This past weekend I rode my bike about 150-something miles from Houston to Austin to help raise money for the MS Society. This is my fourth year to ride and, while I had a great time and it's a worthy cause, it ended up being very expensive! First, I ride for my wife's team and she volunteers (setting up stuff, serving food, etc...) at the overnight in La Grange. My wife drove my truck up to the corporate tent and ended up scraping the *&#@ out of the passenger side door on one of those big, metal tent poles. Second, I was in the first rest-area in Buescher State Park when this guy fell off his bike (couldn't un-clip fast enough) and landed on my rear wheel bending the rim. The bike mechanic at the rest stop looked at the wheel and declared that I would need a new one. He did get it fixed enough so that I could ride it the rest of the way. However, just after leaving that rest stop something stung me on my face... Other than that it was a great two days! The wind was VERY strong but mostly at my back. There were some stretches were I was able to get up (and sustaine) 25/26 MPH on my own (no drafting). I also got my bike up to 42 MPH on that big down-hill just before the Park. I know some other people on this board ride, any of you have any stories?
A few years ago a friend and I rode our bikes from Spring to about 40 miles from Austin. It was a few days after the MS150. We were not very fit, we just quit smoking and we were drinking the entire time. The only thing we took with us were sleeping bags strapped to our bikes, an Exxon gas card and a back pack full of hot beer. It took us one night and a day. We got about half way there when we just couldn't go any further. It was probably 10, 11 o clock at night. We climbed up this hill on the side of the road and walk across a field where we went to sleep. (didn't want to be in sight of the highway) Woke up the next morning with cows all around us and sun beating down on us. It was hard but we made it to some store/bar about 40 miles outside of Austin. I was in bad shape, my eyes were red and tears rolling down my face from allergies. People thought I was depressed and crying because we were really late for the MS150. They started trying to cheer us up by buying us beer. We told them that we were not a part of it and then we lied. We said we came from Florida and were heading to California. They started to cheer us on and buy us even more beer. They also didn't know that we had called a friend from Austin to pick us up. We had to sneak out the bar so they wouldn't find out. We carved our names outside on the left side of the bar. (I think it's the store side) Good times...
