It's 1:30 PM Wednesday, May 21, and we are over 400 miles into the ride. We stopped in Kearney to eat at Q'Doba. We had planned to leave early this morning, although I (Londell) woke at 5:30, and the wind was 20 mph. I was totally spent and very sore from that wind on Tuesday, and I wanted to let Jordan rest as he had worked so hard.
At about 8:00 AM, I woke Jordan, and the wind was around 25 mph. Yes, it was a headwind unless we went back to Colorado. It was actually a strong northeast wind. Jordan suggested we just go to Kansas City in three days with the wind we had experienced.
The good news is the wind is supposed to decrease to 17 mph later today and 15 mph on Thursday. Never thought I would be looking forward to riding in a 10-15 mph headwind, but after this morning, that sounds nice.
The ride is so hard due to the headwind. Guess what? I now have a painful blister on my right hand. I am enjoying my time with Jordan, but the bike ride faces challenge after challenge!
THIS IS A DAY TO FORGET. The wind was... (I will skip the words I want to use to keep this blog clean). The wind was so bad. If Nebraska is God's country, then God is saying bicyclists keep the (keeping it clean) out! Our Garmin would say we are going about 11 mph when a truck goes past and slows us instantly to about 9.5 mph, and at times, we thought we would be thrown into the ditch.
The good news is the wind is supposed to decrease to 17 mph later today and 15 mph on Thursday. Never thought I would be looking forward to riding in a 10-15 mph headwind, but after this morning, that sounds nice.
The ride is so hard due to the headwind. Guess what? I now have a painful blister on my right hand. I am enjoying my time with Jordan, but the bike ride faces challenge after challenge!
 |
| Londell is getting a blister! |
The first 20 miles out of Lexington, Nebraska, stressed Jordan and me out. The break at Kearney, Nebraska, helped a little, but the 90-degree heat and the wind took their toll about 15 miles out of Kearney. Jordan was now equipped with an additional 20 pounds of bike weight for the second day, and I think he was feeling the pain.
It is easy to know we love and care so much for each other, but we became worse than Frank and Marie Barone, Archie and Edith Bunker, Al and Peg Bundy, or you name them. You always knew they loved each other but bicker to death. Well, today, we both had enough and shared some choice words. We became that old bickering couple everyone will look at and laugh at as they bicker.
We had taken the wrath of God long enough. We had just finished about 55 miles and had another 25 miles to reach Grand Island, NE. We had experienced 5 flat tires, did not pack the right pump, and had a third day of over 80 degrees with the sun beating hard. We may need a third tube of sunscreen before we end the ride.
It is easy to know we love and care so much for each other, but we became worse than Frank and Marie Barone, Archie and Edith Bunker, Al and Peg Bundy, or you name them. You always knew they loved each other but bicker to death. Well, today, we both had enough and shared some choice words. We became that old bickering couple everyone will look at and laugh at as they bicker.
 |
| Reconciled - heading toward Grand Island |
Anyway, this ended with me yelling at Jordan to "go the *&@# home," and I took off. He did start back, and after about 25 minutes and much wasted energy, we regrouped. It was not a good scene. We are both just destroyed by the hard past few days! In addition, Jordan has not slept well. He is a real light sleeper, and my snoring keeps him awake. In fact, I learned that last night, he slept on the bathroom floor to avoid my snoring.
We worked together and dredged ahead. Several times, we stopped and fell over the handlebars. Looked like we were dry-heaving from the sheer exhaustion from fighting the wind and the truck traffic, which was at least 1 every minute.
We worked together and dredged ahead. Several times, we stopped and fell over the handlebars. Looked like we were dry-heaving from the sheer exhaustion from fighting the wind and the truck traffic, which was at least 1 every minute.
However, after 10.4 hours total, with 7 hours and 3 minutes on the bike, we made Grand Island at 7:45 PM. We decided not to camp but went to the Travel Lodge, bought lots of ice, stocked up at the grocery store, ordered Pizza and Wings, and rotated ice baths. My body has been beaten up, and I feel much more beat up than when I finished the superior 50 miles in 2007, yet I am only halfway through this ride.
SUMMARY FOR THE FIRST 5 DAYS
- Saturday - 111.1 miles (15 added miles due to bike issues) - 8 hours and 44 minutes on the bike with a pace of 12.8 mph and over 13 hours for the trip!
- Sunday - 90.6 miles - 7 hours 10 minutes on the bike with a pace of 12.7 mph and just under 12 hours for the day
- Monday - 93.3 miles - 7 hours 10 minutes on the bike with a pace of 12.9 mph and just over 10 hours for the trip
- Tuesday - 87.6 miles - 7 hours 22 minutes on the bike with a pace of 11.0 mph and 12 hours 21 minutes for the trip.
- Wednesday - 78.9 miles - 7 hours 3 minutes on the bike with a pace of 11.2 mph average and 10 hours 20 minutes on the trip
This averages 92.3 miles per day, most of it with heavy headwinds. I am just amazed at how we have made that pace. To put it in perspective, we were on the bike as much as most people are working in five days. Recall that in the 8-hour shift, most get two paid 15-minute breaks, which means most people have a 37:30:00 work week. So, the first five days are like riding a bike every working minute in a typical work week.
Tomorrow, we have decided that 64.6 miles will be the maximum stay in a motel in Columbus, Nebraska. However, the forecast is for a 30% chance of rain but only a 15 mph headwind. This makes me end with the same thing I started with if Nebraska is God's country, he is telling us we are not welcome...
SUMMARY OF DAY 5: A total of 78.9 miles and 11.2 MPH (riding time only) and a total on-bike time of 7 hours and 3 minutes. It was just over 10 hours for the day, with a temperature range of 59 F at the start to almost 88 F at the peak. Total ascent (according to Garmin Connect) was 287 feet with a decent of 794 feet. We had a 1,033-foot elevation decrease, going from 2,879 feet to 1,846 feet overall.
SUMMARY OF DAY 5: A total of 78.9 miles and 11.2 MPH (riding time only) and a total on-bike time of 7 hours and 3 minutes. It was just over 10 hours for the day, with a temperature range of 59 F at the start to almost 88 F at the peak. Total ascent (according to Garmin Connect) was 287 feet with a decent of 794 feet. We had a 1,033-foot elevation decrease, going from 2,879 feet to 1,846 feet overall.
Our 10 miles splits from MapMyRide (time includes breaks, and mph is only riding time) were:
0-10 in 1:01:14 - 10.3 mph
10-20 in 1:07:21 - 12.4 mph
20-30 in 1:08:25 - 11.5 mph
30-40 in 2:04:18 - 10.7 mph
40-50 in 1:50:31 - 10.4 mph
50-60 in 0:57:13 - 11.8 mph
60-70 in 1:12:40 - 11.1 mph
Last 8.9 in 0:57:28 - 11.8 mph
No comments:
Post a Comment