Sneaky Bastard

The Solvang Century was last weekend, and it was fantastic. Originally, it was going to be a family affair, but Dan and Liz whimped (hehe). Heather and I decided to take it easy and do the half-century. Compared to last year’s death march (Solvang Century 2007), the ride last Saturday was an easy cruise. The weather was perfect, although it always starts off very cold. The first 20 miles of the ride, which are common between the 50-mile and 100-mile routes, are just beautiful.

We drove up on Friday to register, arriving at 1715 to stand in line. The line was HUGE, but they processed the riders quickly. Olie stayed at Camp Lamoree; we had a room at the Mission Inn of Pismo Beach, which is a very nice place at a bargain of a price. We drove to Solvang at 0630 for a 0730 start. After the ride, we checked into the Royal Scandinavian Inn, which is the host hotel for the event. It’s okay, but one stay is plenty. It was very nice to not drive home immediately afterwards though. That night, I went out and bought cakes, pies, and muffins for a celebratory snack. They were good. ;)

This is a staged photo of mock exhaustion taken by some fellow cyclists at the event parking. Next year, I’m going to try my luck at the full century again.