False start and bad scheduling

I headed down to Renton to join another CATS bike ride this morning. Not until I was about to pull into the parking lot did I realize I was missing an important piece of equipment. No, not the bike.

After my ride in the rain last weekend, I spent some time washing off all the sand and mud I had picked up. That was the good part. The bad part was that I didn't put the pack back on the bike that holds the spare tubes, patch kit, tools etc. This would be the day I would get multiple flats. So I turned around and went home.

Rather than crawl back in bed (man that would have been sweet) I decided to ride around Lake Washington. Since I did this a few weeks ago with CATS, I had a cue sheet all ready to go. I just needed to ride from the house down to Lake Forest Park where I could pick up the route. It was a near perfect weather day - overcast, warm but not hot. By the time I finished the loop, I was smoked. Unfortunately I still had to climb the hill back home. This is when I started seriously questioning my running and biking plan.

Looking ahead on the calendar, what I've gotten myself into is starting to sink in. I am training for the Seattle Rock n Roll Marathon on June 27th. I am also training for a 200 mile bike ride which is unfortunately scheduled two weeks later. The running and biking training miles will increase simultaneously, peaking in the middle of June.

The marathon is more of a known quantity. As long as I don't get injured, I should be able to make it to the finish line. I have never ridden 200 miles in one day before so I am less sure about that one. I also know how I can feel after a marathon - trashed. With a time goal for the marathon I will be pushing myself harder this time, and this makes the outlook for the bike ride even more fuzzy.

Training for these two things at the same time will either get me in great shape or break me. Today I was feeling a little broken.