Day 5 and 6: After 470 miles with 26,000' of climbing in six days, I have sat on my bicycle seat for over 30 hours. It is not the same as sitting in an office chair for thirty hours. You can all imagine the difference. Of course, I would rather be here than in an office.
Many of us wondered how we were going to handle the big day, yesterday being the big day (116 miles). Several people in the group had not ridden a century ride until this year. Again, I was surprised at how well the day went, give and take a few twists and turns. I used my heart monitor to pace myself, rarely allowing my heart beat to rise above 130, and finished the ride in just over 10 hours. One of the day's twists was the heat. It was over 90 degrees, causing my feet to swell and leaving me dehydrated during the ride. During the second half of the ride I was drinking a lot to try to compensate. I mainly drink plain water, although I also use a Cytomax mix (energy drink) to help maintain a good balance of salts and sugars.
The group is doing very well and we feel fortunate to be on this cycling/eat-a-thon vacation. Since we burn thousands and thousands of calories per day, we can eat several servings at every meal plus snack in-between meals. Is this not a dream vacation?
Day 7: Today's ride was a total blast. I rode 83 miles in a little over 6 hours. After some initial climbing, the route took us on a 45-mile gradual descent. The last 25 miles were relatively flat, and 6 of us formed a pace line at a nice speed of 16-18 miles/hr. By this point in the ride we have joined the Snake River and seen the first of many potato and onion fields. Today was another sunny day, but I managed my fluid intake much better, staying hydrated all day. Ontario, Oregon bought us into Mountain Standard Time, so we lost one hour.
Day 8: I arrived in Boise at noon. We were all celebrating that we had earned our first day off, as tomorrow marks the first rest day. The Marriot Courtyard is close to the city center, and there is a long list of things we can do. The last thing on everyone's list is to go for a bike ride! The first thing on my list is to find a good cup of coffee. Okay, maybe a cup or two. I plan on meeting Sue, who is here on a brief business trip, tomorrow for dinner. It will be great to see her. We will meet again in Niagara Falls to ride to Portsmouth together.
Some people will now leave the group, and we may pick up a few others. America by Bicycle allows people to ride just a portion of the route if they choose. This should make the group dynamics stay fresh throughout the ride.
/Gunnel