Dave did the firecracker 50 yesterday, which is a 50 mile mountain bike race in Breckenridge. As I was telling my friend Laura today, marathon bike races like that are extremely exhausting. It involves a lot of preparation, training, planning, logistics, and then all the hard work on the day of the race. For example, this race was two 25 mile laps, and I had to walk back and forth from our home base to the mid-point/finish line at least 5 or 6 times. Sometimes with Jack and Lucy, sometimes with just Jack, sometimes by myself. Our home base was the van, which was parked in the driveway of an awesome rental our friends had for the weekend, and it couldn’t have been more convenient, but still. It took a lot of out me.

Dave finished in an impressive 5 hours and 31 minutes, and said the race was a lot more technically challenging than the Bailey Hundo, but that he had a good time. His pre-race breakfast of champions (bowl of oatmeal, and 4 donuts) worked like a charm again, but his electrolyte supplement (bag of salted peanuts) didn’t work out that well. He did a shot of Wild Turkey at the Wild Turkey aid station, and was extremely excited to see Luke working at aid station towards the end, handing out Cokes.

I used to get sort of caught up in the excitement of the various races that Dave does and start to think that I might like to do something like that. But then I was sitting with my friend Tami between Dave’s first and second lap, and we were reading magazines, and watching the kids play in the hot tub, and that seemed like a lot more fun. Also fun? Shopping for jewelry at one of the race vendor stands with my friend Laura. I did go for a ride the day before with the ladies, and that was fun too, although it would be more fun if I was in better shape. And if my adorable biking skirt wasn’t so tight. So I made a multi-step training plan.

1.) Buy a bigger biking skirt

2.) Enjoy biking more, thus, bike more

3.) Possibly fit back into smaller skirt.

4.) Put feet up and read more magazines.

So I get to shop, and train for my post ride magazine reading. Sounds perfect.