We came in from a 55 mile ride last week and it was a pretty normal day here in Kansas. Something like 104 degrees, but dry. It only got muggy recently. Anyway, the wind was blowing pretty good too and even though 15 people started the ride, there was only 5 left at the end. Everyone else had turned off somewhere along the way.

I was feeling pretty good and was riding hard. It was only 5 miles from where we sprint at the end and there isn’t any major hill to break up the group. But, it broke up on its own.

First Jack, who is normally great, but was off, plus riding a 28 lb. cross bike with heavy ass tires, got dropped on something that I never would consider a hill. Then my brother came off on the next rise. That left just Eric, Catherine and I. Catherine demanded to take a pull, just to slow us down. Afterward, she said something like, a good defense is a weak offense. Or something like that. But, she didn’t last too long. I was riding around 26 into a head cross wind and Catherine popped after a couple miles.

Just when Catherine was coming off, Eric was saying that he would stay on, but only on the condition that we stopped at the BP station (the sprint) and get some water. So, Eric and I kept going, actually I kept going and Eric just cursed, but we finally got to the end. Eric immediately turned into the gas station and I turned around and joined him.

So, we went into the store and filled our bottles with crushed ice and water. Catherine, Kris, and Jack showed up a couple minutes later. They got water and we started riding slowly the 5 miles home.

I don’t know how many times the next 15 minutes I heard the sentence, “This is the best water I’ve ever had.” It was over 5 for sure. By at least 3 people. I have to admit, the water was excellent. Beyond excellent.

Like I posted before, with these extreme conditions, I think you need a bottle about every 10 miles are so. One bottle every 30 minutes seems about right. Obviously, if you only have 2 bottles on your bike and you rode 55 miles, then you are short some liquid.

We all packed too much ice into our bottles, so we ran out of liquid super fast, so we stopped on the bike path, at a drinking fountain, and refilled them less than a mile from my house. And that water was great too. It is sort of weird how few drinking fountain there are anymore. They used to be everywhere, but they are a dying breed, much like payphones.

I can just imagine how a settler felt, 150 years ago, walking across the prairie for days and days, only getting warm water from muddy creeks and rivers. I bet they thought it was just as good as the ice cold water we had after the ride. It is funny how you perceive things in different situations.

We’re very lucky we live in a place, and at a time, that you just stop at any convenience store or gas station and fill you bottles with ice. It’s not something to be taken for granted.

We are very fortunate to be able to have this about any time we want.

Topeka put these fountains in along the bike path. Dog friendly, but expensive.

The races recently in the midwest have been slim pickens. I haven’t raced for the past two weekends and have trained in the heat for much too long. Today in Topeka, the high is supposed to be 107 degrees, so we decided to drive Southeast 250 miles and do a criterium in Springfield Missouri. It’s only Bill and I, plus Trudi and Bromont, of course. Bromont missed the Tour of Lawrence because of the heat, so he hadn’t been to a race in nearly a month. That is probably the longest time period he hasn’t been to a race his whole life.

The high today in Springfield is supposed to hardly be 100, so it is hardly hot. We’re thinking about maybe racing the Master’s races at 10 and then the Pro 1/2 race again at 2:30. I usually only race Masters races when I am under raced and am playing catch up, which would apply currently.

I’ve been feeling pretty okay riding, but yesterday I was horrible. I felt shitty, plus one of my bearing in my bottom bracket fell apart so I had to limp the 10 miles back with my cranks all wobbly, so my right knee is sore.

Trudi has to fly out to S.F. to get a car and drive back to Utah for the start of the Tour of Utah Monday, so she has a short turn around.

Everyone get a chance to watch the men’s Olympic Road Race? That race looked super hard. I can’t decide if the lack of radios or only 5 rider teams made the race more exciting. I truly don’t understand the tactics of some of the teams. I don’t really understand why some teams didn’t put more riders up at the front of the chase after the top of the last climb with 25 miles to go. And why so many guys ganged up on the British team. Tejay Van Garderen really made a huge difference in that race himself. I can’t believe that he nearly single handily held off the field for the better part of 20 miles, after towing Taylor Phinney back up to the front group over the top of the climb. It sort of surprised me how few riders in the front group were willing to work too.

If Cancellera would not have made a disastrous turning error, I believe the finish would have been much different. But, we’ll never know, will we. I can’t say I’m that stoked about Vino winning the race. Actually the opposite. I don’t think he should have even been in the race, personally, but it isn’t up to guys like me. Adding to my dislike of him is because he really never fessed up or even sort of apologized for his doping issues. It seems wrong to me that he gets to have an Olympic Gold medal, for life, after he has abused his sport so much. But, he did make a very good move to get into the break and in the sprint. I guess that Columbian doesn’t sprint too much, because I have never seen anyone blow a sprint as bad as he did there. But, he is probably stoked to have a silver medal from the Olympic games, so I’d bet he isn’t beating himself up too much about it.

Okay. I hope the women’s road race finishes before I have to leave to head over to the race.

Reattaching my crank after the bearing fell out.

Fabian feeling all down and out after crashing.