28.1 miles of glory!

Elm Creek Park Reserve...
not too far from home, but never
ridden enough.
So, Chad and I decided to tackle the 17 mile loop and then head
out to the Coon Rapids Dam park.
All the trails are linked, you just have to
know where to go to get there.

We met up in the Al to the bertville
and loaded our bikes in the 'Lethal Bishop Machine'
(that is now what I call the new Grand Prix.
headed south tot he park and chatted non-stop
all the way there.

We pulled up, chatted with some fellow bikers
one in which had raced with Chad (unknowingly at the time)
at the Minneapolis Duathlon. They shared some stories
and then we were off.

Twisting and turning through the trails
and Chad was all smiles!
Its gorgeous out there and the trees were
starting to change, it was peaceful
and warm...almost perfect for riding.

Passed a guy on a nicer Bianchi on the way
toward the north loop area...
i think he was srprised to see us out there
why? I'm not sure, but his eyes got kind of big.
Who knows for sure, but nonetheless, he was there...
we got to out first major left turn and stopped to check out
the map of the grounds. dude shows up outta nowhere,
searching for oxygen and red in the face.
"Mind if i ride with you guys?"
"Of course not, the more the merrier!!"

So we rode, 3 in toe, drafting throught the park.
I took lead spot after about a mile,
Chad running #2 position and our new buddy 3rd.
We were pushing pretty good!
next big turnaround (about 3 miles later) and I look back
No more new buddy...
"Where'd he go?' I asked Chad.
Apparently he couldn't keep up the tremendous pace.
As if we are fast or something, hahaha.

Anyway, we meandered throught the trails and found our
outlet to the Dam over the bridge and across
the fields of Champlin and Brooklyn Park.
i was pulling the two of us pretty hard
and I felt so much restistance.
I knew that I had checked my brakes pre-ride
to make sure they weren't rubbing,
and they weren't.
Chain and gears were in tact, wheels seemed true.
No evidence of anything holding me back.

I asked Chad how he felt. He was good...
I told him my lungs were on fire and I felt alot of resistance.
He chuckled and said..."thats becuase you've been going 24 miles an hour
for the last 3 miles or more!"
Ah, that makes sense, and brings smiles.

We continued on and made it to the Dam in good time.
After sitting up on the 'Dam' bridge
watching the water flow rapidly and sounding
like a thunderstorm, we found a drinking fountain
to reload on H2O! The fountain had a 'HIGH' and the fountain
had a 'LOW'. If on HIGH, you had to stand about 4 feet away and catch the water
from a distance.
On the LOW setting, it would slowly trickle into your bottle and fill about a 1/4 of the way.
We opted for the 'more fun' HIGH of course. Lotsa laughs about something so peculiar and silly. We're triathletes afterall.

Got back on the paths, kicked her in high gear (literally)
and headed back to the post. It was getting dark out quick
ooops, no lights.
made it safely back to the lot where we had parked,
loaded up the bikes in a swarm of misquitos...
and headed home laughing our inglorious asses off!

Good times!

Bishop out