Lots of others have spoken eloquently about why the miles and the suffering. I can only say, "ditto." I love riding bicycles, and the more time I spend on a bicycle, the happier I am. Sure, there are points where you get tired and sore, so you rest for a bit and recover. It's amazing to me how your body can be screaming "QUIT" at you and, an hour later, feel perfectly fine. Normally I love riding at night, but I suffered miserably on the 600K this year between 8pm and about 8am. For the last 50k of the ride, though, I felt great.
Often, when people who find I'm a cyclist, they ask, "Have you done RAGBRAI?" or "Have you done the Door County Century?" My standard answer is that I don't need an excuse to go for a long ride, and spending a week of nights in gyms with thousands of people and their sweaty lycra really doesn't appeal to me. I've been doing brevets to give me goals, like finishing a SR series this year, but I'm really happiest when I just do a ride because I want to do it. My first 600k was a one-way to a college reunion, and riding through the night was fantastic. If the weather had turned out crappy, I'd have driven. Not really committed or epic of me, but I prefer to enjoy the ride as much as possible. I have endless regard for those who completed the 2007 PBP (on a fixie!), but that's what makes me leery of signing up for an event like that. I know I'd have a great sense of accomplishment, but that's a lot of time, effort, and money to spend on being cold and wet for a few days straight. This year's goal is R12. The challenge is going to be getting a couple of 200K routes approved as permanents. Oh, and getting out there in January and February. Of course, I could also head somewhere warm and dry once a month... Ted Durant Milwaukee, WI USA -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/rbw-owners-bunch/-/_CZ1JZM5xO0J. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
