Riding through the Barrier

There's something unusual about riding when you have a fever. At first you're reluctant, then you set off, the effects of the exercise at first slow you down, you realise you're not quite yourself, it can get demoralising initially. However, if you stick at it, just to the point where you start to break sweat. Now your system starts to clear out. The fever begins to recede, and before long you're feeling much better, and wondering why you didn't do this initially.

For me that feeling came last night, at the top of a minor hill at Arundel, only about 50 metres in height, but coming just at that section of the ride where I have enough km to safely say I've "warmed up". Breaking through that barrier is an incredibly liberating feeling, even if I did keep the pace in check a little just in case of making things worse -- even if I did have to drink copious volumes of water.

I even attempted a sprint with Martin in Biggera Waters. I can't sprint to save myself at the best of times, and "going off the front" isn't always the smartest or most effective way to do it, but I had a dig anyway. Ultimately I came-off second best, but it's that moment of recovery, where you've pushed yourself and started to feel like your old self again. That was the triumph as far as I was concerned.

As to the next stage in the rear-light saga: I've found a way to attach a rear light to my bum bag for now. It's not quite what I had in mind, but it works well enough complementing the helmet mount for now.