100 Plus Mile Training Ride Goes Off Without a Pain!

On April 31st, I set out on a two day training ride, fully loaded, as if on tour to prepare for the coast trip this summer. The knee has slowly been getting better, and has been feeling fine when riding while wrapped, so I thought I'd put it to the test. Mother Nature threw everything she had at me from rain, wind, some snow, and a fair amount of hail (which only hurt when it hit me in the face after bouncing back up at me from the road!). The day ended in warmth, sunshine, and a clear, cold night. The first day, I wanted to take it easy, in case the knee started to act up, so I went straight to Champoeg State Park, which was a nice 45 mile ride. I had no pain in the knee, and was very encouraged by that. Upon arrival at Champoeg Park, I found the camp host and requested an upgrade to a yurt, as I had no desire to spend the day in my tent, because it was raining, and showing no signs of letting up. But soon after I got to the yurt, the sun came out and it was quite nice the rest of the day. The yurt was nice, and allowed me to fully relax in style and much comfort. On day two, being encouraged by the lack of knee pain from the day before, I headed out on an 80 mile ride home. What a great day of riding, even though the last 13 miles was an almost constant up hill battle with a strong & steady headwind! That's okay though, because it really gave me a good idea of what it's going to be like heading down Highway 101 this summer. Bring it on!