So here I am a year later having finished yet another ALC event and once again it was nothing short of AMAZING. I came back stronger, more experienced, and better equipped but to answer the question "was it easier?" quite honestly there is nothing easy about spending hours on end in the saddle and riding 545 miles. The reality is no matter how prepared you are there is always room for uncertainty, who knew we would have the most amazing weather on day 1 and then be fighting a storm on day 2, have the best ride on day 3 into Paso, head winds on day 4, a hot and sweaty day 5, a super fast descent on day 6 and painful butt sores on day 7. Phew... what a week! But riding into the finish line with people cheering and expressing their appreciation, getting off the bike with a sense of accomplishment and gratitude to give back in this way makes every tear, sweat, and "f*&$ this sux" WORTH IT!
So what does 7 days, 36 hours in the saddle, 21,000 feet of climbing, 545 miles and 19,700 calories look like? Pictures say 1,000 words so here's a recap of my week on the ride.
Day 0: 0 miles, lots of nerves and preparations
Since I wasn't the new kid on the block anymore I figured the nerves would remain silent and the packing would be a breeze. WRONG! The safety speech stuck with me this year especially the part about drink water and pee often (do you need to pee? i do!) After spending a 4 hours at the Cow Palace taking care of pre ride errands I found myself at home standing about a ginormous travel bag (that was empty) and feeling my nerves vibrate beneath my skin. Holy Crap, I'm heading out on the road in 10 hours! I managed to over pack and under sleep, just what the body needs for successful day 1, right? Luckily I had my new helmet and shades to keep me excited :)
Day 1: 87 miles from San Francisco to Santa Cruz
I couldn't help but compare each day on the ride to last year (my only other experience). The whole season had been different, less people, and less energy. Maybe starting my ALC career on their 10t anniversary ride gave me a skewed perspective. Nonetheless, almost 2200 riders filled the cow palace on Sunday June 3rd wearing spandex and helmets and ready to ride. We hit the road crawling as 2200 riders tried to make their way out of the cow palace and through the busy streets of SF over a few hills and finally into open lands. I quickly lost my riding buddies after breaking the cardinal rule (never stop at rest stop 1! it's too crowded) but I had to pee (this became a common theme for the week). I was losing momentum fast, must have been the lack of sleep and lack of coffee. My parents were planning to meet me at the top of 92 which got me through the first big climb only to get to the top to NOT see my parents :( They thought it was a different stop, following that phone call I recieved a text from my #1 riding buddy that he broke his bike WTF and the tears started rolling down my cheek. It finally hit home, I'm on the ride. I took a deep breath and carried on to rest stop 2, got me some bananas and water and a phone call from my parents they were at the rest stop! A couple of hugs and strawberries later I was re energized. The broken bike was fixed and we were off on the road to San Gregorian beach for lunch. Last year it was cold and gloomy here, this year the sun was shining and the ocean majestic, I didn't want to leave! My friend, Jenny and her pup met me there for another boost plus a caffeine drop...the power of love and friendship is undoubtedly apparent when you are physically exhausted, I'm lucky to have had some awesome support. 40 miles later I was in Santa Cruz picking up my bag and making my way to the hotel. YUP HOTEL! Okay so my plan was to half princess (stay in hotels) and half camp. So what had happened was... yah I'll save the camp for day 2.
Day 2: 109 miles from Santa Cruz to King City
The longest day on the ride which means the earliest start on the ride. Last year I was stuck in Santa Cruz for 2 hours due to car and bike traffic. This year I passed on eating breakfast and lined up with the other smart people at 5:45 am. I couldn't help take a photo of all the bikes parked in peace, the calm before the storm. Little did I know the truth of this statement. We were on the road at 6:15am, 10 miles out and escaping all signs of traffic, we stopped for breakfast and coffee - tripple shot Americano please! I am still trying to ween myself off of this. Within 20 miles the clouds grew greyer and the roads wet, slight chance of rain was a reality. We rode faster to get in front of the storm, a little challenging when crosswinds are blowing you all over the road. When the coast was clear I figured a quick stop for fried artichokes couldn't hurt... umm.... yah it could. The storm we worked so hard to escape was on our tail again. It was the worst nature game EVER... Race against the storm! By the time we reached lunch it was cold which meant frozen muscles, so within 5 minutes we were back on the bike riding. It was by far the hardest most painful riding day! Hours later I rolled into the bright and sunny King City camp only to find 50 some bikes in parking, turns out the route was shut at lunch and only 800 some riders completed the day. Do I take that as oooo... glad I finished or Oh shit I could have died out there! Either way the day was done, a sports med treatment was in need and then a hot shower at the hotel.... see what had happened was.... I'll camp on day 3.
Day 3: 66 miles from King City to Central Wine Country... I mean Paso Robles
Ahhhh.... a breath fresh air after yesterday's crazy ride. Today was short, sweet, and had two appealing rewards at the end- Gelato and Wine! Quadbuster did exactly that bust my quads but the descent made up for it a fun free falling 43 mph down hill rush! With an avg speed of about 17mph I enjoyed a yummy Bradley (veggie) burger and was in camp after 3.5 hours of riding. Gelato never tasted so good! Afterwards I rolled out, showered and pitched my tent (yup, today was camp day!) but first some play time in Paso with a delicious glass of wine and yummy food! So how was my first night in camp, well what happened was... I got back to camp took down my pitched tent and headed to the hotel. Finally I get it, this is NOT a camping trip it's a bike ride and I am officially a Princess.... I will NOT camp on day 4.
Day 4: 98 miles from Paso Robles to Santa Maria
Back to the grind with another long ride, this one had two hill climbs (evil twins) bringing us to the halfway to LA mark. It feels fast but there's still half a ride to go! Slow and steady wins the race. The descent from the evil twins is breathtaking especially for a novice like me who recently embraced the "descent". Once again we find ourselves along the coast with views through San Luis Obispo, Cayucos and Morro Bay where we stopped for a quick bite and of course a triple americano to get me through the day. Red dress day tomorrow!
Short movie break, enjoy!
Day 5: 52 miles from Santa Maria to Lompoc
Another short and relatively easy day and unlike last year this year graced with beautiful weather making red dress day even more fun... anything goes as long as its red! The energy of the ride is heightened today with fun funky costumes, and the visual expression of unity between the riders and the cause. Together as a red ribbon we climb up yet another hill and make our way to Lompoc. The day is short and sweet bringing us into town around 2pm and leaving enough time to relax and enjoy the evening, too bad there is NOTHING in Lompoc. Dinner was mediocre but the company was great.
Tomorrow is day 6 and the end is nearing.
Day 6: 78 miles from Lompoc to Ventura
I was hoping for this day to be less emotional and challenging than last year but no such luck. Its the bittersweet feeling of the end approaching that heightens today add in there fatigue and mental exhaustion and you'll understand why a "breakdown" is warranted. Today was all about sticking with other riders to get through the head winds and take advantage of flat lands. We rode 40+ miles straight skipping the lunch stop to get to the infamous fish taco restaurant, and once there it was well worth it. A few miles later we coasted through Santa Barbara and into "Paradise Pit" an ice cream extravaganza put on by the locals of Santa Barbara (lots of love and support from them), an ice cream scoop or two later and its back on the bike and into Ventura. The night closes with a candlelight beach vigil in memory of those lost to HIV/AIDS, thoughts and prayers from over 2200 people creates a powerful moment. Time to sleep, only one more day left.
Day 7: 60 miles from Ventura to Santa Monica
Its the last day, my ass hurts and I can't wait to be done but still it's sad, even writing about it gets me choked up. It was smooth sailing today with ocean views and a traditional lunch in Malibu to celebrate the end of another successful year. The 8 mile ride into to Santa Monica was lined with supporters cheering us on and thanking us for riding. Riding in, the VA center and the many friends, family and supporters accepted us with cheers. While on the road it's easy to forget that this is an accomplishment, they remind us of that. Woo too, we did it! WOW, I can't believe it's over! I'll admit, a day ago the thought of signing up again was nowhere in my mind, today I found myself at the registration booth filling out my form for ALC 12. What can I say, it's addictive! Until next year...
Time for some much needed R and R!
Life after ALC... Day 8,9,10,11...
The days immediately following ALC are miserable, more than waking up at 5am and putting on spandex to ride over hills... why? Because you realize you spent a week being completely engaged in LIFE, voluntarily doing hard hard work and on some sick warped level truly enjoying this hard work. For me the thrill was in playing the "cadence game" and working to keep a certain cadence regardless of the topography. Or hearing the hummm of the tires when my body, mind, and bike were connected and operating as one.
Being on a bicycle is like being naked, completely sensitive to your surroundings, the wind moves you, the rain wets you, the sun scorches you, and the ocean takes your breath away. No matter what you do in your life the other 51 weeks, for this one 1 week as a rider, you feel your place in this vast universe. You are small piece of the puzzle with the potential of making big impact but to do so you have to "go with the flow" rather than resisting the wind, go with it. Fight to overcome obstacles and throughly enjoy the rewards on the downhill knowing that another battle lies ahead. This is life. If it was all flat and long, we'd be BORED! The ups and downs make life engaging but its up to us to do the work.
So maybe I'm not riding a bicycle day in and day out but I can certainly do my part in staying engaged and living life... breathe in and breathe out... enjoy the simple things.
What's next for the novice cyclist??? I figure why not up the challenge a bit and attempt the Death Ride. In 30 days I will attempt to ride 129 miles and climb 15,000 feet in Tahoe. Week's rest is over... time to train! I'll let you know how it goes.
Another short and relatively easy day and unlike last year this year graced with beautiful weather making red dress day even more fun... anything goes as long as its red! The energy of the ride is heightened today with fun funky costumes, and the visual expression of unity between the riders and the cause. Together as a red ribbon we climb up yet another hill and make our way to Lompoc. The day is short and sweet bringing us into town around 2pm and leaving enough time to relax and enjoy the evening, too bad there is NOTHING in Lompoc. Dinner was mediocre but the company was great.
Tomorrow is day 6 and the end is nearing.
Day 6: 78 miles from Lompoc to Ventura
I was hoping for this day to be less emotional and challenging than last year but no such luck. Its the bittersweet feeling of the end approaching that heightens today add in there fatigue and mental exhaustion and you'll understand why a "breakdown" is warranted. Today was all about sticking with other riders to get through the head winds and take advantage of flat lands. We rode 40+ miles straight skipping the lunch stop to get to the infamous fish taco restaurant, and once there it was well worth it. A few miles later we coasted through Santa Barbara and into "Paradise Pit" an ice cream extravaganza put on by the locals of Santa Barbara (lots of love and support from them), an ice cream scoop or two later and its back on the bike and into Ventura. The night closes with a candlelight beach vigil in memory of those lost to HIV/AIDS, thoughts and prayers from over 2200 people creates a powerful moment. Time to sleep, only one more day left.
Day 7: 60 miles from Ventura to Santa Monica
Its the last day, my ass hurts and I can't wait to be done but still it's sad, even writing about it gets me choked up. It was smooth sailing today with ocean views and a traditional lunch in Malibu to celebrate the end of another successful year. The 8 mile ride into to Santa Monica was lined with supporters cheering us on and thanking us for riding. Riding in, the VA center and the many friends, family and supporters accepted us with cheers. While on the road it's easy to forget that this is an accomplishment, they remind us of that. Woo too, we did it! WOW, I can't believe it's over! I'll admit, a day ago the thought of signing up again was nowhere in my mind, today I found myself at the registration booth filling out my form for ALC 12. What can I say, it's addictive! Until next year...
Time for some much needed R and R!
Life after ALC... Day 8,9,10,11...
The days immediately following ALC are miserable, more than waking up at 5am and putting on spandex to ride over hills... why? Because you realize you spent a week being completely engaged in LIFE, voluntarily doing hard hard work and on some sick warped level truly enjoying this hard work. For me the thrill was in playing the "cadence game" and working to keep a certain cadence regardless of the topography. Or hearing the hummm of the tires when my body, mind, and bike were connected and operating as one.
Being on a bicycle is like being naked, completely sensitive to your surroundings, the wind moves you, the rain wets you, the sun scorches you, and the ocean takes your breath away. No matter what you do in your life the other 51 weeks, for this one 1 week as a rider, you feel your place in this vast universe. You are small piece of the puzzle with the potential of making big impact but to do so you have to "go with the flow" rather than resisting the wind, go with it. Fight to overcome obstacles and throughly enjoy the rewards on the downhill knowing that another battle lies ahead. This is life. If it was all flat and long, we'd be BORED! The ups and downs make life engaging but its up to us to do the work.
So maybe I'm not riding a bicycle day in and day out but I can certainly do my part in staying engaged and living life... breathe in and breathe out... enjoy the simple things.
What's next for the novice cyclist??? I figure why not up the challenge a bit and attempt the Death Ride. In 30 days I will attempt to ride 129 miles and climb 15,000 feet in Tahoe. Week's rest is over... time to train! I'll let you know how it goes.
