I had a hard time staying asleep last night. The fear of falling off my bike the next day was kicking in. My hip and well…my butt still really hurt from last Sunday. I can not sleep on my left side, which is my preferred way of resting. I am most aware of my injuries when I am trying to go to sleep because it hurts!
I was up before my alarm went off at 5:30 AM. I had everything set out and ready to go, but unlike every prior ride with a bike rack, I had not put the bike rack on my car the night before. I did not have the rack sitting right when I went to fasten it, and it started to fall, I caught it with the straps that secure it to the car, and that resulted in the straps being pulled through the rack. I then had the straps completely out on one side, very much like draw strings on a pair of shorts when one end is really long, and the other end is just hanging on by the knott. It took awhile to get everything even again.
My sitter, Freshman Raised by Good Parents was right on time. The B’s were really excited about having him watch them. He has a younger brother, Young Adventurer that is Brainy Bird’s age. Young Adventurer and Brainy Bird are great together. They both think Young Adventurer’s big brother is way cool. I regress…Young Adventurer got his blog name from the incident when him and Brainy Bird were around three, and Young Adventurer attempted to use a string of bungie ties hooked together and fastened to an end table to bungie jump off the back of a couch.
Once I had my bike on my car, and gave the sitter a basic run down of the rules, I was off to Hockley, Texas for my latest ride. I got there just before it got crowded. I was parked and had my race packet in hand in no time. I was feeling great about my new tire pump, and the fact that I actually know how to use it. I was even bragging about my skill to Cowboys Fan when I somehow let all the air out of my back tire. My stomach dropped. I was afraid that it was a sign of bad things to come. I am sure this will be a Monday morning discussion on his side of the floor.
Luckily, Cowboys Fan is a tire expert. He watched a You Tube video on how to change a tire, which must have included how to inflate a tire. He was able to get air back into my tire, and before long we were at the start line. Mr. LSU joined us at the start along with a few of my other co-workers. We waited for the race to start, little did I know that if I had taken off at that moment, disaster would have struck.
A ride marshall was walking around spot checking bikes, and he made a joke about all the cool gear on my bike. He went on to explain that my bike was is bad shape. The front wheel was not on tight, the right handle bar and seat were completely crooked, and the reader on my spedometer was hitting the bike’s reflector. I am at a loss for what the bike shop did while my bike was there for a check-up after my accident last weekend. Thank you Mr. Ride Marshall for being awesome!! I hope good things come your way.
Once my bike was in working order, I was completely focused on my fear of taking off in a crowd with my clip in pedals. I totally lucked out. They were pulling people in groups and starting them, and I wound up at the very back of my group. We took off. I didn’t crash!
By mile 20 or so, I was back to being the girl that did Chappell Hill like it was nothing. I was back to appreciating how incredibly fun riding a bike is.
At the second rest stop, I saw two familair smiling faces, Auto Guy and England. They are my neighbors, and they were race volunteers. England is a nurse, and it was definite reassurance that she was out there. At that point, my fear was gone, and I was set to enjoy the rest of my day. Worse case, I would call England, and she would come help me. One of the worst things about my crash last week was that no one, except Matt/Matthew who wasn’t sure what to do, offered me any help!
My enthusiasm carried me a long way. On about mile 40, I started to think that I was putting a lot of effort into pedaling. It was as if my break was on or something, I asked a guy that was passing by, and he confirmed my rear break was hitting my back wheel. My wheel was crooked. The ride marshall had no way of catching this. At the next rest stop, a super nice guy from Bike Barn fixed my bike in no time. The ride was an out and back course, so it was the same rest stop that I had stopped by before with England and Auto Guy. It was again good to see them.
As I was leaving the rest stop, a sign said, “Next Rest Stop – 11 Miles”. I thought to myself that I only had about 21 miles to go, and would not need that last rest stop. I was pretty fast on that next stretch. As a runner, anytime that I have less than 3 miles to go, I know that the race is mine. I can always do three miles no matter how tired I am. On a bike, I always have 20 miles in me.
I was wrong though. I stopped at the last rest stop, and it was the first time riding a bike that I actually needed rest. I was tired. A few steep hills and the heat were major factors. I stopped a bit, talked with some fellow riders about last week’s Chappell Hill ride, and then I was off to the finish line. I averaged around 18 miles/hour the last ten miles, and it felt great!
Cowboys Fan and the rest of my co-workers were long gone by the time that I got to the finish line, but it did not bother me a bit. I felt great about my race. I am definitely thinking that I want to ride harder next time. I am slowly acquiring the skills of a bike rider, and I know that I have the endurance.