Last big bike

At 7.30 am I headed out on a sunny but cold and windy day. I met up with Gareth an hour into the ride and we headed south. Gareth is too fast for me but that meant I spent most of the ride on my own which is ideal training for Ironman as you are not allowed to draft. I travelled along a road that I had "died" on last year and swore (a lot!) I'd never do it again. The wind today was every bit as strong and I found it relatively easy. What a difference a year of hard work makes! We parted company after 50 miles and shortly after a group came through like a train. It's amazing the benefit of riding in a group has whereas when you are you are on your own you take the full force of the wind, which today was strong so good practice for Lanza. In the end I was out for slightly less than expected, only 83 miles but after the last 2 weeks of intense and heavy training I am happy with the effort. When I got back I went straight out for a lovely lunch with my wife which was a great way to finish off the day. I'm glad to have got that big ride out of the way and after another 2 hours tomorrow on the bike I will have 2 days off before beginning the 2 weeks of tapering. I'll sleep tonight!