Tour de Madison

Saturday I was slated to ride 45 miles. Finding bike routes takes forever for me to do, but this week I let others find the route for me by doing the Tour de Madison. It was an excellent decision.

I made the drive out to the Graves Mountain Lodge in Madison County and got there right as the 60-milers were taking off. I rushed to register, use the porta potty, pump my tires, apply sunscreen, don helmet, gloves, and cycling shoes, and then take off! The 45-milers started at 8:45 but I ended up rolling out on my own five minutes later. It didn't take too long to catch up with some other cyclists though.

I was able to catch up in good time because I was riding my new road bike! I bought it a week and a half ago but this was my first real ride. This was also my first ride with other people. People passed me. I passed people. I stopped with groups at intersections. I didn't fall over or make anyone else wreck. It was a success!

During the ride a woman said she liked my new bike and how it sparkled in the sun. I hadn't noticed it before, but sure enough it sparkles!

The weather was perfect, and Madison County is gorgeous (think farmland in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains). There were definitely plenty of hills, but my new blue bike and I made it just fine. This was also my first ride with a computer telling me how fast and far I was going. I think my average was around 14.8 mph. The lowest I noticed was about 6 mph while going up a long hill. The fastest was about 32 mph (eek!). I think with a mostly flat route I could average around 17-18 mph.  Toward the end of my 45 miles I was plenty ready to be done though, mostly because my new bike's seat isn't as comfortable as my hybrid's. I was also getting sore in my neck/upper back area on one side. I'm having a bike fitting on Tuesday so hopefully we can fix these problems.

During the ride there were two rest stops. I had a cookie and half a banana at the first. I had a PB&J sandwich, a big orange slice, and another cookie at the second. After the ride they had live music and a full meal. So I grabbed my food and sat outside near a river, listening to fun blue grass.

After I ate I headed back home for a long and very necessary nap. Then I went to some friends' and stuffed myself with their crawfish boil.

It was a pretty good Saturday, I'd say.