June « 2008 « Edibles…

On one of my local bike rides there’s a section that is magical. It’s dense woods with a ferny undergrowth. It’s so peaceful and barely any light makes it through the trees. It’s about 15 degrees cooler in there. I always ride slower and soak it in. My favorite place on earth… it’s called Bliss Woods, really. The only downside, there’s a shooting range just over the rise, so just when you think you’ve landed on the most peaceful terra ever, a gunshhot wakes you up.

One of the memories that always comes up when I’m in Bliss Woods is of my first experience of this type of wooded realm. In the Summer of 1985 we were in the East Coast for about a month and the older kids were free to explore the woods most of the time. Coming from California, I had never been anywhere so green and lush, and moist. It was really a new world for us. Vines, fallen trees, trickles of water dribbling everywhere. I guess every time I’m in woods, I feel that same wonder again.

The big ride (Tour of the Mississippi River Valley) for the Summer came and went. When it was all over everyone was happy to live through it.

The first day we rode 69 miles of hilly terrain. It was hot and humid, and we struggled to stay hydrated and energized. I found that I was able to eat just about any amount of food and my body burned it without much inpact on my glucose levels. It was pretty fun to eat carbs left and right. We were sweating so much that we drank several bottles of electrolyte drink and never had to make any bathroom stops. It was definitely a relief to climb the final hill in Dubuque, IA and find our dorm rooms for the night. They had a great banquet for everyone that night and you could tell everyone was happy and tired.

The second day only required us to travel 47 miles, but some of the hills were a mile or two long, so there were a few sections with some challenge in them. The real challenge on the second day was the weather conditions. About on third the way through, a storm front moved in. We were riding in the driving rain, and then had to pull over and take cover from lighting about three times. I had put my packable jacket in one of the guys bags, but luckily, it was warm enough that being wet was comfortable and actually took the sting out of climing hills. We had some high winds and pelting rain that almost blew us off the road, and one of the guys in our group was minorly struck by lightning. I was a bit nervous going down the big hills with wet pavement and wet brakes, so I was glad I had a good bike. Our descents on some of those hills got us up around 40 mph. I was all about those brakes.

My favorite part about the ride was the physical challenge that really pushed me. I realized how seldom I have that opportunity, and it was exhilerating to do it. I have to say, coming home I felt like I had survived something. I’m excited to do it again. Maybe with better conditions?

Interesting things about the ride: About 1500 people did the ride. Some chose to do the longer ride and add 40 miles to each day. They did 196 in the weekend, the rest of us did 116 miles. One guy rode a fixed gear bike for the whole ride, that means one gear and he couldn’t coast, ever. That would make even the downhills challenging. Another guy rode a bike without a seat, which meant he stood up for the entire ride. I have heard that he’s a former marathon runner and has trained to ride like a runner. I saw his bike around the college in Dubuque and it was leaned on a curb, not locked up. Who would want it? Another bike that was interesting was the streamliner. It’s a recumbent bike with a fairing built around it. It was fast. We were going about 20mph when he passed us like we were standing still.

The guys I rode with.