Jul-31: July Dunn, 1500+ RUSA kms, 1200+ total miles

Got 'Er Dunn, again, on Jul-31th.
Sort-of with fellow randos Dean and Janis.
But mostly I rode with a sore left shoulder and a very sore left elbow.

Pain can Distract the Brain.
Pain can also Focus the Brain.

I had the same pain problems the day before,
But the soreness seemed worse on the 31st.

So sore that I thought I was in danger of becoming unnecessarily acerbic during the ride on the 31st.
So sore after the ride that it hurt to type -- even only using my right hand / arm,
Which is why it took a week for me to make the post for this ride.

Back to the ride:
I may have been able to maintain some semblance of a reasonable personality for 50 kms.
But I'm not sure.
You'd have to get Dean's opinion on that.  And he might fib and say I was reasonable.
You might also be able to ask Janis.  But again, she might fib and say I was reasonable.

I didn't trust myself to make reasonable conversation.
So ... after the Erwin control at about the 40-mile mark,
When we got to the climb on Old Stage Rd,
I went around Dean and Janis, in the 50 x 17, and just kept going.

Dean and Janis were having a lively, seemingly fun conversation when I passed them.
I assumed Dean would ride most of the way back with Janis.
I never looked in the mirror to check.
It hurt to turn my head, so I never looked back over my shoulder, either.

My confuser was not functioning.
All I had for company was pain and the time of day reported on the confuser.

I concentrated on pedaling and the time of day.
Wondering, concentrating on "how long can I go without stopping?"
"Can I finish the rest of this ride without stopping?"

Since it hurt to turn my head, I paused to put my foot down, and turn my body,
When I got to NC-55 in Coats.
No traffic coming.

I "may" have coasted through some stop-signs,
But I will neither confirm nor deny that.

The stop-light at NC-42 held me up for 73 seconds.
I timed it on my watch (not the clock on the confuser).

I thought about waiting at the garden pond with the Loti.
But from just a glance I saw no bench upon which one could sit.
So I kept going.
Just as well on that score, as it started to sprinkle before the end.

I just wanted to finish.
And for the pain to end.

I did finish my solo purgatory ride.
But the pain did not end.

Sleep was a precious thing the next several nights.
It was still fairly precious last night.
Rain this morning has given me an excuse to stay off the bike another day.
But, actually, working a computer keyboard seems to be the most aggravating to the shoulder.
I think it is the combination of the position and the little finger and hand movements.
(I'm typing pretty much the way I was taught in high school some 38 or 39 years ago.
I don't have to look at the keyboard to know where the keys are, but I often / usually do.)

Back to the ride on the 31st:
I was shocked that Dean was only 7 or 9 minutes behind me (the official results "claim" 5 min.).
Dean told me after the ride that he got caught in no-man's land
Between me and Janis.
Sorry, Dean.
I don't know if I would have slowed or not if I had known you were "chasing".
I was trying to focus beyond the pain.


A few words about a tough randonnuese:

Janis had started the ride on time.
Dean had waited for me to finish prepping ... delayed slightly by the pains in my left arm.
That gave Janis a good 7 or 10 minute jump on us.
She rides faster when well out front and trying to stay there.

We caught first sight of Janis going into Coats.
After Coats, heading for the "shutter house", on a mostly false-flat downslope,
Dean and I were running 19-20 mph and making no headway on catching Janis.
We had to up our pace to 22-23 to catch.
I swear that when we got close enough for Janis to clearly see us in her mirror,
She stopped pedaling.

After the ride, Janis reported that she chased Dean for quite a few miles
After he left her to try to bridge to me.
She apparently almost caught him a couple times.
The last being just before (or was it as leaving) Coats.

I think it was good "long hot interval training" for Janis.


Post-mortem:

During the post ride chats, I tried to be amicable, but I'm not convinced I succeeded.
Dean and Janis went out to check Dean and Deborah's butterfly garden in the rain as I left.

No "tag-line" for this post.

Btw, Aug-06, as I type this, still pains in the shoulder and elbow.  But they are diminishing.
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Jul-31: 

Get 'Er Dunn 102km Perm Populaire; 65.2 m.; est. 4h,07m in-motion; 15.8 mph; rando elapsed-clock time: 4h,55m OFFICIALLY. 
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Among the things I "got Dunn" in July / on the 31st were: 

 - my first ever 1500+ RUSA km month. 

 - my first ever 1200+ total miles month. 

Neither was "planned".  They happened as the result of "helping Robert" and just riding. 

It is interesting, however, to  note that my shortest ride of July was 65.2 miles. 

Miles can pile up quickly when all the rides are "long". 

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