There is no title, primarily because I can’t think of one.  It’s 10:51 on Sunday morning, and clearly, I’m at the computer instead of on the bike.  I’m okay with this; in fact, I think it’s a very good plan, and I’m very happy to be here, rather than OUT THERE. 

Ride report:  Long ride yesterday.  Longer than 300k, because of a missed turn.  Felt even longer than it was, because of the 12,000 feet of climbing, massive dog anxiety, spitty rain all day, and completely inadequate lights (I want my dynamo back!).

Facts and statistics:  Total time of 15 hours, 37 minutes.  Started at 7 am, finished at 10:37 pm.  Rode with some very nice new people–Ron from the Chesapeake Bay area, Joanne from Durham, and about 100 miles with Bob from Va. Beach.  Couldn’t have done it without you, Bob–thanks for keeping me pedaling.

Dogs maced:  2.  Dogs hit in the face with Fig Newtons:  1.  Packages of Fig Newtons sacrificed to dog deterrence program:  1.  Records broken:  1 (for the world’s longest pee, which was unfortunately taken while squatting in a bush in the dark after riding more than 165 miles; I was desperately afraid of falling over mid-stream).  Meals skipped:  2 (lunch, because it would’ve taken valuable pedaling time; better to eat on the move, and dinner, because I was too, too tired at 11 last night).

Lessons learned:
–Reflective stickers do not work well on rims, especially the part of the rims that the brake pads contact.  Luckily, it seems to be the stickers that do not survive, as opposed to the brakes.
–Hardee’s has a sandwich called the Hot ham and cheese.  The word hot, it turns out, really does matter–a ham and cheese sandwich that’s been cold and damp for an hour is not at all appealing.
–When you take off your rain jacket while pedaling and stuff it into your handlebar bag, turn the sleeves right side out, for Murphy’s law clearly states that removal of rain gear guarantees resumption of rain, and you will get well wetted while trying to figure out how to right the sleeves on a 20 mph descent.
–Descending in pitch black (rainy) dark is no fun.  Oh, wait–I already knew that one (see early blog posts regarding 2003 brevets).
–When all else fails, buy a Twix bar and look on the bright side (even when you have to dig deep in the memory banks to see anything bright!).

So why am I here, propped up on my bed with lots of pillows, an ice pack, and a laptop, instead of slogging it out against today’s stiff wind?

At some point yesterday, something in the back of my right knee started really hurting.  You know if you bend your knee you can feel two thick cordy bits pop out on the back of your knee, one on each side?  I’m not sure what they are; tendons, I’m guessing, but that’s only a guess.  Well, the one on the inner side did something funky, and hurt for an hour or two.  I was wriggling and shifting on the saddle, trying to adjust to change the pressure on it, but there wasn’t much I could do.  It was pretty early on in the day, and eventually I just stopped noticing it.  After the ride, I got in my car to drive home, and when I tried to get out, I couldn’t stand up straight on that knee.  It’s sort of stuck at a bit of an angle; I can’t really bend it to sit comfortably, but I also can’t really straighten it out.  It’s not excruciating; it just feels sort of big and swollen and very stiff, kind of like a sprained ankle.

So I decided that at two weeks and counting until brevet week, my best bet is recovery.  I’m trying to focus on all the training I HAVE done, and not worry about what I’ve missed.  So here I sit.  I think there might be a nap in my afternoon.  And maybe some nice, tame knitting . . .