Yesterday I did this. That's right--55 miles on a bike from Amity to Pacific City. Yay for me. It was fantastic. There were around 4,000 riders and, if I'm being honest I probably got passed by 3/4 of them. Whatever! I'm totally zen about it--even though I will be hearing "On your left!" in my dreams for at least several days. I don't have the best bike, but I'm going to go ahead and blame it on the baby. In retrospect I should have worn a sign that said I'M 3 MONTHS PREGNANT SO DON'T FEEL ALL GOOD ABOUT YOUR BAD SELF BECAUSE YOU ARE PASSING ME. Or something like that.
My mom and I started in Amity with some friends, with another group including my dad behind us since they started in Portland. That's 104 miles for those suckers. Crazy, right? 55 miles was plenty for me.
Let me just say that I make it a personal rule to not wear spandex. It's like the slogan in the 80's--Just Say No To Spandex. Unfortunately many bikers don't believe in this rule so I have now seen enough spandexed butts to last me the next decade at least. It's hard not to hate someone's spandexed rear end as they pass you, always, always yelling what? ON YOUR LEFT! One other treat I saw as it passed was a pair of ill-fitting spandex on a, ahem, larger male behind. This particular behind was only half covered by said spandex. The other half was the hairiest plumber's crack I've ever seen. Whoa, I almost fell off my bike. He should really invest in some bike shorts like my own--spandex on the inside, nicely covered by regular fitting shorts on the outside.
On a happier note I did happen to pass a few people on my way. Here is a short list:
2 ladies who looked like they were out for a stroll--on their bikes. They were going very slow.
2 pre-pubescent boys
A dad with his 2 kids, probably ages 7 and 8 I'm guessing. I passed them going up a hill and the kids kept asking if they could get off and walk. The dad just said, "No, you've got to keep pedalling. Just keep going round and round!" Isn't that a nice philosophy for life? He was very nice, not yelling--just encouraging. It was cute. That didn't keep me from leaving them behind in my dust. Woot!
And, last but not least, I passed one more person. The old guy on his unicycle. His unicycle! What? Yes, he rode it from Portland. As I passed him, I decided my goal for the rest of the ride was to, at the very least, stay ahead of the dang unicycle, which I did.
I felt pretty good until I rode into Pacific City. As soon as I could smell the beach I thought I was close to the finish line and there's just something about thinking you are almost done that makes your body say, Hey--time to quit! So my right leg started cramping up and I'm trying to pedal with one leg, my butt is killing me, and the finish line is nowhere in sight. All the people on the street are saying "You're almost there! Another 1/4 mile!" Except, they're all saying that--even when I've clearly ridden 1/4 mile. I think, well, this is it--I'm going to have to stop, I just can't make it to this finish line. How lame is that going to be? But then finally, finally I see the turn and the flags (about 1/4 mile down the road, thanks people) and I crossed that dang finish line to the cheers of my mom, and some good friends. I have never been so happy to get off my bike. A bit later the rest of our group came in and we all celebrated finishing. It was great.
I have to give a big thank you to Bryan's work, IPD, who sponsored me for the ride, which benefits the American Lung Association. Thanks to them I got to ride, and I get a pretty red t-shirt!
One of the best parts of the ride was being able to ride with my mom. We've been training together for the past several months and it was great to be able to chat as we rode along some of the most beautiful countryside I have seen, ever. She is a little bit better rider than me (plus she has a better bike) so, like a mom, she had to sacrifice riding at her own speed to stay with me. We had so much fun and I can't wait to do it again next year. She says we're doing 80 miles. I guess we'll have to negotiate that part.
My mom and I started in Amity with some friends, with another group including my dad behind us since they started in Portland. That's 104 miles for those suckers. Crazy, right? 55 miles was plenty for me.
Let me just say that I make it a personal rule to not wear spandex. It's like the slogan in the 80's--Just Say No To Spandex. Unfortunately many bikers don't believe in this rule so I have now seen enough spandexed butts to last me the next decade at least. It's hard not to hate someone's spandexed rear end as they pass you, always, always yelling what? ON YOUR LEFT! One other treat I saw as it passed was a pair of ill-fitting spandex on a, ahem, larger male behind. This particular behind was only half covered by said spandex. The other half was the hairiest plumber's crack I've ever seen. Whoa, I almost fell off my bike. He should really invest in some bike shorts like my own--spandex on the inside, nicely covered by regular fitting shorts on the outside.
On a happier note I did happen to pass a few people on my way. Here is a short list:
2 ladies who looked like they were out for a stroll--on their bikes. They were going very slow.
2 pre-pubescent boys
A dad with his 2 kids, probably ages 7 and 8 I'm guessing. I passed them going up a hill and the kids kept asking if they could get off and walk. The dad just said, "No, you've got to keep pedalling. Just keep going round and round!" Isn't that a nice philosophy for life? He was very nice, not yelling--just encouraging. It was cute. That didn't keep me from leaving them behind in my dust. Woot!
And, last but not least, I passed one more person. The old guy on his unicycle. His unicycle! What? Yes, he rode it from Portland. As I passed him, I decided my goal for the rest of the ride was to, at the very least, stay ahead of the dang unicycle, which I did.
I felt pretty good until I rode into Pacific City. As soon as I could smell the beach I thought I was close to the finish line and there's just something about thinking you are almost done that makes your body say, Hey--time to quit! So my right leg started cramping up and I'm trying to pedal with one leg, my butt is killing me, and the finish line is nowhere in sight. All the people on the street are saying "You're almost there! Another 1/4 mile!" Except, they're all saying that--even when I've clearly ridden 1/4 mile. I think, well, this is it--I'm going to have to stop, I just can't make it to this finish line. How lame is that going to be? But then finally, finally I see the turn and the flags (about 1/4 mile down the road, thanks people) and I crossed that dang finish line to the cheers of my mom, and some good friends. I have never been so happy to get off my bike. A bit later the rest of our group came in and we all celebrated finishing. It was great.
I have to give a big thank you to Bryan's work, IPD, who sponsored me for the ride, which benefits the American Lung Association. Thanks to them I got to ride, and I get a pretty red t-shirt!
One of the best parts of the ride was being able to ride with my mom. We've been training together for the past several months and it was great to be able to chat as we rode along some of the most beautiful countryside I have seen, ever. She is a little bit better rider than me (plus she has a better bike) so, like a mom, she had to sacrifice riding at her own speed to stay with me. We had so much fun and I can't wait to do it again next year. She says we're doing 80 miles. I guess we'll have to negotiate that part.
Middle of the second leg.
A happy bike rider.
What? No more peanut butter sandwiches?
Riders rolling in to the last rest stop. This was after a nice downhill stretch and right before the steepest hill on the entire 55 mile ride.
Mmmm, a big line of Honey Buckets. And check out all the spandex!
And here is Mr. Unicycle.
Finish line...finally.
Happy to be done and not wearing spandex.
My lovely medal. Note the bike chain around it.
Riders and friends at the finish line. Right on the beach.
My dad crossing the finish line. Check out the blood on his shirt.
He had a bad crash but kept going to the end.
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