Team 242: Day Four

Day Four: Altoona, Wisconsin to Tomah, Wisconsin. 87.88 miles.

I'm not a fast rider.  Other people have certainly said slow (as in: Karl is slow).  I do not pedal fast and when I'm having a difficult time I like to take lots of breaks.  Today, my achilles (both) were in considerable pain.  During the middle of the ride I stopped every 3 miles to take a short break.  Slow riding and numerous breaks equals even slower.  (Adding in break time with pedal time, I average under 10 mph during a typical day.)

Slow has some advantages.  When I arrive to our lunch stop, all the food is out and ready.  When I arrive at the end of the day, the wonderful support crew has my gear bin and sleeping materials set out for me.  Also, dinner is usually ready as I walk through the church door.  And even better, the shower is usually open and ready.

And then the other side of the coin.  I spend a lot of time riding alone and I think people believe I enjoy my solitude and I’m doing what I do on purpose.  Karl wants to be alone.  Yes, I enjoy my solitude, but I enjoy riding with others more.  However, I understand why I might not be the best riding partner.  The whole super slow speeds and stopping every three miles is difficult for most people.  I do not get upset because I’m alone.

But today I found myself upset.  Karen (KRN) was nice enough to take one of the support vehicles back on the route to check on how I was doing.  When she found me, she informed me that I was moments away from one of our rest stops.  At these rest stops, we’ll often sit down, talk, laugh, and eat some food (or a lot of food).  We tend to have these official rest stops every 15 miles, so even when I fall behind, I can often meet up with the group during the break.  I enjoy hearing their stories on their day and discovering what sort of fun has been had out on the road.  So when KRN gave me the news on how close I was to the rest stop I picked up my pace.  I crested a hill and I could see the group on the flat just after the descent.  As I got closer the group moved their bicycles out onto the road.  And then when I was a football field’s distance away, I watched as the group pedaled off down the road.  I missed them by 13 to 17 seconds.

Couldn’t they have waited to say hi and then leave?  Well yes, they could have.  But should they have?  I thought yes and spent the next 15 miles grumbling grumpy in my mind.  I still enjoyed the next 15 miles. (I crossed the Black River at Black River Falls not far from where my dad and I put in a canoe.  Sidenote: that was Nico’s first canoe trip.)  But I had trouble removing the near miss from my mind.  I really (really) took my time over those 15 miles.  I found even slower so when I arrived at the next rest stop there wouldn’t even be a close call.

When I finally made it to the rest stop the group was gone just like I planned.  But there was unplanned.  Becky stayed behind and waited for me.  She was going to ride the last 15 miles into Tomah with me.  Frequent breaks and slow pace, too.

Today was nice.

Track 11: De La Soul - Plug Tunin.  But don't let the kick drum stub your big toe.