Greetings from Humboldt, Iowa--152 bicycle miles from Rock Rapids! Let me break down my thoughts for each of the first two days as well as share Bill's separate excursion via the support team route.
Day One--Rock Rapids to Spencer (75 miles)
I left the campground about 6:20 am after Bill asked me to wait while he ran up to the street so he could capture the first mile on digital image. Lots of other riders had the same idea to start quickly and there were a load of bicycles four wide for the first 5-10 miles. Everyone had fresh legs and were eager to ride. The pack started separating itself at the first town we passed through, George, Iowa which had the pancakes and waffles ready for hungry riders. By passing the food stands I was able to leave many behind. Sunday I stopped at all five pass-through towns to eat the food in my pack (PB & J, Power Bar, fig newtons) as well as stretch as much as possible. I had no idea what to expect in these towns, but figured out quickly that riding was not always the safest option--often one had to walk past the food stands, the water stations and the outhouses. Here they are called Kybos...though I am not sure why.
We had a bit of a head wind whenever we headed south (the route primarily went southeast), but otherwise the weather was great for riding with overcast skies for the first four hours of the ride. My body was not telling me to stop riding until I hit the fifth hour of the ride around mile 60. That has typically been when I ended my training rides--but Sunday's ride was 75 miles total--more than on any other bike ride for me. I was happy to see the Clay County Fairgrounds sometime after 1 pm. I called Bill on the cell phone to find the location of our "home" for the evening and finally found him and the motorhome. He had only just arrived some fifteen minutes prior to me as he was stuck in support wagon traffic for miles. I quickly understood the huge advantage having a motorhome would be for me as I walked passed a shower line for those paying for one. Other bike groups have the solar shower bags and a privacy tent set aside for their members. The other "perk" was the cold air which greeted me when I opened the door. As the weather grew more humid by the hour, it was definitely needed.
Day Two--Spencer to Humboldt (77 miles)
Cold, threatening skies greeted me when I hit the road at 5:50 am. We watched other riders hitting the road as early as 4:30 a.m. in an attempt to beat the heat of the day. I packed my jacket as I did not know how the day would unfold. I took the first hour at a nice, easy pace to allow my muscles a chance to warm up. Today's route included nine pass-through towns and I did not plan at stopping at each one unless the body said stop. I was feeling pretty good on the bike with sitting on the saddle the only complaint after the first day on the route.
By the time I hit the half-way town, Laurens, Iowa, the sun had won the battle and no rain would be interrupting the ride. Outside of town there was a loop option to extend today's ride to 100 miles--I opted not to extend the day beyond the scheduled 77 miles. The wind from the south today was much stronger than yesterday and really had everyone drained. I heard someone say--"Oh boy, we get to turn into the wind again...yipee!" You had to have a sense of humor about it if you were to make it to the end of the ride.
When I finally arrived after seven hours of riding time on the bike, I was happy to climb off the bike. Actually, my body is feeling better today than yesterday and my energy level is pretty strong. It is the sitting on the seat which is the hardest part of this ride for me (guess what I'll be trying and buying when I return--a new seat!) We have electrical hook-up here in the fairgrounds which makes it quite nice for sleeping. Bill's drive today was still long (3 hours), but he had enough extra time to get our laundry done in town before I arrived back.
.
.
No comments:
Post a Comment