Debbie and I decided to chill out Labor Day Weekend instead of going camping with the big group from Roswell Street. Christie's wedding plus work stuff had us on the go for most of the summer. The camper was in disarray as I didn't have time to get it out, cleaned, and the leaks taken care of.
I decided to ride in the Metro Atlanta Cycling Club's (MACC) "One Love Century" on Saturday. I had heard great things about this ride and the hosts and they were right! I chose to ride the metric century which was 62 miles. The route is in the southwest part of the Atlanta metro area south of I-20 and east of I-285/I-85 in what is known to the local cyclists as the Silk Sheets.
I got out of bed really early due to the fact that I had not pre-registered and wanted to beat the crowd. As it turned out, I got to the start of the ride (a local elementary school) early enough to get a good parking spot up front. Walked up and paid the ride fee and they handed me a XXL tshirt. I don't expect to get tshirts large enough so that was a good surprise. There was a scheduled "mass start" at 8:00am but there was a steady stream of riders leaving to begin the ride from 7:30 on. I waited awhile, but decided to head out about 10 minutes early. There was only a slight chance of rain predicted, but high temps were guaranteed. The first 15 miles were easy with some long descents. I grimaced on some of the longer descents as the last part of the route came back along these roads so I was not looking forward to climbing at the end of a long, hot ride.
The route itself was fantastic. We rode on some of the roads I had ridden on the Tour de Cure ride back in May only we were going the opposite direction this time. Sag stops were really great. The MACC members manned the rest stops and provided a whole raft of food options. Tomatoes and pickles were added to the usual peanut butter sandwiches, bananas, and sports drinks. The MACC members go above and beyond in their support of riders. Volunteers took my bike and filled my water bottles. As if the ride wasn't hard enough, a yellow jacket popped me really good on my right arm just below the elbow. I'm not allergic to the stings, but MAN, do they hurt. This particular sting bothered me until I went to bed Saturday night.
With large gaps between longer rides this summer, I knew the last third was going to be tough. Most of this summer I have had what I call "48 mile" fitness. Trouble is, this ride is 62 miles and I really started to feel it at 50. The normal route had a detour coming back in due to a bridge being out on Cochran Rd. The detour took us on Creel Rd. I have never been on Creel Rd and I wish I could still say that. There was a good 7% climb on it and it just about finished me off. My heart rate was off the charts at the top of that thing and I still had a good ways to go. There was one looooonng steady climb left about 3 miles from the end. I just put my head down and stared at the white line and slowwwwly climbed that sucker. Rolled back into the parking lot completely whipped. Did I mention it was HOT! That's 3 times I've ridden routes in the Silk Sheets and each time I've been whipped at the end. Fun times anyway!
The MACC has the coolest bike kits of any cycling club I've seen. They have some great color schemes. Anyone who knows me knows I like the intense colors. Hope to hit this ride again next year!
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