I completed my personal best - 84 miles for the Pan Mass Challenge on Saturday :D :D I was very nervous that I wouldn't make it. The first leg of 21 miles was the most difficult for me. It takes me that long to warm up. The second leg of about 22 miles was much better - I was more relaxed and getting into a good rhthym. But my stomach was upset and I wasn't able to eat much. I sucked down what seems like gallons of gatorade and mineral water. I filled my water bottles, stuffed some granola bars and a banana in my shirt pockets and took off again. About 8 miles into the 3rd leg I was starting to bonk - :eek: :eek: I stopped on the side of the road, got off my bike and made myself eat something. I choked it down with more gatorade and headed out again. After another few miles I was feeling much better. At the last stop, I filled my bottles, met up with my buddies and headed out for the last 8 or so mile leg. Somehow, I got separated from my friends and got sucked into a paceline. That got the adrenaline flowing - I was sailing up the hills at 19mph and down even faster! I finally got dropped and decided to stop and wait for my friends so we could finish together. They appeared after a couple of minutes and we sailed to the finish together.
This is a BIG accomplishment for me. I trained for months and made my fundraising minimum of $2300! I was the last one on earth that thought I could do something like this. I was a recreational rider on the bike paths on my hybrid until last April!
I was 5:45 hours on the bike with a total time of about 7 hours. I had great weather and great company.
