LiveStrong Bike Ride – 2012
65 miles (66.12 miles)
[Race Website: http://www.livestrong.org/Take-Action/Team-LIVESTRONG-Events/Ride/Team-LIVESTRONG-Challenge-Austin]
In conjunction with the Ride for the Roses Weekend, this event is the grand finale of LiveStrong Bike Series. Cyclists can choose from distances ranging from 20–100 miles. At the finish line, each cancer survivor is celebrated with a yellow rose. Afterwards participants and spectators are invited to the Post-Event Party.
As part of LiveStrong’s 15th anniversary, over 4,300 cyclists took to the streets of Austin, for the biggest ride the city has ever seen & raising over $1.7 million for the Foundation’s programs and services.
Group Start
Details & Race Results
- Event Name: LiveStrong Bike Ride – Austin
- Date/Times: October 21th, 2012, Time: 7:30am
- Location: Palmer Events Center
900 Barton Springs Road
Austin, TX 78704 - Distance = Varied
- Total Time = 4h 42m 41s (13.8mph + 2,181 elevation gain)
- Riding Buddy: Elle Shelley & Jody Kelly
- Course Map: Download Map
- MapMyRide: Course Map w/ Elevation Chart
My Story
Last year I talked about doing the Aqua-Bike HalfIron distance in Redman, OK w/ Lynn Sparks. I couldn’t get my bike mileage up over 25 miles, not enough to make the 56 mile distance. I mentally put it on my list for this year. Fast forward to meeting Elle Shelley at the Red Poppy Ride this Spring and biking with her and the Peak Performance team for a season. I’m such a “follower” that I kept pushing my distance up riding with them more and more… Hitting 47 miles on my 46th birthday… then 60 miles in September when she doing some final training rides for her Half Ironman. When they announced they were stripping Lance of his titles, I logged on & made a donation, and signed up for the 100 Mile LiveStrong ride. I wanted to support the good the FOUNDATION has done – outside of the actions of the man. Realizing that riding for 5-6 hours on the bike by myself wasn’t realistic, and w/ Jenny & Elle training for the half – & therefore needed to balance all 3 sports in the weeks leading up to it, we agree to do the 65 mile ride and put the century on the Spring calendar.
Dedication Card
Pre-Race: Finishing the Outlaw 62 mile ride the weekend before robbed me of a lot of my confidence and excitement leading up to this race. Although I was “SO TIRED” after Outlaw, my legs were not sore in the days afterward, but my neck & shoulders were. I could barely move my head and was miserable. When I went to packet pickup on Thursday, I filled out an “In Memory” card for my mom who died in 1985 of breast cancer. It puts in perspective the pain that can be endured for 1 morning compared w/ 5+ years of cancer treatment. I paid $1/min for a quickie neck massage, which turned into 30 minutes. The gal was so good at sports massage, and really did help work out some kinks. I decided that I was going to do as much as I could, regardless of the pain. Afterwards, Susan & I had mani-pedis just so I could sit for 90 minutes on the crazy massage chair and I grimaced the entire time it hurt so bad. (I think the Vietnamese ladies were concerned that I looked like I was in such pain.)
Saturday morning my team was meeting at Brushy Creek Park to run (30 min on schedule for the LS folks). I decided to take the dogs since they’ve been neglected. I told them we weren’t going to run but would meet at Red’s house for breakfast. I walked to the creek to let the dogs swim but it seemed a little trafficy, so we took a quick “jog” ont he trail. Feeling good, I decided I’d go a mile out, then 1.5 miles out. EZ 3 miles, right? I didn’t take any water or nutrition since we were just going to play. Then at 2 miles I saw the TriZones gang and asked if the park w/ the lake was near. The term “You’re almost there” coming from people who do IronMan races is different than a normal person’s definition. We kept going and it seemed like FOREVER!
Ben Arnecke & I
I wanted the dogs to have some water, swim & play. Thankfully there was a marathon going on, so I was able to get a few sips of water enroute. Barton, Kennedy & I arrived at the lake about 3 miles from where I left the car. POOR PLANNING on my part! On the long run back I calculated that if I ran on the road, I could cut 1/3 mile off the return trip. My ankle & tendons were hurting to the point of limping, and the dogs kept looking at me like I was insane. (This was double the distance they had ever run, and the first time this season.) As I finally hobbled up to Red’s house, my GPS said 6 miles. What an idiot. I stretched and let the dogs play w/ Kona.
Saturday night was William’s wedding, which required my tight black dress and new 2 inch high heels…. exact 1.75 inches higher than any shoes I own. After lots of mousse & hairspray, I switched my sandals for heels and enjoyed making a splash at the event. Great chance to catch up with people and to have pictures taken in clothes other than race attire. I was praying that running 6 miles + a late night of heels wouldn’t trash my bike ride.
Austin Skyline
Race Morning:
I arrived early to get a good parking spot and ended up at Butler Park again. Met up with people at the Jack & Adams / RadioActive tent and started gathering for the start. A lot of TriZoners gathered and took photos before the race. I felt good and was excited to finish off my season with this goal race – since Kerrville Tri didn’t go as I had planned. Elle & Jenny went to the UT game & stayed out late, so she was tired and Jenny was sleeping. We started with the 65 milers and enjoyed chit chatting on the closed roads. It was a big clogged and crazy on some of the hills. Some people don’t have great bike manners!
Power Stop #1
Power Stop #1 (Mile 9) The first stage was a gradual uphill climb w/ a few rollers. Police had many of the intersections closed off, which made a big difference in not having to stop at the bottom of a hill! Elle was tired and having a hard time with the heavy crowds. I stopped and wait for her periodically so we could ride together as much as possible. We pulled into Akins High School and took a break just b/c we said we would. Not much time needed, saw the rest of the girls pull out ahead of us. The wind was strong and the sun was hot. At about 15 miles I started preparing emotionally that Elle was not going to do the entire course and would go back w/ the group at the 19 mile mark.
Power Stop #2
Power Stop #2 (Mile 19.4) Elle said she was going back with Pam and the Kims, and I know it was the right thing for her to do, but I started crying because I was torn between going w/ the group for safety purposes, or going the distance, and accomplish MY goal. ~5 hours is a long time to ride alone. I found out Jody Kelly was going to continue on, so I decided to as well. We agreed I’d wait for her at the rest stops and I took off, alone, on the stage that is basically 8 miles of continuous climbing. The wind was ~18 mph and the sun was starting to be toasty. I forgot to put sunscreen on and vowed to do it at the next break. Nutrition and hydration on track and focused on my mental focus on accomplishing the goal before me. Having a map and being able to watch my distance helps pull me forward and see this as a series of 8-10 “doable” mile rides.
Jody & I at the Saloon
Power Stop #3 (Mile 27.6)
I was ready for this stop! I told Jody I’d wait for her at the rest stops, so I tootled around, got some photos taken, put a temporary skull tattoo on my cheek & stretched. Jody arrived and got some snacks, and we were off. This stage had the “bad hill” on it. The first half of the stage were a lot of up & down hills, and about 3/4 of the way to the next stop was a crazy hill that I had already given myself permission to walk up. I was tired and hot, but wanted to get up as far as I could. I have not had to walk ANY hills this season. It got steeper and steeper and the road was lined with people walking their bikes up. (Even guys with bulging calves & matching spandex biking uniforms.) I felt a little bad passing them, but I also knew I was heaving so hard that it wasn’t pretty. I wanted to go “just a little bit” further and kept saying that. I was going so slow that I was weaving into the oncoming lane, which of course was on a blind curve and there was no shoulder on either side of the rode. As I crossed back into my lane, I realized I could get 2-3 pedal strokes going sideways, then a few more going up. I traversed a bit more and literally sounded like I was about to go into cardiac arrest. I can’t recall ever ever putting out that much effort for so long, but I kept saying “You did it!” way before I had done it. 🙂 I have my sexy rear-view mirror, so I can see all the way down the hill, and of course all the way up. There wasn’t ONE OTHER PERSON that was still on their bike! I think those biker dudes were concerned if I really did redline and topple over, they’ve have to drag my butt & bike up to the top of the hill. I crested, kept peddling as Tracy taught us and then leveled off. I FREAKING made it up the bad-ass hill! After that – nothing else could keep me from having the best race ever. I had exceeded my own expectations…
After the Big-Ass hill…
Power Stop #4 (Mile 35.6) I missed the aide station b/c it was nestled back behind a convenience store and under some trees. At the intersection, I turned back to go into the parking lot. They didn’t have much food left and it was 11:40 or so. I took my shoes off, stretched, had some peanut butter, jelly beans & some shot blocks. I waited forever for Jody and the sag wagons kept filling people up and hauling away. I couple of people came in bloodied, one person sick. One gal just laying on the cot like she was chilling in a hammock. It actually looked nice, but there weren’t any extras w/ the wounded in place. I kept checking w/ the SAG vehicles, trying to find out if they had taken Jody. Since I didn’t have her bib number, they couldn’t tell me. They started tearing down the rest stop and I decided I was going to go, and that there was no way she was still out on the course, even if she walked the ENTIRE hill. At this point, we were turning back towards Austin and wind started working for me vs. against me. I started picking up speed, and was still basking in the endorphins and happiness from pushing through the pain on that hill.
Power Stop #5 (Mile 43.7) I didn’t really need a stop, since I’d rested SO LONG waiting for Jody, but I decided to just go to the bathroom since skipping a stop usually comes back to bike me. As I rode I saw Jody! I told her I waited forever for her. She missed the rest stop b/c it was off the road, and by the time she realized it, it was too late to turn back. I can’t believe she missed that stop – after that hill. She said she walked up the last part. It was great to know she was OK and to tell her I was skipping the next one and heading in. Now, for the downhill, tailwind portion of the event. Ah… fast! Also connected back w/ the 100 milers so there were a lot more folks on the road now. It seemed like it was almost all men, but I was able to ride in a couple of packs and zip along. I hit a bump on a bridge and lost a water bottle… oh well… Not going back for it. I felt back for all the people who bailed at the halfway point b/c this section was so fast and fun.
Power Stop #6 / FINAL (Mile 56.2) Approaching Adkin Middle School I decided that I was not going to stop. I wasn’t even going to go to the port-o-pot since we only had 10 miles left… downhill. I didn’t need food, had my own drink still and I rolled all the way through. At the main road I stopped and decided to take a photo since I had one at every other stop.
Finishline! (Mile 65) The final 10 miles were downhill and the reward for the slow climb up South Congress the first 10 miles. The police support at this event was excellent – the best I’ve ever seen. They made SUCH a difference at the big intersections, but most importantly on the rolling hills in South Austin. There are lights that we were waved through at the bottom valley of a hill… climbing from a dead stop would have been brutal! I had already started thanking the police about 2 hours previous, but I started saying “Thanks, you have made this so much easier for me!” I peddled into a group of 100 mile older men that were shooting the breeze with new riders as they road up. I couldn’t believe the stupid things guys talk about – although the had riden 90 miles already, so I gave them some grace. Getting closer to town they all started speeding up, and I thought: I want a picture crossing the finish line w/ a bunch of cute guys in matching outfits! I was about dying by the time we looped around and headed down the shoot and crossed the line.
Post-Race: I immediately saw Elle there cheering me on. She must have waited 2+ hours from when her ride ended, since I killed at least 30 minutes waiting for Jody. For someone tired and not feeling well, I thought it was an amazing selfless thing to do to support me. It’s those little things that I treasure in a friendship… doing something to make someone else feel special – even when you REALLY want to be somewhere else. (For Elle, that means taking a nap.) I will say that the reason she was tired is she stayed out too late w/ Jenny at the UT Game… Bad Jenny. (On the other hand, I have realized that the only way I can now keep up w/ Elle is to ride when she starts pooped out.) I rode my bike around and got a finishline photo… over the audio system they started playing the Queen song “Don’t Stop Me Now” – my theme song! I made Elle sit and listen to it and I cried – it was so providential and symbolic to me that I finished the race. I told her this is my theme song that I listen to before/after races. If I ever do a video montage of my fitness journey, I’ll have this be the background music!
Jody Kelly & Post-race Fajitas!
Tonight I’m gonna have myself a real good time
I feel alive and the world it’s turning inside out Yeah!
I’m floating around in ecstasy
So don’t stop me now don’t stop me
‘Cause I’m having a good time having a good time
I’m a shooting star leaping through the skies
Like a tiger defying the laws of gravity
I’m a racing car passing by like Lady Godiva
I’m gonna go go go
There’s no stopping me
Don’t stop me now I’m having such a good time
I’m having a ball don’t stop me now
If you wanna have a good time just give me a call
Don’t stop me now (‘Cause I’m having a good time)
Don’t stop me now (Yes I’m having a good time)
I don’t want to stop at all
Elle waited for Jody to come in and then headed home. Jody and I chatted and had fajitas. We talked about doing a half-iron together this next fall. I want to do her 75 mile ride in January for her 75th birthday. I introduced her and told everyone about it… I’m just proud to know someone who doesn’t have ANY LIMITS. She’s wise w/ her decisions, and cautious, but I LOVE the fact that she doesn’t hang up her bike helmet and say “I’m just too old!” I want to be like her in 30 years!
I walked around the vendors that were left, and ran back by the Jack & Adam’s & radio station tent. The main marketing director (Gary?) was there w/ Julio. I helped them pop down their tent and put it away. We talked about my race today and possibly doing the MS150 in 2013. They immediately did the best promo of Team RadioActive for MS150 and all of the team perks. (I went home and signed up… and of course, suckered Elle into it as well.)
What I learned: LiveStrong wasn’t as hard as I expected it to be, even though it’s a “harder course” and the wind was brutal. I emotionally bonked at Outlaw Trail Ride the week before. Although on Saturday I ran 6 miles from Red’ house to Brushy Creek Lake w/ the dogs and was dying b/c I didn’t have water or nutrition (b/c I wasn’t going to run). Saturday night I also had William’s wedding and my high, high heel shoes + “little black dress.” They were tough to walk in, and my ankle was so sore from running, but I felt great starting the race. It was nice to find my buddies, and to have matching LS jerseys. A lot of the “pack mentality” positively impacts me as I am pulled forward by the Peak girls. I need to stop wasting energy worrying about things, and just do them! I didn’t have any saddle issues, felt like my nutrition/hydration was great. I took the Sports Legs again, since the recovery from Outlaw was so easy.
Next time I ride w/ a group I want to write down everyone’s Bib Numbers so that if something does happen, I can locate people. I’m ready to get a better saddle to help cover longer distances. I need to start working on long routes w/ minimal pit stops. That will make a HUGE difference to ride through.
synergizesuccess :: συνεργός + επιτυχία 