Bike Against the Odds - DONE!

[tomgrrrl]

Well I did it.....65 miles and I survived (although that last big climb on South Park was a killer!!!!) The weather was great and it was fun to see my boardmates BikerZ and Trek420!!!

I must admit I did have a "new" bike, a Serotta Fierte "Ti" which was awsome....I had ordered it a couple weeks ago (after much soul-searching) but it arrived on Thursday and was built by the bike shop Thursday p.m. and Friday.....I picked it up Saturday and rode it for the very first time on a short loop in Marin. I was taking a chance riding a new bike, but I had had it "fit" etc. and thought it had to be better than riding my Bianchi Axis which is a cross bike.

I'm happy to report that, although I'm a bit sore and tired, nothing felt off and I think the bike and I are happy mates! I did have a flat coming down the last of the Three Bears, but I had just removed my wheel to begin the fix, when a BATO sag mechanic named Mike was driving by and stopped and had me up and flying within three minutes!

I met a friend who delivered my 7 year old and our tandem at Lake Merritt in Oakland to ride the last little bit of the ride.

OH, and guess what, I was ONE number away from taking home the LeMond bike in the raffle! No one had claimed it and I walked up...my stomach jumped when I started looking at my numbers....I had 51448 (or something like that) and the winning number was 51449!! If I had won I would have sold it quick and in a hurry to help pay for me new Serotta...oh well, can't complain.

BTW, I'd never ridden down Redwood Road into Moraga before...what an amazing road! So beautiful. In contrast, riding the back roads of the Three Bears I was dismayed to see people have used the country roads as dumping grounds.....I saw a couch, bags of garbage, etc in a number of places....Sad folks can't pay a few bucks and take the stuff to the dump eh?

6,000 feet of elevation gain.....up and down, up and down.....gotta love the Bay Area....anyway, had a great time, and was happy to raise money for a good cause (even earned myself a new jersey for the bike wardrobe)...it's been three years since my cancer surgery and I must admit I felt blessed to be able to ride.