I survived!!!! Yesterday, June 10th, 2011, I cycled 70.16 miles with my dad on the American River Bike Trail from Folsom to Sacramento and back. It was a lot of fun, and really painful towards the end, but it was worth the work and the grind to do it.
I don’t know if you’ve had a physical goal or accomplishment you wanted to achieve, but it feels good to do it. Whether it’s a marathon, climbing Everest, doing a triathlon, a 5K or whatever, it feels so good to finish and realize it was possible.
So, about the day. The first half was great. We started at about 8:30 from Folsom Bike and rode the 1.5 miles or so to Folsom Lake. From there it was 32 miles to Discovery Park in Sacramento. We set a pretty good pace and rode more than 20 miles before we stopped to refuel and then kept the pace at about the same 14 mph the rest of the way into the city. It was very nice to ride past the 0 mile marker in the Park.
We had lunch at the Fox and Goose in downtown and it was amazing. Sausage, eggs, potatoes toast and excellent beer all tasted great after all the calories I had burned. I was worried about whether or not I’d be throwing up lunch later on the ride back, but it never felt like I was close to doing that.
We started the ride back at a faster pace than the ride out. For about 15 miles we kept the pace at 16+ mph, which felt incredible. But after that we slowed down a bit, and had to take a few stops. None of them were due to actual leg or cardio fatigue though. The aggressive posture of road bikes takes its toll on the neck, back and butt. I felt like I could have pedaled for a bit longer, but my back was screaming to be straightened out. And there was also the lingering memory of the one big hill on the trail waiting to close out our ride.
But it ended up not being so bad. We got in a nice low gear and rode through the whole hill section without stopping, then rode a little bit past our stopping point to make sure we got to 70 miles. And we did!! We finished the day at a mini-mart where Gatorade tasted like a five course meal it was so good. We did 70.16 miles in 5 hours 2 minutes averaging 14 mph and 4:18 per mile. And that was it. The day was over.
So, here’s what I learned. Set goals, practice, push through the pain and you’ll achieve them whether they are physical, professional, emotional or spiritual. You were created to enjoy your life and I enjoy seeing the world from the saddle of my bike. The next big goal by the end of summer is 100 miles. The training doesn’t stop; I’ll be back out there tomorrow eating up asphalt and getting a stupid glove tan because I know what it is I’m trying to do.
Written on: June 11, 2011
At: Home
Listening to: Kings of Leon-Come Around Sundown
