Every year, we have this Corporate Cycling Challenge in Omaha, Nebraska, which is known as the largest single-day ride in the state. My company provides free entry to the event; I make sure to attend every time.
The challenge routes consist of 10-, 25-, and 42-mile routes for road, gran fondo, and gravel bike rides. I mostly do 25 miles, but 2 years ago I did 42 miles too; that was fun. Last year I did it with Harmit; she did 10 miles, and I did 25.
This year, the ride challenge was yesterday, on August 16th. I rode 25 miles without Harmit or any friends. These days I am playing lots of Pickleball, almost 2.5 hours daily, so I haven’t had enough chance to ride this year. In fact, this was my second ride of the year.
I was actually thinking of skipping it the night before, but then decided to get at least my gear ready. I fine-tuned the bike, packed it in the car trunk, and put the helmet, water bottle, and pouch in the car, along with a protein bar and a towel.
Yesterday, when I woke up at 7AM, it was raining heavily, testing my mental toughness about whether to go. The race was at 8:30 AM, and we were supposed to check in at 8AM. Against my will, I pulled myself out of bed and got ready. The rain was so heavy that the roads were flooding. I wasn’t sure how this event would take place.
When I reached there at 8AM, to my surprise, cyclists were there—few in ponchos, few under shades, and few at the registration desk. I loved their spirit. I registered and joined a few of them in the shade. We waited for the rain to stop, but it didn’t, so we started our ride at sharp 8:30AM. That was cool; rain or shine, the ride should happen.
Initially, I felt cold from the rain, but then I shifted my focus to the beauty of the weather. It was actually a pleasant ride, free from sweat. I sweat a lot, unlike most people, so the rain helped me conserve energy and avoid dehydration.
I didn’t stop paddling. I tried to maintain my pace as much as possible. In between, there was an instance when the other cyclist confused me by telling me not to follow the trail we’d taken to avoid the highway, saying it was too muddy. I turned back and wasted some time before realizing it was not that bad, as other cyclists were following the same route. So I realigned myself; this wasted a couple of crucial minutes.
The only break I took was at the route’s turnaround. I checked in there and had a banana. My mom called me during that time, so I talked with her briefly before starting the next half.
The second half was easy; I completed the ride in less than 2 hours, and it was satisfactory. If I had not wasted some time on that muddy trail, it would have been even faster.
Do you also like to bike? What brand and model do you have? By the way, I forgot to mention: my bike’s gears stopped working midway. My god, how nervous I was on that ascent. Has this happened to you ever?
Happy Reading! Keep Traveling!!!
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