Cale and I went up to Green Bay intending to each race (solo) the 100 miles of Stump Farm. (It was a rescheduled Saturday 12 hour into a 100 miler.) We got to the race and got set up... it was just one of those days, and I was in a black mood. People were making small talk and I had to resist the urge to strike the cheerful out of them with snarky remarks. Blech. Realizing I was being a nasty twit, I kept quiet and started the race, pouting through the first lap. Whether it was all the riding last week or... well, that was probably it, I was feeling tired and unenthusiastic.
Hoping to ride through it, I slogged through the first lap. I noticed I hadn't filled up my rear tire with enough air, so on my way through the start/finish, I pumped it up. Part way through the second lap, I realized that it wasn't my error- there was a slow leak. Damn. It was probably from a thorn I had acquired in NC. I went into my seat bag to find a 26" tube and no tire levers. Boy, was I ever feeling sorry for myself. Do you know what you get when you mix Stans with dirt and wet sand and apply it up to your elbows? A dirty mess that dries like rubber cement all over your arm hair. It was about then that I threw a fit. You can think of it as the climax of the story, which had begun around 6am.
But I'm a multi-tasker, so while I threw this fit, I got the tire changed and was on my way. Unfortunately, there was little improvement. The CO2 cartridge filled the tube to a barely ridable level. I squirmed my way back to the finish line and threw in the towel. Sometimes it just isn't your day, I guess. I hadn't enjoyed the laps I had done and simply did. not. want. to keep riding.
Don't think I don't know it's totally lame to give up a race 20 miles in. It is. But I'll take the black mark this time.
The one funny thing I saw today that cracked my mood was a sign saying "Equestrian riders keep to the right". Close, guys. Equus is horse, Equestrians are those who ride horses. So, all those who ride those who ride horses, keep to the right.
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