This is a short one about my second ride in France. There's a ton of road work, so once again I spent about 25 minutes just trying to figure out how to get to a main route. Finally I found another cyclist!! Literally the FIRST other cyclist I've seen on my rides, and the second I've seen in general. (By cyclist I mean someone on a road or TT bike clearly treating it like a sport). This was a good idea (as it usually is in unfamiliar territory), but I lost site of him after I got stuck at a light while he beasted it up a hill. Still, it took me over some REALLY BEAUTIFUL pavement and took me to somewhere I knew, so I took the EXACT route as yesterday, but kept going and following signs to Angers.
I'm getting better at taking round abouts. I've learned to stay WAY on the outside and have faith that the cars will not kill me because that ruins their day AND mine. I definitely felt a lot less scared for my life. On the way out, this ride felt great, and I was cruising along for the middle portion at 20-22 mph. Then the scenery started to become beautiful and I was pushing up a LONNNGG but not too steep hill at about 14 mph, chilling with some goats. All of a sudden there was this HUGE downhill. I mean huge. Then I looked ahead and its sister CLIMB was staring me in the face.... after my nice long climb there. That was NOT happening, but I was already screaming down the hill, geared out, going 32 and BRAKING. Immediately after the end of the downhill, this identical climb was going to happen and I knew I could not make that climb, turn around, and then do it again, so I decided to pull over in the approximate 2 meters of flat road that I had and wait for the traffic to clear so I could turn around. Mind you... I had just geared out and had problems getting my bike to go slow enough to stop. Once on the other side of the road, I picked up my rear wheel and shifted to the easiest gear. I told myself "this is going to suck, but just push through it."
So once their was a break in traffic, I got on and started climbing at 9 mph. Yeah. Cool. I got so far into it and for the first time in my life on a ride I had to get off and walk the hill. It was just insane. My heart rate was through the roof and though my legs were hanging in there, my HR was not. haha
If anything, I will get some serious hill experience in this country. The day when I stop freaking out on that down hill and make it through those hills twice, I will be once powerful cyclist. That day, however, is not today.
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