Today was the 4th annual Team Shell ride, supported by the Team Shell MS150 team. I was under the impression the weather was going to be quite nice, so originally I did not put my standard 3 layers of clothing on...but then decided it's always easier to take them off than wish I had them on! And I'm lucky I did; when we arrived at Sun & Ski around 7:45am, I was concerned it might be a bit colder than I had expected. Luckily, though, once that sun came up the day turned out to be yet another beautiful day for riding!
Afif started the ride with a safety/route briefing, and then handed the megaphone over to me. Knowing I had been diagnosed with MS, he had asked me to speak a few words to the team sometime; many of the riders don't necessarily know someone with MS, and so it helps to inspire/motivate some people to be able to connect with someone that is actually receiving benefits from what they are doing. I had planned to tell them about all the benefits I have received since I've been diagnosed; instead, I got a bit emotional as I thanked them all for riding the MS150, and how much it meant to me. I do truly appreciate everything the riders have done in the past, and will do this year, and I wanted them to know that.
As we started to head out as a group, I quickly had to run back to the car to get my sunglasses (as many of you know, I am ALWAYS forgetting something!) and the first riders (22+mph) headed out. They split us up into speed groups so that we weren' all clumped together, and trying to pass later, etc, and I think that worked out great! Sunglasses firmly in place, I got into place and joined the 15-17mph crowd. As we headed out, I did a much better job clipping into my shoes (all day, in fact!). As we headed out of the mall, a woman started riding beside me and thanked me for the speech and inspiration. She was wonderful for me on this ride, because I managed to stay with her the entire ride (in general), so I didn't have to bike entirely "alone"! So a big thanks to Kathy, though I don't know her last name! Thanks for keeping me company. =)
The first part of the ride was tougher perhaps than anything else I'd done so far; the first rest area wasn't for about 20 miles. My other rides I had become accustomed to 10-12 miles between stops, so perhaps I had become spoiled! After we passed the 10 mile mark, I kept counting down the miles til we could reach 20; I wasn't specifically hurting, but I just wanted to be able to get some food! =) I had stashed a banana and some Clif Shot Bloks in my jersey; they has warned us that they weren't actually staffing any rest areas, so although a location was available, we were on our own as far as providing our drinks and nutrition. I had briefly lost Kathy shortly before this, so we met up at this Rest Area and then continued on together.
Next 12 miles to the next rest stop were a bit tough; the wind was really blowing along some of the country roads, and by now most of the riders were spread out. So Kathy and I were trying very hard to push through, though our speed definitely dropped to about 12mph. Finally, another pair of riders came up and got in front of us, so we tailed on to them and followed them pretty much to the next rest stop. At this rest stop, I refilled my water bottles, visited briefly with Afif (who also was there...but he had done the 60+ mile route, not the 44 =) ), and then Kathy and I headed out for the home stretch. 12 more miles to go!
The final part of the ride was a great way to end the ride. The wind was at least only a cross wind, and the shoulders were fairly large, so Kathy and I just kinda took it eay and rode side by side to chat for the last leg of our journey. As we were nearing our final turn back towards Katy Mills, however, we saw some flashing lights and what looked to be stopped traffic. "Please don't let there be an accident with one of the bikers!" I thought. But luckily, as we came up to the cops, they directed us through the nearby parking lot; there was a parade going on that traffic was stopped for. We were going the same direction of the parade, so when we exited the parking lot we just kinda rode down the street, tried to "blend in" to the parade, and then continued on to the finish!
Overall, it was another great ride! These two rides definitely make up for the very cold and traumatic experience of my first ride. =) And after the ride, we got to snack on some Subway sandwiches, and I took a brief shopping trip into Sun & Ski Sports. I bought myself a new cycling jersey, on sale! I'll plan to wear it for my ride next week, in Bastrop State Park...50 miles, oh man! Wish me luck!
