Don't Let a Flat Tire Ruin Your Day

I went to bed extra early last night so I could get some decent sleep. Also so it would be easier for me to get up early and go for a ride before work. It's getting harder and harder to get up early as it's not even light out until 6:45AM. So I drag my ass out of bed at 6:20AM and head downstairs, slam a GU, grab a water bottle and head out into the garage to get my bike. Damn, front tire is totally flat. I tried to pump it up, but immediately heard the tube hissing inside the tire. Should I scrap the ride and go back to bed? Thought about it, but decided to just change the tube and go for a shorter ride instead. I found a rose thorn firmly embedded in the tire which nearly cut my finger open as I ran my hand around the inside of the tire looking for such objects. I usually don't find anything, and certainly wasn't expecting to find anything quite that sharp. Ouch. New tube is on, pump it up to 110psi, and I'm rolling out the driveway just before 7AM. Since I now only had about 30 minutes to ride I decided to do some hill repeats on the backside of Park Drive. This would keep me close to home and give me a killer workout as well as improve my climbing strength. Park Drive stacks up as follows: Distance: .514 miles, Ascent: 225', Average Grade: 8.7%. I did 3 repeats: 1 sitting, 1 standing, 1 sitting. I focused on keeping my heart rate below 170 while sitting and 175 while standing. Each time up took me about 4 1/2 minutes. My fastest time ever was 3 minutes & change, but I nearly hurled at the top after that. I could have done one more repeat, but had to get home to shower up for work and see Lex off to pre-school. Now I feel much better and am glad that I didn't let the flat tire ruin my whole day. 1000' of climbing, a few hundred calories burned. Not a bad way to start the day!