Blue skies

I got out early this morning to take advantage of the frozen roads, knowing they would soften later in the day. Although it was in the teens when I left the beautiful blue skies and sunshine made it feel a little warmer. After about three hours though the roads were turning muddy causing me to search for pavement for the rest of the ride.

I am fortunate to have miles of back roads to ride and trails close by. Today's ride took me up north through the Metamora area which is horse country. The horses seemed curious about me and watched warily as I rode by. At other farms they were galloping around the pastures, enjoying the sunshine as well. I need to take a camera with me to capture some of the scenery.

On today's ride I had a couple of longer intervals of medium intensity prescribed by my coach. One interval became an all out sprint as I got chased by a dog. My heart rate shot up 20 bpm's over target for a few minutes. I think I'll skip that road for a while. Tomorrow is another long but low intensity ride with a couple of friends, including Chris W. With warmer temperatures predicted we will have to plan our route to avoid the back roads later in the day.

Another photo from Glacier National Park.