Traveling Thoughts

I’ve been pretty stringent in my training schedule for the ride.  3 times a week, Tuesday, Thursday, and either Saturday or Sunday.  Each ride I’ve been trying to increase my distance.  My last ride, last Saturday, 27 miles.  Today, Thursday, a pathetic 8.4 miles (although we did get it done in 35 minutes).  But I was dying along the way.  When I started out, my blood sugar was a very unhealthy 337 and I was dehydrated, and my nose was running.  Not the greatest combination.  But I really didn’t want to not bike, I didn’t bike on Tuesday because personally, Tuesday was a bad day, and it was extra windy.  More windy than it was this afternoon.

So, I let Robbie set the pace, that boy has got far longer legs than I and for every one pedal he does I have to do two.  But because I set the pace last week when he rode with me and made him keep up with me, I was determined to keep up with him.  It didn’t work out so well for me.  I couldn’t breathe, and my nostrils started burning.  A bad bad bad burn.  It hurt something fierce.

So, I’m pedaling as hard as I can, he’s lengths in front of me, my breathing is labored, my nose was burning, and I was thirsty.  When we got to our first milestone, I said we had to turn around and go back because I wasn’t going to survive.  That was at 4.2 miles.  Generally, on the way back I pick up the pace, the adrenaline is rushing, and I’m almost to the finish line, it’s exciting, thrilling.  Not so much this time, we lost time this time, Robbie let me set the pace and we lost 5 minutes on the way back instead of picking it up.  Which I’m sure was horrible for him, because by him going slow and riding by me, he got to listen to me whine (last week it was the opposite).  Gotta love having a cycling partner.

So, what’d I learn?
The blood sugar has to in the 100’s.  I just can’t handling exercising on a high blood sugar, I’m exhausted to start with and prematurely dehydrated.  Not a good combination, that and I couldn’t eat my Clif bar which I usually eat, not only to maintain the blood sugars, but for an energy boost.  Lastly, I’ve got to be able to breathe normally through my nose, I can’t ride with a stuffed up nose, I have to suck more air through my mouth and it’s uncomfortable.  Cotton mouth, not so great.

They’re afraid of me, the other students in my classes.  They won’t voice their opinions if I voice my opinion concerning a statement that they made.  They say it too, “I’m not going to say anything”.  They’re spineless, they can’t stand up for what they said because they can’t support it.  I only speak out when I can support what I’m going to say, when I have data to back me up, and I may not always be right, but I have an opinion, and I wish people would challenge it, that’s how we learn.

Maybe you say something, that I retort (and I back my retort up with very good reasoning supported by data) but you don’t think it’s right, don’t not say anything because I was the last person to speak.  Pull your thoughts together, make sure you have the data and SAY SOMETHING!!!

There is nothing more disturbing than to be in class and just have everyone fear you.  To have everyone silenced because you voiced an opinion.  It’s lame and it depresses me.   Unless, they can’t back up what they have to say and then they’re right for keeping their mouth’s shut because I would have them for supper.  You say something that’s not supported and I have something to support the reverse of what you’ve said, you better count on me voicing my opinion.  This is school, professors want us to speak.  It’ll be interesting to see some of these people in the real world, are they spineless, will they not stand up for what they believe in?

I wanted to ride yesterday but it was raining in the morning.  I so badly wanted to ride that I kept waking up in the middle of the night to listen for the rain.  It rained ceaselessly through the night until a quarter to 10 on Saturday morning, I didn’t get to ride.  This morning when I got up I was happy that it was sunny and I was going for a ride. (Don’t get me wrong here, I love the rain, I’m happiest on rainy days, it just so happens that yesterday, it cramped my style.)

When I began my ride this morning I wasn’t sure how far I was going to ride.  I was unmotivated, I didn’t have anybody with me, and while this wasn’t a problem my first couple rides, it was a problem now because I experienced riding with a friend.  It was difficult to say “I’m going to keep going”

I got to the same midpoint that Robbie and I had gotten to on Thursday and said, ok, 40 minutes, let’s go for an hour and see how far I get.  I tacked on another 5 or so miles and when I stopped at the underpass I saw some guys that had passed me earlier and had startled me.  They apologized for startling me and I just kindof laughed and smiled and made a comment about being in “the zone”.

Just to double check that I was where I thought I was I said,”I hope this is Rio Bravo because I’m not going any further.”
They laughed, “yeah, this is Rio Bravo, where’d you start out?”
“Alameda”
“That’s about a 27.5 mile ride”
“Good, next time I’ll add 8 more miles and I’ll be set for the Tour De Cure in CA in May”
“Especially if you keep the pace you were moving, you were riding pretty good when we passed you.  Good Luck.” And off they went.

I mounted my bike and went back on my way all the way back to Alameda, they were gone from my sights so quickly it was unbelievable, but you know what, I finished my ride, I made it all the way back, and I did it all on my own.  (It would’ve been more fun if I could’ve had someone with me, but this just proves the point that “I can do it all by myself”)

The stats for this ride:
Distance: 27.4 miles
Time: 2 hours 8 min
Speed: 12.86 mph

I’m getting close to my goal, if I can keep this speed up and tack on another 8 miles, I’m sure I’m set for CA :)

The note about my diabetes. (I gotta keep track of this stuff somehow.)
My blood sugar this morning was 120, I ate a Clif Bar, there was no short term insulin running through my system.  I rode for an hour, checked my blood, it was 202, too high to eat anything, but better than being low.  When I got back to my car (another hour later), my blood sugar was 117 a perfect number.  While this scenario is better than having the low blood sugar at my midpoint, it’s still not the ideal scenario.  I could feel a lag in energy on my return ride, where as when I had the low blood sugar and got to down the glucose gel, there was no lag in energy.  I need to get that perfect number at my midpoint check so that I can have the gel and gain the energy.

I don’t recall how it happened, but my friend Robbie said he’d like to join me in my ride in the Tour De Cure. I said I’d love to have his company in my ride. So, since I’m in training mode until we actually leave, he got his bike fixed and joined me today. It’s so much easier to ride the longer distance when you’ve got someone with you.

It was kindof cute, he kept asking when we were going to break, and I said, “we’re not, not until we get halfway.”
Him, “We’lll where’s halfway.”
Me, “I dunno, an hour or so into our ride.”
Him, “But I took several breaks last night.”
Me, “We won’t be ready for CA if we keep stopping.”

And so, it was under this pretense that we rode, and rode, and rode. I wore that poor guy out. We went 17 miles in 1.25 hours, we only took one break, a 5 minute break halfway through so that I could check my blood and take care of the low blood sugar. Poor Robbie, it wasn’t even a 5 minute break before I told him I was ready to head back. It was more like 3.9 minutes. He wasn’t ready, he would’ve rested longer if I would’ve let him, but we need to drive each other (in my opinion) so that we’re ready for the 35 miles in CA. I already think that we have an advantage because we’re training at a mile high as opposed to sea level.

It was a good ride though, I’d been hesitant about going further than I had previously done because even though there’s a trail, there’s no telling what’s out there. There’s confidence in knowing that someone else is with you. So even though he was whining (and even though I provoked his whining), I’d rather ride with him any day over riding by myself. It’s just more enjoyable to have someone with you, if I haven’t said it already, I’ll say it now, having someone with you drives you to go further.

The stats for this ride:
Distance: 17 miles
Time: 1.25 hours
Speed: 13.6 mph

A note about my diabetes.
The last two times I rode, there was no midway blood sugar check, I only went 4.2 miles each way, I was on the trail for less than an hour each time. This time, I was on the trail longer than an hour, it was important to gage where I was. I started the ride by eating a Clif Bar 15 minutes before my ride, when I began my ride, my blood sugar was 116 (which is perfect for me), at that midway mark (40 minutes into our ride), my blood sugar was 56, I had some glucose gel and we went on our way, when we finished riding, my blood sugar was 134 (another perfect number for me). The goal now is to maintain the starting and ending perfect numbers, but gain a perfect number at my midway check, that way I can have a small snack, something to give me energy to finish the ride without throwing my blood sugars out of whack.

I’ve been having a hard time comprehending what’s going on with American Idol.  There’s people being voted off, that, in my opinion, are some of the best.  Sabrina Sloan, so should’ve stayed, instead we have Haley Scarnato, who I haven’t ever been impressed with, neither have the judges, until last night, fine whatever, she still shouldn’t be in the top 12.  Sanjaya Malakar, he shouldn’t be there either, when it comes to the ability to sing vs forgetting your words, I would’ve rather of had Brandon Rogers forget his words vs Sanjaya not be able to sing.  He had a great audition and that’s all that was great about him.  Sure great smile, great spirit, the teenie boppers think he’s cute.  This isn’t a fashion/cuteness contest, this is a singing contest, let the people that can sing, stay!  Seriously.  He wasn’t even in the bottom 3 this week, the two that were shouldn’t have been.  There’s something so terribly wrong with the way America is voting.  And I can say this because I vote.  Sanjaya should’ve gone.  He should’ve, and as much as I like Gina Glockson, I could’ve understood if she were in the bottom, she butchered Paint It Black, an excellent Rolling Stones song.  I wasn’t impressed with Phil Stacey either, but I haven’t been impressed by him since he sang that Leanne Rimes song, what was it, oh yes, I Need You.

The point of this is, there are good singers going home in the name of I don’t know what.  But it’s going to be a real shame when we end up with another American Failure instead of an American Idol.  Looks may help people win the competition, but it will not help them sell cds.

Actually, I didn’t really need a new saddle.  All that transpired is a result of much needed retail therapy because I was right but I couldn’t get people to listen to my rightness.  Because my rightness didn’t mesh with the professor’s portrayal of rightness.  I am more right though, they just don’t know it yet.  The time will come for my rightness to be exploited, it’s just not today.

No, today, any rightness that could be portrayed by anyone was thrown down the drain so that I could impulse shop. (Sorry bike master Mark in Minnesota, I couldn’t help it).

My retail therapy began after an hour of my rightness being dutifully ignored because it wasn’t what the professor had said.  Fine, whatever, I’m going shopping.  I want a new saddle for my bike and I have a $40 dividend to spend at REI.  I love REI, it makes me tingle.  So, I went to REI.  When it’s spring time and the weather is nice and summer’s around the bend, and there’s so much to do outside, there’s really no better place to participate in retail therapy.

So I walk into REI and immediately head for the saddles.  It didn’t take me long to choose one, I didn’t want a big fat cushy one, but I did want some padding.   What I walked out with was more than my $40 dividend, but it was well worth the extra $10.    I walked out with a WTB Speed V Saddle.  I was a very satisfied customer.  Right up until I got to my car and decided what I really needed was a new bike.

I found a Trek bike that I liked at the first store that I went to but I really didn’t want to pay the price and I really didn’t like the guy that helped me, the vibes I got weren’t all that great, so I left there and went to a store that 2 years ago I didn’t like because they were inattentive to their customers.  The guy that helped me today was extra attentive even during the busy moments.  So, I bought a bike from him, a mountain bike, a Giant Boulder SE.  And he farm proofed the tires for me (guaranteed not to puncture for a year, good for the goat heads that we have out here on our trails) and sent me on my way.

In all my excitement, I had to go test my new bike (I had intended on riding anyways).  The bike was beautiful, the ride, not so much, there was this hideous headwind, I can’t tell exactly how quickly the wind was moving, but according to Google when I got home, it was 20 mph from the south, so, that slowed me down, actually, it didn’t slow me down, it just make me work harder, much much much harder.  I did the same distance that I did on Saturday, but I shaved 10 minutes off my time, so instead of 50 minutes, it took me 40 minutes to do my 8.4 miles giving me an average of about 13 mph.  So, my speed is good, I’m just going to have to work on distance now.  I need 3 times the distance I’ve been going to be prepared for CA.

I went for my first ride today, just to get an idea of where I’m at and where I have to get to in my quest to ride in Tour De Cure.  I managed my 8.5 miles.  Did it in 50 minutes.  I averaged 10.25 mph.  Which is a good beginning.

I would’ve ridden further but I seriously thought I was going to die.  I shouldn’t have gone riding, but I have a point to prove, I can do this, I can ride the 35 miles even with my diabetes.  Of course, starting the ride with a blood sugar of 305 and already being dehydrated and nauseous, not such a good idea.

I figure that at about 2 miles I was ready to die.  All of like 12 minutes into my ride.  But I kept going because I needed to get to a point where I knew I could figure out my distance, so I continued another 2 miles and then some.  Because I got to a major road and that distance would be marked on some website.

I turned myself around, continued riding back to whence I came, and got all of about 5 minutes before I seriously had to pull over because I thought I was going to vomit.  Bad times.  I didn’t vomit, but I should’ve, I would’ve felt a whole lot better.

I finally got back to the open space where I started, my blood sugar had dropped to 120, a perfect number, and my arse hurt.  This is my beginning.  I have to get to a point where I can ride for more than 1 hour at the same speed that I currently go.  Then I can increase my speed.  Again, if I can do my 3 hours of 12 mph in NM, I believe I’ll have no problems in CA.

My friend Mark, in Minnesota, the biking one of the 2 Mark’s I know up there. He told me that he was going to ride in a ride for diabetes and I had to get details from him. Last year I started questioning people about riding in a ride for diabetes, but I couldn’t get much information.

A few months ago, I got an email about the JDRF Ride to Cure Diabetes. I was looking at those rides, and they were in places that I wasn’t familiar with and the dates just weren’t good. So, here we are now, and I’m riding in the Tour De Cure, which is put on by the American Diabetes Association. And it’s cool because there’s rides in every state. The information for NM was lacking and I wanted to take a vacation, so I chose to go to Long Beach, CA and do a 35 mile ride along the Pacific Coast Highway.

This is all a result of Mark, because I had completely forgotten about the American Diabetes Association and have a one track mind when it comes to diabetes and think JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation).

Next up for me and the Tour De Cure, training.  I’ve not been on a bike since September of last year.  And I wasn’t exactly riding with a purpose, most of my riding last year was insane riding in Moab, Utah, and then there were the trails in Albuquerque, NM.  I think 15 miles was my longest ride and I don’t remember how long it took me to complete it, but then again, time didn’t matter.  Time matters now, I need to be able to keep a speed of 12 mph for 3 hours.   We’ll see how I do when I start training.  My theory is, if I can make the 35 miles up here at NM elevation (1 mile higher than sea level) I should have no problem in CA because it’ll be an oxygen rush.