Bridges

Feeling nowhere near perfect I set out for Day Two's adventure. My lungs are still smothered in oily smoke, I have a strange pressure on, or near, the pre-frontal cortex, my left foot is sore and I would much rather read some Proust by the pool than explore the new connecting trail between Battle Point Park and The Grand Forest. But that is the mission, hike it at a brisk pace, and then pick up the Quintana Roo and ride her the five miles home. Could be fun. Almost brick-ish. Almost immediately I feel better, out walking in the Northwest's version of spring, a cloudy subfusc of threatening gray skies. The trail is cool and I applaud the Park Department for their efforts. We have had our differences in the past, but this time they done good. The trail winds and drops, hooks and climbs, covers a bog with an s-shaped bridge, and abruptly halts at Miller Rd. Note to BIPRD: You might want to put a stop sign here as Miller Rd traffic over the years has become more of SR 305 West than a connecting arterial. The last thing you want to have happen on your hike is to get flattened by a Fred Hill cement mixer. Onward thru the Grand Forest, I take one wrong turn and circle the route twice getting in some extra work in my new Brad Pitt hiking sandals (Thank you D), before exiting the trails at Mandus Olson and pushing on to Kims, where, after the 1:30 warm up, I find the bike with a very low front tire. Oh well, pedal up, take a slug of Revenge and ride 'er home. Slowly. Can't believe how much leg strength I have lost in only seven weeks. Even in low/low I struggle up the three hills home and am totally cooked after the just under two hours workout. What a wimp. The remainder of the afternoon is filled with finishing the Wildflower RCV video, prepping for the trip to town today, re-hydrating and napping. What a wimp. Two down and nine training days to go. I may not make it. How many bridges to Elma? Did I previously comment on my wimp-dom? God, what is going to happen when I go to the pool? Bridges, they connect. Walk across. Keep moving. Focus. Ouch, that word again.