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Among the cycling events I’ve ridden since moving to Texas, the 60-mile Fire Ant Tour is the one I’ve done most often. My fourth Fire Ant Tour provided a number of firsts, as well as a very encouraging performance. Here’s how it unfolded…

Ornoth enjoying a day out in the farmlands of Central Texas.

Dramatic morning clouds at the start of the ride.

An event photographer caught this appropriate shot of Ornoth unloading from the new EV.

The lead-up was a little strange. For the two weeks preceding the event, all my riding was on the indoor trainer, thanks to compelling incentives on Zwift that allowed me to advance from XP level 102 to 107. But that left me feeling a little rusty for outdoor riding.

The weather was one of the highlights of the ride and contributed to a great performance, since it was just a little bit less hot (just 30°C) and windy (only 19 km/h G 30) than usual, with a little more cloud cover, which helped me conserve some stamina.

The ride itself was pretty straightforward, following the same 100 kilometer route as last year’s edition. The first 40 km was a small loop where I benefited from a nice paceline, maintaining a 30 km/h average speed over an hour and a quarter.

Next came a 40 km out-and-back on FM 215 to Mosheim and back. As usual, these two segments highlighted the strength of the wind. Despite maintaining the same power over the same distance with nearly the same heart rate on both segments, the return leg took 15 minutes more, because the wind slowed my average speed from 32 to 22 km/h… But that was better than it could have been!

I paused at that “first” rest stop for the second time at 10:15am, now having 80 km in my legs and some lower back pain. With just 20 km left, it looked like I might be able to finish the 100 kilometer ride in just four hours – a really good time – but I decided not to push myself for it. Especially after I got back on the road and my GPS bike computer went neurotic, necessitating a stop to power cycle it.

From there I powered steadily home and crossed the line at 11:15, having completed 100 kilometers in exactly four hours. It was my fastest Fire Ant ever, as I averaged 27.2 km/h, versus my previous performances of 24.7, 25.4, and 24.4.

It was my first event ride with a couple new pieces of gear, including my new MET helmet, which provided minor improvements in comfort and weight.

A much bigger difference-maker was the Camelbak stainless steel insulated bottle I’d picked up. It does a vastly better job keeping drinks cold for longer than my old insulated plastic bidons, so it was well worth the pricey (in relative terms) investment. However, I don’t think I would ever carry two of them, since they come with a noticeable weight penalty.

And although it’s kinda off-topic, I can’t fail to praise our new car – a Ford Mach-e EV – which made the 180-mile round-trip drive a pleasure. The bike fit inside the vehicle with no disassembly, and the functional air conditioning and ventilated seats are a godsend in Texas heat! Its BlueCruise hands-free driving worked exceptionally well, handling stop-and-go traffic jams, executing automatic lane changes around slower vehicles, and working fine even in 5am darkness. I stopped at a Mercedes-Benz charging station for my first-ever roadside “fill up”, adding 50% battery capacity (about 120 miles) for $18, while I spent half an hour stockpiling snacks and drinks at Buc-ee’s superduper Texas-sized convenience store. I plan to say much more about the car in my main blog, but for getting to cycling events, it’s kinda life-changing.

So between crushing the ride and enjoying my first EV road trip, I couldn’t be happier with this year’s Fire Ant metric.

I still need to do more long, hard outdoor rides to prepare for this year’s Pan-Mass Challenge. The most important ride of my year is only six weeks away, but my stamina and performance seem to be trending in the right direction. That’s extra important this year because I’m celebrating my milestone 20th PMC by flying back to Boston to do the in-person ride for the first time in 12 years!

If you’d like to help me celebrate – while funding lifesaving research at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute – please check out my PMC rider profile.

Thank you, and ride on!