Monday, October 10, 2011

The Dempsey Challenge!

On Sunday, October 9, I completed 101 miles in the Dempsey Challenge in Maine (averaging 16 MPH for a ride time of six hours and eighteen minutes), bringing me to 925 charity miles.

The ride was FANTASTIC. Lots of charity rides are my favorites, but this one is my favorite because of the spectators. All along the route, people set up camp chairs outside their houses to cheer riders on. When I passed through one town center, they had a fire truck with the sirens going and cheering spectators lining the road. It was such a high-energy ride that I was at mile 48 before I felt the need to stop. Plus I'd been drinking Perpetuem (a high-calorie energy supplement; imagine slowing sipping 20 ounces of melted strawberry milkshake and you'll get the idea), and that stuff can keep me going for hours.

Two firsts: This was my first "solo" century...there were probably 2000 riders, but no one I knew. I worried I'd be lonely or bored, but I had a great time. Also, on a particularly steep descent I hit 49 MPH!! Previously, the fastest I'd ever gone was 41. It was amazing. Of course, I didn't fully realize it had happened until I downloaded the ride data from my Garmin; at the time I was moving too fast to risk looking down.

Next month will be my final charity ride of the year: the Bobby Mac Century!