Episode IV: A New Hope

Star Wars title aside, day two found me doing better. When you last left me I was “near death” on the side of the trail. But after collecting myself a bit, I rallied, made a decision on what I would do, and rode out of Croom mountain bike trails, along the route to the rail trail, where I met a few more riders, before I turned off the route for Brooksville.
In Brooksville, I got dinner at Subway, and a room at a hotel for the night. I messaged another rider who was behind me with my room number, in case he wanted a place to stay too. I needed to recover and regroup, and mostly just get my head back together.
I always try to go over my bike before I go to bed, and it was then saw that something was amiss. My saddle, (the seat on a bicycle,) had slid backwards in the seatpost rails about an inch. Over a long distance, your position on the bike becomes even more critical. I had even had a bike fit done at the bike shop a few weeks before the race to make sure everything was set up correctly, so I could avoid injury and get the most out of my efforts. This problem had really done a number on my legs.
I think I was asleep by 8pm, only waking up long enough to unlock the door for John when he got there. He said he planned to sleep in, while I had decided I would be on the road no later than 6am.

I got up around 5:30 to start fresh, I made a quick supply stop at the convenience store, and was on my way. I set off into the still dark morning, back to the very spot I where I had left the route, with renewed calmness and confidence. I quickly reached the first control point at Lacoochee, took my picture, and headed right back on the road.

Much easier than it looks, go around through the woods. I saw tracks where someone rode through it. I wasn’t going to try. The sun was trying to rise through the remnants of smoke and fog as I turned into the Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve, which is also part of a WMA ( which simply means public hunting land).

While on the wooded Florida Trail sections I hear turkey gobbles nearby. I’m a little nervous, but since the hunters were all up by the main road, and I had not heard a single gunshot, it seemed like the days hunting was mostly over.

 

Florida trail section

Back on the road I received some “trail magic”. A group of hunters offered me water, and handed me the coldest, most refreshing, Mountain Dew ever.

A few minutes later a Clockwise Racer appeared and he too was topped off with cold water and a icy soft drink. I thanked the hunters, wished the CW racer well, and was off on my way.

I wasn’t making very fast time, but I was enjoying the day, and making steady progress towards the next check point at Clermont. The day was going well enough, despite the disappointment of my sore and weak legs. I still hoped to make the Apopka lakeside by dark, or even push a little past Apopka.

Once past some wildlife, and off the Van Fleet bike path onto Water Rd, (which is mostly a sand pit of an ATV trail), a old guy came by in a truck, stopped and handed me a cold bottle of water. As he drove off, I almost spit water out through my nose laughing when I saw his anti-gay, “Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve” bumper sticker. The worst part was that the monkey from that movie, “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” that kept saying “Steeeve” was stuck in my head.

I made a unplanned store stop, and while cooling off in the shade outside the store a couple of riders passed me by, and desiring some company, I gave chase. I pushed pretty hard, but by the time they turned off the pavement onto Green Swamp Rd, they were out of sight. I backed off and continued on at my own slow, but steady pace.
When I arrived in Clermont the two riders I had shadowed, were at the second control point, another convenience store.

Charles

I had planned on grabbing  a sub at Subway, but then we decided on Publix, and then had to make a few other stops as well. Batteries, bathrooms, and coffee. I checked my saddle, and sure enough it had slid back again. My new friends had discussed stopping in Clermont, but I suggested we push on to Apopka. I was happy for the company, but not so much about the delays.

From the hill outside Clermont, we could see for miles into Orlando. I could see the Suntrust Building, and I think what is one of the rides at a theme park, probably one of those tall free fall tower things.

Bike weight becomes a huge factor on hill climbs, and I was at about 48 lbs with a load of food and water. My legs are still complaining about the seat position problem that seemed to keep happening. The two guys I’m riding with were faring better than me, (sans camping gear) and were stopping to wait for me to catch up periodically. At this point I’m alternately wishing they would leave me, and being glad I had some incentive to keep my pace up, and some company, and encouragement.

Most folks have no idea about Florida hills, central Florida is all low rolling hills, but on the one big descent on Sugarloaf Mountain, I hit 40mph without pedaling, and sitting upright on the bike to help slow the speed. I’m guessing maybe a 12-15 percent grade. While the elevation is only a bit above 200 feet the road goes right over the top, following the abrupt

slope of the hills.

Darkness had fallen completely by the time we entered Wolfs-head Rd into the Lake Apopka area, so I can’t say much about the views. I was really hurting by the time we reached the lime rock roads around the perimeter. My seat had slid again, and after discovering mine was gone, I had to borrow one of my companions multi tool to adjust it. We had also came across a lost cyclist and brought him back out with us out to the main entrance. He told us how to get around the locked gate. We headed through Apopka, to the motel they had chosen. My jaw dropped when I was told how much a room cost. Wow! It was about twice my usual budget for a room. Again, not making my own decisions altered how I do things. It was very late so we ordered a pizza, looked at the weather forcast, and discussed our plans for the morning. No matter what the weather, I knew I had to leave early if I had any hope of ever finishing this race. I called them in the morning, and they were starting later, so I wished them well.
I’m going to break from the narrative to say a few thing. Charles and Brett are great, both are solid dudes, and very interesting people. I’m glad I got to know them, and I enjoyed their company.  They put up with me when I was at my worst. Tired and hurting and hungry, and was being short tempered and rude. They both were able to ride faster and further than me, but never gave me any grief when I fell behind, waiting up for me further down the road.
I’m saying all this because of what im going to say next. I never should have kept riding with them. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the way they were riding, it just wasn’t my own way. I made a decision to ride with them, and I continued to take their lead over what I had planned, and what.and knew I should be doing. I abandoned my own plan, and allowed myself to follow someone else’s lead. I need it to be clear this isnt about them, or anything they did. both of them were a pleasure to ride with, and helped get me on to Apopka. This is all about me and what I didn’t do. I hope nothing I say offends them, thats not my intention.

The problems that joining them presented to me were two fold.
First: I should have realized before Clermont, when I was trying to catch up to them, that they were stronger and faster than me, which meant I was riding a bit above the pace I could sustain most of the time, just trying to keep up. I should have simply told them to go ahead without me. I also find that a few minutes break every couple of hours on the side of the road or trail, helps me a lot, lets me get caught up on eating, and really get my focus back.
Second: I drastically altered my plans for stopping and sleeping. I did purposefully choose to get a room in Brooksville, after my disastrous first day, to regroup, and recover. My original plan however, was to ride until it was dark enough, and I was feeling sleepy, find a spot along the route, (where ever) to lie down, pitch my tarp if needed, and grab a few hours sleep before continuing on before dawn. Again, I’m not at all critical of how my friends rode the race, they were true to their own plans, and their own style of doing it, and by tagging along I agreed to follow their plan.
I ate the nice free breakfast at the very expensive motel, got cash at an ATM, and an Allen wrench set at an auto parts store so I could adjust my seat if needed. I got back on route where we turned off, heading north, hoping to outrun the threat of tornadoes moving up from the south. I left my new companions and Apopka behind, riding off under the low heavy clouds promised rain momentarily.