Within five miles we were in Terre Haute, the city of many stop lights (that was my nickname for the town). Halfway thru Terre Haute my new ergonomic seat became loose and I had to stop and repair it and then catch back up to my teammates several lights down the road. Did I mention, the majority of the ride is on US 40.
After Terre Haute the ride become boring with gently rolling hills and wonderful small towns. As we were cycling right along many conversations occurred from our group. The first rest stop the we came to was not what I expected. There were sag wagons all over the place, cyclist all over and a huge line for the restrooms. In about 10 minutes we were back on the road again still battling small groups of riders for position. The second pit stop was uneventful, which was great. Wait, I did have to adjust my seat again and gears. Now I was good to go.
Next stop was lunch, and about halfway to the lunch stop I got into a rhythm left my group behind but they weren't that for behind. As I rolled into the lunch stop I didn't notice any of our sag wagons there, so I called the one I had a number for and he was on his way with another rider that was having difficulties. Right after that I found my group eating lunch, so they must have been right behind me.
After 10 minutes of eating we were back on the trail again, until then next stop. After this stop, Chad and I got into a rhythm and left Roger and Christina behind. Tom, our second sag driver met us 25 miles up the road the for our last stop, 5 minutes flat and we were gone.
The last 20 miles was grueling for me. At about the 150 mile mark my energy level felt like it was starting to drop, almost like I was about ready to "bonk." Chad had already left me in his dust, but I could see him from a distance. Then it came, the hill of all hills, that didn't seem to stop climbing. Once I crested the top of it it about a mile I was back to great sped, I even caught up to Chad before the finish.
At the end of the race, I crossed the finish line in 10 hours 15 minutes. This was a huge accomplishment for me.
