Fourth MS150 bike ride

My friend Dan and I participated this weekend in the MS150 "Escape to the Lake" bike ride from Moraine State Park in western Pennsylvania to the shore of Lake Erie in Conneaut, Ohio. We rode 64 miles on Saturday and 62 miles Sunday with an overnight stay at Allegheny College in between. There were about 500 riders on the route with us, with plenty of support from volunteers. Rest stops were placed along the route every 12-15 miles. It appears I actually gained about a pound of body weight because I ate more snacks at the rest stops than burned calories!

 

This was Dan's and my 4th time doing this charity ride and the weather was best this year, with only gusty winds to complain about. It was indeed brutal riding in that wind at times, but it was still better than the year when we had to ride through a thunderstorm!

 

I did not train for this ride. Before this weekend, I had logged just 21 miles on my bike since January 1. I have been having a hard time staying motivated to do workouts since my 2018 Ironman in September, and this has concerned me. However, the bike ride was fun and I am happy I still have cycling legs even if they've been inactive for many months. As they say, "it's just like riding a bike," and my body knew what to do. It's not just the mileage but also the handling skills. It felt really natural. So this was a great ride for several reasons: (1) raised funds for needed research on a disease that affects millions, (2) strengthened the bond between good friends, and (3) helped me break through a fitness slump. Please pray for me that I can follow through and enjoy being an athlete again.

 

Goals for 2019

It's early for New Year's resolutions, but I figure I'm giving you all some time to think about them. Who wants to join me for the Pittsburgh Half-Marathon (13.1 miles) on May 5th? Who wants to join me for a 150-mile bike ride with the National Multiple Sclerosis Society on June 8-9 (starts in Portersville, PA)? Who wants to join me for the Air Force Marathon (26.2 miles) on Sept 21st (Dayton, OH)? Who wants to join our Masters Swim Team in 2019 and compete in meets at YMCAs across western PA? Ok, go! Get in on the fun! Get active with me!

 

(I've been a sloth since my Ironman in September, so this post is just as much for me as it is you)

IM bike course

My wife and others have asked if the bike course for the ironman I will do in September is going to be hilly. The event is in Ohio near Lake Erie so I figured it wouldn't be. However, I never really looked at the elevation profile so I just guessed and said "Nah, it's mostly flat."

Today I checked out the 111.5-mile course. The elevation gain is 1,429 feet. That's 12.8 feet per mile. There are definitely some hills, but they don't look too bad. For reference, the MS150 ride I sometimes do includes 4,114 feet of elevation gain on the first day over a distance of 74.7 miles. That's 55.1 feet per mile. The second day on the MS150 is 2,007 feet of elevation gain over 63.4 miles, or 31.7 feet per mile. Anyway I look at it, the ironman bike course will be 2.5 times easier than the MS150. Good news!

MS 150 Bike Ride

Event: MS150 Charity Ride
Date: June 7-8, 2014
Location: western Pennsylvania

MS 150 (Day#1)

This was a charity ride for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.  I received sponsorship from 9 people totaling $390. When this is added to my rides in 2012 and 2013, my total fundraising for charity is $1,360. Of course, I didn’t do this ride by myself. My friend Dan and I were with more than a thousand other riders when we left Zelienople, Pa. and traveled to Meadville, Pa. on the first day (86 miles). We stayed overnight on the Allegheny College campus and then traveled to Conneaut, Ohio to complete the trip on the second day (another 64 miles). Total distance was 150 miles in 9.4 hours of riding over two days.

There seemed to be fewer riders this year compared to last, so it seemed quieter on the road. There were actually a couple times when the riders in front of us disappeared and Dan and I felt like we were the only ones on the road. With fewer riders, we also had fewer people to observe and remark about. For instance, in previous years there have been people who adorned their bikes or cycling clothes with unusual objects that were fun to joke about or at least watch out for. But other than a couple guys with red Mohawks (and these were covered by cycling helmets, so we never saw them on the road), a couple men with very long beards, one person on a hand-crank bike (I assume his legs were disabled), and a scattering of couples on tandem bikes, there were not many cyclists that stood out from the crowd. Except, maybe us!

We maintained a good pace this year. Rest stops were placed on the route about every 14 or 15 miles. It seems like we would pass a lot of people on the route and then stop for a longer-than-average period of time at the rest stops, so we would end up passing the same people over and over again. Our average pace was similar to last year:

2012: 14.4 mph on Day#1 and 15.5 mph on Day#2

2013: 15.3 mph on Day#1 and 16.8mph on Day#2

2014: 15.4 mph on Day#1 and 16.7mph on Day#2

Why the differences from Day#1 to Day#2? Well, it all has to do with the hills! On Day #1 the ride had a total ascent of 4,758 feet with three hills steep enough to be given a “Cat 4” or “Cat 5” rating by MapYourRide.com (see http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/380078413). To put things in context, these hills were not terribly steep or long, since “Cat 1” grades are more challenging than what we had to do. Nevertheless, they slowed us down. On Day#2 there was a total ascent of 1,1880 feet with only two Cat 5 hills to climb (see http://www.mapmyride.com/us/conneaut-lakeshore-pa/2014-escape-to-the-lake-day-2-route-179324514).

By the Miles:

Mile 2: It is cold again. Last year it was 60 degrees and I was not dressed for it. This year it is 54 degrees at the 7am start and I am wearing an UnderArmour shirt underneath my jersey. This kept me sufficiently warm.

Mile 16: Rest stop at Moraine State Park. This brought back recent memories because I just completed a triathlon on some of these same roads a few weeks ago. Time to apply sunscreen! 

Mile 17: While ascending a steep hill, I intend to shift down to a lower gear but the front derailleur fails to move the chain to the smaller chainring. I have to stop and walk the bike up the hill because it is too difficult to pedal in the higher gear. I am angry because just a day ago I had gotten my bike back from the repair shop where I asked them to service the front derailleur. [Fortunately, I did not have any more trouble with the derailleur on the rest of my trip]

Mile 33: Rest stop at Beloved Disciple Church.

Mile 44: Lunch time at the town square in Mercer, Pa. Our route last year did not include this location. I liked how the food tent, bike repair tents, first aid station, volunteer station, and port-a-johns were spread out around the perimeter of the courthouse. It seemed more festive, somehow. Dan and I got food (including grilled chicken sandwiches) and sat on the courthouse steps in the shade. It was not the most comfortable of sitting spots, but we had few other options in the shade.

Mile 45: The course leaving the town square began to descend a slight hill and we picked up some speed. But then we had to stop. A woman had fallen off her bike after hitting a pothole. I am sighing heavily even as I write this, because this weekend was supposed to be a fun outing for everyone, and here was someone who’s happy experience was taken away. The woman was sitting in the middle of the road, crying out in despair. She was bleeding significantly from her face, and Dan said later he had seen blood on the pavement about 20 feet ahead of where the woman was now sitting; she must have had some momentum when she fell. About 6 fellow cyclists surrounded her and were attempting to help her to her feet to move her out of the road. One person was on his phone, having called 911, and was asking people what street we were on. Dan and I were in a group of 9 others who stopped and watched for a minute, not knowing what to do. There were enough people already helping the woman, but it didn’t seem appropriate to just ignore the situation and ride on past. But eventually we did carry on. But all the cyclists were quiet and riding a little slower for a mile or two, as seems to happen to me when I am in my car and pass a bad crash on the highway.

Mile 59: Rest stop at Goddard State Park marina. Again, this was a new venue for a rest stop. It was a great spot with a big reservoir and boats. My upper back is starting to get really stiff. I spend many minutes at this rest stop moving my neck up and down and from side to side to loosen things up. Dan and I enjoyed watching a male and female Tree Swallow perch on a nest box very close by. We even saw them copulate on a tree branch just over our heads. I am currently supervising a student research project on Tree Swallows back home, so I was particularly interested in this.

Mile 61: More hill climbing. Dan said he is tired. He lags behind me as we climb but I keep him in my sights. It’s not fun to be left behind, but I can tell he doesn’t want me to slow down on his account.

Mile 73: Rest stop at Cochranton Park. Everyone is always talking about “heart attack hill” coming up, but Dan and I have never found this hill to be too much of a challenge in the past. No problem this time, either. Dan is hanging in there. I text Shannan, saying “Only 11 more miles to go. We will be ready to stop then.” My mileage estimate was off, but what I was saying was I was now getting tired, too.

Mile 77: Rest stop at St. Peter and Paul Chapel.  The hill slowed us down, but we probably didn’t need to stop. We did anyway.

Mile 86: Finish at Allegheny College.

After this first day of riding, we got our dorm room key, dropped off our bike in the gym, picked up our luggage, took a shower, and changed clothes. This whole process took a little longer this year because we were in a more distant dorm. Our room was on the third floor (was there even an elevator?), and the shower only had three stalls so we had to wait. We headed to dinner around 5:30pm. Around 7:00pm we went back to the dorm room and got our swimming gear. We walked around some booths set up near the “beer garden” where a band was supposed to be playing (but they weren’t). One of the booths was promoting electric-assisted bicycles and I rode one. It was delightful! With each pedal stroke, the bike pushed ahead effortlessly. Not having $3,000 to buy one, Dan and I then went to the campus pool and put in a reluctant 650 yards. I think this was good for loosening muscles and getting refreshed. In fact, I was less tired after the swim than before. Nevertheless, we walked back to the dorm room and dozed from 8:00 to 9:00 when we started getting ready for sleep. And we slept like logs.

MS150 Day #2

This is part 2 of 2 about a charity ride for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.  Having already ridden 86 miles on June 7, my friend Dan and I and more than a thousand other riders began the next day at Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa., to travel to Conneaut, Ohio.  We arrived at the starting line at 7:19am and were released soon thereafter. I had slept really well and felt good. Dan said he felt good, too. So let’s see how we fared over the next 64 miles…

Mile 2: Given that this was supposed to be a warmer day, I did not wear anything under my jersey. I am regretting that now. It is 62 degrees. The irony is that I easily could have worn more clothes. I had extra capacity in my jersey pockets to stash them after I warmed up.

Mile 3: Word has gotten around about the woman who hit a pothole yesterday. As we ride in a large peloton through Meadville, there are numerous potholes and riders are pointing them out to one another. On the one hand, I appreciate their care and caution. On the other hand, this behavior seems hypocritical (or at least inconsistent); there have been potholes throughout the course that no one has felt the need to point out. As I expect, the hyper vigilance about potholes disappears after a few miles.

Mile 14: Rest stop at Summit Volunteer Ambulance Service. I’m feeling good. I probably didn’t need to stop, but it’s always good to stretch the neck, which by the way, isn’t bothering me one bit today.

Mile 20: There is a dead fox in the road. I make Dan and a few others laugh when I recite a few words to the song “What Does the Fox Say?”

Mile 27: rest stop at Lord Mason Park.

Mile 35: A long straightaway with vast fields on either side of the road. We encounter at least three Amish buggies going the other way. Everybody waves. When I lived in Lancaster, I saw Amish kids on bikes. Still, I wonder what they think of us on our $1000+ shiny metal racehorses.

Mile 42: Rest stop at Connie Lance Memorial Park. I remember in previous years there were sandwiches and wraps being served here—more food than a normal rest stop. However, this year there is nothing special. It’s just bananas, oranges, cheetos, chips, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, granola bars, blueberry protein bars, and fruit snacks. That’s plenty of food, but it’s the same food as was available at all the previous stops. Actually, the oranges are unique, I think. With the orange slices and cheetos, I am in need of a napkin. I look around and see none. I ask a worker about it and she finally finds a package after digging through several boxes of supplies. I was perfectly polite about this, but I was impatient inside. This rest stop was not operated by volunteers. Instead, it appeared to be operated by 20-year old kids working for Dick’s Sporting Goods. I am pretty sure they were getting paid. And yet, they didn’t seem to be working as hard as the volunteers at the other stops.  

Mile 43: We keep passing this couple on a tandem bike with a small dog in the front basket. It’s a great photo opportunity so I take my camera from my jersey pocket and loop the strap around my wrist. This takes some concentration to do, so I guess I slowed down enough for this couple to pass me on my left. I then had to speed up to try and pass them again with my camera ready. However, we are coming to an intersection with volunteer flaggers. The flaggers are indicating that we should be making a left turn at the intersection, but I am not paying attention to them. I have the tandem bike in my sights! So when the tandem bike mistakenly goes straight instead of left, I follow them without question. The pavement ends and we are on a dirt road. It is at that point when I realize we made a mistake. The tandem bike turns around, I turn around, I snap their picture, and then, embarrassingly, I take the correct route and try to catch up with Dan.

Mile 49: “I think I just got hit by a raindrop,” says Dan. Yes, it’s true. This will be our first ride in the rain during an MS150. It’s just sprinkles at this point. Dan and I talk about how this will affect our bike riding: we have to be more careful on curves, reduce speed, watch the road surface for slick spots, and stay closer to other cyclists so motorists have a better chance of seeing us.

Mile 52: It is raining harder now. We are soaked through. My cycling glasses are fogging up and huge droplets of water are obscuring my view.  Dan now stays a couple bike-lengths behind me so that water thrown up from my rear tire doesn’t squirt him in the face.

Mile 54: Rest stop at Thorton Industries. Fortunately, there are fewer cyclists at this rest stop than some of the others. We gather under the tent and get offered “butt cream” by one of the volunteers. If we weren’t cold, wet, and tired, I am sure I would have joked around more with her. I’m not entirely sure what butt cream is for, but that’s ok. What I do know is that I don’t want any. Dan checks the radar picture from his phone. A large band of heavy rain is just to our west. We had a decision to make. With just 10 miles to go, should we try to beat this storm or wait it out here? I want to go on. It seems inevitable that we will be riding in rain, even if we wait for the heaviest of the showers to pass on. I said, “let’s go now and take advantage of the light rain for as long as we can before the heavy rain starts.” Dan agrees and we go. And then it thunders overhead.

Mile 56: No thunder in a while, it is still raining but the sky is brightening. Dan and I seem to be alone on the road, and we are going fast. What happened to all the other cyclists? My feet are squishing around in wet cycling shoes. I can feel cold drops of water spraying my back from the rear tire. Cars pass us by on a somewhat busy road. I wonder what they must be thinking of us. Crazy, maybe. But in my mind, I am calling myself “bold.”

Mile 64: Finish at Conneaut Township Park, Ohio!

Dan and I ride straight to the truck that will take our bikes back to Zelienople. It is still raining, but the oranges and reds on the radar picture that we thought we would encounter must have passed on to our north. It has cooled to 62 degrees and I am shivering to the point where I have to breathe hard to fuel the muscle movements. We get our suitcases, find the men’s changing tent, and get into dry clothes as soon as we can. Then we head down the hill to the food tents and enjoy pizza, pulled pork, fried chicken, and ice cream. I almost forgot to get my finisher’s medal. It’s importance was fairly low compared to getting warm, dry, and fed.

We eventually get on the bus with our luggage and head back to Zelienople. When we get there, we see the woman who fell of her bike yesterday. She has two black and swollen eyes and her arm is in a sling. But at least she is going to be ok.

MS150: Escape to the Lake

Event: Bike MS
Date: June 8-9, 2013
Location: Bike ride from Harmony, Pennsylvania to Conneaut, Ohio.
Time: 9 hours over two days

Day #1

This was a fundraising ride for the National M.S. Society.  I received sponsorship from 15 people totaling $520. My friend Dan and I and more than a thousand other riders left Zelienople, Pa. and traveled to Meadville, Pa. on the first day (81 miles). We stayed overnight on the Allegheny College campus and then traveled to Conneaut, Ohio to complete the trip on the second day (another 64 miles). Total distance was 145 miles in just over 9 hours of riding over two days.

Me and Dan after lunch on Day 1

I had a great time and felt fine during the ride, but I must admit that since we did this same ride last year, the novelty of the event was not there; Dan and I knew we could accomplish this feat, and we knew what the ride was going to be like. It was probably the most exciting thing I did in all of 2012, but I really can’t say that for 2013 because the sense of newness and mystery was not as present. Nevertheless, it was a very enjoyable weekend and I am glad I did it!

This year’s ride did differ in a few ways from 2012. First, we started earlier each day and kept toward the front of the crowd. I think we were in the second wave on Saturday and the fourth wave on Sunday (groups of 150-200 riders are released at the starting line at 10-min intervals). The early start on Saturday meant there were fewer riders at rest stops and fewer on the road as we traveled. Since Dan and I maintained a faster pace this year compared to last year, we also arrived at Meadville earlier in the afternoon and had more time to enjoy the activities there. Here is a comparison of 2012 with 2013:

• 2012: Average pace was 14.4 mph on Day#1 and 15.5 mph on Day#2
• 2013: Average pace was 15.3 mph on Day#1 and 16.8 mph on Day#2

By the Miles, Day 1

Mile 2: It is blasted cold (60 degrees)! I should not have taken off my jacket and packed it.

Mile 8: Some of the cyclists have turned on their rear lights. It is mesmerizing to look at the flashing light patterns for too long. Also, some patterns of flashing are more eye-catching than others.

Mile 10: First water stop; Dan and I were feeling good and decided to skip it.

Mile 20: I decide to entertain us by yelling “yaaaaay” as we ride over any bridge and “toooot” as we ride under any bridge. I tried to maintain this the whole weekend, but I forgot sometimes. Dan and surrounding riders were probably glad I missed some bridges and underpasses.

Mile 22: First stop at Moraine State Park. We had just finished a 7-mile long hill. At the stop, Dan and I got chatting with one of the volunteers. She doesn’t really understand how the MS150 ride works, so we answer her questions. How strange it is to have done this before and know all the answers to her questions.

Mile 38: Second rest stop. Already? I was feeling great. I enjoyed the fruit cup snack at the rest stop.

Mile 42: Dan spots someone riding a yellow GMC bike. He rode the MS150 last year on that model so he has a certain nostalgia and perhaps empathy for someone using that bike. His new bike, a Scott, is a very sporty and attractive bike.

Mile 53: Lunch stop at Lakeview Middle School. It is 11:20am and we have been snacking at every rest stop so I don’t feel very hungry, but you know me; I ate well anyway. The grilled chicken sandwich was great. We ate indoors here, just like last year. Except this year we chose to eat indoors to keep warm. Last year we ate inside to stay in the shade.

Volunteers at every rest stop had great spirit. It made the ride extra fun.

Mile 67: Rest stop at a neighborhood park. This one was sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods and their staff was extremely kind and wanted to do anything for you to make you more comfortable. I’m half-way serious in saying that if I had asked for my own pepperoni pizza, or a Jacuzzi, or a private massage, they would have found a way to help me.

Mile 71: A water stop after a big hill. At least, it was supposed to be a big hill. I remember being challenged by it last year, but I was in better shape this time.

Mile 82: Finish line at Allegheny College.

 

After this first day of riding, we got our dorm room key, dropped off our bike in the gym, picked up our luggage, took a shower, and changed clothes. By this time it was 3:45pm and we walked over to the beer garden and bandstand. The beer wasn’t to our taste and neither was the band. There was no crowd of people to watch, either, so we just sat quietly and slept with our eyes open. We headed to dinner at 4:30pm and satisfied a hunger we didn’t know we had. We took an hour to walk around the Allegheny College campus, and then around 7:00pm we went back to the dorm room and put on swim suits. The campus pool was open and we had planned to go for a swim to loosen our muscles and get refreshed. There were a few other cyclists playing in the diving well, but we had the swimming lanes to ourselves and we swam 750 yards. Looking back on this swim, I think it was the highlight of my day. It felt good psychologically to know that 80 miles on a bicycle had not depleted my love of exercise nor my ability. Dan and I also kept the same swimming pace (thanks, Dan), and this was just like our behavior on the bike, since we were often side-by-side on the road. I hadn’t thought much of this at the time, but now it seems poetic that two good friends were so inseparable over the course of 80 miles on a bike and 750 yards in a pool. Poetic. Or something like that.

Bicycles stowed for the night at Allegheny College

 

Day #2

This is part 2 of 2 about a fundraising ride for the National M.S. Society.  Having already ridden 81 miles on June 8, my friend Dan and I and more than a thousand other riders began the next day at Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa., to travel to Conneaut, Ohio (another 64 miles). 

We arrived at the starting line at 7:10am and just missed the release of one wave of riders. This put us in the front row of the next wave, released around 7:20am. I loved being at the front. There were exactly seven people in front of me and we maintained a tight pace line for the first 8 miles. I closely drafted the rider in front of me until midway up a hill and at that point the lead riders left me behind, as I found I could not climb the hill as fast as them. I discovered that following other people was easier than setting my own pace, so I tried to find other cyclists to follow throughout the day. This worked pretty well, but I tended to pass a lot of people on the uphill segments so I usually had to pick out a new person to follow after every hill. Dan and I found it really fun to pass people. It’s not that we are super-competitive. It’s just having a bit of “traffic” to go around makes the ride more dynamic.

By the Miles, Day 2

Mile 0: At the starting line there were a couple riders with memorable adornments on their helmets. This provided some entertainment throughout the ride as Dan and I made fun of them. But honestly, we were making fun “with” them since these creative cyclists intended to stand out in a comical way.

Mile 2: Oh my goodness, it is colder this morning than yesterday. Good thing I kept my jacket on for this part of the ride.

Mile 14: First rest stop. I took off my jacket and stored it for the rest of the day in my jersey’s back pocket. I struck up a conversation with Sara from the Pittsburgh Triathlon Club. She invited me to do a full Ironman triathlon with her next year. I just smiled and nodded and did not want to tell her that a full Ironman was well beyond my ability…this year, next year, or ever.

Mile 27: Last of the big hills on the route. This one was long rather than particularly steep. I admit it was a challenge but my motivation to pass slower cyclists kept my brain occupied on that rather than my own muscle fatigue.

Mile 42: Lunch at Connie Lance Memorial Park was sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods. Once again, the staff at Dick’s was super-super-super polite and supportive. There was an emcee announcing what the lunch menu was, how far we had travelled, how far we had to go, and how good we were to be supporting charity. He got some facts wrong and he was overly dramatic, but it seemed heartfelt. He could have easily did a worse job and still gotten paid the same by Dick’s.

Mile 45: We heard the sickest rooster crow ever. What was wrong with that thing?!

Mile 54: Last rest stop of the trip. We probably didn’t need to stop. This time last year I was suffering from back pain due to being bent over on the bike for so long, but I was pain free today. Dan was doing well, too. Nevertheless, I wanted to be done.

Mile 64: And now we were done.

 

At the finish line we enjoyed another full meal with pizza, sandwiches, and ice cream. I found a paper plate and wrote on the back “for Maureen” and then posed with it so Dan could take my picture. I am fortunate enough to have had no family members or friends with multiple sclerosis, but some of my sponsors have been touched significantly by it. In particular, Jean W. has been very supportive of my rides these last two years and I wanted her to know I was thinking of her during my trip. Multiple sclerosis took the life of her sister Maureen. I’m glad to have done something helpful for those affected by the disease, now or in the future.

I ride because I like cycling. But if it can help someone else, all the better!

 

Escape to the Lake MS 150

Event: bicyle ride in support of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society
Date: June 9-10, 2012
Location: Zelienople, Pa to Conneaut, Oh
Time: 5hr:15min on Day 1 (14.4 mph pace) + 4hr: 9min on Day 2 (15.5 mph pace)

Overall, this was the best experience I've had so far in 2012. The event had 1300 participants and was very well organized. There was an extraordinary number of volunteers that staffed rest stops every 15 miles, controlled traffic at intersections, drove Support & Gear Vehicles, and cheered us on. I rode with a good friend of mine, and we mostly stayed together on the route. We became very comfortable riding side-by-side, and if we wanted to pass someone, we'd just read each other's body language and pass as a team. A third friend was frequently behind us, but we waited for him at the rest stops where we ate free snacks, filled up our water bottles, and re-applied sunscreen.

Day 1 consisted of a ride from Zelienople, Pa., to Meadville, Pa, a distance of 75.8 miles.

Miles 1-16 featured a lot of shade, which was mostly nice, but given that it was in the upper 50s, it was a little chilly! There were so many hills on this route, I don't remember them all. But I do remember the first Category 5 hill where some cyclists had dismounted and were walking up the hill. And it was a big hill. Still, I thought "if they are walking and I don't have to, this means I'm in good shape to finish this!" At the rest stop at Moraine State Park, Mike took advantage of the free bike maintenance tent and had some adjustments made.

Miles 16-33. There was a second Cat 5 hill, but I don't remember it. Our rest stop was at a church. It was hot already! (This church needs more trees in their parking lot!). Anyway, there were some volunteers with horns and bells that cheered for us as we entered the rest stop. Nice gesture. Dan and I then waited for Mike who pulled in with a flat front tire. Mike hadn't noticed that (I guess it was such a gradual leak...), so we spent some more time at the bike maintenance tent.

Miles 33-47. There was almost no flat land anywhere along the route, but if I had to choose what section was flattest, this would be it. Here, we were on un-traveled country roads, many small enough that they didn't even have yellow lines down the middle. Very enjoyable. At the end of this section we had lunch at a Elementary School. A lot of cyclists sat on the ground to eat their turkey, PBJ, or cheese sandwiches, but the school cafateria room was open for our use, so the three of us ate there. The medics were motherly and told us to hydrate and use sunscreen.

Miles 47-61. This leg was uneventful for me. The elevation profile shows we had a steep descent to the rest stop at a local park. The gossip was going, though. Word was that a steep hill was about to begin. In fact, it was so steep, that the next rest stop was perched at the top, in just 4 miles.

Miles 41-45. This was the third Cat 5 hill of the day. It wasn't terrible, though. The steepest section was very steep--maybe a 25% grade--but it was short and I never had to walk like a lot of folks were doing. The rest stop was outside at a small country church. They had run out of ice but still had water and Gatorade. I enjoyed watching barn swallows fly under the eaves of the church to tend to a nest. Cyclists sitting immediately below the nest were oblivious. That was probably fine with the bird parents.

Miles 65-75. Home stretch! Very hilly, and I was feeling tired at this point. But after going 65 miles, what's another 10? The first day's route ended at Allegheny College where Dan and I shared a dorm room. There were several things to do on campus: pick up your bag from the luggage truck, leave your bike in the campus gym secured for the night, have dinner, enjoy a band concert with beer garden, swim in the campus pool, and get a massage. Dan and I inteded to enjoy all these activities but we ran out of time and energy. We didn't get to the pool or even have a beer. At 9pm everyone was packing up and heading to their sleeping quarters. Some of the cyclists had brought camping tents and camped on the campus green. I'm glad to have had a bed to sleep in, but I didn't really sleep well. I was still too excited about my trip.

Day 2 distance = 64.1 miles
The second day of the MS 150 ride to support the National Multiple Sclerosis Society began at Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa., and continued to the shore of Lake Erie in Conneaut, Ohio. We awoke at 6am, took our bags back to the luggage truck, and were eating breakfast in the college dining hall by 7am. Dan and I had shared a dorm room but we wanted to meet Mike (who stayed at a hotel) for breakfast. The 7am meeting time was my idea, but it wasn't a very good one. Our event actually started at 7am (I thought it started at 7:30), so while we weren't the last cyclists to leave the campus, we were almost last. It wasn't a big deal; we were still cycling with a group of about 100 people!

Miles 1-14. Dan and I were feeling good and sped rather quickly through the leafy neighborhoods of Meadville. We encountered the first Cat 5 climb of the day at mile 6, and I don't remember it. That's a good thing, isn't it? The rest stop at mile 14 was at a volunteer ambulance service where we applied sunscreen. A woman about our age came over and asked to use some of our (Dan's) sunscreen. Dan said "sure," and this started a bit of conversation that started up again at later rest stops. That's one thing that was so neat about this experience--everyone was friendly and supportive.

Miles 14-27. This section was really rolling. Somewhat steep hills were followed by equally steep descents, and so on. Was this the section where a man with bagpipes stood on the roadside, playing for cyclists as we rode by? I forget exactly where that was, but he deserves mention. There was a Boy Scout Troop in charge of refreshments at the rest stop (picnic shelter in a local park), and they walked around asking if you needed anything. I kind of hated to turn them down, but I was still able-bodied enough to refill my own water bottle and grab a delicious slice of cinnamon raisin bread. Mmmmmmm! Mike was waiting in line at the restroom and he told Dan and I to go on without him. We agreed to leave him but then decided it would be fun to secretly hang back, give him a head start, and then pass him on the road. And that's what we did. I think Mike appreciated the fact that we didn't actually leave him, even though we said we would.

Miles 27-42. This section featured the fifth and last Cat 5 climb of the trek. Then after the climb, the elevation map shows we decended quite a bit. However, I didn't notice the decents because I was starting to get a sore back. And once you feel pain, you get tired (or maybe it works the other way around). Anyway, Dan kept going strong and so I pushed forward, too. Lunch was provided at the next rest stop (another local park), so it was good to sit at a picnic table and eat a lot of food. I took some Tylenol, too.

Miles 42-54. The route was in open farmland and we steadily climbed some more, but the slope was very mild. My back was better and since there was very little traffic, Dan and I rode side-by-side for almost all of this section.

Miles 54-64. The last stretch! I was back to feeling sore at this point, but what's another 10 miles after doing so many already? Despite any back pain I was feeling, I think I might have had the most fun in this last section because after we entered Ohio and got closer to the finishline, local residents started to be very vocal in their support for us. People in cars coming the opposite direction would wave or give us a thumbs-up sign. People put signs in their yard, welcoming us to Conneaut. Folks on porches would wave and cheer. In the neighborhoods close to the lake, there were actually some folks lining the streets watching us ride by. Wow! This wasn't the Tour de France but it sure felt like it.

Lake Erie was at the finish line, along with pork barbecue sandwiches, ice cream, and soda/pop. Music played, and an announcer would occasionally read the list of corporate sponsors. After the meal, Dan and Mike and I loaded our bikes onto a tractor trailer truck, picked up our luggage, changed into street clothes, and boarded a charter bus heading back to Zelienople, Pa.

Two-day total = 140 miles. Elevation gain = 3,638 feet.