I learned an important lesson this week: when you aren't fueling your body you can easily bonk even if you are doing something that normally would be easy... I managed to ride a handfull of 100+ mile rides, run a marathon, and no bonking. I go out on my first ride of 2011 and bike 30 miles, and after not eating much for lunch and going for a ride at 5:30 and not eating before the ride nor on the ride, I completely bonked and was barely able to get to the finish. Lesson learned, you can't neglect your body!
Then two days later I did the Bike to Build a 100k bike ride raising money for the local Habitat for Humanity in Cleveland TN. This year was the 2nd annual and there were quite a few cyclists that showed up. Even though there aren't any bike lanes in the city, and it isn't generally very friendly to cyclists, there were a lot of really strong riders out there. Compared to the rides that I have done in Texas, I would say that the average rider here is much stronger. That being said though I think that's unfortunate because I presume that means that the average person that isn't a cycling fanatic, doesn't feel comfortable biking in this area. And that could be due to the community, safety of roads, the big hills, or a number of other things, but that's another conversation.
This was by far the most scenic organized bike ride that I have ever done. Wonderful rolling hills, with pine trees on the side of the road, horses, cows, dogs (grrrrr), challenging climbs, and fast descents with winding curves. Reminded me a bit of riding in the foothills of the Swiss alps!
Great ride, very friendly people, well organized and made possible by lots of volunteers and great fundraising. I would look to this ride getting bigger over the years as more people hear about it and the number of cyclists in the area increases.
One final note, here is a picture of my new bike. It's a Surly Travler's Check frame so I can pack it up in a suitcase when I travel, with 105 groupo, cantilever brakes allowing it to be used as a cyclo-cross bike, and the frame has mounts so I can use this bike as a touring bike as well. I've coined this bike my "sleeper" bike since I was able to stay up front of the ride and my bike looks like a clunker among all the flashy colored carbon frames. But looks can be deceiving!
