We did our first organized ride this Saturday! Our team participated in Cruisin the Conejo in Thousand Oaks. There were a few distance options, and we did the 68 mile ride. It was really cool to do a ride with 1,000 or so other cyclists. It definitely was a change of pace from our regular Saturday morning team rides. The weather couldn’t have been better! And the views? If you would have told me these places existed in the LA area, I wouldn’t have believed you. Most of where we rode was technically Ventura County, but still. There were ranches, farms, lakes, horses, bulls…you name it…we saw it.
I enjoyed myself for the most part this week. Our group really struggled with having to stop a lot. There were two flat tires, bathroom breaks, LOOOONG SAG stops, cramps and lots of “GAP” calls. It was a true test of my patience. But, I realize it’s not all about me. When I had bad days, my team stood beside me and dealt with my issues, so it was my duty to do the same for them.
The ride itself was beautiful, challenging, and scary. We rode through Thousand Oaks, Camarillo, Moorpark and Santa Rosa. We passed strawberry fields and cabbage patches and smelled both of them equally. There were some pretty good climbs, which I didn’t mind. I love climbing! It’s weird! But the other side of a climb is almost always a descent…that I don’t like so much. There was a pretty hairy downhill which I think was on Potrero Road. As we reached the top of the hill there were kids with signs warning us to slow down. One of our mentors told me there are a lot of accidents on this road. Great. Here I am about to go down a winding hill and now you’re telling me there are a lot of accidents on this road? We told eachother we’d meet at the bottom. OH. MY. GOSH!!! I literally thought I was going to fly over my handlebars it was so steep. My bike computer wasn’t working at this point (surprise), so I don’t know how fast I went, but I held my brakes almost the entire way down. So much so that my hand hurt pretty badly Sunday morning. I felt like if I let go of my brakes, I would immediately be out of control. The good news? I made it down! The bad news? If I ever do that route again, I’ll know what to expect and that might make it even scarier. I won’t worry about that right now.
Overall, it was another great day riding with my Team in Training group. 68 miles! Who would have thought I could do that? I sure didn’t. Next up…75 miles in Malibu (at least I think that’s what we’re doing). I’ll keep you posted!
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Good job. I’m proud of you, and your efforts. Continue to ride safe! Love, Daddio.
Thanks Dad! I promise to ride as safe as possible