Had a really great ride today with the LSR group heading out of Celina, up to Howe and then west to Tioga and back.  This was my first experience with bad chipseal.  I get it.  Started out trying to keep up with Greg and Steve (?) but had to stop twice.  My speedo just quit on me, and without the mileage, I couldn't follow the route sheet.  Luckily, I was able to see riders from far enough off to make it to the first control just as Greg and a couple others were heading out.  I was going to leave with the DF group but saw Ken coming in behind them and decided to ride a ways with him.  Ken and I had a nice relaxing pace going and it was quite enjoyable with the good company and some nice views on the hills.  At one point we caught up to another rider coming back because his GPS unit told him to go down a gravel road, and he did.  He rode with us for a while but it was obvious he wanted to ride a bit faster so he eventually took off.  We saw him a bit later from a good distance going down the wrong road.  After a nice, long stop in Tioga, we headed back south into the wind.  Ken had mentioned that he felt dehydrated when we stopped.  He put down a whole bottle of Gatorade and then another bottle of water but unfortunately I don't think it kicked in fast enough.  About 10 miles out he experienced some cramping in his legs and said he was going to stop.  He kept telling me to go on so I made sure he had a phone and was going to be alright and pushed on.  [Sorry to bug you Ken.  I know you've been doing this a lot longer than I have.  Just wanted to make sure you were alright.]  I passed Greg a few miles up, coming back to check on us (Thanks Greg!)  A couple miles later, he came back by with Ken.  Even though I spent six hours on the road this time (as opposed to four last week) I came into town feeling a lot better than I have on any of my longer rides.  Of course, that didn't last long.  I should have let my body cool down some more before going into the A/C and drinking a bunch of cold fluids.  Live and learn.  I pretty much went straight from the bike to the restaurant and it was too much, too soon.  The place was really cold and I was sitting under a ceiling fan.  It felt great for about five minutes and then I started feeling a little sick to my stomach.  I couldn't eat a bite and eventually had to tell everyone I had to get out of the A/C.  The girls at Lucy's cafe were great.  They didn't even charge me for the soup since I didn't get to eat a bite.  I'll have to go back sometime and leave a big tip.  I went straight home and after 10 minutes or so I was feeling just fine.  Matter of fact, judging by the feeling in my legs and my energy level, I couldn't even tell you I rode today.  Maybe it was just one of those good days you have every so often.  If so, I'd like to have a lot more of them.  Highlight of the day was when we were all sitting around waiting to leave in the morning.  All the bents and recent bent converts were sitting around and Brian asks one of the DFers, "Hey, when are you gonna get a REAL bike?" Classic!  Thanks to everyone, especially Ken and Greg, for a great ride.  As soon as HHH is over, I'll probably be joining the LSRs and RUSA.
 
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