I rode the third new Watopia route today, Beach Island. Shorter than my previous two rides on the new courses it totaled 7.94 miles with 161 feet of climbing. This made for flat course which was good since I started later than I planned. The reason for the late start began after I left church this morning. I stopped at a restaurant to pickup my meals for Christmas. When I got there I went to the line of cars thinking that was where to pickup my order. After waiting my turn for 5 minutes or so I learned I was at the wrong place. Driving to the designated spot I called their phone number. The person on the other end couldn’t find my order. After talking and waiting 45 minutes a manager found my order and brought it to my Jeep. After a conversation with her I turned the key on my Jeep and heard the dreaded click-click-click of a dead battery. I pulled out my phone, opened the AAA app and requested assistance. About 20 minutes later Tony arrived, diagnosed the problem as a low battery, jumped started the Jeep, and did a few other tests. Everything else was good. I requested he replace the battery which he did and about an hour and a half after arriving at the restaurant I headed home.

Getting ready to Zwift I hoped things would go smoother but the sensors refused to connect to Zwift. After messing with several settings and closing Zwift the sensors finally connect and I began riding at 2:52 PM. I had a short time window to ride since I was due back at church at 4:30 PM. The short course fit that window. Shots of my ride.

Looking at Zwiftinsider.com I saw that the new Beach Island course is a slightly modified version of the event-only Volcano Flat Reverse route, placing riders on a more northerly segment which adds a quick trip through the Italian Villas and a chance for green glory in the forward sprint. The course GPS position comes up as Temotu Province, Solomon Islands.

Performance wise I set 4 records, 2 gold, 1 silver and 1 bronze according to Strava. Not bad for riding 7.94 miles in 28:05.