Hammer Time!

No, not MC Hammer.
In an extreme example of hand-eye coordination, I hit my finger with a hammer.
It hurts. It throbs. It is black and blue. It hurts.
I just hope my fingernail doesn't fall off.
So, let me relate to you another hammer time as I sit here in mind numbing pain typing without using the letter J.
With great excitement, a friend and I met my brother for his "easy" ride. I should have taken the display bike (see below).
It all started off innocently enough. A little two mile jaunt before we hit the highway with me thinking, "I can do this."
Six miles later, my brain stopped working. Luckily, my legs seemed to know what to do, even if they didn't do it fast enough.
I did my best to find a draft, but I guess that's pretty hard when you are ten bike lengths back. Apparently, what my brother calls his easy ride is the equivalent of my death ride.
Now, I was on my mountain bike, while the other two were on road bikes; my bro was actually on a tri bike. My friend was on his new five pound carbon bike.
But I am not making any excuses. I mean my bike must weigh thirty pounds don't you know.
So while the two spent most of the ride in the twenty MPH range, as you can tell, I spent a considerable part of it below it. Don't get me wrong, I did break "the barrier" but I could not seem to gain any ground when I did and for the most part fell OTB. I felt like a hamster on his wheel, moving my legs as fast as I could but not really going anywhere. I actually lost sight of them twice.
I meekly complained about how the sun was blinding me but in actuality, they could have been lit up like Christmas trees in the dark and I still would have lost them. I was so far behind, their dust had already settled. I was actually sort of having a good time.
Until I got dropped by a guy wearing shorts and slippers on a twenty six inch mountain bike.
I relenquished after about twelve miles.
It was a great ride.
I pushed myself harder than I ever would have riding alone. I was surprised that I hung on for so long.
I know the upper limits of my capabilities and while not stellar, not dissappointing either. I now have some new goals to shoot for and my riding has taken on a new purpose.
Time to pump up the tires on the display bike.
I have a date with my brother next week.
I hope I don't get hammered.