So I went out all alone    for my ride out of Cleburne today.  The plan had been to make it a century, but after some insomnia and taking a lunesta to counterract it, I couldn't wake up and started out 2 hours later than I'd originally wanted.  So I cut it to 90 miles.
 
I wanted to go out earlier and avoid some of the nasty wind that I knew was going to crop up.  Nothing doing, but I was determined.  M
 
To begin, the wind was straight in my face for the first 6 miles or so.  I hate that, because it keeps me from feeling like I can warm up properly.  When my heart rate gets too high early on, it usually doesn't bode well for my speed later in the ride, and I needed to keep as high a speed as possible, since this was going to be a serious training ride.  There were a lot of people coming back UP Nolan River road as I was starting.  I wonder what club/group that could have been?  It was very large.
 
The mostly side winds kept me from enjoying downhills, and that always makes the uphills longer and steeper.  Still, I rolled into Glen Rose with a 17.0 average.  Had a pumpkin bar from that amazing tiger mart bakery and headed off to Paluxy.  Turned around at roughly the 45 mile mark and went back to glen rose.
 
Stopped at  stumpblaster bikes in Glen Rose  (http://www.stumpblasterbicycles.com/)  *please* stop in next time you're near there.  The owners, Joe (?) and Lisa are just exceptional, welcoming, friendly people, and excited to talk to every rider, customer or no.  And Lisa is a cutie too!   .  I bought a clif bar for later, bought/drank a monster, and bellied up to their bar to chat with Fred.  Or was it Frank?  crap I suck at names.
 
Apparently Fred's wife saw me rolling down the road and went to get her hubbie who apparently bought a p-38 this past December.  He caught up to me at the shop.  He says he hasn't ridden with other clubs or bents, so I encouraged him to come check us out - hopefully we'll see him.  He was a super nice guy and obviously very intelligent and friendly.
 
The ride back from Glen Rose was pretty harrowing with the wind - lots of butt-puckering moments when the wind gusted down a hill.  I also went a little nuts at Nemo.  I saw the flag at the post office as stiff as a board and I was about to turn into that wind.  I got irritated, then cursed at it and started having a laughing fit.  Yeah, I'm a wit bit crazy.  
 
The wind had the last laighthough, because I bonked going up Goatneck hill.  Stopped at the Eeyrie for that clif bar and to put some of my mix in my bottle that I had been hoping to not need, but it worked very well.  My average at this point was about 16.5.  The last five miles though were with the wind at my back - repayment for the start with it all in my face.  Even though Nelson River road is mostly uphill the whole way, I never dropped below 20mph except twice.  Spent a big chunk of it at 25+.  We likes the tailwind, my precious.  Oh yes we does!  
 
Anyway, a fine day all told, though I missed having one of y'all around for company.  I wasn't too wiped, so we went to Fred's afterwards for a chicken sanwich and a shiner and listened to my favorite local band, No Class.
http://www.myspace.com/noclassmusic
 
 
Tale of the tape (or garmin):
Total Average, 17.0  max 40.7
Average HR 139 max 174
90.77 miles
3275 ft climbing.  felt like more.

I also rode some with Ken yesterday, whom I don't think I've seen for at least a couple years - I met him before on a Dave Wasserman Mesquite ride, and test rode his GRR around the parking lot briefly.