The plan was that I would go do the Century. My mom would pick up Lee and the kids and take them to my Sister's apartment. I would join them. We eat (maybe I shower?) and we go home to feed/walk the dog.
Last week, I got a flat tire. Rear tire. My first flat fix up. Fixed it but a few days later I realized I am low again. Took out the tube and found a piece of metal in the tire on the inside. When I changed the flat I looked but couldn't find anything. It was buried deep. Took tweezers to get it out. Fixed the tube as backup. Went to Brickwell to get more tubes and more CO2 cartridges.
Food Supplies: 5 powerbars, 2 gels, bag of salty pretzels, 2 bottles in back, 1 gatorade and a water in front.
Bike Supplies: 2 new tubes, 1 fixed tube, 2 CO2 cartridges, small pump.
Woke up at 2am. Got ready. Walked the dog at 4 am in the dark with a flashlight and I think I stepped in a little poop. Crap. Got home to see a note in kitchen on the floor to come say goodbye to Jessie. Not good. Went up with dog in tow. LC was so happy to see Jessie in our bed. He kept trying to jump on the bed to say hello to her. Guess he thought it was wakeup time. Lee had to distract him and I went downstairs. I was supposed to leave 4:30 but not it was 4:45 but still plenty of time. All good.
I was hoping to have someone there to help. Just watch my stuff while I use the port-a-pottie, take the shirt etc. No one.
Found the place. It's 5:15. On schedule. On the way there, I saw a guy riding to start. He might have been a marshall. Talked to him. He said parking "at this time is going to be hard". WTF?!? Now my stomach is rolling. Riding up and down and actually found a start about 3 blocks away. COOL!
Take out the bike and started filling the water bottle in front. Bike slipping. Caught bike sort off and dropped car keys and phone. Stomach rolling. Riding to start I realized I didn't use the anti-chafing thing and I forgot to use suntan lotion. Nevermind. Get to start. Go to express check in since I already have my bib.
Asked a guy to watch my bike so I can use the port-a-pottie. These guys are smart. They put them right underneath lights. You can actually see what you're doing. Ohrah...Especially since I left the flashlight in car. Walking/talking with the guy as we head to the start. Get a phone call from home, can't pick it up, we are finally starting. Sent a quick text msg and started. We all started 7 minutes late at 6:07.
Roads were not well marked I thought. Gold Coast was much better marked but at this point follow the crowd. Bit crowded at times. Nice to see cars and taxis afriad of us. Exhillariting. Saw these 3 guys who looked like they knew what they were doing and decided to stick with them. Up and down in the city at over 18 MPH. Had to stop at "some" lights but pretty much rode aggresivly. Everyone in city stayed away fromt he crazy 6,000 cyclists. Some cheers. Saw 2 hookers. Cat calls both ways. Sun didn't fully come out yet. Stayed with my 3 guys. Then they took a red and I stopped. TOO DANGEROUS! Lost them. Later saw them changing a tire. Oh well.
Passed by the finish line to the NYC 1/2 Marathon. Sight-seeing tour I guess.
Crossed the Brooklyn Bridge. People stopped to take pictures. People rode while taking pictures. Crazy stuff. Beauitful. Someone told me that someone drowned under the Brooklyn Bridge the day before during a swim race. Crap. My mothers always freaking out when I swim in the Hudson and while I don't plan on doing the NYC Triathlon anymore, I would like to swim around the Statue of Liberty. Hopefully she doesn't hear about it.
Brooklyn sucks. Saw a guy walking a Pitbull. Dog growled at me and started pulling against the chain to get to me. I looked at his owner and he didn't look to good too. Surged/pushed/sprinted away. Better not stick around.
The route they chose was not that great. Some meaningless turns, detours etc thoough someone tole me they tried to keep us on streets with bike lanes. I don't know. Got to a little overpass that had cobblestones on both sides. One of my bottles from behind flew out. Got it and realized that during the bike sort-of-drop, the bottle mount got loose. That's ok. I have the special alan key on me. Tried to fix but couldn't tighten well. Kept getting loose.
Riding, I started talking to this black woman. Funny thing is I passed her (with the car) getting off the triboro bridge. Stayed together in Brooklyn and lost her at 1 point. Kept having to stop to tighten the cage in back. Got to prospect park. Recognized every turn from the Brooklyn Half-Marathon. Realized again how small and tight it was. Stupid stuff. Stopped at rest stop to tighten and left. No need to stay and linger. Plan was to keep stops to minimal or to none.
Riding in Prospect Park I also saw where we turned to get on to Ocean Parkway to Coney Island. I thought we would get off there but they kept us in the park.
Passed a couple of more bridges and realized I had a flat in my front tire. OK. We know what to do now. Changed it. Kept going. Got to another bridge. This guy asks me if I know where we are going. Immediate sarcastic reflex - "Central Park". Guy looked at me like "is this guy for real". Apologized and told him we're going to Queens -> Manhattan -> Bronx -> Manhattan. Rode with him a little. Got to Coney Island and saw the finish line to the Brooklyn Half.
Rode near the water. Pretty cool area. Flat and I like the salt water smell. Rode over some stuff. Don't know what it was. Don't care.
Crossed over another bridge and we were on Queens. Far Rockaway, Howard beach. I commented to a guy that we have to make sure not to piss anyone off here and he commented "yup, they have big bats here". Enough said there. This section was very windy. He told me to tuck in and he pulled. Thanks dude. Woodhaven Blvd. Haven't been there 5 or so girlfriends ago, something like 24 years. Group of us riding. I pulled a lot. Passed Forest Park. Recognized it from the 4 mile race. We were on our way to Kissena Park in the stupidest, gotta put miles in, way. We're riding on Main street. All of us cutoff a bus at Union Turnpike. Bad intersection at 76 st and Main. One part is a 1 way and the other is a 2 way. Close to Stepping Stone and Solomon Schecter. Someone yelled "CLEAR!" and we all went. OOPS! He only looked 1 way. We all slammed on brakes. I fishtailed a little. I wasn't the only one. No one got hurt. Big thing for the day "SAFETY IN NUMBERS!" Everyone stayed away from us.
Left on 73rd Avenue toward the Van Wyck and around to Jewel and into Flushing Meadow Park. Glad there was a group there. Would have gotten lost. Went around the big fountain there near the US Open. That was pretty cool. Left and got to the Veledrome. One loop around. Looking forward to it. Heard it was there but never knew where.
LOCKED!!!! WTF!!! Some Idiot photographer decided to shoot pictures there of 4 cyclists so he locked it. Parks people where trying to get a key and/or cops. I suggested we jump it and others agreed. Screw him and his pictures. One of the idiots tried to start a fight with 1 of the guys. Told him to shut the F... up oldman etc. Up until then it was cool. Truly NY thing to do to jump the fence. That guy tho was an Idiot. NYer I guess.
Off to Kissena Park. Recognized it from the Quantum Feet/Brickwell 5K. Stopped to pee and to make sure tires are all topped off. Left quickly. Off to Alley Pond. Rode through Alley through the back (old Quantum Feet 5K), close to Saint Francis Prep, around the field and into Alley itself. About 1/2 mile from the tennis courts we got out at the big rock and went to the Upper Alley. Road there wet and there are plenty of wet leaves. Dangerous rollers. I was feathering the brakes. I knew where I was and no way, I was going down. Suddenly there was a 90 degree right turn and there it is, lead guy missed it, tried it and crashed. Screams down the line but no one else got hurt. Someone tried to pick the bike up but the guys foot was trapped in the handle bars. Got it out. Everyone asked if he was ok and he said he was just shook up. I don't blame him. Been there. Done that. Someone told him, that he "took one for the team". I told him to look for the video off his fall tomorrow on youtube. We all laughed and went off.
On the Cross Island Park bike path near the water. Talked to another guy who couldn't believe I was doing this on a tri bike. Oh well. Recognized pieces of the Queens Half-Marathon, I think. Rode through Jim's neighberhood but no Jim.
Riding and I realized I have a flat in the back. Man....Stopped to change tire. Hands weren't cooperating well. Found a Centimer long (Half-Inch) gash in tire. Ride Marshall stopped by to help. Thanks Bill the Marshall. Managed to get it done and stick a powerbar wrapper in there to protect the tube. Rode off.
Sucks. Lost the group and we are close to the Triboro bridge. Stop at the rest stop to check air and realized again I am low. Gave up. Paid mechanic to fix flat (I was running low on stores anyway) and he put a piece of cardboard in there to help protect the tube. Lost a LOT of time there. SUCKS! Didn't stay longer and left to the Triboro Bridge.
Sign that said we have to walk bikes across bridge. Screw that. STEPS! Yup. That sucked. Get off and pick up and walk up, up, down, down and ride. Repeat on the other side. OY! Lost time there too.
In the Bronx. Scary stuff. There was another bridge there too. Some people were tired and walked it. I rode up. I didn't care how tired I was, not getting off the bike. Cool. The down side of the bridge was hairy turns. Scary a little. Reminded me of the Sprint Adventure Race and that 180 degree turn before a drop. Same thing except flat downhill. No obstacles.
I know I have an extremly sensitive nose but I rode through a cloud of Marijuanna (sp?). Smelled it. Yuck. Flew through at 20 MPH and I could smell it. Must have been real bad. Even with my nose, at 20MPH, I should NOT have smelt it. That bad.
Found another group and stuck to the leaders. Remember SAFETY IN NUMBERS!
This looks familiar. Yup....Bronx Half-Marathon and the Mooshulo Parkway. And this looks familar too...Yup. Van Cortlandt Park where we did the 15K. Last rest stop.
Before we started they told us the 75 milers are lucky. They are going to the Rockaways and that their route will actually be 85. Waiting to see how much the 100 milers get to do. At the rest stop they told us we got 8 miles to go. We were at 99 already. Filled up on water and didn't wait for the group. I wanted to get home. I was hoping to have finished already and time sucked. Left the rest stop and had to ride through about 25 yards of woodchips. Missed my mountain bike. Praying for no more flats. I think there was another bridge.
Saw Yankees stadium and saw the towers for Columbia University. Started to talk to a father who rode a tandem with his son. His son looked like he was falling asleep while pedaling. Tired kid. Woke up at 4:45 am. I offered to pull and he told me that's ok and he rode away from me. Show off. Cool tho. Later caught him. Less than 20 street blocks away and some Avenues. Kid counting off. That was cool. This other rider and I must have taken a wrong turn and we got seperated. Still, found the way home. HAPPY. Got my shirt and rode to car.
It's late. Thank God for GPS. Went to my sisters and ate.
Lessons learned: Safety in numbers. I "know" I can change a tire. Pretzel bag was a hit - it was a good balance of powerbars(sweet) and pretzels (salt). Need more tubes/CO2 during a really long ride. Need to take some cardboard strips or something. I can push the hills no matter how tired I am. I can push the speed too at this point if I really want/need. I'm stronger from this both mentally and physically.
I'm also tired. My hands, with gloves, were getting sore. I thought I was getting blisters but I didn't. Not sure what to do about that. Got chafed a little down South. My fault - stupid. I need to practice putting the back wheel back on.
Stats: Avg MPH: 14.0. Bike computer time: 7:38. Watch time: 9 hours.
In my defense, regarding the average speed/times, lost time with the 3 flats and the mechanic and also on the bridges. They were all single file mode and the steps didn't help.
It was fun. A lot of fun but I will probably not do this one again. It was pretty cool to see certain neighborhoods and recognize race locales and courses. Riders were pretty cool too. During the Gold Coast, there were times where I was riding by myself. Here there were always people around.
I'm sure I'll think of other things but that's the gist of it for now.
HELMETS! Look, I know we all learned how to ride a bike without helmets but c'mon people. These days I am all for helmets. Started with the kids. What's good for the goose and all that. I couldn't tell the kids that they need to wear helmets and not wear one my self. Damn hypocrite. Then I started racing and riding long and I realized it's a must. About 2 weeks ago, a friend of a friend (John Scalzo) took a spill. Cracked his helemt in 3 places and got a concussion. Broke helmet in 3 places! Do you get that? That could have been his head, you know. That said, there were a few people with no helmets. There was 1 idiot who wore a helmet but didn't close it. What's the point? It was probably more of a hassle just to keep it on. Straps in the way. IDIOT.
I saw a guy with a fixed wheel bike and no clip ons. Always 1 of those. Best was the guy on a fold up bike. Go figure. Also, there were a few people with fake birds attached to their helmets. Looked cool.
I found this link on mapmyride.com. It maps the bike ride quite nicely.
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