Tour de Cure 2008

Back in February when I started my lifestyle change through cycling, I decided that I needed a goal to work towards to make sure I keep up with my new lifestyle. After a few days of searching, I found the Tour de Cure in Reston, VA and felt this was the perfect event to choose. Several family members have Diabetes and I knew that if I didn't make a lifestyle change, then I would eventually be diagnosed with it as well. Also, I had never ridden the the W & OD rail-to-trail and thought this would give me a great reason to ride the trail. I also set a goal to ride 500 miles this year on my bike. After I signed up for the TdC I found out about a local event the SVHR that I blogged about last week.

Flash forward and today was the Tour de Cure ride in Reston, VA. I had signed up for the Half-Metric Century which is 32 Miles. The weather was very hot (mid-90's), but I was able to finish the ride with no major problems. This is a first-class experience and I'm so glad that I participated in this event. I was hoping to raise $500 so I could win a free TdC cycling, but I came up a little short with $200. Maybe next year I'll raise enough money to win the jersey. Last year, my wife couldn't even get me on the bike because I would complain about the heat, and here I am riding in the TdC in 96 degree weather.

On this ride there were a total of three rest stops at 9, 16 and at the 23 mile markers. I skipped the second rest area because it was only 7 miles from the first one and I didn't feel the need to visit the second one even in the heat. I don't know how many riders participated, but there were at least 50-70 on my ride and it made for a very crowded trail in the beginning. It took about 5 miles for the crowds to begin to open up. I was able to ride at 17-20 mph for several miles throughout the course, but the worst part was between the 28-30 mile markers. I dropped down to 10-11 mph, but after 2-3 miles I was able to recover and finish strong.
I was very impressed with the finish line. They had a balloon arch to ride under and there were 100-200 people lining the streets and cheering us on, plus they had an MC who would comment on us as we finished up. It sent chills down my spine and made me feel proud that I finished the ride. We were greeted by some girls who gave us a big bottle of ice cold water and a bottle of freebies. I then went over to the lunch table and ate a turkey sandwich and a Larabar or something similar in name. The food was a huge refreshment.

On a side note, I was able to surpass my original goal of 500 miles on this same ride, so now I have reset my goal at 1500 miles for 2008.

This Week's Mileage: 63.60
Previous 30 Days Mileage: 276.10
This Year's Mileage: 511.80
Current Weight 212.2 lbs