Long Ride

Some of the Red Ladies have foolishy signed up for the Eurekan Multisport Festival in Eureka Springs, AR in August. It is a three-day event consisting of a short triathlon on Friday, a century bike ride on Saturday and 10K run on Sunday. There are shorter options for the bike ride and  the run, but I'm told you are not a Eurekan if you do the shorter distances. I have been to Eureka Springs on many occasions, having grown up a short drive away. It is HILLY. I have big concerns about the century ride, as hills on the bike are not my strong point.

So, Liz, the Red Ladies coach started incorporating training into our workout plans for this event. Today, while the smarter Reds who are not involved in this race, had a mere 45 mile ride, the rest of us had a 70-mile doozy to take care of. Oh, and there is a heat advisory here until next Friday. Ugh.

So, we met at Julie's at the crack o' dawn, 5:30 this morning. The route was nice, challenging in places, relatively flat in places. I felt great until the heat came on around 10:30.We are over 40 miles out by then, but were still looking at another 30 to get through.

My favorite moment was at about mile 54. I had had a few bad moments due to the heat. I started getting a sharp heat headache, as my mom used to call them when I was a kid, and my stomach was bothering me. It had been a little "off" all week, I think mainly due to this beastly heatwave we've had. We were riding through the little town of Bucyrus, which seemed pretty deserted. I spotted an empty building that had big porch on the front and some delicious shade. I stopped there and somehow managed to move my body from the bike to the porch. By the time Jen, Hannah and Julie joined me, I was sprawled out flat on my back, my bike helmet making a nice cushion for my head. The four of us were moaning and groaning about how we just didn't think we could make the full 70 miles in the heat. But, we got our asses off the porch and finished the ride. Woo Hoo!

That was my longest ride to-date and oh my, it was miserably hot. We all continue to make new milestones in our journey to Redman. And, we continue to forge friendships that I believe will stand the test of time. I LOVE this varied group of Red Ladies and don't know what I would do without them. It certainly wouldn't be complete a half IM, as the previous years will attest.

In Liz's words, Onward and Upward!