D2R2 2017 - A Week to Go

Muschopauge Rd, Rutland, MA
August 12, 1017

With just a week to go before the D2R2, I did my longest ride of the season, a 51 mile road ride. That's roughly half of the 160K that's on tap starting at 7:00 AM next Saturday. Was this ride any indication of where I am, form-wise? Yes, and no.

I rode hard, averaged over 15 mph solo, but eschewed climbing Mount Wachusett even though I skirted the base and was well-placed to make a go for the summit. It seemed too much. I never felt close to bonking but by the time I got back to Shad Quarters, I was ready to get off the bike and tuck into a cold Haze from Tree House Brewery. And into a 16 oz grilled ribeye. 

It's been a weird year for Team Shad. Existential angst, questions of retirement, the possibility of disbanding, pressure from the Caviar Mafia of Baku, an abandoned Rasputitsa, long stretches of ennui and disinterest. All of that, coupled with last year's epic fail on East Road and the Three Stooges-like buffoonery that ensued, magnifies the importance of this year's edition. 
Dubstoevsky and Team Shad seek redemption.

But will we achieve it? Each edition of the D2R2 poses new challenges. Last year's Mystery Ride, with its horrendous stretches of un-rideable forest road and the oppressive heat, proved insurmountable for many, Team Shad included. Then there was the first year of Team Shad's participation in the event when Wing Nut powered ahead and dropped Dubstoevsky on a long grinding climb, leaving D-Evsky on his own to make a wrong turn, become completely disoriented and end up on a different course altogether.

But the years in between those two mishaps provided Team Shad the opportunity to shine. Three solid years, 2013, 2014, and 2015 saw the Shad performing at a high level. Team cohesion, strong, disciplined training, and prime weather conditions added up to peak performances.

But the six months prior to this year's edition have been anything but cohesive. Wretched stretches of spring weather (read, most of March and April) rendered January and February's six-ride-each-month moot. By late May, when Dubstoevsky finally began to log some miles, the season was in disarray and even participation in the D2R2 seemed up in the air. Training rides were of short duration. Twenty miles. Fifteen. #Sad.

Team Shad

But now here we are. And though I, Dubstoevsky, am generally not a water glass half full kind of guy, I have looked for some positives from these past six tumultuous months. The most important reed of hope to which I cling is the simple fact that I'm fresher this year. This, I deem major.

Last year, the Mystery Ride was my 78th ride of the season. Team Shad drove me like a locomotive. This year, the D2R2 will be only my 45th ride of the year. Though that's a sad and disappointing stat in one regard, in another it suggests that I have the strength of 25 un-ridden rides in my legs.

I'm counting on needing them come Saturday.