Sat, 06/27/09: 15.67 miles - 25K worthy! We're ready! Daughter & I are participating in a 25K biking event in a couple weeks. 25 kilometer = 15.534 mile. Bring it! The dangling "carrot" for tonight's training ride was ice cream @ the 1/2 way point. The "carrot" in July will be the intrinsic triumph of completing an organized event. People who participate in these kinds of healthy events are good, healthy people. I'm looking forward to meeting some new people.


To get to the ice cream place, which BTW, is where the "good stuff" is if you're ever in this neck of the woods, we encountered many trials. Motorized vehicles were very kind to us; drivers generously shared the roads with us. When I ran, it was common to be literally "run off the road" by unhealthy looking and old people. I don't mean to discriminate, but there certainly was a theme among those who generally drove toward me when I was off the trail.


One trial, which repeated itself was the bugs - the blood sucking kind. Apparently there are unmarked crossways for swarms of mosquitos. You know, if that many ducks typically crossed the highway at about the same place, there'd be a warning sign. Not so for mosquitos. We must have interrupted a few dozen crossing paths of those hungry pests.




One of the busy roads in our area is being replaced by new everything, I guess. Not being a road design engineer, I have little idea what is being done. Except that, this reconstruction makes the otherwise busy & dangerous road perfect for triking/biking. Mostly, we had the road to ourselves. At one intersection, I discovered that my trike is not an ATV. I came to a quick & sudden stop in the sand. So, I had to push (as did my Daughter w/ her bike) the trike through the sand. All that sand behind my trike is immense. It's like The Dunes on the OBX.




About one mile past the dunes, we made it to Charley's. Daughter & I shared a hot fudge & caramel sundae. I don't care for ice cream and more importantly, it doesn't care for me, however Charley's ice cream doesn't bother me. Granted, I don't tempt fate (by eating too much); it was good. The portions are quite generous so we knew to share something since we had the other 1/2 of the trip to return home.

The bright sunshine was beginning to dim as we left Charley's. I felt something cool & moist hit my face and wondered if a bird had flown over me. And then it happened again. After consulting w/ Daughter, we determined we were gonna get rained on. Yep, but not too bad. It was great practice JIC it rains during the bike event day. Honestly, I'm not sure I really care to trike in the rain. Running in the rain was wonderful! It felt refreshing. And I had that competitive spirit which refused to succumb to moisture in the air on race day. I just don't feel competitive (at this moment anyway) re: this biking event. I want to enjoy the experience. Take my time. Pace w/ my Daughter. Enjoy conversation ("I wish I'd thought to wear something like that." "What do you want for dinner tonight?" "Did you see that?") Now, after the event I may declare that the bug bit me and I went all out for glory. It will be glory regardless. Sunday, July 12th, 8 am is event day. It's not a race, so far as I know. I've never even attended a biking event before so I have no idea what to expect. I sure hope they have t-shirts. One of the organizers emailed me today and I replied w/ an inquiry re: t-shirts. I ran for the t-shirt & FOOD! There's gotta be a "trophy" to take home from this biking event.

Well, there are probably just a few States where people post a sign year round advertising . . . . .

It just doesn't look right w/ green grass underneath it! Unemployment is ultra high in MI; I believe our County is in top position in the State. Well, if this person is one of the unemployed, I can see why they have no work right now! Or s/he could be an optimist. Call 'em up and see if they'd come move snow for you this coming week :-) Oh, the places my brain goes. I need to shut it down for the night and let it rest.

I think the concentrated cherry juice is helping my joints immensely. I feel no pain or stiffness tonight. I'll have to see if tomorrow brings complaints after the longest trike, to date. What a great night! Thanks, Daughter, for joining me in this venture. I'm sorry your butt & legs hurt tonight. Wanna drink some concentrated cherry juice? Well, it won't help your butt. Not sure what to do for that. Suggestions anyone??

Blessings Abound!

~A~