On May 15, 2010 I took part in Richardson’s WildRide to benefit Cancer research. The forecast was bleak; thunderstorms were expected by late morning. The sky was cloud covered. It looked like it could down pour at any moment and I was nervous. Last year I rode this ride in constant rain and it was miserable. I did not want to do that again but I took my chances and headed out.

I met up with my neighbor Eric riding his new Specialized Tarmac (nice bike!). We headed out on the first leg riding together more or less. The pace was brisk to start with, about 18 mph. The first leg was a good chance to meet other riders like the guy who was wearing a full backpack because he needed to go to work after the event and the couple on the mountain bike tandem who were riding off-road at Tyler next weekend.

After the rest stop we headed on to the next leg winding through Wylie, Nevada, and Josephine. This is hilly east Dallas territory. At the 50 mile bailout Eric veered off and I kept going..feeling pretty good at this point. In Josephine there are some steep hills. Last year I struggled there but this year my hill training paid off and I was able to climb them at a good pace. By the time I got to the rest stop at about the 40 mile mark my legs felt pretty good but my ace was feeling it. I had not been on the bike for that long a period of time in a while.

I was on the home stretch. A group of riders left the rest stop together and we played cat and mouse a bit over the last leg. I was actually able to pass some riders on the hill which I historically do not do very well at. I cruised in to the finish line at about 64 miles which is the farthest to date for me this year. I averaged 16.7 mph; this is about 0.5 mph better than I did last year so I am pleased with my progression.