I swapped my weekend-long ride with my long run this weekend, thinking I would rather ride on the warmer Sunday. Saturday’s cool day was great for my run. Plus, there was a group ride at noon that I thought I would join.
I ended up skipping the group ride for a couple of reasons; first, I thought it might be windier later in the day, and secondly, I wanted to watch The Masters! So I decided to ride solo and leave earlier.
This ride seemed doomed from the start. I left home around 9:30 and got about 3 miles into it when I looked down and saw that I had forgotten to bring my water bottles with my nutrition in them. A quick call to my wife, Kari, and she agreed to drive them over to me. Crisis averted.
I decided my best bet would be to head west into the wind on the paved bike trail, which was a great move, as the tree-lined trail sheltered me from the wind. From there, I rode through the “rough” part of Joliet to pick up the Wauponsee Glacial Trail, a mostly crushed limestone path that heads south. It also headed straight into the wind.
I had gone through one water bottle after about 1.5 hours of riding, and I decided I’d better nurse the last bottle just a little bit to make sure I got through the ride. There’s an outdoor parking lot along this trail that typically takes me about an hour to reach from home when going the road route, but today it took me 2 hours on the trail. I figured I would have a tailwind heading back, so I made the great choice to head a little further south and head into the Midewin National Preserve. That was a mistake, because it was rough riding into the wind.
I finally exited the preserve and caught the tailwind I was looking for. My ride was supposed to be about 3:45 hours today, and I was starting to think that I would make it home way before that. So I decided to just double back the way I had come. A lot of decision-making was going on, and none of them seemed to be working out for me. I was getting dehydrated and needed to refill my bottles soon.
I stopped at every water fountain that I knew of, and they all had a little red sign saying “Water Fountain Closed For The Season”. C’mon, man! It’s a seventy-degree day! Let’s get that water flowing!
As I rode on, I got stopped by a train in the “rough” part of Joliet, so I stopped by this factory building that has been there forever, and sat on its steps until the train passed.
I got back on the trail home and realized my next best option for water was back in New Lenox, where I work. I was dragging when I got there, but there was some relief for me. I tried the village hall side door, a door that my old coworker used to leave unlocked for some reason, but he’s no longer there (for obvious reasons), and the new guy has the place locked down tight. Next up was the police department, where I have spent my last 12-13 years working, but I didn’t have my keys, and no one was around to let me in. Thankfully, next door was the library, and it was bustling with activity. I pulled my bike up to the door and peered in, but didn’t see any fountains right there. The library has a really nice vending room just inside the door, so I parked my bike next to a bench where there were two other bikes parked, and went in and bought myself a 16.9 oz. bottle of good old Coca-Cola. I wanted something cold, something sweet, and something with some caffeine. It might have been the best Coke I have had. As I sat in the room looking out the window, I saw a father and son exit the library and take a really long look at my bike sitting there. I think they were just admiring it for some reason, but I started to wonder if I might lose my bike at any minute. Fortunately, they opted for their own bikes, and I finished my drink and saddled up.
The rest of the ride was brutal. Drinking a carbonated drink and trying to ride was not sitting well with me. At least I was functioning and getting closer to home. Eight miles to go.
I took a shortcut and hopped over the railroad tracks with my bike to finish this brutal ride at 56.25 miles and four total hours. At least I have the ability to ride the distance I need for the 70.3, but I need to work on a few important necessities that I surely neglected today.
Upon getting home, I grabbed a Gatorade and tried to get some sugar and electrolytes in me. I ended up in a ball on the floor, suffering from one of the biggest “bonks” in recent memory. I was so low on energy I couldn’t even think right. Kari kept asking if I needed anything, but I just needed to not move for a little while. I finally got up, took a shower, and sat down to watch some of The Masters. Since I had screwed up the ride, I also started screwing up the recovery by not refueling. Kari and I decided that my best option was to take a quick trip and get a smoothie. It hit the spot, and it wasn’t long until I felt normal again.
It’s a good thing that these things happen in training so that I can learn to not do them again. No more going bonkers for me from here on out.
an amazing run 