Tribulation Worketh Patience

Bella and Sasha

It's official, I signed up for the "Round The Valley" 25 mile bike ride!  I wrote that after completing a successful 15 mile ride with my husband and he said "I think you can do it!"  We adjusted the handlebar settings on my road bike and it's now a much better position for me, even though it's not what is considered normal.  Finally, I enjoy riding!  The week leading up to the event started out stressfully when I learned of an earthquake in Virginia not far from where Derrick lives.  He texted me:  "Just in my first earthquake!"  and I texted back:  "WHAT?!?"  The week ended with him evacuating Williamsburg thanks to Hurricane Irene, partially at my insistence.  Here is my text to him Friday morning when I learned the college was evacuating the dorms:  "You ARE coming home."  Also I planned, shopped for, and then cancelled a company picnic scheduled for Sunday because Irene was poised to crash the party.  Friday morning my dog Bella injured her knee playing with her dog friend, which prompted an emergency trip to the vet who said she hurt her ACL.  I was routing Derrick around the worst evacuation traffic so I showed up at the vet with my map of Virginia in case he called.  Some (ok, let's face it all) of my preparation plans for the bike event went undone.  You know, like checking the map to see where I would be going...
I laid out my stuff the night before, printed out a cue sheet, woke up, and rode the 2 miles over to the expo.  Glancing briefly at the map they had posted, I said "hell with it" and took off on my new journey.  I rode out with a smile and a positive attitude, waving at the locals sitting on their porches.  There were two goals for this event:  don't call the 'sag wagon', and pass at least one person.

Keep Going

First issue:  I didn't understand how to read a cue sheet.  Second issue:  I knew only a few of the roads on my 25 mile journey.  Third issue:  I have no sense of direction, time, or distance.  Also, it was a "show and go event" so I ended up riding completely by myself with nobody to follow.  I took the 3 roads that I knew, looked for the painted arrows on the road, got out my cue sheet and promptly got lost!  So I went 3 miles out of my way, and up some hills I didn't have to...  it wasn't even 7 miles into the ride, this might be a long day.  Finally I was back on track, not tired but a little worried because I had never done 25 miles and now I would be doing 28.  From that point on I was in unfamiliar territory, on roads I didn't know - all by myself.  Past the tall cornfields in the middle of nowhere, I remembered the horror movie "Children of the Corn" ... pedal faster.  Past the streams and mosquito infested ponds, past quaint antique shops and family farms.  Past a group of Amish men steadily building a picket fence together, and cows with curious looks on their faces.  Slowing down occasionally to make sure I was on the right track, the locals cheerfully helped me find the next road on the cue sheet which I had finally figured out how to read.  I worked up the courage to look at my flight deck and see how many miles I had done so far.  It was 14, and the event rest stop was supposed to be 12 miles into the ride.  Curses, if I hadn't gotten lost I would have been there 2 miles ago!  It was then that I saw the sign which read, "Tribulation Worketh Patience" and it said to me - keep going.  Up a nasty hill, my heart rate maxing out in the 170's - keep going.  In the distance... could it be... another biker, yes I'm on the right road.  Soon I came upon the rest stop and met a handful of other riders, some local and a family from Virginia.  I stretched, filled up my water and Gatorade, ate a homemade "powerball" and was happy to hear that the second half of the ride was supposed to be easier than the first.

Success!

Again, with a smile and a wave I rode off to finish my journey.  My nemesis The Sag Wagon drove by and I thought, "not today buddy".  There was an older couple in front of me, as much as I wanted to follow them so I wouldn't be lost again, they were too slow and I passed them with ease.  I told myself that wouldn't count towards my goal of passing someone.  From there on, the cue sheet became my friend and the intersections seemed to be well marked.  17 miles..I crossed a couple of roads I knew giving me hope, and passed two more people.  Then I saw the tall red brick buildings of the VA in the distance, where I first started swimming in December..20 miles.  If I can do a triathlon, surely I can finish this ride.  Making a left back into familiar territory, I was greeted by the wind and rain of the very outer bands of hurricane Irene.  Then saw her in the distance, a rider plodding up the hill - I salivated.  Having enjoyed running in the rain, I found that liked riding in it just as well.  I picked up the pace, the faceless rider in my sights.  Feeling a surge of energy, I passed her easily.  Since I knew these roads well, heading back to the expo I went faster and ended by sprinting into the finish area..I did it!

I think I would have enjoyed my ride more if I had known where I was going.  I couldn't make the best use of downhills because I never knew where the next turn would be, and was constantly watching for road signs and painted arrows.  But it was more challenging this way, more of a journey than a ride.  I was proud of myself for finding my way, meeting my goals, and only cursing once!  The results:  28 miles in 2 hours and 18 minutes, averaging 12.1 miles per hour.  I had hoped to do 25 miles in 2 and a half hours.  Since I rode by myself the entire time with nobody to draft from, got lost and went up 2 hills I didn't have to, and went slow to watch for arrows, I'm happy with the results.  Altogether I did 32 miles because I had decided to ride to the event rather than drive, and I could still walk the next day!