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Archive for August 1st, 2009

At the crack of 4:30am I met darkness. After suiting up and having some yogurt for breakfast we headed off for the 45 minute drive to Waxhaw. The roads were still wet from the rain the night before and it really looked like it was going to start raining at any second. It ended up misting the entire day and I had droplets hanging from my helmet almost the entire time. It could have certainly been worse; 95 degrees with 90% humidity, so I should be thankful for what I got.

The 5k events Donna does usually have quite a bit of activity associated with them; people milling about, numbers being handed out, lots of stretching and warming-up. There really wasn’t a whole lot of that for this one. Basically I got a number to stick on my helmet. Not sure why I needed a number since none of this was actually being timed by anyone and there really wasn’t any sort of record of who we were. Well, they don’t need to know who I am, that’s fine. I’m the mysterious old guy on the yellow bike.

There were about 100 people at the “start line” and by that I mean 100 of us just started standing around near the police cars in the middle of the road. I didn’t actually see anything that said Start or Finish for that matter. Not a big deal, markers are overrated.

We waited for someone official looking to tell us to start. And waited. And waited. When the police cruiser made it’s way through the mod we that would be the start, but he took off with great haste so following him wasn’t going to work out too well. He was probably heading to the scene of a crime and didn’t need a 100 people in tight pants showing up to offer input on how the events went down.

And then we waited some more.

Finally, we just decided to start riding. No starter pistol, no waving of flags, just some guy who got tired of waiting and took off down the road before it got too hot. We followed. Management in action!

The people of Waxhaw seem like fine folks but they seriously need to work on their roads. The first part started off smooth enough, but there were plenty of roads that I thought were going to rattle out my fillings. With 110 PSI in the tires and cruising at 25mph, if a rock or gap in the road did pop my tire, I was going to get churned up in a cheese grater. It made me very tense and really slowed my progress. Plus the frequent yells of “Hole!” and gesturing at the ground didn’t make me feel any better.

But the landscape was pretty nice; rolling hills, farms, hay bails, cows, horses and very light traffic. My speed was good and I was feeling pretty fit, until mile 29.

Right at half way is a huge hill. And it’s long. And steep. And huge. And steep. And I didn’t want to go up it.

I dropped into the lowest gear I had and hoped for the best. It was like hitting a brick wall. I was crawling along at 7 mph (or maybe it was just a 1 with a smudge on it) and thought I was going to have to get off and walk the rest of the way up. That’s when I started my Le Mas breathing. I really thought everyone was going to come flying past me, but it seems they were doing the same thing.

Finally it ended and we were on level ground again. I really felt like that had taken all my energy, but I quickly got with a group of riders (all struggling from the hill) and we set off at a pretty fast pace past the corn fields. The road was pretty smooth and we cranked it back up to 25 mph.

I stayed with these guys for quite awhile, even blazing down a hill at 44 mph. The wind in my head was almost deafening, and I had that fear that I was going to hit a rock, split the tire, split my pants and then my head. But I figured if I was going to wipe out I was going to make it the stuff of legend so I pressed on.

That group broke off at a rest area, but I was still feeling pretty good so I kept going. It was only 15-20 miles to the finish and I thought if I stopped now I’d never get started again. Inertia has a crippling effect on me.

After that turn the road was pretty desolate. I peddled along the “rolling hills” (a nice way of saying a whole slew of hills that are a pain in the ass on a bike) by myself. This set of roads were horrible. They were bumpy and riddled with potholes. Serpentine! Serpentine!

Right around mile 50 I started to feel some fatigue. I’m not sure if it was just the constant tensing because of the bumpy road or if I was really running out of steam, but the last few miles were brutal. My legs were achy, and my neck was starting to hurt. The few times I hit regular pavement I got my speed back and felt a little better but I was really starting to feel the strain.

I felt a little deflated that 3:00:00 rolled by and I wasn’t done yet, but that was total ego to think I could finish that quickly. I only had 6 miles to go so I was in the final stretch. Maybe I should stop looking at the clock.

By some cruel irony the last couple miles all seemed to be uphill. Or maybe it just felt that way. No, it was uphill. Maybe I was oxygen deprived and having hallucinations. No, really, it was uphill.

From out of nowhere, these group of 3 guys came up on me and sped by. I did what I could to keep up, but I just didn’t have the mojo for it. They ended up disappearing around the next bend.

I had some good bursts of speed as I lumbered my way to the end, but my finish was pretty anti-climactic. At a pretty weary pace I came to stop at the same place I started. There was no finish line so I wasn’t sure where I should stop. So, I made my own. There was a small cheer from a group which were waiting there. How very polite of them.

I figured that was good enough to signal the end, so I pulled over and stopped; 3 hours, 18 minutes. I took a few moments to compose myself and give into the delirium that I was actually done. I rolled down the park entrance and gave a triumphant wave to Donna and the kids who were nice enough to wait under their umbrella with cold drinks.

Donna seemed a little surprised to see me. Did I really look that bad? I know bike pants aren’t really complimentary on me, but no need for that reaction, I have to wear them. She was surprised by my time and showing up in the first group of riders to come in. Since I had ridden the last few miles by myself, I figured I was bringing up the rear.

Those other guys just stopped off at the pub and didn’t tell me, that’s why no one was following me.

I was completely worn out and looking for a Mountain Dew. It seems the Donna and the kids had anticipated my beverage request and it was waiting there for me.

Pretty exciting stuff I must say. It was a heck of a ride. I will have to figure out why I ran out of steam at the end there, but overall, I can’t complain about how I did. I wasn’t last, I didn’t crash, didn’t cause anyone else to crash, and didn’t get lost so I’m happy with how it worked out.

I did it! I finished the event and while I wasn’t first, I wasn’t last either. It was a heck of a ride and I’m pretty damn happy with my time. I slightly missed the three hour mark but a fine showing none-the-less. I had an averages speed of 18.7 mph so that is really close to my ideal time.

I’m not going to run out and do it again next weekend, but I’m sure I’ll do it again pretty soon. Right now it’s time to find some Coronas and celebrate this little accomplishment.

It’s dark outside and but it’s time to ride. I guess there ’s no backing out of this now. Time to pack up the bikes and see how I do.

Wish me luck!

By the way I sent this post from my iPod Touch. And it’s humid out here!