Beach Training Day 2

Scheduled for today was a 2.5 hour ride followed by a 15 minute run. The plan was to leave out around 6:00am to beat the heat, but a flat tire held me back a bit. After changing the tire, I made sure that my wife had her cell phone close by just in case. That was my only spare and it's no fun walking home in bike shoes.

The plan was to keep the mph close to 20. I didn't want to push it too hard. Time in the saddle was the goal. I was able to get access to the Naval Base in Pensacola. The guys at the guard shack had to figure that even though I looked weird in my aero helmet, there probably weren't too many places I could hide a dirty bomb in my spandex.

Along the back stretch, I rode past an old civil war fort which was really sweet, but the coolest thing had to be their cemetery. Across maybe 20 acres there were rows upon rows of white tombstones. A sobering reminder of just how many soldiers have lost their lives fighting for our country.

I made it back to the condo just as the sun was starting to burn through the clouds. 50 miles in the bag, and 15 minutes of running to go. The plan calls for an easy run, but I was feeling good so I took off at an aggressive pace. I managed to avg. 6:38 over the course and felt ready for more. I ended the run by jumping in the pool to cool off. Wow. What I wouldn't give to do this every day. For now, it's time to refuel and relax.