Planning

In one word?

Terrifying.

I would open up my Google Maps about once a week leading up to my ride to San Francisco, input the start and finishing points, look at the distance and quickly close it.

This was a weekly/daily occurrence and probably the biggest mistake I made in regards to planning and training.

I wasn’t paying attention to how many hills I’d be riding (crossing a mountain range three times….) and so I unfortunately hadn’t prepared for those as well as I should have.

The other thing I didn’t account for was the roads. OH the roads.

Washington had some of the WORST potholes and shoulders to ride on, bumpy, cracked and just killers of my pace. Used to cruising along and gunning down straightaways I found myself lagging losing my speed bit by bit to the rough roads.

So, this time around, I’ll be ready.

More research, reading, Youtube videos and blogs. I am modifying my training to include way more stabilization, strength and endurance work.

I learned in action last time, got more comfortable on the bike as the days went on and really threw myself into a trial by fire.

I completed the ride to San Francisco and felt, well, amazing after. Tired but still with a ton of energy to keep pushing. Seeing what I had left really made me think about what else I could be capable of, especially with some more focused and specific training to overcome the weaknesses I had discovered over the first ride.

Planning is a lot less intimidating this time around. Which is a strange feeling because this is a much more daunting challenge.

But this time, I know myself that much more and know what I can push my body to do.