Why not

 First, the Catalina Grand Fondo was a really great event!  It was so cool to ride hard and enjoy some awesome terrain that you would otherwise never have the chance to see.  We cruised through a buffalo herd early on, rode an awesome ridgeline hiking trail above Little Harbor, and finished with awesome views of the pacific while descending 2,000ft to Avalon Harbor and a finish line at the beach...  Sharing that with 600 other riders was awesome.  Keep an eye out for the event next year because it will sell out fast.   Oh yeah, the promoters put up some prize money too and a few of us were gunning for it.  After riding with a solid group of 4-5 for the first half I was able to ride away and do the 2nd 25 miles solo and come across the line first!

The week since has been a blur even though I only rode twice - 1 hour each.  I guess work kept me busy, but I my time outside the office was pretty chill.  In the end my much needed rest week went well.  I don't always do that well during rest weeks because after a lot of training and racing my body will pretty much shut down and it takes a while to get back into the swing of things with riding.  I felt great today though, so much so that I decided to go for it and race the CA Series / USA Cycling Endurance Series race outside of San Diego tomorrow - the Sagebrush Safari...  It's a cool, old school, 25mi cross country loop.  The endurance categories get to do 2 laps so I'm looking at 50 miles and 7,000ft of climbing.  Tinker and the other top SoCal riders are all sure to be there and the forecast is for 90 degree temps so it will be a tough day on the bike.  Any of us who get to race bikes truly are blessed though.  One of my goals this summer is to remind myself of that daily.  I always want to be thankful for my great health and the opportunities I have to ride in beautiful places.  Wish me luck!