On July 20th I started the Ride Across INdiana (RAIN) for the third time, knowing it would be my last. I was either going to finish or decide that the ride was just too stupid for words.
I started a few minutes behind the group because I found a porta potty and took advantage while making my way to the start and then it took a minute to realize mostly everyone had gone already (there were people later than me). It wasn't bad to start there because it minimized some of the ridiculousness in the first few miles. It was still crowded enough that it was slow.
At mile 25 I was stung by something, but it got caught in my arm sleeve and I got it off. Stopped to check and see if I was going to be ok. Looked like it barely punctured the skin so I kept going, but I grabbed my EpiPen at the first SAG (support and gear). I had forgotten to grab it before the start.
I was feeling better at Plainfield (62 miles) than I ever had. Same at the official lunch stop (I had Subway in Plainfield for timing and something I wanted to eat). After the lunch stop it was pretty lonely for some big stretches. It usually does, but it seemed it was more noticeable this year...maybe because a lot of people called it a day by the time we were there (92 miles) because of the heat. This was the hottest RAIN in memory. It had started at 75 degrees with a dew point of 73 and then it got hot...it would get up to 97 with a heat index of 115 that day.
There is not supposed to be PSV (personal support vehicle) access at the Greenfield SAG so D was not going to see me until Dunreith. Greenfield was around mile 113. They were out of ice (ice was a new addition to the SAGs from the last time I rode), which proved to be a bad thing. Somewhere between Greenfield and Dunreith I knew I needed a shade break. There is basically no shade along US 40 and the little available is on private property. It took forever to find any and it was just a wide part of 40 with a rail and some trees. I stopped. After a while someone stopped to ask if I was ok. It was then that I slid off sitting on the rail and was on the ground and dizzy and couldn't see. She stayed with me for probably 20+ minutes and got bottles off my bike and waited until I was coherent and ready to ride again. I was really just overheated. I took a break in Dunreith and drank an entire bottle of ice water and took off with bottles full of ice in whatever I was drinking. When I left I had 4 hours to finish 30 miles so I felt pretty good about it.
I did stop for shade again in Cambridge City. I was feeling fine, but needed to be out of the direct sun before the final hills. Cambridge City has a public gazebo on their main street (which is US 40) that was half in shade.
The hills at the end were more long grades except a very short, but not really bad totally overexaggerated one right at the finish.
When I rolled through the finish line the watch was at 158.9 miles because i had forgotten to restart for a little bit twice so I rolled through campus until the watch said 160. I didn't wait for the split so I guess technically it was 159.98 miles. Whatever.
I had a little bit of sunburn (but not terrible) and a small welt from the sting, also NBD. My neck and shoulders will forgive me eventually.
And now I am never doing it again. I have the keychain. Not I "don't have to" but I'm not. It's dumb. I proved I could do it. It was hotter than Hell's front porch. Moving on.
On July 28 I am doing the Olympic distance at Tri Indy and then on August 3 the You Can Call Me Al 5K that is also the Personal Best Training World Championship race.
I started a few minutes behind the group because I found a porta potty and took advantage while making my way to the start and then it took a minute to realize mostly everyone had gone already (there were people later than me). It wasn't bad to start there because it minimized some of the ridiculousness in the first few miles. It was still crowded enough that it was slow.
At mile 25 I was stung by something, but it got caught in my arm sleeve and I got it off. Stopped to check and see if I was going to be ok. Looked like it barely punctured the skin so I kept going, but I grabbed my EpiPen at the first SAG (support and gear). I had forgotten to grab it before the start.
I was feeling better at Plainfield (62 miles) than I ever had. Same at the official lunch stop (I had Subway in Plainfield for timing and something I wanted to eat). After the lunch stop it was pretty lonely for some big stretches. It usually does, but it seemed it was more noticeable this year...maybe because a lot of people called it a day by the time we were there (92 miles) because of the heat. This was the hottest RAIN in memory. It had started at 75 degrees with a dew point of 73 and then it got hot...it would get up to 97 with a heat index of 115 that day.
There is not supposed to be PSV (personal support vehicle) access at the Greenfield SAG so D was not going to see me until Dunreith. Greenfield was around mile 113. They were out of ice (ice was a new addition to the SAGs from the last time I rode), which proved to be a bad thing. Somewhere between Greenfield and Dunreith I knew I needed a shade break. There is basically no shade along US 40 and the little available is on private property. It took forever to find any and it was just a wide part of 40 with a rail and some trees. I stopped. After a while someone stopped to ask if I was ok. It was then that I slid off sitting on the rail and was on the ground and dizzy and couldn't see. She stayed with me for probably 20+ minutes and got bottles off my bike and waited until I was coherent and ready to ride again. I was really just overheated. I took a break in Dunreith and drank an entire bottle of ice water and took off with bottles full of ice in whatever I was drinking. When I left I had 4 hours to finish 30 miles so I felt pretty good about it.
I did stop for shade again in Cambridge City. I was feeling fine, but needed to be out of the direct sun before the final hills. Cambridge City has a public gazebo on their main street (which is US 40) that was half in shade.
The hills at the end were more long grades except a very short, but not really bad totally overexaggerated one right at the finish.
When I rolled through the finish line the watch was at 158.9 miles because i had forgotten to restart for a little bit twice so I rolled through campus until the watch said 160. I didn't wait for the split so I guess technically it was 159.98 miles. Whatever.
I had a little bit of sunburn (but not terrible) and a small welt from the sting, also NBD. My neck and shoulders will forgive me eventually.
And now I am never doing it again. I have the keychain. Not I "don't have to" but I'm not. It's dumb. I proved I could do it. It was hotter than Hell's front porch. Moving on.
On July 28 I am doing the Olympic distance at Tri Indy and then on August 3 the You Can Call Me Al 5K that is also the Personal Best Training World Championship race.
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