Thursday January 27, 2022
So the last ride of 2022 is in the books. I left with the Elite Cycle group at 5:50?, got dropped at Surfin Burreto, stopped at 6:30 at Cancun sign. There were about 4 cars there and a group out looking for the sunrise. At 7:05 stopped at Blue Statue and then home by 8:30. I will turn the bike in today when the store opens at 10. Then off to last lunch at Surfin and after to antigen test.
The Elite group was big today. At least 5 women and probably more than 30 riders. There was at least one slow man who hung at the rear with me and the “guide”. I say slow just in the sense that he was at the back of the group. He fell back at the normal places like the hill up to the pirate and the hill before downtown. But still faster than me. I again as with last thursday saw a lot of groups. Especially while I was at the Cancun sign. It is so great to see the groups go by while I am off the bike as it is death defying to have them come upon me on the road. I have no idea how they manage to get so many packed fast riding riders past the wobbly old man without desaster. I did have the sense today that a couple of smaller groups, maybe at least one without a chase car, came by me at the sign. In years past I have the impression that I often hooked up with a slower group on the road but it has not happened this year and it is very hard to know who is actually going slow enough for me to be comfortable.
The trip back on the Playa highway from the Blue Sculpture was especially terrifying, or at least worse than I remembered the last such trip which would have been Tuesday? In 2020 there was a group of dogs about 1/2 way that was always my worst optical. They would often run barking and attempting to eat my feet. I developed the protection of not peddling when in their area as I felt the moving foot was more of a attraction. This year, they are still there and I have seen them chase cars but maybe the Alpha who led their bike chasing has met an end or aged? This year the real challenge is just bushes having grown into the shoulder forceing me closer to the cars. Any weekday means more traffic and many big trucks running slowly in the right lane, too close to me! It rained last night so that added puddles to the challenge. I just have to ride through them and hope there is no large hole or bolder that I can not see due to the water. So, while the pant breathing and utter exhaustion of trying to keep up with the group and the fear of passing busses and pelatons is hard on the old man, the real scary part at least today was the dirt biking on the shoulder of the Playa road. I sure am ready to give this up and be back to something less scary like snow.