Ye Olde Stage...Firsts

Today I finally got in some much needed hill training on the bike. I did Old Stage twice and then continued up towards Jamestown. I sort of ran out of time, so I only got a few miles up the canyon, BUT I actually passed people! On a hill! Craziness, I know. And these were real cyclists (of course, two of them were on mountain bikes, but the other two were not). Still, I think it's a record for me.

I was surprised that I felt pretty good considering the long run the day before. I was expecting my legs to give out halfway up Old Stage. But they stayed with me and performed some miracles: 1. I was able to ride the second repeat while seated for the majority of the hill. 2. I was able to restart on the steepest part of the hill from a dead stop.

Yes indeed. I usually have to stand for most of the hill because my legs just haven't been strong enough to propel me in a seated position. I'll usually stand for a bit and then take a quick break to spin a few rotations and then back to standing. But I've always had to throw my whole body into it. But this time, I was able to remain seated for almost the entire hill. There were a few times I had to stand to try and get my cadence up a little bit. And then my CO2 cartridge fell off. I heard a click and saw something fall from the corner of my eye. Having heard some rattling earlier, I naturally assumed that my bike was falling apart (the eternal optimist). I stopped (which is really hard to do when you're going so slowly and are at such a steep angle). I saw that it was my cartridge and went to go get it. I checked the other cartridge and adapter and everything was loose - I must be riding some rough road somewhere. I tightened everything up, then hopped on my bike and prayed for a miracle that I could get started again without falling on my face. I somehow managed to pull it off.

So it was almost like I was destined to pass people going up to Jamestown - after my triumphs on Old Stage,
how could I have a bad ride after that?