Every time you turn on the TV, browse a news site or listen to the radio, it’s a report about Coronavirus COVID-19.  The story is usually something hyped up to get your attention. It’s working too – people are stripping the supermarket shelves of toilet paper and ummmm, well just toilet paper! Weird…

Experts are telling anyone with symptoms (of which diarrhoea isn’t one, so WTF on the toilet paper) to isolate themselves and avoid any human contact. I have no symptoms, but avoiding human contact sounds like bliss to me! Hahaha! I find the ideal way to achieve isolation is a long solo ride. So what better day for Resolution Ride number three? Actually, it could have been a far better day.

Conditions were not ideal this morning. Autumn has definitely arrived in Tasmania with falling temperatures, a stiff southerly breeze whipping across the island and threatening rain clouds hanging low over the sea. I was so close to sacking off the ride and hitting up Zwift, but sometimes you just have to get outside. Not wanting to make the same mistake as last month I opted for long bibs, arm warmers and full fingered gloves! I’d prepped the “good bike” the night before in hopes of the weather holding off, but just 25km into the ride the heavens opened and I was forced to stop and don an extra layer.

My “rain face” is strong. Bus shelter pit stop to throw on a waterproof.

The roads around my area aren’t hilly, but they’re certainly not flat. If you look at the route profile below, you can see it resembles a saw tooth pattern – ramping up, down, up, down! Combine that with a lot of time battling into a headwind and I was struggling to maintain a decent pace. This was not going to be a 30kph average speed day that’s for sure!

By the 75km mark my legs were really fading. I was wet and cold and riding a now filthy bike. Each ramp in the road was sapping my energy, bullying me into the little ring, where usually I’d be punching strong in the big dog. 

Today was NOT a day for deep sections or carbon braking surfaces!

I made a detour home to chomp down a mood-boosting peanut butter sandwich. Just the ticket! I don’t like to stop too long on any ride. Every minute stopped is a minute cooling down and a minute not adding distance to the clock. I find it’s always best to eat on the go if you can and only stop if necessary. Today was necessary.

Out on the road again (and back into the wind and rain) it was simply a matter of grinding out the final kilometres. It wasn’t fun at times, but I was determined not to fall short today – and fall short I did not – rolling back home with the metric century completed. It wasn’t pretty, but it certainly beat a morning on the couch!

Distance: 106 km / 66 miles
Total elevation gain: 960 m / 3150 feet
Average speed: 26.1 kph / 16.2 mph

Because I was so slow, I also completed the Strava Long Day Challenge, clocking up over four hours of total ride time. Silver linings I guess! That’s three months down, nine more to go.

Thanks as always to “36×25” for the Resolution Ride name!