.. and they're off!

my 2009 training programme got off to a good start on Sunday morning. I met up with BHP buddies Dave, Renee and the redoubtable Captain P for a ride through Terry Hershey. Fairly good conditions, overcast and no wind but quite humid. When we got to the reservoir it was foggy, too, which made life interesting. We kept together pretty well, notwithstanding the Captain's occasional mad 50 yard sprints (which I of course had to try and match!). At Fry road I suggested that we ride the loop through Cullen Park and Bear Creek rather than turn back, so that's what we did. Dave and the skipper warned us about the Hound of the Baskervilles, a very aggressive Doberman that they had run into the day before on the Cullen Park trail. I didn't see the mutt but apparently it was there. Once in Bear Creek Captain P took advantage of a tiny downhill section to launch into the sort of sprint normally only seen in the last 100 metres of a Tour de France flat stage. I charged after him and was just barely able able to keep pace. He announced that we had cracked 30 mph, almost certainly the highest speed I've ever managed on the flat - gotta love the Plahstic Fantahstic! A brisk run down Eldridge and Kirkwood got us back onto Terry Hershey for the short section back to the start at the Beltway. There was considerably more foot and bike traffic than when we started, which gave us a good cooling-down period. Paddy plans to ride every Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning until the event so there's no place for me to hide!