Post a Comment On: A Nod to Nothing

It was a pretty wild Ironman this year. Kyle talked Ming into going, and then couldn't go himself, but Ming committed himself to riding with me, despite the promise of poor weather. The first ten miles weren't all that bad, with just a bit of misting and dripping, but after that it gone downright cold and wet. 42 degrees and pouring until our feet were soaked and we were covered in road dirt. Good stuff. At least after you thaw out the fingers and toes. Makes the ride easier to remember when your memory starts going at age 41.

On a positive note, the portion of the ride that's usually in-the-face winds that slow you down to 6 mph near Farmington were absent. That was a pleasant gift.

Here's a bit of mist on my camera lens at the beginning.
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Ming, wearing nothing waterproof and my shirt. Brave man.
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Me, posing as a pinhead. I may look like a tool, but I loves me balaclava. My head stayed fairly warm compared to the rest of me. The fleece pull over wasn't a great idea. It weighed about 8 pounds more by the end of the ride from soaking up water. Any extra water ran out of the pullover, down my water-resistant wind pants, and directly into my shoes.
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Rest stop #1. When we came back out from inside, the rain started in earnest.
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Again, just to capture a bit more the gloomy skies.
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Ming, aware that he is about to get a swirly from God (or Thor, take your pick).
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Rest stop #2. Things have gotten very, very wet. There was a bus in front of the rest stop when we got there. We didn't realize it was a sag wagon until people started lining up on the corner. We saw more buses go past later, packed full. This is one of the few times I've ever seen Ming drink a cup of coffee.
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There are still a few people on the road. Most looking for a tree or a Malaysian to hide under.
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This is how wet Ming was. So wet he had his own concealing mist rolling off his body, obscuring any shots.
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A live look at the weather from the second rest stop, mile 18.5.