Tuesday, July 29, 2008

I Got Slimed

My weekend in Prescott, AZ didn't go as planned, but was still an excellent weekend of training, relaxing, and spending some time with family.  I had planned to swim Saturday AM, followed by a ride, lunch at home, and then a second afternoon ride.  The plan for Sunday was a long run.  Well, there was a swim meet Saturday morning that put an end to my swim plans, I got my morning ride in, but then storms came in and I had to call off my afternoon ride and replace it with a 4 mile run and a quick dip in the hot tub.  My plan for Sunday was to ride first thing in the morning before heading back south to the land of oppressive heat.

Sunday I arrived at the trail head and unloaded the bike only to find totally flat rear tire.  I'm starting to believe I should follow everyone's advice and go tubeless.  I replaced the tube with a brand new slimed tube and started inflating.  At only 25 psi the tube explodes covering me, the bike, and the pump in lovely green slime.  I had two spare tubes with me that morning, one is now busted, and the other is a 26", because they pack better and work in a pinch, but I'm not about to ride through the desert with no spare tubes and a 26" tube on the rear.  Suck.  I would have just left the bike in the car and hit the trail for a run, but after the bike theft in Phoenix I think twice about such things.  I wiped off the slime, repacked the car, and headed home.  Thanks to some words of encouragement from my wife, I went for a long run on trails close to the house at an angry pace because I wasn't riding on a beautiful morning.

Totals for the weekend:
Saturday - 15 MTB miles, 4 miles running road
Sunday - 6 miles running trail

Not what I had hoped for, but still some good mileage and work at altitude.  I'm trying to balance continuing to improve my fitness and being rested for Snow Valley this weekend.  Stay tuned.

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