I am back from my 4 day ride along the C&O Canal. It was something I've never done before. I really enjoyed the ride. Met lots of interesting people, did something for myself, and I finished well for my first bike tour.

The ride was a charity ride for a local girls' home; San Mar's The Great Bicycle Tour was the name of the event. The participants were able to raise over 100K for the home, the most ever raised. I was really happy to have been a part of that. The hosts of the event fed us every meal, local groups such as the Lions or Kiwanis provided support every day at various stops on the trail. I gained weight there was so much food!

We started in Cumberland, MD and ended in Georgetown near D.C. Just days before we started, I got myself a pair of Nashbar's Ragster cycling sandals. I rode without cleats, but the firmer sole helped to steady my foot and provided lots of air circulation so I didn't feel overheated. Unfortunately, it didn't help much with the numbness I had going on in my right big toe. I don't think it's a shoe problem, but rather a problem with the shorts I was wearing. They fit well overall, but are a little snug around the thigh. I think maybe something was getting cut off that caused the numbness. The reason I think it is the shorts is because I didn't get any numbness with the other pair of shorts I wore on the ride. The sandals, though heavy, were very comfortable. I had no chafing at all. I did need to wear socks with them for a couple days because the inside bottoms were textured and that just felt weird. After two days of wearing them for 6-8 hours, they were broken in enough that I could go barefoot in them without too much weirdness. I chose the Ragsters because of price ($50), availability, and speed of delivery.

As for training, I just needed more time in the saddle. By the end of the first day I was pretty sore. But the soreness didn't last and I was able to get back in the saddle and feel comfortable each successive day. Also, because I am so new to cycling, my speed kept me near the back of the group. I wasn't embarrassingly slow, but I would like to have been a little faster. My first day I averaged 8.8 mph. The rest of the days hovered around 10.0 or above.

Thanks to all who gave me advice on the toe problem. I ended up with a great pair of cycling sandals, figured out it's not a shoe problem, and got introduced to the board. I look forward to jumping into conversations from time to time and learning a lot from those who are experienced in cycling.