My First century: warning LONG

[Trekhawk]

And Leebob, Trekhawk, and AKAkim, thanks for hanging out until we finished! That was a long wait!

I had to wait and congratulate you all. You girls really did an amazing ride - that wind was tough.LOL you know its windy when your lunch is getting blown off its plate.

Give yourself a big pat on the back you deserve it.

Imagine how easy the next one will be.

[jobob]

Ellen was so much fun to ride with! About 15 or 20 miles from the end, after the unexpected and tough climb on Pt. Reyes-Petaluma Road before Hicks Valley Rd., she knew she was going to finish her first century and was really jazzed, declaring "I so OWN this ride!"

So you should have seen her reaction soon thereafter when the guys at the Walker Ranch rest stop suggested we SAG from there to the finish so that we'd make it back before they stopped serving lunch. It was a hoot.

Amie was great to ride with too. I noticed she was descending a bit tentatively, and I asked Ellen if she was ever involved in a crash while descending. Ellen explained that no, it's just that she has been riding for only 6 months. Well good grief, she was descending pretty darn well for someone who's been riding for such a short amount of time! She was such a strong rider that I just assumed she'd been riding for a lot longer than that.

John was such a trooper! He wasn't as well prepared for this ride as were Ellen & Amie, so he had a tough go of it at times, but he had a great attitude and was always cheerful and upbeat and enjoying the experience.

You guys did super on your very first century, a mighty tough one at that. I had a great time with you all, and I'm glad to have shared that experience with you. Booyah.