100 Miles is a Pain in the Ass

I can’t believe it’s already April. It has been three weeks since our last ride on March 13. Between the Los Angeles 5K Run, the rain (which only came down on two consecutive Sundays, our normal biking days) and both of us getting sick (really sick!!), Sam and I did not have a chance to ride our bikes for three weeks. Naturally, I was concerned about getting back on our bikes for the first ride in almost a month. And on top of that, we were attempting to do our first century ride this training season. That’s 100 miles!!!

It was my first century since AIDS/LifeCycle 2003. But since I haven’t done any serious riding since then, it felt like I was doing a century for the first time. The longest ride we’d done this training season was just under 50 miles. Now, we’re doubling the mileage on just one ride. So yes, I was concerned. And yes, I was scared – scared that I couldn’t pull it off.

We got up bright and early and left the house by 5:45 am. We drove north to Santa Clarita, which is near Valencia and Magic Mountain, about 40 miles north of Los Angeles. The only bright side to being on the road that early is that there is no traffic, on Interstate 5 no less. We met up with Positive Pedalers, the riding group that hosted and organized the ride, at the Peet’s Coffee parking lot. It was the 9th anniversary of this ride, which was named after its creator, Paul Hulse, who has since passed away. Joining Positive Pedalers were other amazing training ride leaders and groups like the Chain Gang, Shifting Gears, Team Ventura and Team OC. About 200 riders participated.

The morning started off cold. It was 6:30 am after all. I made a decision to leave the jacket behind and kept on just a windvest. I took a chance thinking that it was going to get hot, since it had been in the 80’s-90’s. But it remained cold and overcast all day. While it was probably better weather for riding than to be in 90 degree heat, I was freezing my ass off in just a windvest.

After a heartfelt welcome by a member of Positive Pedalers, followed by the oh-so-important usual safety speech, we took off a little after 7 am. The ride headed west, mostly along Highway 126. The plan was to ride to the beach in Ventura and then back, roughly 50 miles each way. There were going to be five pit stops, including lunch along the way at the half-way point. So we would ride about 15-20 miles on each leg and then get a break at the pit stops. The century almost sounded easily doable.

The first 15 miles were quite uneventful. It was still pretty early, so the morning was relatively quiet. Did I mention that it was cold? Training ride leader Chris had told me that it’s best to take it easy at the beginning so your body can conserve energy. It was sound advice and we did just that. We rode a comfortable pace, nice and steady. When we got close to the first pit stop in Piru, Sam suggested that we keep going and skip the break. Normally, there are two main reasons for me to stop: replenish on water and to use the restroom. So far, I still had plenty of water in my water bottles and I was not in a rush to use the restroom. So I agreed to just keep going. When we rode past the pit stop I saw a long line of people waiting for the restrooms, so maybe it was a good thing to skip that pit stop.

The second leg was about 20 miles. It took us from the first pit stop in Piru to the second pit stop in Santa Paula, through the town of Fillmore. Along the way, we rode through beautiful, picturesque farm land and tons of orange groves, many were right off the side of the road. I was tempted to reach out and grab an orange or two. They were everywhere, even on the ground, and I felt so bad for the wasted fruit. One thing for sure, the oranges smelled so fragrant. It was so delightful riding through this area. By the time we reached the second pit stop, I was ready for a break (i.e. I needed to go to the restroom SO bad). The break was at Ragatz Bicycles and volunteers had set up a station with water, snacks, bananas and oranges. Even though I’m sure the oranges didn’t come from the groves we rode past, they still tasted mighty yummy!

The third leg took us all the way to the beach in Ventura. I didn’t care for this section at all. I was a little bored and perhaps it was because the surrounding area was less visually stimulating than the previous leg with the orange groves. Plus, I was starting to get tired. I felt like I was slowing down and struggled to keep up with Sam. I was ready for a break when we reached Marina Park, our lunch pit stop. As we were riding into the park, the first person I saw was Ginger Brewley. Ginger is a drag diva superstar who is one of AIDS/LifeCycle’s strongest supporters. Ginger has volunteered her time and energy on many AIDS/LifeCycle rides to cheer on riders. When I did AIDS/LifeCycle in 2003, I remember Ginger was always at the top of the toughest hills and at the most opportune spot when I most needed a spirit-boaster. Ginger is awesome. I did not know that Ginger was going to be at this century ride, so I was so happy to see a friendly face cheering us into our lunch stop. (Thanks Ginger!)

Because it was still so damn cold, Sam and I decided to eat quickly and get on our way. Subway lunch was provided. We ate, filled up our water bottles with Gatorade and got on the road. Even though we had wanted to take a quick break, I guess we must have been there for a while, because by the time I got back on my saddle, my butt was in screaming pain. In the morning, I had applied the magical “butt butter” or “butt balm” that many riders use to lather the buttock area. It’s supposed to reduce chaffing and make it a more comfortable ride. Well, on this occasion, it did not do the trick. I ran into a porta potty and reapplied more butt balm. It still wasn’t good enough, ‘cause my butt was still killing me. But what other option did I have but to grin and bear it. Ouch!

The next 10 miles riding out of Ventura was quite a pain (no pun intended). We were on Telephone Road (which made me think of Lady Gaga) and we must have hit every other red light. Bikers are legally obligated to follow the rules of the road, so we had to stop at every single red light. It was so annoying. Once we finally got off onto a less busy road there was a lot less stopping. Eventually, we made it to our fourth pit stop, which was back at Ragatz Bicycles. When we arrived, there were very few riders there. I was worried that we were at the end of the pack. I just hate to be one of the last riders. But Sam said there were still a lot of people at the lunch stop when we left and no one passed us on the way, so we couldn’t be too far behind. More riders showed up while we were there resting and refilling our water bottles, which made me feel better.

We didn’t rest long before we took off. This next leg from Santa Paula back to Piru was the worst part of the day. By then we had ridden about 70 miles and I was absolutely exhausted. It had already been the longest ride we had done so far and we still had another 30 miles to ride. Not only was my butt sore, the rest of my body was having problems. My elbows were tight and stiff, and the bottom of my neck in the upper back area was in excruciating pain from being stuck in the same position. There was very little I could do to fix the situation. I mean, it’s not like I could take my eyes off the road and look down to stretch my neck. My legs were beat and I found myself struggling to pedal. I even had to stop to take a break, something that I had never done before at a non-pit stop. I so wanted to give up and thought about all the ways to get out of the remaining ride. I thought about the people back in Los Angeles that I could call to come pick me up or maybe even calling for a cab. I also thought about asking Sam to go on and then come back to pick me up with the car. I swear I am not kidding. But I struggled on, bitching and cursing inside my head. Needless to say, I was incredibly excited to reach the next pit stop, our fifth and last stop of the day.

We stayed at this last pit stop for a good amount of time. It was in the quaint little town of Piru and it was also the same pit stop that we skipped at the beginning. The volunteers had set up the snack and water table under a gazebo by a little non-functioning train depot. There wasn’t much in the town, only a handful of little stores. It felt a little wild wild west. I got plenty of snacks at this break and filled up on Gatorade. We chatted with veteran training ride leader Doreen for a while, who, sadly, broke her foot the night before while setting up for this ride, so she wasn’t able to ride with us. I also caught up with Jim, the organizer of the century ride. When I did AIDS/LifeCycle in 2003, Jim was the leader of the Chain Gang, with whom I did most of my training rides. Jim trained me and I owe him a lot. He was the one who nicknamed a few of us first-time riders the “ducklings”. I miss Jim, so it was good seeing him.

Soon, it was time to go. Getting back on the bike was, once again, a pain in the butt. We got out on the main road (Highway 126) and headed east back to Santa Clarita. For some strange reason, I got a second wind and picked up some energy. I pedaled hard and got on a really good pace. I have no idea what came over me. Aside from the soreness all over my body, I felt relatively okay. I even rode ahead of Sam, who I’m usually trying to keep up with. Before I knew it, we were back in the Valencia area. We saw Magic Mountain, so we knew we were close. It was 5 pm when we rode into Peet’s parking lot. After 102.49 miles, we were done. Saying that I was happy to be done is quite an understatement.

I realized that, for me, doing a century is as much a mental challenge as it is a physical challenge. Looking back, I’m not quite sure that I was mentally prepared. I psyched myself out from the beginning, thinking that we were not ready to do a century. Then, when the ride got really hard I wanted to quit. I need to work on this and get myself more mentally ready for June.

This ride is dedicated to these awesome sponsors: Aileen L.; Amy W.; Angela C. ; Anonymous (3) ; Carmina O. ; Christina Y. ; Daisy D.R. ; Emily Y. ; Jan K. & Ben W. ; Joanna L. & Phil Y. ; Lona C. ; Marshall W. ; Mimi S. ; Rachanee S.; and Ryan K.

I also want to thank Steve, AIDS/LifeCycle rider and volunteer, for letting riders use the wonderful photos he took.