Sunday, June 27, 2004

Finished the MS 150, Rode 173 Miles, Raised ~$400!!!

In April the big weekend came; I finished the two day MS 150, riding a total of 173 miles, and raised about $400. It's taken so long to post to my blog about it because, well, it seemed anticlimatic, and I've been a little busy. The bloom is off the blog, so to speak.

The photos from the ride are posted here: http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~dustin/biking/MS-150/MS-150.html

The first day of the ride was very tiring, and I would have been tempted to go home if I had had the chance. When I got into La Grange about 5:30 p.m. I was beat, tired, sleepy, tired, and a little down. The perks offered by the Continental Airlines Racing team were great, and that helped a lot. My pedal partner Lori was in La Grange at the beer tent, so I went over and gave her a hug. Also, Carlos, a friend from Rice, was volunteering in the Continental Airlines tent, pouring up beer, so I saw some friendly faces.

I piled into my sleeping bag early, put on a sleeping mask I had picked up on one of my Continental Airlines flights, dozed through the fireworks, then, with a little help from two clonazepam, slept right through the night until about 4:30 a.m., when I had to get up and get ready. By 6:00 a.m. or so I was waiting with 12,000 other bikers for the start.

I was ready to ride to Austin, come hell or high water. I felt good Sunday morning, and I did well on the Bastrop hills. I kept my pedaling pace, even if I was only moving a few inches at a time. I never had to stop and walk up the hill, and I didn't have to SAG at all. I made it into Austin around 3:45 p.m.

I have not decided if I will do the MS 150 again. I've been on my bike a few times, and enjoyed some short rides. One thing I have figured out is that blogs are not a good way to raise money unless you have some way to "drive" people to your page, and I did not have that angle. So, thanks for reading, and happy biking! Go Lance!

Later,
Dustin