Today Ed and I rode in The Space Race, a large ride near (kind of) the Space Center benefiting The Ronald McDonald House. We registered for the 80-mile ride, which was really 77 miles, but still the longest we’ve done by a good bit. The start was fun, they made a big deal about having a countdown to launch, and at liftoff some model rockets were sent into the air, coming down with little parachutes. The weather at the start was not fun, mist and fog turning into rain, including about fifteen minutes of pelting downpour as we rode into a stiff headwind. My shoes were full of water, it was difficult to see, and we watched as many people abandoned their 80 and 100-mile goals to turn around with the 60-milers. We are too stubborn for that, so soldiered on into the wind.

It cleared up a bit, and finally the sun came out. I did my best to ignore a minor stomach bug I’d picked up that had caused some weakness and muscle cramps before I even started. I made sure to eat bananas at each pit stop and drink lots of water.

And then, at the fork where the 80 and 100-mile routes split, Ed made a mad dash toward the 100-mile signs, right into the increasing wind off the Gulf. And he had the car keys, so I followed. So, we did our first “century”, without planning or really training properly for it. And just for the record, while the 80-mile ride was really 77 miles, the 100-mile ride was really 104.
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