100 Miles Is a Long Long Way to Go

To start from the beginning. . . well, not exactly the beginning, but the genesis of this century ride, after my latest "can't run, gotta ride" incident this summer, Deb asked what was the big, "marathon type" riding event. A century ride, of course. Well, one thing led to another and I was soon signed up for the Seagull, along with another 6000 riders.

Before yesterday, my last ride was a full three weeks before. That was a bit concerning, but between travel and weather, there was little I could do other than pick up every spin class I could find. On the positive side, there was no opportunity to break me or my bike in that time, so I had that going for me.

Before each event, I most definitely get stressed. More so for this one. There's just so much crap to schlep. Aside from the obvious, the bike, there's the clothes, the helmet, the gloves (full finger or half), tire pump, water bottles, etc., etc., etc. I started writing a list around Tuesday. When Deb spotted the list she remarked that it wouldn't keep me from forgetting anything. (Yeah, thanks for the positive thoughts, love.) Anyway, there was plenty of stress leading up to our departure. Thankfully, my family stands by me, knowing that next time around, it'll be easier (I swear!)

On Thursday, I pulled something in my right shoulder. I think it was something I lifted, but by Thursday eventing, I could not lift my right arm above my shoulder. This is not good. Not good at all. Deb massaged the area and that helped. Friday morning I was at the chiropractor for more relief. All helping, but still pretty scary.

The plan was to pick up the kids from school on Friday and head 2 1/2 hours east to Salisbury on Maryland's Eastern Shore. We loaded up the CRV with enough stuff to to last us a week. (Well, at least 3 or 4 days.) We were on the road at 3:30 with plans to be in Salisbury by dinner time. Unfortunately, we hit far more traffic that we should have due to construction and a couple of accidents. We spend about an hour getting through the town of Cambridge, otherwise, 5 minutes max.

We got to the hotel just after 7, dumped my bike in the room, and headed to the expo at Salisbury University. The kids, who had been fairly well snacked on the ride, spotted the pre-race party (food!), so the cries to get out of the expo started pretty much immediately. The one thing that I was concerned about for the ride was the temps. Looked like low to mid 50's at the start, but 70's by mid-day. I figured a pair of arm warmers would do the trick. I picked up a pair of US Postal Service removable arm warmers and it was time to enjoy the party. Chicken wings, home made potato chips, corn on the cob (drowned in butter) and ice cream. Not bad for an appetizer.

We headed from the University to get some dinner, then back to the hotel for a quick visit to the pool and whirlpool. I laid all of my stuff out for the next morning (and I had it all, thanks for the confidence boost, Deb.) Then to bed.

Morning arrived much earlier than necessary. No, not the alarm, set for 5:50, the little ones, who went to bed with no problem, but seemed to dislike sharing the queen size bed beginning just before 5 am. After a few dozen shhhhhh's and "get back to bed's", there was no point to further sleep. I was up and had a few helpers getting things organized for the day's event.

After a trip to the Hampton Inn breakfast bar, with my invited little ones, Deb joined me out front for last minute preparations and requisite pictures and I was biking off to the start, a short ride from our hotel.

At about 7:15, I was at the starting line for the "show and go" start. It was really hard to judge just how many people and bikes were actually there at that point. Seemed like there were bikes everywhere. Hundreds, at least. I quickly got in line and off I went.

The route was set up nicely with rest stops every 20 miles or so. The first two stops were pretty run-of-the mill. The third was at Assateague Island National Seashore. A great locale with water surrounding the stop as well as some home made breads baked in the University's kitchens. The last stop included various pies and vanilla ice cream. Not bad rewards after 62 and 82 miles done.

Being alone in an ride where it seemed that everyone was with a group or with friends, the goal was to find pace lines and grab on to the back. The first 20 miles I found a few loosely organized pace lines, but nothing lasting more than a mile or two before they fell apart. On the way, it was obvious that everyone had out their bike jersey finery.

I was totally impressed with many of the groups out there. Most outstanding were the Team In Training riders. They had 150 riders in the event and seemed to be everywhere. Each group had their locale printed on the back pockets that showed home areas from as far as South Texas. Always impressive at any athletic events in the area is the Naval Academy team. Being passed by their perfectly cadenced team in white was a site to see. That's teamwork. There were also "Guys who Get Fat in Winter" and "Big Fat Bastards" of note. Not to mention jerseys from just about every major college and university in America.

The good news for me was how I felt. After struggling through the metric just three weeks before with some pretty bad back pain, I put myself on a pretty strict stretching regime. Just about every night, I stretched for 10-15 minutes, mostly concentrating on my back. Then, of course, there was the panic from Thursday. I added some stretches at each rest stop as well. For the first 30-40 miles, I had no back pain whatsoever. Even then, the pain was pretty mild relative to a few weeks before.

As for the ride, I was able to hop a few pace lines along the way, but at about 70 miles, I hit a wall and struggled to push to even 15 mph. A few periods along the way, I was able to get up enough power to speed up, but for relatively short distances. This was very reminiscent of the wall at the full marathon at 20 miles. Timing made sense as my longest previous ride was just 64 miles. Regardless, I was able to make it through and did not once think I wouldn't finish. If I had to, I could have gone further.

While I was riding, Deb and the boys headed to Ocean City, Maryland for a little time at the beach. Even though the water was getting chilly, it didn't stop the kids from taking a dip. After a few hours on the beach, it was off to the boardwalk for junk food -- fries at Thrasher's, ice cream at Dumser's and caramel corn at Fisher's. (Amazing how long the lines are at Thrasher's, even off season, pictured left.) When I talked to Deb at the last stop and she told me of their stops, I asked if there was any caramel corn for me. "Of course, my love." Mmmmm, can't wait!

At 2:30, as I approached the final turn, there were Deb and the boys with camera in hand. It was a great sight! I turned the corner and headed for the home stretch. Shortly after I crossed the finish line, Deb and the boys arrived from their corner and I hit the showers.

Deb and I celebrated with a beverage at the beer garden. (Quite a sight from everyone dumping their equipment to grab a brew. Mine is out there somewhere. Can you find it?) Then we hit the road for an awesome seafood dinner and ride home. (And some Fisher's popcorn, too!)

So, what did I learn from my seven plus hours on the road? Well, a few things:

• This was fun, but would've been a lot more fun with friends. I've got four or five volunteers for next year already.


• Training matters. No surprise here. I had hoped to get in a 70-75 miler before yesterday, but I ran out of time. This woulda pushed the wall back another 10-15 miles, at least.


• It's easier to train for a biking event than a running event. Don't know why, but it was. The marathon was 16, grueling at times, weeks of training. This was less than 10 and I took the last 3 off.


• Biking events are VERY different from running events. Biking is much more social and there's a lot less stress. Not that one thing is better than another, just my observation.


• My wife has more confidence in me than I have in myself. . . and thank goodness for that. Woulda been a pretty boring weekend if she didn't tell me that I could do it. (I just hope she doesn't mention Ironman or anything stupid like that.)

Time to go. Gotta START training for the Baltimore Half. Just six days away!

L'Chaim!