Fun in the Sun

I rode off today with 30 minutes of stationary bike under my belt. I wanted to get my back warmed up before riding, and to be kind to my back I took out my hybrid, Reilly. The sun was out, the sky was blue and Portlanders were positively beaming. I made my way towards Mt. Tabor (my favorite place to ride) stopping for a bit to take some pictures of poppies and lavender. Riding towards Tabor is a slow steady climb and it was fun to remember how many times I had done this ride on Reilly in the last year. As I made my way up the mountain, feeling like my legs were as strong as ever, I stopped for some shots of Mt. Hood and pondered for what must be the 1,000th time if I was taking the right bike to RAGBRAI. Climbing the last bit to the top amidst many scantilly clad hikers and their dogs, it felt good to be riding again. I had decided before leaving that I would just climb Tabor once so I made my way down, along Lincoln, and stopped at Safeway. After purchasing six new bottles of wine, a baguette and getting a chuckle out of the toughest looking guy ever coming out of the store with kitty litter, I rode home and parked my bike. I finished my cardio with a 2-mile walk with Dexter and made plans for taking the road bike out on Tuesday. My plan is to be careful and conscientious with my training and to give myself the best chance possible of completing RAGBRAI. And, hopefully, along the way actually have some fun.