Mission Accomplished! (Jesse James 2013)

So, way back in December, I came up with a list of goals for the year.   Some were lofty, some were not, but one of the ones that I had in the back of my mind all season was to finish a century before the massage people left.   After my stunning failure in Wisconsin to do a century, I was feeling a little gun shy going into the 2013 Jesse James Century ride.   In fact, as late as the day of, I hadn't even really decided I was even going to try.   "Maybe," I thought, "I just don't have the legs for 100 miles this year."

Saturday dawned with nearly perfect weather.   No wind, warm, and pretty much perfect for hammering some miles.   So, as I drove to Northfield, I decided I was going to tell myself I was doing the 100 mile route until it was too late to change my mind.   There was only one teensy tiny wrinkle in my perfect day.   The weather, which was lovely at 6:30 AM, was projected to get into the 90's by midday.   I, being a large person and (more importantly) Norwegian, do not handle heat well.    Still, it was a well supported ride and I figured with a steady supply of cold water I'd be fine.

There is absolutely no way one of those hats is touching my head.

The OBCers gathered for our picture and then rolled out en masse.   Natural selection took its course, and soon the group had sorted in to A and B groups, with a few folks like me strung between them.    I had already resigned myself to riding the century solo, so I tried not to worry about it, and just rolled at my own pace.   Ready to distract me from my solitude was Sogn Valley, or more specifically, the climb out of it.  Last year, the climb had seemed very difficult and as my climbing has been crap, I wasn't sure how it would treat me this year.   Of course, immediately before the climb, there is a rest stop, so I stopped to get a banana quickly and chat with a few of the bike club folks who rolled up behind me.   However, with my goal firmly in mind, I didn't waste any time, and was back on the bike shortly.

The climb was...anti-climatic.   After falling apart on the hills in Wisconsin, I was prepared to grind up the valley roads, but honestly, I didn't even really notice them.  I mean, I'm sure I wasn't setting any speed records, but I was able to spin my way comfortably along.     The only eventful part of the climb was getting to the top where, unfortunately, a couple of cyclist had crashed out pretty badly.   I was actually passed by the ambulance on the way up the road.   I did see one of them at the end, so hopefully they didn't have any serious injuries.   

Riders at a rest stop in the early morning

After Sogn Valley, the century route turned a new direction.   Instead of heading west, the route went east and south to Kenyon with a stop in Wanamingo.   These roads were perfect.   Mostly flat and buttery smooth, I was flying along and taking in the views around me.   I really do love the Midwest this time of year, and I had a perfect opportunity to see why.   As a product, I suspect, of the accident, I found myself in a large gap where I didn't see any other riders for a long stretch of time.  I did start to get worried I'd missed a turn, but just as I started to get out my map and check, I rolled up to the rest stop.

Two things happened at Wanamingo.  1) I ran into a couple of club riders, and grouped up with them for the rest of the ride and 2) I got cold water.   This is noteworthy because it would be the last time I got cold water for the better part of 4 hours.   

The roads continued to be beautiful as we rolled south to Kenyon, our next water stop.   There was a brief uncomfortable ride on a shoulder of a rather busy road, but otherwise, it was perfect.    The temp was rising quickly, though, so we were going through our water bottles pretty quickly.   We rolled into the Kenyon water stop only to find that they were completely out of water and Gatorade.  Honestly, I'm not sure what they were thinking with this stop, as it seemed like their water plan consisted of tiny single serve water bottles, rather than coolers.   One gentleman, bless him, did have some bottles of Gatorade that he allowed us to have.   With the thirsty pack of riders that was surrounding the stop, they didn't last long.   We weren't worried, though, as there was a rest stop some twenty miles up the road that would be fully stocked with liquids and food.

Again, the ride from Kenyon to Nerstrand was fantastic.   I really must commend the route planners on that.  I didn't fully appreciate the roads, however, as I was getting overheated and was day dreaming of the ice cold water waiting for us at the next stop.  However, Nerstrand was, to our dismay, also out of water.    This time there was no option of continuing, we were dry.   A volunteer showed up with more fairly shortly after we arrived, but it was no colder than the very warm air around us.   Still, water was water so we refilled and moved on.  

The ride from Nerstrand to Faribault started to get difficult.   The roads were completely exposed to the sun baking down from above, and with only warm water and Gatorade to drink, my core temp was quickly rising.   I'm sure I would have had a headache, but I was taking so many pain meds I'd have been surprised if I felt anything from a crash, much less a minor thing like a headache.   As we were riding along, my companions were asking me questions and I noticed with mild concern that I was having difficulty remembering simple things like the names of people I was traveling with the next weekend.   We were still moving pretty fast though, so the time passed pretty quickly and my concerns quickly faded as I focused on getting cold water at the next stop.

Faribault was our oasis.   It was a large rest stop at a park, surely here they would have enough water and ice.   In large part, they did, though once again the water was warm.   There was some ice to be had, and I filled my water bottle with it and drank as much of the cold stuff as I could.   I was too hot, and could tell it, but there was little I could do.   I actually went to the river bank with the intention of dousing my head (and maybe the rest of me) in the water, but there was a thick scum along the bank.   I settled for laying down in the shade for a few moments.

While resting in Faribault, we ran into another member of our OBC group.   We headed out together and, well, I promptly fell apart.   There were perhaps 16 miles left of the ride when we left Faribault.   As we rode, I started to feel sick to my stomach.  I was squirting what water I had down my back and on my head, but in the unrelenting sunshine I couldn't cool off enough.   Soon my muscles started to fail me, and pushing the pedals became a nearly unbearable effort.   Chills started to chase up and down my limbs and spine.  I wasn't dehydrated, but my body was shutting down on me.   

After about 7 miles, I caught back up to my group, who had stopped in some shade to wait for me.  As I got off my bike, my legs nearly buckled.  I bent over and rested my head on my seat, trying to keep the dizziness from overtaking me.   I felt myself fading to unconsciousness, but I was worried if I sat down I wouldn't be able to get up again.  In situations like this, I tend to think I'm being a pansy, and this was no exception.  In my mind, everyone else was enduring the same conditions I was, and there was no good reason that I should be feeling that bad if no one else was.   So, while just moments before I was ready to call the SAG wagon, or possibly even the EMTs, standing there with everyone else I decided I needed to just tough it out and ride in the last few miles.

I'll leave it to the reader to decide how dumb that was.   As it stands, I made it back to town, though I don't remember how.   In the spirit of full disclosure (or over-sharing), I actually had some fear that I had lost control of my bladder as I remember that I had needed to go rather urgently prior to the stop in the shade, but by the time I got to Northfield it was no longer an issue.   As soon as I rolled into the parking lot, I went to the water cooler and poured water over my head.   I then dropped my bike off and took a COLD shower in the locker room (not even stopping to take off my clothes) until the water stopped feeling warm as it ran off me.

The after ride gathering at George's was interesting.  I couldn't have eaten to save my life, as the thought of eating made me want to throw up.  I was quite literally falling asleep at the table (or passing out...semantics).  I choked down some soda just to get enough caffeine in me to stay awake for the drive home and then made my excuses and left.    I'll save you the description of my drive home, as it was scary and not the sort of thing that my friends and family would like to read.   Nevertheless, I arrived safely and am now as healthy as I ever am.   

And, while I wasn't able to take advantage of it, the massage people were TOTALLY still at the school when I pulled in!   Boo yah.