‘tis not a man, ‘tis an eating machine

the switch has flipped. gone are the early days of riding with culinary preference being more important than volume. balanced meals with reasonable proportions have been chucked aside. we have entered a new phase of fueling the machine.

there have been many lessons along the way, but the most pronounced occurred in helena, while on our way to a 6,000 foot climbing day. we left camp early and sought a restaurant that would be quick and easy. not knowing helena, we settled on a burger king that was open and learned our lesson:

even when not riding the divide, NEVER EVER have breakfast at a burger king.

we just wanted fuel, but we got so much more. we got a massive infusion of sodium along with a tasteless burrito that was stuffed with tots and some sort of formless meat.

it laid like a lump.

days later, we still see this as one of the low points of our first two weeks. not the physical grind; not the sleeplessness; not the climbs; not the urban anxiety, but breakfast at burger king.

in retrospect, both scott and i attributed that meal to a shitty day in the saddle. of course, the numbing, rugged trails and treacherous descents didn’t help.

our energy needs for a day in the saddle can easily exceed 4,000 calories so, we have to eat twice as much as the “common folk.” and that has been evident the last couple of days.

our overnight in basin, mt placed us on the front entry of the silver saddle bar and restaurant and once a customer ordered a burger and fries and the smell wafted over and through our own stink, eating was on.

i ordered a huge burger, a large order of fries and onion rings and washed it down with a couple of beers and a couple of cokes. easily, a 2,000 calorie repast.

the silver saddle opened at 8:00 and we were there.

eating.

yesterday, given the food, i felt as strong as i have on the divide. i climbed like a ring-tailed lemur, pushed a bigger gear and was “ beasting it” most of the day. it was all good until i noticed a wobble in my back tire and sure enough, i have a broken spoke.

fortunately, we are not riding today and will spend the day in butte, peeking from our curtains at the world. the “ac” is on and the breakfast we choked down at the hotel (burger king still the champion), was just supplemented by a couple of breakfast sandwiches at mcdonald’s.

at this point, taste has nothing to do with…anything.

i figure i have already ingested about 1,500 calories to start the day, and in my calculations and experience, that is enough to get me through the next couple of hours.

my preference and choice in foods is gone. until this trip, i hadn’t eaten at a fast food restaurant in over a decade and now, i just see them as convenient necessities.

order, choke it down, and ride like a kid.

time to eat.

again.