MS Bike Tour

Well, this weekend was an eventful one for me, as I successfully completed the MS Society's 'Biking to the Viking', which consists of a 2 Day trip, from Stonewall to Gimli and then return. As for my training regimen, I have to admit I was a bit more lax than I expected to be, having not gone for more than ~25 km in one trip before August. I did though ramp it up, and on Wednesday I went out for a hellish 75 km ride where the wind killed me and I noted the importance of food & liquid. I hit the wall, and was worried about the weekend

Cara saw me off from Stonewall early that day (8:20) in rain. I rolled into Gimli (which I had never visited before) at 11:40, 82.2 km in 3:20, 3:07 of ride time, with two rest breaks on route (they had 6 total) for an average speed of 26.5 km/hr. I was happy with my pace, but if I do it next year I hope to do it in less than that in the same conditions, especially because I was getting stronger at the end and started very slow. There was little wind & the day warmed up nicely. I sat around until 1:15 for the rest of the team to show up and then we went off to Colleen's (Phil's sister) cottage 20 minutes North. We cleaned up and then went to Gimli for dinner which consisted of pork & beef roast along with a social organized by the MS Society's people. We left early to go to sleep as we had to be off around 8:00 the next morning.

The next day was the day I was really worried about, as I figured I would be sore (and I was a bit). We started a few minutes late (8:10), and I went out and started passing people like crazy. In the end I took 2 stops (at one stop the had Sport Jelly Bellies which tasted like Gatorade - Crazy!), and did the 82.6 km's in 3:30, 3:17 (25.0 km/hr) of ride time which I was ecstatic with. There was a touch of a breeze in our faces, but it was the slight uphills that slowed me. Never once did I truly entertain the thought of dropping out, although I did use the cell en route to call Cara to confirm she wasn't in labour! In the end it was a positive experience, which I may just do again. Of course when I got home I collapsed for a 2 hour nap...

I would like to thank everyone who supported me. Initially I hoped to make the $250 in donations I needed to ride (above the $35 registration fee) without me throwing in all of it. After going around work, I had amassed more than that and realized that $1000 was within my grasp which qualified me for prizes donated by sponsors and seemed like a heady goal. In the end I got $1550!! THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH. It means a lot to me as I would never have done this 'For Fun' but because my best friend who was a cyclist can't do this anymore because of MS.

As for the pics, I have two from the start & end taken by Cara. Notice the spiffy jersey I received for raising over $1000 donated by Sugoi.


Me & My Dog waiting to go amongst the craziness of Stonewall's Quarry Park


More of us getting ready!


This picture was taken as I was rolling toward the finish line (Cara made me slow down as the camera took a few seconds to get ready).


In front of the Finish line after checking in.