Today was a LOT of climbing. The first big one came at mile 15, over the mountains from Leggett to the coast, 22 miles. However the downhill was the best ever full 12 miles! There are not words to describe the pure joy of an empty road and a screaming downhill after a hot sweaty ride, unless you've experienced it. Without even thinking about it you are laughing out loud as you make effortless sine curves across both lanes at 35 mph. At mile 38 we broke out of the mountains to another postcard view of the ocean, with large rocks in the surf poking up through the fog. The rest of the day was lots of typical coastal hills; very steep 4-minute leg burners, with a 1-minute torrid downhill. Even Matt had enough. However, every corner of the road brought views to inspire paintings. The good news about today is that Kristi is really getting her legs. She no longer gets left way back on hills, but is only a short ways behind when I top out. (Matt, of course, is way ahead of both of us.) She is starting to discover the mental skills needed to pedal all day.
(Warning--Dad is about to wax philosophical). There is definitely a unique mindset that must be conquered to go all day, day after day. This is an invaluable life lesson of long rides, because once learned, it can be called upon in any situation to pace yourself and lock in for the long haul. It is a combination of patience with yourself and patience with the external forces that cannot be controlled yet hinder your progress. For instance, a rookie to long rides will curse a headwind and get mad, but after the transformation will just push through it and maybe even laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation. However, the skill is deeper than normal patience, just as waiting for, say, the semester to end, is quite different than a mother waiting for a baby to be less maintenance. In the mother's case, if not careful, she can find herself merely tolerating the drudgery and miss the unique joys of her new baby. A bike trip has similar parallels; with a novice so consumed with their own pain they cannot enjoy even spectacular scenery. Anyway, it's great to watch it happen. Matt calls it "making peace with the bike". Even though the scenery might be great, making peace with the bike is really what endears riders to the experience.
We found a great place to sleep and eat after a tough day, the best of any so far. It's on a big cliff overlooking the ocean, with groomed gardens.
Later. It's 8 and time for bed.
-Richard
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