Rosedale Ride

This weekend I took part in the Rosedale Ride, an annual ride through Northeast Austin that benefits the Rosedale School (AISD's only school for children with multiple disabilities).

With only four weeks left to train for the MS150, I was looking for a 40+ mile weekend ride, and Rosedale fit the bill perfectly. So I signed up for the 43 mile route and hoped for the best. Each rider gets paired up with a student at the school, and the race packet contains a little bio of your kid, which I thought was cool. My figurative partner was Dezirae, an 18 year-old student enrolled in the Project Search program at Dell Children's Hospital.

The course was flat out awesome--rolling, smooth and scenic, it began at the Samsung Semiconductor offices and ran out past Lake Pflugerville and into that great abyss of farmland Northeast of the city. I had such a good time on the first 20 miles that I decided (spurred on by an enthusiastic ride volunteer) to take the turnoff for the 63 mile route. Why not? If I can't do 63 miles with four weeks to go, I might as well give it up, right?

I didn't stop at all for the first 40 miles, and up until that first break everything seemed perfect. I felt like I could ride all day. I ate some cookies, had  some orange drink and set out for the last third of the race. Then, the wind picked up.

My tea'mmate April had warned me about the wind on this ride, but I didn't listen. After 40 miles of relative ease, the last 20 miles felt like an extended rugby scrum. My average speed dropped from 17mph down to 8mph, and I thought several times about packing it in. Then, with around 8 miles left to go, my rear tire went flat. With no extra tubes or even a pump, I was ready to flag the SAG truck down and catch a ride back to my car.

But thanks to some very nice ladies with pink jerseys and a C02 cartridge, I got enough air in my tube to get rolling again (thanks ladies! Sorry I slowed you down) and I decided that since I'd come this far, I might as well finish the thing. The tire held up pretty well until the last turn, when the finish line--now about a half mile away--came into view. By that time, I'd lost so much air again that I was pretty much riding on the rear rim. So I leaned forward as far as I could and did the last stretch standing up. Eventually, I limped across the finish line with my tire completely flat, and then I collapsed onto the lawn.

Overall, it was a good ride, but it was really, unbelievably tough. And if I took anything away from it, it's the knowledge that 63 miles is really, really far, and that the MS150 is going to be even harder than I imagined.

Us Vs. Gary Fisher

Five seconds into Saturday morning's ride, about 20 feet away from cycling legend Gary Fisher, I fell flat on my face. A small cheer went up among the sizable crowd of riders, celebrating my hilarious failure. "Somebody had to be the first" they said, almost in unison. I'd taken a symbolic hit for the team, apparently, so I didn't feel all that embarrassed by it--I just got up and brushed myself off. I'm still getting used to these damned clip-on shoes.

Even as late as Friday night, I was planning on skipping the ride--organized by Lance Armstrong's bike shop Mellow Johnny's--because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to keep up with the pack, or that I'd have to stop short of the planned 38 mile goal and everyone would think I was a lightweight. But then I started thinking about how it's better to regret something you have done than to regret something you haven't done and all that and I decided to hell with it I might as well give it a shot.

As it turned out, a huge chunk of Tea'm Sweet Leaf had skipped the regular Saturday training session for this chance to ride alongside a cycling icon, so I had some friends in the crowd. Plus, there were several young kids and mountain bikers in the pack, and I felt pretty confident I wouldn't come in last.

We set out from downtown and headed through the East side escorted by bicycle cops, which was awesome. They stopped traffic at most of the intersections, letting the huge pack of riders through as one group. The pace was slow, and it felt like we were in some kind of lycra-clad parade or something. But as we headed South past McKinney Falls the officers bailed, the pace quickened, and the group spread out into a thin line about a half mile long (maybe longer). Soon after that, some of the slower riders dropped off and I was literally the last in line, followed closely by the support truck and the slightly annoyed sweeper who asked me more than once if I was "doing okay".

I was the last person to arrive at the halfway point, almost 20 miles from where we'd started. But I didn't feel all that tired--I'd spent that first half chugging along slowly and steadily, and I'd made a calculated effort not to wear myself out too soon. As the group took off for the second leg, I advanced a few slots (not many, just a few) and tried my best to keep a steady pace. When we turned on to Congress and started heading North, I got into a groove, kept my head down and did the best I could, followed closely by my teammate Nick, who seemed just as determined. And to my surprise, we weren't the last to arrive at the finish--there were at least a half dozen riders behind us, which felt like some kind of small victory to me, considering I'm always always always bringing up the rear.

During the ride, I only actually saw Mr. Fisher for about 15 seconds; the rest of the time he was so far ahead, he looked like a fast-moving dot on the horizon--something out of a caught-on-tape UFO sighting. But the overall energy of the event and the complete awesomeness of my teammates made it a great ride, and I'm totally glad I did it. Of course, it wasn't even a quarter of the distance I'll have to cover for the MS150, but was a huge step in the right direction.

Tea'm Sweet Leaf

When friends and relatives visit me here in Austin, I make sure to warn them about the tea situation.

Firstly, if you ask for "tea" at a restaurant in the South, you're likely to get cold, unsweetened tea. You need to be specific and say "hot tea", if that's what you want. Similarly, if you order an "iced tea", you'll also get cold, unsweetened tea--which we Canadians almost universally regard as totally gross and undrinkable. So to get the sweet cold stuff, you need to order a "sweet tea". Get it? They're all about specificity.

It sounds simple, but after a lifetime of ordering tea a specific way, this new format takes some getting used to, and I've pretty much resorted to not ordering cold tea in restaurants. But Sweet Leaf Tea has been one of my go-to bottled teas since I first moved here. It's not as sweet as most Canadians are probably used to, but it's good nonetheless, and the company is Austin-based and they use organic ingredients and real sugar and everything, which is cool.

Anyway, up until now I've neglected to mention that I'll be riding in the MS150 as part of Tea'm Sweet Leaf, who are an awesome bunch of folks, and who I'm totally excited about hangin' with. If you're interested in cheering us on or following our exploits, you can check out our Facebook group here. Go tea'm!

Gearing Up

Last weekend I needed to put some air in my tires, and I realized that the pump I have--the pump that's successfully inflated my bike and car tires for years now--doesn't work for fancy road bikes. The valves are different sizes. So I had to ask somebody else if I could use their pump, which was kind of embarrassing because here I was about to ride out into the middle of nowhere and I didn't even have the most basic, common-sense tools.

Turns out, you need all kinds of specialized junk to be ready for distance cycling. You've gotta have cycling shorts (or your butt gets sore). You've gotta have gloves (or your hands get sore). You've gotta have extra tubes, a patch kit, a pump, a helmet, special pedals, cycling shoes. How about a cycling computer? Jersey? CamelBak? Toe covers? Roof rack? It can add up fast.

Thankfully, what would have been my biggest single expense--the bike itself--was handed down to me by my teammate/friend/boss (thanks Jim!). But with some necessary bike repairs and base-level gear, I've still managed to sink a decent amount of money into this endeavor. And I'm still not completely geared up (I need shoes, a small toolkit, some extra tubes and a second pair of shorts before I'm at a decent level of preparedness).

Don't get me wrong--I'm not complaining about having to buy this stuff. I've actually had fun browsing though so much new gear. I guess I just didn't expect it to cost quite this much. I figured I'd just hop on the bike, and ride.

Training Rides 1 & 2

Pictured: some folks from Tea'm Sweet Leaf, and some from Austin Cycle Camp. Plus a piece of my shoulder.

Saturday the 16th was supposed to be Team Sweet Leaf's first scheduled training ride, and I was really nervous about it. Up until now, I've been "training" by riding circles around The Veloway (a 3.1 mile bikes-only road near the end of MoPac), and it's nothing like the open road we'll be on during the race. It's mostly trafficked by pleasure cruisers and lollygaggers, and I know it hasn't helped my riding much.

So I was secretly happy when our ride got rained out. In fact, I'd decided beforehand to skip the ride, and didn't even know it was canceled until later that day. But I made up for it the next day by joining the Austin Cycling Association on a two-hour 22 miler up in the Northwest corner of the city. It turned out to be a lot of fun--all of the riders in my group were friendly, and most of them were happy to ride at a leisurely pace. I did pretty well (despite forgetting my water bottle and briefly being chased by dogs), and I was (stupidly) emboldened by how easy the ride seemed.

This past Saturday, we finally had our first official team ride, tagging along with the folks at Austin Cycle Camp. We started in south Austin and rode about 16 miles, through downtown Buda and out toward Kyle.

At first I rode really well, keeping near the middle of the pack. But it quickly became apparent that these riders were far more experienced and athletic than I was. After a while, we broke off into groups, and I struggled just to stay in the middle. After the turnaround, I fell way behind, and ended up riding the last 15 minutes completely solo. It wasn't the distance that hurt (we actually rode 5 miles less than my ride the weekend before), it was the brisk pace. And by the end, my legs felt like logs. Burning logs.

In any event, I've now got two actual rides under my belt, and I'm serious about improving. Looks like it's gonna take a while, though.

The Accidental Cyclist

I’m not a cyclist. It’s true that I own a bicycle, and I theoretically know how to operate it--but up until now I’ve never ridden more than a few miles at a stretch. That’s about to change. I bought a helmet, a cycling magazine subscription, and some shorts with a generously padded butt. I’m ready to hit the road! Or route. Whatever you call it.

This April, I’ll ride from Houston to Austin (more than 150 miles!) on my bike.

I’m doing this for three important reasons:
1) To raise money for the National MS Society
2) To challenge myself physically and mentally
3) I’m pretty sure we’re going to get really drunk afterward

I can’t do this alone. I need two things from you:

1) Your encouragement (or good-natured heckling)
2) A financial pledge (say, $10? Or whatever works for you) toward my fundraising goal of $400.

You can provide encouragement via Facebook, Twitter, or this blog, and you can pledge money via my fancy internet pledge page.

Your pledge will not go unrewarded. For one, you’ll get the satisfaction of helping to fund Multiple Sclerosis research. For two, you’ll get a personal shout-out from me, via every means of communication at my disposal. One lucky pledger wil also get a totally tricked out t-shirt that I’m going to make from some leftover iron-on letters (seriously). Sound good? You know it does! So do it now!

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Pledge: https://secure3.convio.net/nmss/site/Donation2?idb=1962934977&df_id=26281&FR_ID=12962&PROXY_ID=7603830&PROXY_TYPE=20&26281.donation=form1