another tuesday morning this time it's november 4th and its san diego still and its short sleeves 7:45am just slightly chilly but when we get started its gonna be a blood in your throat effort to hang on for as long as possible and the sweat will pour into sunglasses blueing the view and there are cars and dogs off leash and potholes and shit and dead animals strewn around the 4 mile loop along with slower riders dropped riders runners halloween leftovers bottle deposit seekers all out in the morning with the fog lifted and the sun about to bring it down so i've prepped a bit more with around 10mins of "muscle activation" exercises in the gym and some foam roller action for those perpetually tight cycling muscles like the TFL and the Lats and Calves so I'm convinced i can make it longer than last week's dismal 1/4 lap and so the group is bigger and i take a look over my shoulder to verify there are many of us taking up this punishing pursuit following the fast riders in front jockeying for the wheel that gives the best draft getting pushed off that good wheel and moving up to find another and the pace is high and the motor pacer has been behind us now for the first 2 laps but as i struggle to close a gap and now I'm at the back and Laurie has dropped just moments ago i see the moto speeding past on the left and i have not the strength to mount a comeback and as i drift off the fast group it seems they loll just a moment as if to say why did you just sit up we're right here come back it's worth your effort and then the moto hits the front and they're gone up the island around the bend and i see the others who have witnessed the same fate ride on to my back wheel and pass me and i try desperately to stay with them and the three of us ride in formation waiting for the fast group to catch us and make us race their pace once again and for a long lap they come roaring back and we sprint to get back on and 2 of us do and just like that less than a kilometer later half a kilometer later it's man this is just to f%#$ing fast for me right now and i sit up and ride toward the island exit get passed bay a young university woman see her in the distance and try to reel her back in which i do and i'm just hitting some last ditch effort to finish up the morning training and we link up with another dropped rider from fast group and hit it hard till the exit where i lick my wounds and ready myself for breakfast and the work day that awaits