Pop Goes The Schedule!

© Deb Davis

Last week I mentioned that my employer might send me to Tampa FL for a conference, May 12-15. Today that possibility became an actual plan, one that will have significant impact on my cycling ambitions this year.

I will drive to Tampa over the weekend that precedes the conference and I will drive home when the conference is done. So, I will miss the mountain bike races at Greenbush (May 10) and Rhinelander (May 18) as a direct result of the business trip. I expect to be home on Friday, May 16, but after all that driving the last thing I will want is another 450 miles round-trip to hit the Rhinelander race. We’ll see if I feel energetic enough to participate in the Washington County Bicycle Club time trial on Saturday morning, May 17; I might just officiate.

The mountain bike race at Iola (May 4) is off my calendar too. I still have not ridden singletrack since last September and the trails in my area remain closed. There is no way I will be ready to race in less than three weeks.

Of course I am taking a bike to Tampa, where the average high temperature for May 12-15 is 87 degrees. In West Bend we haven’t had an 80-degree day since September 19. Our high on Tuesday plus our high on Wednesday didn’t even add up to 80! With plenty of sunlight after each day’s meetings conclude, I should have good opportunities to ride while I’m in Florida.