Okay, I’ll not lie on this post. This will not be brief, so if you aren’t interested, skip to the photos.
Day II - woke up feeling great with no soreness, nothing. This wasn’t surprising to me since I’ve been riding my “junk-in-the-trunk” many miles these days, so 100 shouldn’t be an issue, but I knew I had another 100 in front of me. I was eager to get on the 6am shuttle and to the start line. My goal was to take off at 7:00, but that was not to be.
At Ledbetter beach and breakfast, my phone rang. It was Minimee (Scott)! Yippee! I had met and ridden with Scott at the Lighthouse Century and already knew that I had a strong rider on my hands (not literally – he’s married – so no giving or receiving other than clean fun on Day II!). Scott had had only 3 hours rest, so I thought for sure we’d be well matched with my 100-mile legs heading out. Unfortunately, they didn’t let us go until 7:45am, which made me nervous. Although I felt great, I’m not foolish enough to believe I could hammer another 100. But we did take off fast into the overcast hills and pretty much within 20 miles, hit our one and only major climb for the day (if you want to call it that). It was back up the other side of the Casitas Pass and down to Santa Ana/Hwy 192 to Hwy 150. As we headed up the hill, the sun came out and it was stunning! Scott is great company, cracking jokes the whole way (he even sang a little – and that boy can sing!). We were doing great. We blew past the first rest stop and regrouped at the second (this was the one and only rest stop that was properly stocked with food options and Gatorade!) We loaded up and took off, hammering pretty steady (but not too fast, as I was fatigued), down and onto a bike path taking us south a bit. I rode too hard on the path, staying between 17-20mph even in headwind (bad choice). Scott is stronger and could have gone faster but he insisted he’d stay with me on the ride.
And that’s when pain began. This is TMI – so any of you who are sensitive, do NOT read this paragraph! But the day before I wore cycling shorts that I hadn’t worn in a year and since they were looser this year (that’s a good thing, right?), I pulled them up extra high on my waist (to avoid tan lines of course – I also cuffed them at the thigh). Well, the seam somehow had rubbed me the wrong way (literally), and I was dealing with horrific chaffing right at the creases of my thighs. I’ve never experienced this before so other than lube up, I didn’t do anything differently on Sunday morning. Although I was wearing comfortable shorts, the chaffing had continued! So much so that I discovered around mile 50 that I had rubbed the skin raw and was bleeding. That’s a first and hopefully a last! I bought Neosporin and that helped, but note to self: always check out your riding gear before a long ride!
Besides the chaffing, I was also starting to feel it ever so slightly in my hamstrings (not sure why) and fatiguing. Of course, that would be when we hit PCH and those #@$%* headwinds. Poor Scott, he tried to pull me, but I just couldn’t keep it over 15 mph. I told him to go ahead, but he waited and we got through that painful section (I hate headwind…really) and were off again at a pretty good pace. Then it dawned on me that the lunch stop was at the finish line for the 75 mile route. The century riders were expected to then head out and back for the last 25-30 miles. As we got closer to Ledbetter Beach, I was starving, still hurting slightly (queue up shoulder violin on this one) and fatigued. Scott was slightly ahead when we came across a rider who immediately informed me that if I was doing the century route, then I would not be able to finish it since they closed it at 1:30pm. It was 1:20pm already! Then I really panicked. That was my endurance goal – to complete 200 miles for the weekend and here I was being told that I might not be able to do it. Plus, the “naysayer” rider continued with “the last shuttle home takes off at 3:30 p.m.” My spirits dropped.
Now let me just say, I’m normally not a baby, but every once in a while, I slip. And here is where I slipped yesterday. I’ve got Scott, who has stuck it out with me the whole route, and what did I do? I try to get him to say he wants to stop at 75 just so I’ll feel better (I asked him how he was doing and if he wanted to stop, and if so, I would stop). Sorry, Scott, that was a dirty trick! Scott’s knee was starting to bug him a little, but he was resolute – he was going to finish the 100 miles! I, on the other hand, was losing my mental battle. Then, to make matters worse, we head into Ledbetter and are greeted with the same crappy tacos (the chicken was so dry it scratched my throat) as the day before. I shoved two down my throat, grabbed Scott and we started to head out (it was 2:00pm and we were hopeful that we could knock out 30 miles in 2 hours – just in time for me to make a 4:00pm shuttle, which was when the last shuttle was really expected to leave, not 3:30pm).
Jim, one of the event organizers, stops us as we try to leave and states that the route is closed. I lost it (again, sorry Scott) and snapped (okay, yelled a little) at him. I told him that they should have either let the century riders leave at 7am on the route or kept the route up and running until 5pm to allow us to finish. He agreed and radioed ahead to have the guys stop taking down route signs (I think he feared for his life). Scott and I took off (now 2:15pm) and began hammering uphill (slightly, but remember, I’m tired at this point) into &8$#%* headwinds (going north, what can I expect). After a couple of miles, I lost my battle. Mentally, I just decided I wasn’t willing to kill myself on a poorly-marked, no-SAG-stops route to hopefully make it back in time for my shuttle to Thousand Oaks. The wind got the better of me. So, I stopped Scott, gave him my route slip, apologized (here I was leaving him after he stayed with me…dreadful), put my generous-sized tail between my legs and headed back. I finished at 175.02 miles, crying like a baby.
Jim got it again as I immediately found him and yelled once more. He was so nice, apologetic and cool about it, it took the wind out of my sails and I just chilled out. It is a charity ride after all. So, crying, stinky and sticky, I grabbed my bag, went to the Beach Café, and changed clothes. As I came out of the restroom and passed the order window, I noticed they had clam chowder. Still sniffling, I ordered a cup. After a couple of bites, I was like, “wow, that’s some damn good chowder,” and I was back to my usual self (chowder can be very consoling). I headed back, greeted my teammates who were just crossing the finish line, got a massage and drank a couple of beers. I didn’t make my goal of 200/weekend, but I feel pretty good about the riding I did. And now, I’ll just have to try again!
Last note on Scott, he called and left me a message yesterday evening. He did, in fact, finish his second century without any SAG or route markers on the last 30 miles. He sounded happy and proud. He should be! He is a great rider (and great to be with on a ride). Thanks again, Scott, and I’m genuinely sorry I left you. But I knew you could do it!!!!
And FINAL note to my sponsors, thank you from the bottom of my heart! Just so you know, there was a gal out there with one arm who completed all 150 miles. She was an inspiration to us all that anything can be accomplished if you put your mind to it. I believe that someday a cure will be found for Multiple Sclerosis - and that's due to the generosity of you guys!
Here are some pics, enjoy:
Scott and me, ready to roll...
up and away...
Scott action shot...
I caught him on the hill for a second...
still climbing...
