This morning was only my second ride trying the Albuterol inhaler, an attempt to deal with my asthmatic wheezing lungs that have limited my climbing abilities lately.

Smaller group today so I’ll try a roll-call. Eric, Jim (a Jim who’s ridden with us just once or twice before), Todd, Kevin, Marcus, and at least one other guy. It was on the run through the park that I first noticed the difference in my breathing; I was still breathing hard and pretty fast, but without the wheezing at the end (each time I exhaled). I felt pretty steady, about 29 minutes flat to the top (not a bad time for me when going through the park), but it was warm enough that I can’t be certain it was the Albuterol or the temperature that kept my lungs working semi-normally.

The only real surprise was the run across Skyline, where I developed extreme dry-mouth, apparently a normal symptom of Albuterol, and it took a while for my frozen overnight bottle to thaw out enough to cure it. West-side Old LaHonda went well, again with signs that my lungs were working a bit differently. It’s going to take some time getting used to riding with something that, if racing, would require a TUE (theraputic use exemption) because it’s considered potentially doping. But I can deal with that. What’s going to be tougher is dealing with an extended period of time off the bike, as I’m heading to Wisconsin Sunday for business at Trek, and then a week off with the wife a few days after that. –Mike–