Cycling Karma (Part 2 - Still not so good)

Note: This is Part 2 of a 3 Part Series - If you haven't read the first one you should start here.

The next big ride Lighty McClimberson and I had on the agenda after riding in the Mohican 100 was Pelotonia.

Pelotonia is a big charity ride benefiting cancer research and a great way to do something good for the world (with your bike!) If you live in Ohio you should check it out and sponsor a rider, and if you live in Ohio and own a bike and  like the idea of being awesome you should register as a rider.

Lighty and I had decided to really go for it in Pelotonia and had signed up to ride 180 miles over the course of two days. Not too bad you may say... But we would be riding our first century on day one, and following that up with another 80 miles the next day. Also, having blown the vast majority of the riches from our lucrative graduate student stipends on frivolities like food and heat we would be riding our Mtb's the whole distance. We had managed to scrounge up some smooth tires though, and were hoping to surprise a few "roadies" with our climbing prowess - well Lighty was. I had packed about 75 Gu packs into my jersey and was just hoping to keep up.

The start of the ride was great. Dawn breaks over 6000+ riders and thousands  of supporters. It was a clear summer morning when we set off slowly - parading through downtown Columbus. Lighty and I had positioned ourselves in the "Steady" group (and being old-fashioned had asked the group's father for permission first ...to go steady... the jokes don't get any better...). We were cruising along, smiling people cheering and lining the streets of the city. It really is a great event. We had made it nearly 2 miles when Lighty's rear tire started to hiss at him like an angry goose (if you've never been hissed at by a goose - you should probably get out more).

It was a flat, but we were prepared. We had  the tire off, patched up the tube, and were back in the saddle in only a few minutes. We could tell though that we had slipped back into the "Leisure" group - as the ratio of carbon fiber bits to streamers coming from handlebars and reflectors built into pedals had changed dramatically.

This turned out to be a blessing in disguise as Lighty and I had some fun weaving in and out and passing people, not thinking that we had more than 90 miles to go that day. We were near the edge of town and had caught back up to some people clipped into their pedals (a good sign) when a gun-shot rang out! Well... I thought it was a gun-shot... It turned that Lighty's rear tube had EXPLODED! (I'm not sure what the guy eats to cause so much trouble). Luckily, we were prepared for this as well. We threw in the replacement tube, and started to pump it up. Pssshhh, pssshhh, pshhhh.... BOOM! Another tube blown out! We pulled the tire off again and saw the source of the problem: the wire bead that runs along the circumference of the tire had frayed and had little metal tendrils pointed in every direction. To us, it looked like Medusa and we were frozen like stone. Tubes, yes; but we didn't have a spare tire!

Being tough guys on Mtb's we decided to press on, after all, if Lance could finish Leadville on a flat, Kyle could ride to the first aid station near mile 20. WWLD became our motto. And... We were still passing people. "Thump thump thump thump thump.... 10 to go!!" "....Thump thump thump thump thump.... 5 More!!"

We finally made it and were able to get Kyle a new tire from the guys at Roll: (fo' free! Thanks Gary!)
Some guys from the Trek store pulled up with supplies: "Hey! We've got a tire for you!" (they had passed us earlier on their way back to their shop to get more stuff) "Just got one from the Roll: guys" Lighty said.
"Well pull over and we'll get that off and throw on a good one!!" Said Bart of the Trek Store. We smiled and kept pedaling, happy to have too many people trying to help.
Now we really moving!

Three flats in the first 20 miles had taken a toll on our pace, but it was nice to fly up the hills and pass 20-50 people at a time! And I had decided to suck down my first Gu pack - at least I thought it was a Gu pack when I had bought it. It turned out to be some holy nectar from the gods. Now, I had a few of these before, Lighty had brought some for us when we rode the 100, and they were awful - like concentrated cough syrup. But it turns out that there are Gu packs that combine my love of coffee and bike stuff.

Delicious!

If you eat one of these I guarantee you will run faster, jump higher, and Climb hills faster than Lighty McClimberson (!!!). Things were definitely looking up for us - and then the rains came.

With still more than a quarter of the day's ride to go, it was pouring. We used our hands as makeshift fenders to keep some of the spray out of our eyes. We pedaled on and on. Up hills, down hills. The rain and miles kept coming and coming. Much of this part of the ride is a blur now. I can remember snapshots of road, big climbs, back country gravel roads and the spray from the tires of cars as they would pass us. I remember eating an entire granola bar in one bite, the smell of sweat and rain soaked gloves and the bittersweet feeling of cold rain on burning legs. We would stop at the aid stations to get food and re-fill our water bottles - but we wouldn't stay long, we had to keep pedaling to stay warm. Eventually though, we neared the end. After what Roll: owner Stuart Hunter described as "90 miles with a f*ing time trail at the end." (the last 10 miles were on a flat, meandering, railroad turned bike path that led to the finish). We had done it.

End of the first century. Three flats and torrential rain can't stop us.

But, sadly, the hardship for the day was not over. Rumors were swirling as we were in line to get some dinner. Something terrible had happened. The announcement was made that the evening's festivities were canceled, a fellow rider had been struck and killed crossing an intersection (the intersection had a police cruiser with lights on directing traffic - and the driver did not stop). Dark and foreboding skies set the tone for the evening. I would sleep hard that night, driven into dreamland by my exhausted body, my mind still trying to recover from all I had seen and experienced that day.

We awoke the next morning to set out on the last leg of our ride. We were both surprised how well we felt (in terms of soreness and energy). People were gathering at the start and we joined them.

This start was a little different than the mass exodus of the morning before. We were in the company of serious riders, people who were confident they could go the full distance. Carbon wonderbikes leaned up against rails and park benches while Lighty and I mounted up on our Mtb's. The bike path from the day before became a long snake of a paceline. Our plan to "take it easy" on day two was out the window - there was no room to move over, and people were going only one speed - fast. We had planned to average 15mph over the 80 miles of day two - but we covered the first 10 miles at an average nearer to 25! (if you went "Meh..." to that, try it on a Mtb!).

This day, though, would mark a change in our relationship with the cycling gods. We had paid our dues, and would soon fall into their good graces.

If you look closely, we have just passed team RadioShack.

We would have no major problems on day two. We had some fun outclimbing some "roadies" and got quite a few: "I'm getting passed by guys on mountain bikes!" type of statements. Everyone was supportive and things went generally well for us. We finished the day ahead of our set schedule, crossing the line together for the second time after a day of tough riding.

Me - left, and Kyle (Lighty McClimberson) - right, after 180 miles

We would ride on under the gods good graces until the next year - until we would both be given unmistakable omens of a great season to come. (Part 3)

Note: Pelotonia is a great cause and a great way to do something good on your bike. Join in support at Pelotonia.org. I'll be riding again this year.