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Rain, rain, go away

Come on back some other day, preferably next Tuesday!

It’s grey and rainy out. It’s actually slowed down a bit now, but it was coming down pretty hard for most of the day. It was dry this morning and luckily I took the bike out for a ride first thing. I rode from the house through town and then did the first 14 or so miles of the course, including the climbs out of town and the descent into Keene. That descent is awesome – I rode a little conservatively and still saw my speedometer hit 43mph! It will be even better on race day when cyclists have a whole lane and can be less worried about the rough shoulder or the cars. I didn’t want to do any of the climbs so my dad picked me up at the bottom of the descent and drove me home (what a nice dad!). As we pulled into the driveway at the house, the rain started coming down. Pretty good timing.

Here’s me and the bike all kitted up for today’s dress rehearsal ride:

After lunch, we braved the pouring rain and went into town to check in for the race, check out the expo (the Athlete “Village”) and walk around a bit.

The Athlete Village wasn’t really open for business today. A few of the sponsors and companies had their tents up and running, but most were still setting up. Tomorrow, I imagine it will all kick into high gear. My soggy parents at the Athlete Village:

Check in was really smooth and easy. They even had an army of volunteers there! I’ve got my fancy identifying wrist band:

We took Charlie with us and he was a really good sport in the rain and walking through puddles that were about belly-high for him. After I checked in for the race (which was inside – in the high school gymnasium) and we were back outside, he started getting cold and tired of the rain. A pretty pissed off Charlie, just before we decided we needed to carry him:

Dad and I stopped by High Peaks Cyclery and I met, Michel, the Guru rep. I’m going to bring my bike by there tomorrow to let him give it a final once-over.

I’ve gone through the packet of information and goody bag – here’s what I got (lots of bags, lots of numbers, lots of papers):

Tomorrow morning, I’m going to swim in the lake with a few friends and then got back and check it all out some more.

Bike – July 19
Distance: 15.9 miles
Time: 46:24
Average heart rate: HR monitor wasn’t working (perfect timing…)
Course: First 14 miles of IMLP bike course
Conditions: Cloudy, cool, a little muggy – nice race weather