Ain't Nothing Gonna Break my Stride....

I have to admit that the week before the bike tour I was a little nervous. Okay, a lot nervous. I was shitting myself actually. I knew no matter how nervous I got I would be okay once I started to pedal. And I was. The only thing that really pissed me off was that I forgot my regular riding pants at home and had to ride in my pajama pants. Such is life I guess, I still got the job done.

The girls and I the morning I left

My time goal for the first day was four hours, that meant I had to keep an average speed of 20km/hr. The first 57km was actually pretty easy, it was after that that my butt started to hurt and my legs started to get tired. I don't think I ate enough for lunch either so I started to feel a little worn down. I was on my own for most of the ride, occasionally chatting with people I was passing, or those who were passing me. I saw a Hutterite couple riding together, she in a long dress and sandals, he in black pants and a short sleeved plaid shirt. I also saw a younger guy riding in jean shorts, a wife beater and flip flops, along with cyclists whose outfits matched their bike. I think that's why I had such a good time, there were riders of all levels and most were really nice and very supportive.

But back to the ride. Like I said, I felt good for the most part, even though it rained constantly. I drank lots of water and ate many bananas. While kilometers 58-75 were more difficult, it was the last 10 that were really tough. I was tired and hungry and my motivation was starting to wane. I was fighting the need to vomit and it was all around unpleasant. Luckily I got to Gimli just in time, got off my bike and got some food and water into me, which picked me up. I completed the first leg in 4 hours and 15 minutes with an average speed of 20.1 km. I was sore, so sore in fact that I wasn't sure if I would feel well enough to ride the next day.

One of the many lessons learned is that Tylenol is magic. I popped a couple, stretched and felt great after a good nights sleep. I was ready to go the next day, but this day was much harder on me. I had a dull headache so I mixed gatorade with my water and put some extra granola bars in my handy dandy jersey pouch. By kilometer 35 I was starting to get tired, and I knew the second half of the ride would be very challenging. I tried to combat this by taking a longer (and larger) lunch break. I sat with a couple women who had seen me say goodbye to the girls the day before. They made me feel better about my progress by calling me a machine and saying they were impressed by how consistent I was. This compliment gave me a bit of a second wind, and while I was in a lot more pain then the previous day, I was able to stay positive and fight though it. I also knew that those last 10 km were going to be hard again, so I spent most of this time talking myself up for them.

Self portrait.

The nice thing about the ride back is that most of the cyclists seem to want to chat, and when they passed me they would say something to pump me up, so I did the same when I passed people as well. I was still wet from the rain in the morning, so I was really uncomfortable and my butt really hurt. The only time I actually considered giving up and pulling over was in the last 4 km. I was just so tired and my legs, arms, shoulders and back were so sore I could not imagine going on. But I followed Lindsay's advice and told myself to do one more stroke, then another, then another until I was in Stonewall. There was a volunteer who said "Welcome to Stonewall!" and I said "I grew up here, and Stonewall has never been so beautiful." I then started to cry....again. I continued to cry up Main Street toward the finish line and through it. I was done in 4 hours and 20 minutes with an average speed of 19.8km/hr. I could not believe I had done it. I knew in theory I could probably do it, but the reality of what my body can do when asked has become apparent. I now need to figure out what to do with this new found knowledge.

Special thanks go out to Colleen and Jim, who housed and took care of me in Gimli, Jen P for all the advice and Lindsay Menard, a bike tour veteran who answered all my questions, was my inspiration to ride and is one of the strongest women I know. One day my Auntie DD gave me a hug and said "You've worked so hard Cara, go ride that bike." I did Auntie DD, I rode the hell out of that bike.

Scary in There

I know I have been remise in posting, but that is what spending a month and a half driving across the country and building sandcastles will get you. I have, however, still been riding. I have to, the bike tour is in a week and a half, but I would rather not think about that right now.

I was reading the handbook for the tour a while ago and I noticed riders are not allowed to listen to music on the ride. At first I was horrified, how would I be able to ride for hours with only the thoughts in my head!! I asked a couple people about it and they said they sneak their iPod along, because no one wants to be trapped for hours with only what's in their head to keep them company.

Then I started to train, and I have not worn any listening device on any of my outdoor rides, and, as it turns out, I like it. I use the hours on my bike to organize, encourage, write stupid poems, and dream. I spend most of my time dreaming, figuring out how I'm going to do all those things I want to. Folks, it can get scary up there in my head, but once you spend a few hours up there and get comfortable, it's not so bad. Plus, on the day of the tour I'll have my sore ass to distract me.

Ahhhhh

I am on vacation, with my husband, away from my children. I thought I would have a harder time adjusting to this, but no. Being able to wander around in the afternoon and not worry about nap time agrees with me.

My hubby and I are on a second honeymoon of sorts. We are currently in Toronto, which is so big this Winnipeg gal's jaw dropped when we first drove through it. We are staying with a friend of ours, and when he and Ken went to the Jays game the next day, I was left to my own devices in Kensington Market. I first heard of this area through, no joke, CBC kids. Mamma Yamma has her shop there, so I wanted to check it out for myself. I went to Lettuce Knits where I purchased Cascade Yarn in colour lot 901 and two hanks of a baby Merino from malabrigo in Plena (616) and Sweet Grape (509). The baby Merino is seriously so soft I can use it as a pillow. I must become more observant though, because the shade tree I chose to read under just happened to be next to a large group of drunk people smoking pot. One of those brave souls came up to me and asked if I could replenish their stock, and when I said no he decided to sit down and chat with me awhile. Neither of us really held up the conversation, my side basically consisted of nods, and his mainly of apologies between calling me a "nice lady." After he left I was rewarded for my patience by witnessing his friend try to scale a metal fence. At first I thought he wouldn't make it, but he persevered and was ultimately successful.

I spent the rest of my time wandering though shops, salivating at the outdoor markets and just enjoying being away. This trip will be one of many firsts, but I have now ridden a subway and a street car, drank an entire pint of beer and liked it, and tonight I will see Niagara falls. I really can't say it enough, I love vacation!

Ken and our friend by a plant car.

I ordered the traditional grilled cheese because the rest were, as my father would say, melted cheese based sandwiches, NOT grilled cheese.

The purveyor of said sandwich.

Random house in the market, I just really liked it for some reason.

Hills? Those were Mountains my Friend

**Now updated with pictures.

My family is currently on a road trip, and with the MS bike tour looming up at the end of August my husband and I brought our bikes. We didn't have much of a chance to ride them on the way out to Ottawa, although there was this one time we decided to bike down a hiking trail. Ken would have been fine, but I had to walk my bike most of the way down. That was okay, after three days stuck on top of the van it was nice for her to get out. However, in order for us to get back to the van we had to go back up. Ken thought it would be better to take the road back because, although it was longer was made of actual asphalt. My friends, a prairie girl is not made to ride in the gargantuan hills of Ontario. I thought I would be okay, but my ability to recover after a hill is not great, and the breaks between hills were not long enough for me to recover and pick up speed so I ended up having to walk up most of the hills. Faced with this reality and the fact that I had already walked up three hills and we were not any where near the van, I did what any self respecting female would....I totally and completely fell apart at the seems. I cried, I hyperventilated and I had to be talked down several times by my husband. Finally, I resigned myself to my fate and walked uphill, humbled and a lot embarrassed.

Fast forward three days. The morning had come for my first ride in Ottawa. I felt some trepidation because I was afraid I would spend most of the time walking again, but my fears were unfounded. I picked a nice bike route that went along the river and my average speed was 26km/hr before I hit the construction and had to turn around. We are planning a family ride with the girls and a 50km round trip in Niagara, so I have some fun rides to look forward to on this trip.

My view at the beginning of the path

Going down beautiful paths makes the ride seem effortless. I hope the riders in Ottawa appreciate what they have here.

Booo! According to the local paper, this construction has been taking so long cyclists have been ripping down the fencing in order to use the paths. I can understand why, the detour went uphill through a bumpy open field.

Dedication

Yesterday I attended a park dedication. It was a park in memory of Tyler. His family and friends gathered together on what would have been his 25th birthday to see the permanent structure that was created by his neighbors in his honour. I thought it would be depressing and sad, but, although there were sad moments to be sure, the event was far from depressing. It was comforting, even uplifting to stand with so many people who love him, who miss him too. The event reminded me so much of Ty, we launched rockets, watched fireworks laughed and remembered this bright light that was gone too soon. It reminded me of this song, and it was nice to know Ty could still be depended on to make people laugh.

The Big 5-0

If you had asked me a year ago if I would ever bike for 50km, in a row, without stopping, I would have laughed at you and reached for the cheese. Well, a person can change a lot in a year, and yesterday I rode my bike for 50km. As I was getting ready to leave my husband told me "the wind is against you on the ride out, just fight through it and on the way home, you'll feel like a rock star." The wind was steady, and, according to the weather network, 22km/hr. So, here is my ride.

2 km - Get buzzed by a car for the first time on Portage. I was buzzed a total of four times, all on Portage. After the second one I stopped being scared and started hoping the drivers could read lips.

10km - Almost pulled over to call Ken to pick me up. Convinced myself to go 5 more kilometers. I had this conversation with myself frequently over the course of the ride.

12km - See my first dead animal, followed shortly by the first of many banana peels.

15km - Want to stop, tell myself I can turn around at 20km. My self is relieved by this prospect.

20km - Let self know I am a liar. Proceed to tell self to stop being whiney little bitch.

25km - Stop on side of road, eat my snack and stretch a bit. Feel some of the blood flow back into my ass and am invigorated. Turn around and head home.

The way home was uneventful. I stopped one more time at a gas station to refill my water bottle. The wind was now behind me, and although Ken said I would feel like a rock star, I did not. I just felt tired. My two favourite moments of the ride were:  number one, making it that first 25km. Number two, after being tailgated, buzzed, then cut off by a man in a blue truck, I pulled up to him at a red light and got to call him an asshole to his face. That one almost felt better then making it through my ride alive. Three cheers for me, and heres to the first of many 50 k's!

Ignoring my ego....

As of today it has been two months since my last run. I stopped not because I don't like it, but because it hurt. A lot. It got to the point where I could barely walk down the stairs, and since that is where my washer and dryer are located, my family began to suffer as well. My ego kept egging me on, saying it was just pain in the beginning, it was normal. I wanted so badly to run a half marathon at the end of September and I had such a short time frame that I just kept ignoring what my body was screaming at me....I was doing something terribly wrong and well on my way to injuring myself. I decided living in chronic pain was not something I was into, so I stopped.

Physically, I no longer run, but I just can't seem to get it out of my head. Running has wormed it's way into my psyche and has taken up permanent residence. So, if I can't get running out of my head, I am going to prepare my body to do it right. Biking has helped with weight loss and leg strength, plus I have been reading up on running, form, training, nutrition and strength training. I won't run for a while I think, I am loving my bike training and want to dedicate myself to the bike tour. That said, the next time I start to run, I am going to do it right, because I have two young kids to chase, and a slow hobble just isn't going to cut it.