Today I rode my first 50-miler. It was not as big of a deal as I thought it would be (in terms of physical accomplishments/difficulty), frankly, as it was full of starts and stops. I took part in a "fun ride" through L.A. -- 38 miles through downtown and Griffith Park. Now, mind you, some of it was REALLY fun, but the bulk of it was like being in rush hour traffic. We were rubber to rubber with a 10-MPH limit for a good portion of the ride. There was a "breakout" area 20 miles in and we really got to rip around Burbank and Griffith park (we were clocked at over 40MPH - fastest I've ever gone (so far as I know
)). There were three times, however, when we just flat stopped and waited for the 2,000+ riders to regroup.
At any rate, the total mileage was over 50 (as I rode to the starting line from my apartment in Mar Vista in the morning) and for that -- I'm happy. I don't think the distance is going to be the difficulty of the trip. It's really exciting to see all the places I see travelling along. New experiences every day. The important thing will be stretching, getting my naps in and getting to bed early so I'm ready for the next day. Being fully involved and present is the key -- I'll be writing more on that I know...
Annamaria and I saw a take-off on "Super Size Me" the other day called "Downsize Me". The main guy was taking on some of Morgan's claims as being sensationalized. It was interesting (though I still think "Super Size Me" was a great film) and hopefully we'll get to interview Chazz Weaver (from "Downsize Me") for our project.
We went to the bike Expo after the fun (traffic) ride and pitched our story to several product-makers. We got some good leads -- some people are definitely interested. I don't think there's any big money out there -- but possibly some products and interviews (which would be fun).
Alright -- shower and beddy bye.
April 25, 2005
Dehydration is no joke, apparently. I have to get another bottle of water for the bike as I simply haven't been drinking enough H2O. Today I had a pain in my lower back for the later parts of my ride. I thought it might be a muscle strain at first. But after a bit, I knew the pain was coming from a deeper place in my body -- my kidneys.
My dad has had an episode with kidney stones and apparently there's evidence that genetics may play a role in having them. I flushed with water, cranberry and OJ all day today and I feel better. I'm going to ride a shorter ride tomorrow -- see how it feels. Today was 45 miles after the 50 yesterday -- the most I've done back to back. I don't think the distance was a problem, but yesterday I really didn't drink enough water for the nearly six hours I was on the bike. I just didn't want to stop as I was frustrated with the pace to begin with.
Sigh -- my ego must take a backseat to my kidneys.
Today's ride went to about 28000 Pacific Coast Highway -- about 10 miles shy of where I want to get within the next couple of weeks: Leo Carillo State Beach Park.
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