Ride Update: I have ridden 3,001 miles (93% of the total) and climbed 84,852'. As of today I have ridden 2,078 miles and have completed 7 centuries plus 5 rides over 90 miles in the month of July. Needless to say, this is a personal record for me. I have three more riding days left and will complete 216 more miles. I hope.
The start of today's ride was the most unusual and fun start to any ride I've ever been involved in. Following load, the riders assembled behind the motel and at 8:00AM we pulled out of the parking lot in the following sequence: Silver van, box truck, 75 riders occupying a lane and a half and all dressed in our ABB jerseys and finally, the white van. We rode slowly towards the bridge which crosses the Detroit River (connecting Lake Huron and Lake Erie) and separates the US and Canada. Once we'd cleared the toll booth, we regrouped and moments later we took control of the entire bridge which had been closed to vehicular traffic.
For about five minutes our entourage was all that moved on the bridge and it was a blast to be a rider in this group. We stopped twice and dismounted to cross the "king pins"- expansion joints big enough to swallow a bike tire-and then coasted into Canadian Customs.We'd been warned that joking was not a laughing matter here and I had every intention of playing things totally serious. However, when it was my turn, the customs person asked "Do you plan to leave anything in Canada?" Without thinking, I answered, "Just sweat". Guess I may have made a mistake, but she smiled, laughed a bit and replied, "Have a nice stay". Mister Wisenheimer dodges a bullet.
Following customs, we were free to leave and I happened to be near Bud, Cindy, Daco and Sarah again, so I grabbed a wheel and hung on. Daco was pulling like a madman- 20-22MPH- and after about 20 miles, I thought about bailing out, but hung on. I revisited the notion of dropping off about every 5 miles, but finally made it to the sag at mile 35. I
officially resigned from that group at this sag.The Charles Schwab cookies were a hit- with several riders bitching that they weren't getting a fair share. I, on the other hand, got a fair share. Thanks again Eric!!
Sarah and I finished the ride, which was flat and windy, and I was pleased that we dodged the thunderstorms that had been in the area. I thought the ride was tough- probably harder than some of the centuries we've done. Sometimes these "little" rides can get pretty bitchy-and I am really starting to dislike flat rides- there's just no rest- just keep on pedaling.
Post Script: Tonight when I returned to the hotel from dinner, Rich asked me if I had checked the front desk for any packages. I hadn't and he suggested that I do so. The front desk had a box full of gift packages for the riders and I collected mine. Turns out that they were from Ralph Antolino and the gift was a copy of his book, "The Nine Secrets of the Ultra-Happy People". Ralph wrote a very nice, personal note in mine. I thought that this was extraordinarily nice and very classy. Thank you Ralph. Very Much.
