race. However, if you know me that’s not really how I roll…plus, I’m hoping to finish the Mohican 100 in four weeks so I need to be on the bike—breathing or not!
