The 2012 Minnesota Ironman Bike Ride celebrated its 46th year and I celebrated my 4th attempt at the 100 (actually 105) mile ride.

It was not until Wednesday this week that I could even walk down stairs. The 50K last Saturday had taken a toll on my quads and I really could have used a Handicap sign. On Wednesday night I managed 30-minutes on the bike and a mile on the treadmill at the Holiday Inn Express in Toronto. The treadmill kept changing speeds on its own. I think it might have been possessed. I flew home late Friday night. On Saturday  I spent a few hours helping out at the Nick Clare Memorial Run, in Hastings, MN. I directed traffic and got to cheer the runners as they returned from their runs. I got to see lots of familiar faces, Jenny Clare Wilcox, Tina Welzien, Amy Hite, Dave Lundberg, Laurie Feist, Wisman Sikakane, and Cari Huppert. I think several of the ladies went home with hardware as well; congratulations to all! The weather was cool and damp but good for the runners. I heard that there were 450 total runners! A great turn out!

I was abruptly woken up @ 02:39 Sunday morning by a chorus of hail, wind, rain, thunder, and lighting. I woke Alexandra (Charlene had to work night shift) to get her to move to my bed just in case we had to make a dash to the basement. When the alarm went off at 05:00 the rain was still dancing off the windows and I thought, here we go again…

As I made my way to Lakeville North High School the rain slowed and the skies shown signs of brightening. It was 54 F; could it be that we might just get a break this year? My optimism grew as I checked in and got my wrist band and map. I was realistic though, I would most likely spend 5 – 6 hours navigating the 105 mile route, so anything was still possible.

I was dressed warm and quickly heated up. I was very much okay with being overdressed today. I knew as my pace slowed in the second half of the race the extra layers would be welcomed. Plus, if it did rain I was prepared. I traversed the first 50 miles with a solid pace, nearly 22 mph and started to feel my quads as I approached the half way point. I decided it was time for a break and stopped at the Le Seuer rest stop. I loaded up my pockets with Pearson’s Nut Rolls, yum…

In the second half of the ride there were plenty of times I wished to be done. I was talking to myself and listening to the crickets. The crickets were as loud as I can ever remember them being. I’m still not sure what to make of that. My conversations centered on convincing myself that I was having fun, at times I was, but others not so much. During one of my verbal interludes, a rider had come up behind me and quickly passed. I’m sure he thought I was looney and probably just wanted to put as much distance between us as he could.

I made a quick stop at the Lonsdale rest stop (mile 83). It was the last stop on the 100 mile route. With about 15 miles left to cover my legs started to feel a little better, albeit briefly. It seemed to come and go in the last few miles. With the 68 mile group now sharing the route the time seemed to move much faster as I made my way through traffic.

I finished without seeing a single drop of rain, the temperature had risen to a cozy 64 F, and I ended up averaging nearly 19.5 mph. My quads definitely feel like they worked today but I’m dry (relatively speaking) and looking forward to some Ruffles.