Hello, My Fantastic Supporters!

The ride was this weekend. Thanks for putting up with me over the last several months. I've been obsessed with the bike, the ride, the gear...it was worth it for me. We trained hard for this ride. It was thrilling!

It was really cold. This is how I started the day:

5:am I was wearing arm warmers, knee warmers, bike shorts, running pants, long sleeve t, short sleeved t, jersey, jacket, socks and saran wrapped feet (to keep the h2o out). Oh, and a shower cap on my helmet...which was on top of ear warmers, a scarf, and a small cap. Yep..so then I added my rubber gloves, my bike gloves, and a pair of flannel gloves. It was still cold.

We were told there may be a weather delay, but at about 6 they said we could roll and we were out the door. That elevation in Tahoe is no joke. The ride wasn't technically complicated. The weather and altitude was just a killer! At the meeting the prior night, the lead coach said it's possible the 100 mile ride may turn into a ride around the lake, which is just over 72 miles. That's pretty much what happened.

The sky opened for most the day. It was pouring! At mile 27, or somewhere around there, was our first sag stop. We dropped our bikes and I went straight for the potatoes and hot chocolate shots. Yes, shots of hot chocolate in June in Tahoe. BRRRR. Then I went over and started wringing out my socks. The saran wrap didn't work as well as I had hoped. I should have started with bags over my socks. There were several of us wringing socks wondering how to go on. I decided- screw the socks. I put trash bags over my feet, tucked them in the pant legs and was ready to beat feet. My temperature was dropping fast! At that point, 2 people from my team called in and had the very busy sag group take them back to the hotel.

Soon after, the sun was shining bright for a good 10 minutes. It was pretty and I had a glimpse of what AMBR was supposed to be like (except for the cold factor). The rest of the time, it was pretty ugly. We skipped a couple of sags, including lunch. I managed to have a big grin on my face part of the time and I had some fun on some of the downhills . I tend to like the speed so I just finally let go on the last one. It was wet and slick, but what the hell. You have to take advantage of a downhill. I hit about 40/hr, so that was fun.

My group had a multitude of issues, a flat, 3 sagged in (including my coach), the rest of us split up. They were behind me somewhere. I finished with one team member. He and I decided that no matter what else, we would be finishing together. It was just too cold to wait for anyone else and after all this training, we didn't want to finish alone. So, we did it. We made it back at 1:30pm, to a sunny blue sky. There was a sign someone was holding saying “You're doing this for my mom.” Well, that was enough to make all the day worth it. It took away the feeling that I was gypped nearly 30 miles of my goal. TNT raised millions of dollars for research from those of us on this ride. There were riders from all over the country from TNT...as far as NY, IN was there, southern states.

It was rotten to not get to go the full 100 miles. The decision to go 72 was a group vote ( I did vote for the 100), and it was probably the right one. When I got back to the hotel, I stripped and found I was soaked through and through. I was red & probably had been all day. Between sweat, rain, hail, cold, it was the smart thing to do.

I'm still dehydrated. My body feels good. I'm still ready to conquer a 100 miler. We will probably regroup as a team and do that this summer. Either way, this was one of the best experiences of my life.

Included here are some final pics from the day. I'll be updating and posting team pics that friends took. I didn't take my camera and when I did finally dig my Iphone out of my bag, it was deep in about an inch of water in my bike bag. Yeah. Fun day indeed! x-Gretchen

PS- I haven't met my fundraising goal. Please let me know if you know of anyone I can reach out to or forward my link to them. Meeting, riding, and listening to our Honorees really opened my heart and mind quite a bit. I'd love to meet my goal and help out these and others through the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Thank you again! -G

Doug and I at the finish, snow on the way back from Tahoe, me in front of a giant bike. At least I didn't have to ride in the snow!

Hi, my friends.

So, this is the weekend we have been working for the last several months. Who knew I would go from a tennis shoe wearing, mountain bike riding, 10 mile max person to a padded pants wearing, shoe clipping, downhill loving road rider? Sure as hell not me!

Thank you so much for your support and your well wishes for this ride. The weather is going to be just terrible, per every weather man I can find. Believe me, I'm looking for a good forcast.

I have spent some good money in the last few days to try to prepare for the cold. Part of me says screw this weather. Then the other part of me remembers I haven't been in weather below about 35 in several years. Rain, cold, hell...I'm cold right now on my couch with walls surrounding me. So, this should be fun! I have a great group I'm riding with that really pushes me to the max. I've a coach who has faith in us. And I have some covers for my shoes so my feet don't freeze. I guest I'm ready.

I'll be the one looking like a rainbow. Red bike, yellow jacket, green/ purple jersey, probably blue lips and red cheeks. :)

Cheers! X-me

Hello, kind readers!

I have surged past my last record of 65 miles and went 80 miles yesterday! The ride had it's moments, for sure! There were some hella climbs that hella wore me out. I got through it though, with the rest of my team!

The first 12 miles went pretty fast. Everything else is a bit of a blur. SAG was awesome. Without the water stop and some chow, I would have bonked for sure. I've come to love pb&j, potatoes, and gu!

There was a 5 mile climb on this ride and I hear we climbed nearly 4k feet. That's really a lot of climbing. The first mile of the 5 mile climb was exhausting. The last 4 were NOT a piece of cake, but not quite as terrible. My new coach told me some fairly dirty jokes to get me through the climb. I would be happy to retell them, but I think you all know I can't tell a joke to save my life.

The downhill was a TON OF FUN. I have come to love going downhill. I never thought that would be the case. It was freezing going down hill. But, it was fast. I hit a new top speed of 40mph. I had a super tight curve that taught me the importance of the outside leg down rule!

So, anyway...just another 80 mile ride. 3 weeks until the 100. How am I today, you ask? Well, a little sore. Even worse for the ware because I did Bay to Breakers today, a run/walk race in SF. It's my 5th year and Doug and I have done this each year together. We tried to beat our 1:29:29 time, but with my legs out of sort, we got 1:33:39. Dang you biking legs!

So after a hot bath, a burger, some danishes, and some wine...I'm starting to recoup. I'm a little affraid to stand up now and my knee caps feel like I need them replaced! I'm thinking that will go away by Wed so I can start prepping for my 80 mile ride for next Sat.

Thanks for all your support and type soon.

x-Gretchen

Hi, just a quick post. First, last Sat ride kicked my ass. Prior to that, I thought rides kicked my ass. Nope...this last one did. Only like 65 miles, but some climbing! oy.

I changed groups, which is kinda a new challenge and experience. I have new clips, yea! Much easier to get in and out of.

In less than 2 days I have an 80 mile ride. It's local and I don't roll until 8:15, which will be awesome because I can sleep in!

I'm out of words. Maybe because I'm still tired from Sat. Maybe because I'm pre-tired for next Sat!

Either way, thanks for your support! More upbeat and humorous postings to come!

X-Gretchen

I am now a habitual biker. Who knew it would only take a couple months to get this way. Did a 60 mile ride last Sat with the team. Went to a party that night and someone asked, "aren't you the one that hates biking?" Um...I was last summer. People change!

Started riding to work 1 week ago. It takes about 1.25 hours to ride, between 25min-1+ hours to drive depending on traffic and how many schools are in session. It's a quiet time on the bike. I've only done this 2x, but I'm working out a system still.

That 60 mile team ride was my best yet. I've been encouraged to bump to another group because I keep getting a little faster. I think starting on a mountain bike really helped me when I finally got the road bike. So, that may be in the stars. This ride was so challenging to me that I thought I was going to break down. The hills kicked my ass. Then I kicked theirs! I swear, my only goal was to not walk my bike up the hill. I stopped, started, stopped, cussed, started, said some terrible things to the road and about the road's mama, and eventually made it to the top! I was bruised from my pedals, hot from the sun, and had a grin about the size of Kentucky. I loved it. I loved going down the hills and working the curves and laying off the breaks as much as I could and just feeling the air. It is amazing that a 25lb bike can hold up this body.

The people were awesome. It's nice to be trucking up the climb and getting total strangers, on the team and just other bikers, to say positive words to help you along the way.

Here is a pic my teamie took after the ride. See how proud we were?! I just didn't want that little moment to end. See ya next time! X= Gretchen