Thursday, May 3, 2012

The Climate Ride Chronicles: Funny noises, forts and french toast!




Wow has it been a crazy two weeks! I have had some incredible training rides, some really dreary ones in the rain and I've been collecting gear. I've also made huge progress with the fundraising; I'm almost there! I am so honored to have the network of friends and family that I do. I am able to do this adventure because of YOU. Thank you!

The weather has been all over the place and so I've prioritized biking whenever I can to try to catch any good weather. I've also ridden in the crappy weather. A few weeks ago was the first time I had gone 50 miles. The next week I had Thursday off from work and I went on the W&OD trail and did 46.5 miles. (By the way, this is one Rails to Trails trail, built by one of the Climate Ride beneficiaries). The day was beautiful, my body was feeling good, and you know what? It wasn't actually that difficult! I am no speed demon, but I could have ridden for a lot more miles. The only reason I turned around was because I had to be home for the dryer repair guy to come to the house. Having a trip of nearly 50 miles be easy? What an esteem boost!

Just a quick Thursday jaunt :)

The following weekend brought rain. Lots of rain. On Saturday it was mostly just gray and gloomy. It matched my mood. I kicked off towards Georgetown and intended to go towards the Capital Crescent trail...but Gloria has other things on her mind. Mostly she insisted on making a funny noise after a stop when I peddled the first peddle stroke. What are you saying?? I don't understand what you want!! The noise didn't let up. I had considered calling Corey to be rescued or to ask for his advice, but I figured I should save that phone call for when it involved blood.  And so, I stopped at a bike shop in Georgetown. There was a guy in the store, but he said that the mechanic wouldn't be there for another 45 minutes. Apparently bike mechanics aren't morning people. I knew of two other shops near by and asked the guy if he knew when they opened and he made some smart-mouth comment about it not being their store. Duh. Apparently the guy who opens the shop isn't a morning person either. I walked Gloria to the other shop and sure enough, the mechanic didn't arrive until 10 either. Luckily this opening person was very nice and was happy to hold onto my bike until the mechanic arrived. I walked down the street, feeling like an idiot in my bike gear and went to the bakery and entertained myself with a chocolate croissant. Silver lining? Yes please!

When the mechanic arrived, he thought it might be my breaks rubbing the tires, but fiddling with those didn't have the noise let up. He suggested checking the bike in. "What does that mean", I asked. "We take a closer look at it and try to figure out what is making the noise...you'll probably get it back Monday". MONDAY!?!? I have training! I tried not to panic...the training schedule said that I was supposed to have completed a 60 mile ride two weeks ago and I hadn't yet done it once...and to not be able to train this weekend?? Eek! I said it wasn't really possible to leave my bike, could they check that my bike was safe to ride? He gave the bike a once over, and as an after thought, sprayed some lube on a rubber gasket where my peddle attached to the bike frame. Et voila! Noise was gone! Lucky that was a simple thing :)

I peddled on the capital crescent trail and then hopped on MacArthur Boulevard for a long while and got a kick out of how many cyclists were out. When the big groups of cyclists whiz by, I can only assume that my face is that of a jealous seven year old wishing she were cool like the "big kids". They go so fast!  Total for the day? 41 miles...not bad for a late start.

Sunday it rained. Corey was supposed to ride with me but SOMEBODY wasn't excited about riding in the rain. Who can blame 'em? I gave myself a pep talk, something about kicking butt and taking names and kicked off. I wore these yellow wood-shop glasses to keep the rain out of my eyes and was glad to have them. At first it just drizzled, but as the miles wore on the rain came down much harder. What started out as busy streets with lots of brave cyclists quickly thinned out. Quickly, one became the loneliest number. At about mile 18 I remembered that I had found some shoe covers on sale at a sport store...they were supposed to keep your feet warm and dry. They were currently keeping my bedroom floor warm. Damn. I had really wanted to go 60 miles, but I just didn't have it in me to keep peddling in that misery. When I got back, I got in the tub, but even that was kind of painful as my limbs got the blood flowing again. When I was officially non-hypothermic, I layered on the sweats, puffy vest and wool socks and put on the kettle for tea. I sent Corey text to tell him how much it had sucked. He replied "Rain and being soaked is just something you have to experience. Remember cycling + suffering = building character! You are progressing well. Warm up for tomorrow night". Aww coach! I replied with a picture of my feet in wool socks.


Thank you Sarah for this super Christmas present :)


During the week, I rode when I can, but my heart wasn't in it so much. I had found out on Friday that I was laid off from my job. A big surprise, but as my friend Roger would say; "it is what it is". This situation has opened up a Pandora's box of questions...what do I want to do next? Do I want to stay in DC? Where do I think I would be happiest? All of this thinking and uncertainty has had my emotions on a huge roller coaster. Feeling my feelings has left me with whiplash. It has also left me with a sub-zero level of patience. Unless I'm hungry, I am usually able to put up with an above average level of crazy, but lately the slightest thing has me over the edge.

This past weekend I did a whole lot better on my training. On Saturday, I rode south through the city towards the greenbelt metro station and found two forts. I am no history buff so I don't actually know what their historical significance is, but it was fun to visit. Some of the trails were under construction in parts, so Gloria got to pretend she was a mountain bike for a bit. On the way back, somewhere around mile 50, I came across a Dunkin Doughnut. Like a moth to the flame, I rode ride over and got one. It was a much happier last few miles :)  I was determined to crack 60 miles, but by the time I got near my house I was at 57 or so...and so I circled my neighborhood several times until I did it. 60 miles!!!!

Looking good, Gloria!

I think this is Fort Washington

I got cleaned up. By now, I practically have my bike shorts trained to walk themselves to the washer. They jump in, I add the soap and they're clean for the next day. I had a roomie date with my roommate Mike; he made some delicious tacos and then we attached my computer to the TV to watch a movie. I asked for a comedy, and we picked out Everything Must Go because it starred Will Ferrell. Cripes; it wasn't a comedy at all! It perhaps would have hit too close to home, as it is about a guy who's life is falling apart, but luckily I was out cold on the couch within the first 37 seconds of the movie. I hope I didn't drool on the couch. Sorry Mike!

Sunday Corey and I struck out for Poolesville. It was a gorgeous day and I had obviously gotten a good nights sleep, so I was feeling good! The first 20 or so miles breezed by but I was starting to get a bit tuckered as we got near mile 25. The plan was to stop for lunch in Poolesville. Since that is how the actual trip is going to go, I wanted to make sure I wouldn't puke if I had a proper meal and then rode for another chunk of miles. I had the route on paper but one of the directions weren't really clear. We pulled over and to consults with our fancy phones and meanwhile a biker lady rolled up to the stop sign too. We made chit chat and she asked where we were headed. We explained we were nearly to Poolesville and then were going to head back to DC. She asked how long it would take us to go back to DC. "About an hour? An hour and a half?" I tried to not have my eyeballs fall out of their sockets while Corey carefully explained that we weren't trucking along "quite that fast". Like about half that fast. After we parted ways, I asked if it was even possible for a human being to go that fast. "Can Lance friggin-Armstrong go 30 miles an hour?!?!" Apparently he can. I thanked Corey for not spilling the beans that I'm apparently a turtle biker. Cripes.

We stopped for lunch in Poolesville and I was thrilled to find a place that was still serving brunch. French toast with syrup!! I hoovered up the simple carbs and then we were on the road again! Somehow it was much easier to peddle back with the power of syrup. I was keeping an eye on my bike computer and noticed that the average MPH was slowly climbing up. It turns out that nearly the entire way to Poolesville was uphill. No wonder I was getting tired towards the half-way point! Total miles for the day? 69.3! What a great training weekend!

I am so excited that the trip is just about two weeks away! I think that I'm ready :) I have a few more things here and there to buy, and I'll cover a bunch of miles this weekend, but overall? I'm excited!

Stay tuned!


-Holly






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My Climate Ride: http://tiny.cc/obbjn


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