4.00am....I do remember.....

That's right it was the return of the very early mornings....for of course the long rides. And to tell you the truth it wasn't bad at all. It's very peaceful and thought provoking on the bike at this time in the morning...very enjoyable.....wow, that's deep!

Session Reflections:

• two words.....character building!
• It was hot and humid....and when the sun came out it was even worse...but it was good conditioning.
• Even when I left home at 4.30am it was quite hot and humid.
• The support hydration and nutrition for the ride was a proven setup with 3 bottles of liquids (2 sports drink and 1 water), gels on the half hour and endura energy bars or LCM's on the top of the hour with energy drink.
• The conditions (apart from the heat and humidity) were good, very little wind to speak of.
• The first 1.5 hours were by myself and I went out around the city and airport loop then back in to join the rest of the group for the remaining ride. Great group to ride with this morning. Everyone willing to 'put it in' up the front and plenty of encouragement and laughs along the way.
• The legs were coping well and like the run yesterday there were some signs that the legs were finding a little more strength and there was some response to my base....but patience is required.
• At the 80k mark I ran out of liquids so a stop at a service station. With the humidity it was important that I drank a little more and therefore I went through the liquid supplies a little quicker than I had first planned. With the long ride to sustain a consistent effort staying on top of my hydration is important and if it means I need an extra stop then it has to happen.
• At the end of the ride it was about 4h38m ride time with just under 125km.
• The recovery again was a 15min Ice bath and stretch.