I'm more convinced than ever that my whole problem on Saturday was one of nutrition. Or, actually, a complete lack thereof.

This afternoon I completely smoked my previous personal best for twenty miles. It was the same route but included an extra half-mile out and back at the far end, so it was actually 21 miles. There's really nothing else to say about this ride, so I'll just leave you with the stats.

Oh, wait, one other thing: I don't know what's going on with my weight! I've been between 244 and 247 all month. I was 244 on Saturday. Today I'm 250! I'd chalk it up to another high gravity day, but my stats seem to say otherwise, don't they? :-)

Stats: 21.12 miles (34.00 km) in 57' 28" for an average speed of 22.05 mph (35.50 kph).

Wow. Go look at my performance graph, it's a little funny looking right now. :-)

;-)

Corinne and I provided lunch for Mystic Cycle again today, as an ongoing act of appreciation for all the free service and just for being an all around good group of guys (and gal). And again, when I say that Corinne and I provided lunch, I mean she did the grocery shopping and the cooking, but I did all the hard work of driving over there and helping them eat it!

Lunch included: a huge bowl of Cajun Chicken Pasta (one of my favorites!), a lasagna, two loaves of home-made bread, lots and lots of salad, and three different salad dressings (one of which was a home-made gorgonzola!).

There were seven people there for lunch: Rob and Rick (the partners), Graham, Dan, Mike, some guy whose name I can't remember, and me.

All of these guys are cyclists of one type or another. One or two are primarily roadies, the rest prefer trail riding or mountain biking. They're all pretty careful about what they eat, sometimes to an extreme... but not today, baby!

Frankly, I was shocked. Totally. And impressed! Everybody had thirds! Dan was like a snake trying to swallow some oversized prey: he frequently had to stop and stretch (while sighing loudly), and he'd actually tell the food in his stomach to "settle" so he could eat a little more. Rick -- the littlest guy there, and former racer in the Ironman Triathlon -- actually went back for fifths! He didn't fill his plate every time, but he just kept eating! (I was good, only ate a single helping).

Mike even asked if the cook was "available." "No! She's my wife!" I replied with, uh, enthusiasm. "Oh, well, I'm taken too, but I might switch for someone who could look like this." I decided he was joking, so I didn't have to pretzelize him.

After lunch, Dan laid down on the floor in the store, out in front of the registers, and asked if the store could be closed for an hour for "siesta". He was kidding, but Rob actually joined him on the floor, and for a couple of minutes there were three guys threatening to sleep off their meal, on the floor of Mystic Cycle. That was cool. :-)

An eighteen wheeler pulled up out front to deliver some bikes. Graham yelled, "Dude! You're harshing my mellow!" (Everybody laughed, but the driver didn't hear him as he hadn't even gotten out of the truck yet.)

I told the whole story to Corinne after I returned home. She especially liked hearing about these little guys eating three (or more) helpings, and then laying down on the floor. We joked that they were eating like nobody feeds them at home, but then she asked me, "What do regular people eat? Seriously, what do they eat?" By regular people, she meant anyone without a kitchen queen in the house, of course. Still, it struck me funny. "Regular people" made me think, "little people," which made us sound like a couple of rich snobs. "What do the little people eat?"