Hot Ride and Cold Dinner

Since it was predicted to be hot yesterday, Jerry and I carted the tandem up to Nicasio and took off from there to Pt. Reyes. But even up in the usually cool and breezy West Marin, the temperatures soared. We rode only 20 miles, and while our average speed was good (no real hills to speak of) it was a painful ride because of the heat.

Jerry doesn't suffer from the heat as much as I do, so I would periodically ask, "the next time you spot some shade, stop." We'd rest for a minute just so I could get my body temperature down a degree or two. I also discovered what a good insulator my Camelbak is. Ice I had put in it hours earlier had not melted, so I needed to add water to it. My biggest problem is, I don't sweat very much. The only two places I seem to perspire appreciably are my scalp and under my boobs. No underarm sweat, and certainly none on my extremities, thus, no cooling evaporation to lower my body temperature. While some folks would consider no sweating an asset, I look at it as a major cycling hindrance. Going to have to do some research to see if I there is anything I can do to rectify the situation.

When we got home, we took tepid showers, and then I hit the kitchen to prepare a cool dinner. Beau, Grady and Buz were coming to dinner before a party, and since it was still quite warm, I thought a cool dinner would be just the thing.

But that didn't stop me from heating up the kitchen to prepare stuff. I baked bread, which had the oven set at 450, and I sauteed chicken breasts and boiled pasta for pesto. But once everything was cooked, it went into the refrigerator. I also made a salad of tomatoes, basil and fresh mozzarella, topped with balsamic vinegar and a little olive oil.

It was great to have the guys over. I'm really close to Beau, and I hadn't seen him in ages. We talked a little bit about strategies for doing some publicity for the Positive Pedalers' 15th anniversary, and I'll follow up with him later to develop a plan. This group, HIV positive riders and roadies on ALC, are really the face of the AIDS ride, and their cause is perhaps the most important to me.

But back to dinner. For dessert, I took a carrot cake out of the freezer. I had made two a few weeks back. The interesting thing about this recipe is that it uses olive oil, resulting in a light, not too sweet cake. I really like it. I accompanied it with lemon sorbet I made two days ago. It was really delicious and for me, hit the spot with its tartness and coldness.

After cleaning up, we met up with the guys at a fundraiser, birthday party held my two of the Seismic Challenge riders. Seismic Challenge is a mini-AIDS ride: a two-day 200 mile ride in the Bay area that is a fundraiser for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. Saw lots of friends, but didn't stay long. I felt that despite the heat, I was ready for a good night's sleep.

Today is much cooler, but no plans to heat up the kitchen. We've got way too many leftovers to think about cooking for the next day or two.