I rode from Omaha to Nashville in one day...Nashville, Nebraska, that is. LOL

Seriously, folks, today I went on my first real outdoors trek on hilly highways in preparation for B.R.A.N., (Bike Ride Across Nebraska) a 455 mile trek across the state which takes place over 7 days in early June. I've been doing training indoors which consisted of ST with emphasis on the lower body, using a bike trainer, and the stationary bikes at the YMCA on a killer resistance setting/program. I was nervous/curious to see how I would do in real life conditions. Last year, I stuck to the bike trail, which is mostly flat with some inclines. I was not conditioned for hill riding, and knew that in order to succeed in tackling BRAN, I would need to be able to do the hills. I made a goal for March that I would be able to do 20 miles of hills in one trip. Today was my first attempt at the real thing, and I'm pleased to say I did 21 miles!

It was not an easy task. When I set out, I was going right into winds of 20mph, with gusts of 30mph. DH thought I should skip the ride, but like I told him, I'm not going to have any control over the weather during BRAN, and I must be ready for anything and everything. I had only gone 4 miles and I wanted to quit. The hills were very long inclines on this particular highway. (You know, when you're in your car, it's just not the same!) The wind was so strong, that even going downhill, I was only going about 11mph and I still had to pedal. Once I was about 3/4 of the way up a very long nasty hill when, in downshifting, my chain came loose. I had to stop & fix it and go back down the hill. I almost turned around, but then I looked back up that hill, and knew I had to conquer it! It was slow going, but I never stopped once on that hill, or any other. I was determined that I would conquer my "hill demon" and prove to myself that I could do it. It seemed as if it took forever to get anywhere in that wind. I finally came to a good turn around point, and then I had the wind at my back. What a grand reward that was! There was one hill I was going down that had me going at 35mph, which is the fastest I've ever gone on a bike. What a glorious feeling it was! I was grinning from ear to ear and oblivious to the layer of salty sweat that had accumulated on my face from my efforts going into the wind. I used my newer heart rate monitor and the highest reading I saw was 167. (178 is my max) Most of the time, my HR ranged from 135-160. The only other exercise I do that can get it up there is the elliptical. I would say that I earned some AP today!

I ordered some new biking pants with the padding in the rear and they came today, but this was after I was gone on my ride. I'm anxious to see how those feel on my next real ride.

Tonight, JIm took me out to eat at a neat little authentic Mexican restaurant. They have some singers who go about the place & they serenaded me with some romantic song, but I have no idea what they were singing! It was a nice evening to cap off a very good day in which to reach a goal a bit early! (the 20 miles in March)

It just goes to show that even the girl whom nobody ever picked to be on a team in elementary school can still accomplish an athletic feat, even at age 42. I dare to dream and make dreams come true...you can too!
3/16/03

I swear I spent more time looking for the right place to ride than I actually did riding! I drove over into Iowa but everywhere there had no paved shoulder. I gave up & drove north, and then back into Nebraska. I remembered that Hwy 30 had a nice wide paved shoulder, but where I had been to on it before was flat, so I thought perhaps after I kept going it would get hillier, and it did! I think I left the house around 11:30, & didn't actually ride until 2pm.

The winds were nasty, coming out of the SW up to 30mph but I was facing in such a way that it hit me to the side. I rode from a little town called Arlington to Blair. As the rode curved to Blair, the wind was at my back. Uh-Oh! I was going to have to face those winds until I had gone about 10 miles or more on the way back! Of course, you take the good with the bad, as it was sure fun to reach a new top speed of 37 mph! In a car that doesn't seem fast, but on a bike....wow-wee! It was so much fun. The hard part was on the way back out facing those winds. I wanted to give up & call DH to come & get me, but my inner voice told me to just keep going, even though it s@ucked! The first hill was so awful...I was only climbing at 3mph, but I was determined not to stop & walk it. My heart rate went sky high, but I made it to the top. Just to show how windy it was, I only went about 7mph on the way down! Even though I was really glad to see my truck, I would have liked to go further, but it was time to go home & cook up some buffalo burgers. Good thing too, was that on the way home, I came across not one, but two other hilly highways with wide paved shoulders, and one looks like a real killer! I had to lick my lips in anticipation of trying this one, hopefully next weekend. Am I crazy or what? LOL
3/23/03

When I was a little kid, my parents made us watch Hee Haw. I always remember that dumb song they used to sing that went something like this:

"Gloom, despair & agony on me,
Deep dark depression, excessive misery,
if it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all,
Gloom, despair & agony on me!" (I think this is why I hate Country music to this day)

Let's recap:
A few weekends ago I had 2 flat tires 2 days in a row & had to walk a total of 12 miles between thee 2 days & didn't get in but only one high mileage ride.
Last weekend: ..went 35 miles on Saturday as it was way too cold & Sunday was Easter. I bought a portable flat tire repair kit but had no idea how to use it, and never changed a flat tire in my life. A guy at work was going to show me how to, but he was sick most of the week.

This weekend: Jim wanted to go with me on Saturday. I planned a high miler. It turns out he decided he hated the winds & hills, so he bailed out not quite halfway through. I had only gone about 6 miles past our parting point when the 'ol back tire decided to go flat yet again, and of course in the middle of nowhere. ARGH!!!! Double ARGH! I called Jim on his cell phone, but it was going to be a very long time before he would be back as he was having a tough time with the hills, and still had miles to go. I moved my bike off the road a little bit & sat down on the grass for my long wait. That became boring rather fast, so I decided to take a look at the tire fixing thingee. It took me about 30 minutes to figure out the pump part. I pumped up the tire, but it was clear it was losing air again. I lay down on the grass for awhile to stay calm about the whole thing. (my frustration level is quite high because of my layoff situation at work, and I'm really surprised I didn't just start bawling!) Next, I figured that I might as well see if I could get the tire off. That took me quite a bit of trial & error, but I did actually get the darn thing off & the tube out! I tried to find the leak but could not. I figured that as this was the third time, I wasn't going to go to all the trouble of trying to put the new tube in, as I wanted a thorough investigation as to why this keeps happening. A man pulled up & offered me a ride, and I told him my DH was coming. I lay down on the grass a while longer

The next thing I knew, a man & a lady pulled up. The lady stayed in the van & grinned at me like a Cheshire Cat. I thought perhaps she found humor in my situation. I grinned back at her. The man asked if I was ok & needed any help. I told him I was & that my husband was coming soon. Right then, DH pulled up in the truck. The man & lady pulled away & the lady grinned at me again. I grinned back. The first thing Jim said to me was: "What are you doing, growing a beard?" He told me that I had grease all over my chin!! It indeed looked like a beard! LOL I knew then why the lady was grinning so! I dropped of DH at home & went straight to the bike shop to find out why this was happening. They said the back tire has all there weight on it & has a tendency to get more flats, but they could not find any reason why this was happening nearly every time I rode any distance at all. They were out of puncture proof tubes, so I had him put in this green slime stuff that helps prevent flats.

Today: This was the last day to make my April goal of riding 75 miles on hills. I rode 76 miles a few weeks back, but it was not all hills. I hate not making my goals! It was a good day for biking, but I was paranoid about the tire the entire trip. I would stop now & then to examine it & make sure it was not going flat. I arrived back at the truck & was at 72 miles when I got this very bad feeling. I wanted to turn around & head back out to make my goal, and what do ya know but the @$%&* tire was almost flat!! Can you believe it??? I was probably more unhappy about being so close to making my goal, but yet so far. As it was not entirely flat, I ride the few blocks to the gas station where I parked the truck & put air in the tire. I could see the green slime leaking out slowly in a certain spot. Apparently, I had a puncture, but the green slime was holding the air in, or at least enough for me to head back down the road long enough to hit 76 miles. I really wanted to go further, but I didn't know how much longer the green slime would hold up, and I didn't want to take that chance. I was pleased I made the April goal. I was also proud of myself that I (almost) completely changed a flat tire without any instruction or having done it before.

4/27/03

I haven't rode my bike outdoors since the end of April because of weather, obligations, and my stupid toe problem! I noticed that the weather should be near perfect tomorrow so I took the day off work to ride. I won't be able to ride the whole day on Saturday because of a graduation, and I think the weather might not be so good on Sunday.

My May goal is to go 100 miles on hills. In April, I went 76, which made my goal of 75 miles on hills. I don't know how the "time off" will affect me tomorrow, but I want to try for the 100. Not only that, but as I'm kinda nutty, I really, really want to beat my last year's record of 105 miles in one day. I want to see 110 on that odometer!! Am I asking too much? LOL

I should be well equipped now. I have my portable pump & repair kit, plus I did get a new back tire (to replace the one that kept going flat) that is a much stronger tire than the other one. I had them put the green slime stuff in it that helps seal the tire in case of a smaller puncture. In addition, Jim bought me a Camelbak for Mother's Day. In case you've never heard of this, it's like a small backpack that you fill with water, so you can sip out of a long flexible straw as you ride. It's also cool because it has room for other supplies in it like bars, camera & journal. If you're intensely curious, here's what it is: http://www.camelbak.com/rec/cb_prod.cfm?catid=6&product_id=207 Of course, I always have my cell phone with me for safety. Wish me well, and here's to no flat tires and major mileage!
5/15/03

I have a three day weekend to ride and make my May goal of 100 miles in one day on hills. I want to make it so bad, but it just seems like I have such bad luck! Actually, let’s make that two days, as I have a family graduation to attend in the middle of Saturday afternoon, so I won’t be able to ride that day.

 On Friday, the ride seemed like it was going to go off without a hitch. All was going well. I stopped at the Subway in Elkhorn, NE, and used my biking journal for the first time.  I wrote:

 “I’m sitting in the Elkhorn Subway eating one of those low fat sub sandwiches. It tastes so darn good. I think I must have needed “real” food rather than nutrition bars. The ride is going slow today. I’m only at 50 miles, & I feel so tired. Nearly 3 weeks with no rides and the added weight of my new Camelbak are weighing me down.

 The counter workers in here looked at me & treated me as if I were some kind of alien creature. Haven’t they ever seen a biker before?

 I was sitting here writing when the cutest little girl walked in. You just had to notice her because she was so beautiful, so perfect. She looked as if she was about 7 years old. I noticed there wasn’t a car right outside the door, or anyone with her. She went over to the counter and I looked down again & wrote. I looked up seconds later, and she was leaving without anything in her hands. She looked at the items spread out on my table: my Camelbak, helmet, gloves, & me writing in my journal. She looked upon those items as if they were the neatest treasures, and then she looked at me in complete awe, smiled, waved, and walked out. I smiled back & looked down at my journal. The oddness of the moment struck me & I looked up right away. The little girl was gone!

 I needed to get moving again. My legs were getting stiff sitting there, even though I pressed them against the bench across from me to stretch them. It was 4:45, and I had a difficult leg in front of me as I would be going into the wind on a very hilly stretch.  I took my camera for photos, but decided not to take any. When I’m on a “business” trip, which is when I am trying to reach a goal, I don’t want the frequent breaks that photo ops require. As I never know quite how the ride will go, I take it just in case. The one photo that I would have stopped for is the “lint creature” in Arlington that I told you about previously, but as luck would have it, it was not there anymore!

 My sandwich is gone, and I must put this little book away and leave.”

 The rest of the ride was tough going into the wind. I was at mile 62.  Just when I started to feel more confident about the ride & my continual flat tire situation, I felt that now familiar sensation of the tire failing me once again!  ARGH! How could this be?? The tire was not totally flat this time, and I used my porta-pump to pump it up enough to make it to the next gas station. About every 2-3 miles, it would lose air, and I would have to stop & pump it back up. Physically, I felt like I could keep going, but stopping every few miles was using precious time with darkness coming, so at mile 72, I called it, as I was right by the truck. On Saturday, after the graduation, I went back to the bike shop. The owner was the one doing the repairs that day & we talked about what had been happening. He pulled a nail out of the tube. It hadn’t penetrated my new tire, so I had it replaced & filled with the green slime again. He recommended that I install Mr. Tuffy bike tire liners. These are plastic strips that lie inside the tire between the tire & the tube to make an extra barrier. After all that I have been through with that darn tire, I gave the go ahead to install Mr. Tuffy. I just wanted to have a good ride free of the fear of the flat tire. It didn’t seem like a lot to ask.

 Sunday’s ride with Mr. Tuffy along went smoothly. I had a later start than I wanted because of things going on around the house. I still didn’t have my new bike light  installed, so I had to quit before dusk, so as to be safe riding. On that day, things went well, but I ran out of daylight at mile 91. I was so close, but it would get dark before I could complete the 9 miles, and I still had several more days to reach my goal. 91 miles on hills was more than the longest BRAN mileage day anyway, and I was proud to have accomplished that!

5/16, 17, & 18, 2003

Memorial Day weekend arrived with one more opportunity to ride 3 days in a row to try to get as close to BRAN conditions as I could. Next weekend, I have a wedding shower on Saturday, so that Sunday before BRAN will be my last long ride day.

 Saturday morning arrived along with heavy rain. I watched the radar & it almost noon before the rain was clearing. As it was heavy, and I had no raingear, I waited it out. The days ride was uneventful and best of all, no flat tire!  I now had my new bike light installed, and would have went into the night hours, but I had some obligations at home, so I ended the day at 67 miles. Three days now remained to hit my May goal of 100 miles in one day. 67 miles wasn’t bad, and I felt very strong.

 Sunday arrived, and with it, a perfect weather day. The bike tire stayed inflated, much to my delight. It looked as if my bad flat tire streak had come to an end!  I called home in the early evening & let them know that I was going to go until I hit my goal, even if it was after dark.

 At mile 70, my knees started to hurt. The pain didn’t go away, so I asked God if it was His Will, to take it away so that I could complete my ride. By mile 75, my knees felt ok again. I got a big grin on my face as I knew I would make it! I even thought perhaps I could break my old record from last year of riding 105 miles in one day, which I did on the Keystone Trail, which is all flat with the exception of occasional short inclines. I could even see the 110 miles I coveted on my bike odometer!

Suddenly, I felt a rush of energy. I pedaled faster and faster. I calculated that I needed to get to 92 miles on my odometer, and then turn around to make it to 110 at ride’s end.  As I approached 90 miles, I felt that God was telling me not to get greedy and to accept that He would give me the ability to break my old record. I fought the strong impulse to go the extra 2 miles and reluctantly turned around at mile 90. There was one last pitstop at Ft. Calhoun, and then it was me and some very difficult hills. Darkness was coming, and I turned on my new lights.

 Riding through those hills with the spectacular scenery as the sun went down was quite an experience. I looked forward to riding in the darkness for the first time, but as night threw its blanket over the night of day, I discovered that I had mounted my new front light incorrectly. The beam shone over to the side, not straight in front of me, so I could not see what was on the road in front of me. I had no tools with me to change it. This was not a good situation at all, and my night vision is not the best! Often, on these roads, a steep ravine lies off to the side. If I hit a pothole or some other irregularity in the road, I would no doubt be thrown off the bike. I had to focus hard on what little I could see and proceed slowly.

 The night before, I had read in the newspaper that a man had raped two women in an area not too far from where I was riding. On the second occasion, he was on a bike. I was determined that some lunatic was not going to keep me a prisoner in my home and keep me from reaching my goals. I had forgotten about that until all the night noises surrounded me in that heavily treed & remote area. I felt like I had to ride faster to get home, but yet had to go slow enough in case I did have a spill. I rode by a spooky looking house where a man was running a chainsaw. Scenes from “A Texas Chainsaw Massacre” went through my head, even though I’d never seen that movie! (I have a vivid imagination…lol)

The wind started blowing, and I was cold, but I couldn’t afford to stop looking at the road ahead long enough to roll down my sleeves. I prayed for cars to come from behind, as their headlights would light up the side of the road long enough for me to see for a few seconds. When cars came up behind me slowly, I thought of the rapist. Those last five miles seemed like an eternity. Thanks goodness I had turned around when I did! The light of the convenience store where I park soon appeared. I was never so glad to see the truck. The odometer read 106 miles. I released my death grip from the handlebars and loaded the bike into the truck bed. After all that, I had no energy left to celebrate my victory, but I did thank God for bringing me home. (I thanked Mr. Tuffy, too)

 

 Monday brought another perfect riding day. I was still pretty weary from the night before, and planned for a shorter ride. My knees were aching again on and off, so I took out a couple of the shorter legs of my usual route. The ride was very uneventful, other than the colorful sight of at least one hundred Harley riders at the last convenience store stop on my way home.  They were going the same way that I was, so on the rest of my trip, they would pass by me in groups. Once, at a stoplight, there were several cars with windows rolled down, me, and the Harley riders. One of them said something to me in a voice that sounded somewhat like a young, goofy, Jerry Lewis: “Hey lady”, he called out to me, “What happened to your motor?”  I had to smile, and everyone in their group and in the cars laughed. It was a fun moment. In the end, I had 47 miles on the odometer. I calculated that I had 216 miles for the three days. I was as ready as I would ever be for BRAN, and then some!

5/24, 25 & 26, 2003