Well, that was the DFBR ride of the year, and one of the best ever. After some hard spin intervals and weights in the gym on Tuesday, followed up by a decent hitout at Richmond yesterday, I declared today to be RECOVERY ride day !!! I will learn one day that these declarations are a complete waste of time
I should have known when Stewart Sayer indicated his intention to ride today that the key word for today would be PAIN. And there was definitely some of that. A great day for riding saw Stewart, the ever reliable Andrew T and myself head out from the bakery. I had discussed the idea of heading out to Dunalley with a Primrose leg thrown in, and that is what we did. I indicated dictatorially that we would be taking the Sugarloaf Hill route, at which point Andrew attempted to object and suggested we opt for route B...
![Idea :idea:](./images/smilies/icon_idea.gif)
So off to Sugarloaf the peloton did go
And up Sugarloaf we went...and at a respectable rate at that. That pain out of the way and it's highway up... and down... to Dunalley.
Given that the wind wasn't favourable we made good time, sharing turns on the front with Stewart doing the biggest share of the hard work.
Dunaley and coffee. A short break and back to the ride. The route through Conelly's Marsh is picture perfect and if it wasn't for the few Ks of dirt it would be perfect. Not a fan of the dirt... no secret in my riding circles. This ride however is just too good to let a small section of dirt present a problem so dirt it is and on we go. Next stop the bridge and turnoff to Primrose Sands. Stewart and I turned left and waited for Andrew only to see him head ride straight ahead and back to Dodges. Saving himself for the Tour de Norfy on Sunday . So just me and Stewy for the Primrose leg, about 13 Ks and about the only section of flat road for the ride, with a few short and sharp pinches thrown in.
If Stewy is anything it is predictable, and I have learned to expect an attack at any time... and some of those times are a certainty. So I guess I shouldn't have been surprised to see him come powering past me at the back of Primrose on a short but sharp pinch
![Rolling Eyes :roll:](./images/smilies/icon_rolleyes.gif)
I just couldn't let that one go so I took off in pursuit and passed him before the crest
![Razz :P](./images/smilies/icon_razz.gif)
We had a few like that during the ride and it was good fun, and good training at the same time. Stewart can also be counted on to turn a regular ride into a bit of an interval session, and today was no exception.
So with that we completed the Primrose leg and hit the bottom section of Sugarloaf and back to Dodges for coffee. I called a truce and we rolled back for the last 10 Ks at an easy pace and met up with Andrew T at the bakery for coffee. Definitely the best Dodges ride for the year and one of the best ever. A really solid effort by Andrew and Stewart. Well done boys !!!