Mother Nature has been great to me so far this week.
Tuesday's bike ride was cool and dewy.
The cool air created a soft fog that was resting on the prairie grasses in the open spaces we pedaled through as the sun rose along the Alum Creek path south of Bexley.
We saw a doe and three fawns, and countless bunnies. My metal brake levers actually collected little droplets of water as we passed through the fog-laden areas.

There are hardly any other pedestrians/cyclists on the path at that hour, which is great since our group comes barreling through well above the recommended speed for the path. Everytime we passed someone, I would think how lucky we were that it was 10 yards after or 10 yards before a hard curve.
Then it happened: Just before the end of the ride, we passed (going in opposite directions) another cyclist on one of the curves. This one is so sharp, there is actually a sign that says "Slow Curve Ahead." (I think it's supposed to read, "Slow. Curve Ahead.")

Anyway, I was at the apex of the turn when we passed, and I confidently held my line, kept pedaling, stayed right of the yellow line, and we passed without incident. Yay me! I wasn't able to look at the other rider while executing that kind of handling, but at least I didn't crash! I'm getting a lot better at this, thanks to riding with a group on such challenging curvy paths.


This morning we swam at the quarry at sunrise. Again, the air was cool, and mist was rising up from the water, which was warmer than the air. I had to wear a fleece for the walk down to the water's edge, but the water itself was inviting.

Today we swam from the building beach (NBBJ) to the rock island, but instead of stopping to chat and wait at the rock island, we swam around it and returned back to the building. It was about 30 minutes of straight swimming - plenty of time to really focus on swim stroke. I was focused a little too much on what my arms were doing and went off course a few times, but still managed to make it to the building 3rd out of 5 swimmers.

As we jumped out of the water at the docks for a short run, the sun was a big orange fireball above the treeline. I don't know why anyone with a choice would swim in a pool on a day like today.

The run was short today - 15 minutes. I thought about going back out for another loop or two, but this is my easy week, so I got in the car and headed to work. My training plan calls for increasing distance and time each week for three weeks. Then the fourth week you back off and give yourself a chance to repair and regroup. This is the fourth week in the cycle for me. Which works out well because David and the kids are coming home tonight!