Have you ever ridden you bike 56 miles? Have you ever been on your bike and its been so windy that you have to lean to stay up? Have you ever gone 44miles on your bike without talking to anyone? Have you ever tried to read a map while riding your bike? Have you ever met a guy named Skip in the middle of no where? Have you ever had water handed to you outside a truck window when your both going about 15 MPH, then after emptying the water into your own bottle trying to throw the empty bottle back into a truck window without falling off your bike or running into something?
Well all these things happened to me yesterday. Yesterday was the first time I had completed 56 miles. I wasn't really worried about it because I did 50 just fine a couple of weeks ago. I just didn't know that on this ride I was going to be mainly by myself. After about mile 9 I got dropped by the fast people and I left behind the other people. I couldn't see anyone I knew, nor did I know where I was going. Thanks to my helpful boyfriend, I had a map! A small laminated one that I could stick in the pocket of my shirt for easy retrieval. It wasn't always the easiest thing to read though. At one point during our ride we were on a major highway that had exits on it. Not a good place to read a map! You better be holding on after a big semi passes, talk about wind!
Our coach was driving around in his truck making sure we were all still alive but it wasn't very often I would see him. There was about 8 of us spread out all over. Pat (coach)does a great job encouraging us and letting us know what we need to do next. Such as drink! That's something I guess I wasn't doing enough of. I felt great most of the ride. There was a point about mile 30 that I knew two of the biggest "mountains" were coming up very soon and I almost had a mental breakdown. Instead of a breakdown I rewarded myself with some shot blocks, very similar to gummy bears but they are filled with carbs and electrolytes, without the sugar. All was good at mile 40 when the "mountains" where in my past. Then at mile 44 life got even better! I saw a biker in the far distance. I pushed and pulled as hard as I could to get to him. I was ready to draft for a while. This man was wonderful. I pulled for a while then he pulled and then we rode side by side and talked for about 5 miles or so. If I didn't have him I don't know what I would of done. I was getting a little lonely out there by myself. When I left him I only had five miles to go. At that point I could of done anything, I was so pumped!
I ran a little bit after the ride but not long enough so in a few minutes I'm going to go run 8 miles with my friend Heather. She's amazing, I enjoy running with her because she always pushes me to the next level!
Restore Orlando update! Currently you guys have helped me raise $751!! I'm so excited to see how God is going to use this money! Thank you so much for your prayers and support!