Race prep? Bug prep?

Prep for this weekend has begun. Solid ride with a mix of road, gravel, and single track. Not sure how much of that I will see over the 112 km that is predicted for Satruday, but it's worth mixing it up. Legs are feeling better, brain is fully restored, rest of the body isn't to far behind. A few other major prep work has be done also. The defensive type, the bug defense. For those wondering, we are heading north this weekend, far north. To where bugs like misquotes, deer flies and black flies vacation. You would have thought we would have gotten enough abuse last weekend to last the summer but no we are suckers for abuse.

If you haven't figured it out, Shannon and I are heading to Mattawa this weekend to play in the Lost in the Rocks and Trees. Shannon will be playing on the 30km course and me in the long course. This is a race I've wanted to do for a long time, it's not a huge event but it's listed as Ontario's toughest mountain bike race. I need to know. So what are we doing for this race that's different than any other. It's our race plan, it's not based on other riders, it's based on beating the bugs. We have spray's, a couple different ones to be mixed together and then there is the patch. It's not the nicotine patch, it's the leave me the f*#k alone bugs patch which is supposed to work. What ever is in it is supposed to absorb into the skin then put out some sort of odor that the flies don't like. Hopefully!!!!!

The conditions are looking pretty good, lots of sun and warmth, a chance of a little rain. Typical race weekend of a little this and that. I'm pretty laid back about this one with no real expectations. Just going up and riding. I've read a bit on the race involving what is recommended. One thing I heard was that you shouldn't ride alone to much, hmmm that's a strange concept to me but like i've done in the past, here is my race strategy. I'm going to ride with who ever wants to lead for the first lap and then do what the body is feeling for the second lap. Of course that's what I say I'm going to do but like usual it doesn't always work out that way. Either way it should be a fun day in sn area that I normally don't get to see which just happens to have a race mixed in to it. Just another adventure.