I finished!!

The weekend started out with the 5K on the steps of the capitol yesterday. I arrived around 7:00 with Bennett, who was more than ready to go. We walked around looking for Ryan and Tom who were supposed to meet us. The race didn't start until 8:00 so we were standing around for a while waiting for the start. Bennett could not sit still, and everybody thinking he was the most adorable dog ever didn't help convince him to calm down. He wandered around from person to person waiting for somebody new to notice how cute he was and bathe him with attention. He rolled over on his back, he sat on peoples feet, and he nosed people's hands all in hopes of getting a little attention. Many of the photographers stopped to get his photo.

My plan was to take the Saturday run easy but Bennett had other ideas; and my friends were also running faster than I had planned. I started out really fast because of Bennett. I took off ahead of my friends and knew I would pay for it later. There were no mile markers but around mile 2 I started to feel pretty fatigued. My HR monitor registers 100% of my max HR (which I think is off). I slowed considerably and tried to recuperate. Ryan and Tom were ahead of me at this point and I knew I would likely injure myself if I tried to catch them so Bennett and I just kept plodding along. By this time Bennett had figured out my rhythm and although he pulled a couple times just to see if he could convince me, for the most part he stayed just in front of me. I finished in 28.03 min with a pace of 9.25 min/mile; certainly better than expected.

Then today was the big ride; 40 miles for me. I was nervous and didn't sleep well due to all those dreams like "ohh my God I forgot my bike!". I awoke finally at 5:30 and readied myself for the day. After convincing the dogs it was not time to get up yet I fixed a small bowl of cereal, got everything packed into the car and headed out. I finally parked at 6:15, unloaded my gear, and headed out to find "Team AMD"; who I had joined a week earlier. I found them a little after 7:00 and, after posing for a picture or two, found the other people doing the 45 mile ride.

We finally got the go ahead to start our race at about 8:30. Right as they were counting down the take off for the 45 mile group a woman runs her bike right into me and literately falls right on me. The last thing I remember as they count down to 1 is my hand trying to break the fall and sound of somebody yelling "I'm so sorry". I took off as soon as I was up and sure that the bike was alright. I rapidly determined that I was faster than the two girls on Team AMD I had picked out to ride with. About 5 miles in though I found myself next to another Team AMD member who seemed about my skill level. I did a little better than him on the hills because he lost his chain twice but he did much better than I did on the straighter portions. Either way we managed to stay near each other the entire race. This was awesome because I do best when I have somebody to push me.

At about the 25 mile point we stopped for the big break point. They had PB&J sandwiches, M&M and peanut trail mix, and sugar cookies. I didn't time how much time we spent at the stop but it was a long one and it felt great. Coming in to the stop I started to clip out and for some reason my bike dropped to the wrong side causing a pretty brutal looking fall. I was fine and, after inspection, the bike was deemed fine as well. I knew that nutrition and hydration were very important so I took the time to make sure I did both properly. I called Brian to let him know that we were at the half way point but he had already parked and was on his way to the finish line. Marc and I headed out again feeling rejuvenated. Unfortunately, the feeling didn't last long. The PB&J sandwiches caused my stomach to cramp and my muscles were still feeling pretty worn down. Marc kept me going even though it was tough. The TX roads are so rough and cause so much friction; it was all I could do to stay above 12MPH at times.



The ride was absolutely gorgeous and made me so proud to live in the Texas hill Country. The locals were also so courteous and welcoming of the riders. As difficult as the ride was it was always nice to look out on either side and see beautiful country side. One of the best moments was towards the end of the ride when I looked to my left and saw a bunch of goats laying down with two great Pyrenees dogs guarding them. The sight looked so familiar, it took me only a moment to realize that it was Megan and Jeremy's house. I waved knowing that nobody was home to recognize it.

As I approached the finish I knew Brian would be waiting for me so I slowed around the final corner so he could get some good pictures. I had nothing left in my legs so I was happy when I knew we only had about 2 miles left and was also happy to slow down. Turns out that it was a good thing that Brian showed up an hour before I finished because he got there about 10 minutes before Lance Armstrong finished his 90 mile ride. Just so this is perfectly clear, Lance finished his 90 mile ride 1 hour before I finished my 40 mile ride. Brian was able to get some great pictures of Lance finishing.



Final Stats: 5K Run
Distance 3.1 miles
Time: 28:03 minutes
Pace: 9.04 min/mile

Final Stats: 45 mile Ride
Distance 45.14 miles
Time: 3:39:23
Actual Ride Time: ~3:09 (not including stops)
Average Pace: 12.37 MPH
Actual Pace: ~ 14.3 (not including stops)

Since I only got my cycling computer four days ago I didn't realize that if it is not on auto mode it will include stopped time in all of the stats. Next time I will turn on Auto mode and have some real stats.

Thanks again to everybody who supported me on this ride. As much as I enjoyed this one I think it will be a while before I do another one. My legs are sore and I know that it takes too much time and dedication for me to commit to any better than I gave today. Today I gave my all and I was so proud.