I've been looking forward to my Friday Muffin ride for a while, because I knew it'd be a nice easy ride before the race. It's my equivalent of the BU Loop we used to run on Friday's before cross-country races. It feels good, it's relaxing, and you have plenty of time to chat about the excitement to come.

James McNeely and Joe Metro were the only ones to show up for the ride and we kept the pace right where it should be. Joe's also racing tomorrow, so we chatted a bit about the course and the weather since he's familiar with both in Strasburg.
When I got back home, I packed up everything I'd need and loaded the car so we could leave immediately after work. Of course, I ended up having to stay a bit late after work to finish up a simulation. But once I finished I picked up Will, then Jess and we hit the road North.

We arrived in Lancaster, PA around 10p and checked into the Travelodge. After nearly wrecking our bikes by backing into a wall, we dropped them off in our rooms and then drove to the course. It was exciting to drive the course in the dark. It gave us a sense of what was in store. The course was rolling as I'd expected, with two decent sized hills and one fun descent. The finish was just after an 'S'-bend and looked to be very fast.

We finally got to bed sometime after 11p and I was bushed from the driving and the long day.