I woke up dead tired and feeling like dirt. But I was able to get out of the house not longer after six and head over to Key Elementary School to vote. It was a lot of fun to cast a real ballot (as opposed to the absentee kind) for the first time. You feel more like you're doing something worthwhile. It was especially nice to ride to vote and a lady outside was nice enough to watch my bike while I voted. There was no line at all at 6:15 and I was out of there in less than five minutes.

It hit the road towards work and immediately I knew my legs weren't thrilled with the prospect of twenty four miles on the trail. I stayed away from pushing it in an attempt to recover. When I left the house, I hadn't expected it to be very cold, so I was riding with my Mechanix gloves and without my newly purchased booties. But unfortunately, the miles took a toll on my hands and feet and by the time I was in Vienna, I was cold. It wasn't much fun the rest of the way until I was able to hop in the shower before starting work.

Instead of dreading the ride home on my tired legs, I was excited to be riding in the dark with my new light. And riding in the dark I was since I left around 6p. I fired up the bulb and headed out. I rode a few of the offroad sections in the first five miles on the trail just to see how well the light really worked. The light allows me to see at least ten feet in front of me, which is plenty for riding on the trail and on the smooth off road sections beside the trail. But I can definitely understand now why it's necessary to have also a helmet mounted light for night mountain biking. It's hard to see where you're going when you have to turn.

As I always seem to, I was feeling strong in the dark and the crank was turning over much easier than it had in the AM. I didn't pick up any riders headed my way until just before the hill at Highway 66. He was on a road bike and scooted through the light ahead of me. I was happy to have a little bait, and going up the hill at 66, I blew past. It was fun throwing in surges as he chased after me. Everytime he got close, his light would blend into mine, so I new when he was near. I'm not sure when he turned off, but it got me moving all the way to Wilson where I hammered up the hill.

I think it'd probabaly be wise if I started switching to my road tires for riding to work. It'd save time riding and probably keep my legs fresher. I can handle most of the off road stuff easily now, so I should spend more time at the park to practice cross.