There's hope after all

This morning I went downtown and paddled for 100 minutes.  It was a significantly nicer day out on the river today: clear skies, temperatures in the mid 40s Fahrenheit on the way to a forecast high in the mid 50s.

I paddled downriver below the old bridges that I posted pictures of a few weeks ago.  A fairly stiff south wind was blowing, and while that's good because it usually means higher temperatures, it was also bad because it chilled my pogie-free hands.  But once I was headed back upriver with the wind at my back, that problem was over.

With a two-hour race coming up a month from now, I'm trying to nudge the volume up a little.  But I'm trying to keep the quality high at the same time, paddling a good, strong pace and concentrating on planting my blade and rotating fully for maximum power in my strokes.