Well, I survived the Centurion 50 and let's just say the 100 mile event is not in my future!
I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for the donations and support. I was able to raise over $800 and the team came in at over $5000. When you consider the awareness that was also generated, the event was really a tremendous success.
There were three major hill climbs on the course and they really messed with my head. Just as you think you have reached the top (a flat section), after climbing for 5 km, you see you are maybe halfway up the hill. On the very first hill, my chain broke (whether it was related to my leg strength or poor shifting will be a topic of debate for many years) and jammed in my crank. Thanks to the great on course repair service, I was back on my way with a new chain in about 15 minutes.
On the second hill, I saw a sign that said KOM in one mile. I thought I was about to enjoy our one main rest stop, but it was, in fact, a timed uphill on one of the hardest parts of the course. To put it in perspective, Simon Whitfield (former Olympian Simon Whitfield) did the climb in a little over nine minutes. It took me just under 18.
The third climb was the greatest challenge and gave me a lot of time to reflect -- at this point, I was 3 hours and 45 minutes into a race I thought I could finish in three and a half hours. I pushed through that wall by drawing inspiration from Kate who has had to work ten times harder than other kids to learn to walk and communicate. For someone who was told she would never walk or go to school in a mainstream class, she has rightly defied those narrow expectations and walked into school for her first day this September. If Kate can do all that, surely I can climb a hill.
Ken
I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for the donations and support. I was able to raise over $800 and the team came in at over $5000. When you consider the awareness that was also generated, the event was really a tremendous success.
There were three major hill climbs on the course and they really messed with my head. Just as you think you have reached the top (a flat section), after climbing for 5 km, you see you are maybe halfway up the hill. On the very first hill, my chain broke (whether it was related to my leg strength or poor shifting will be a topic of debate for many years) and jammed in my crank. Thanks to the great on course repair service, I was back on my way with a new chain in about 15 minutes.
On the second hill, I saw a sign that said KOM in one mile. I thought I was about to enjoy our one main rest stop, but it was, in fact, a timed uphill on one of the hardest parts of the course. To put it in perspective, Simon Whitfield (former Olympian Simon Whitfield) did the climb in a little over nine minutes. It took me just under 18.
The third climb was the greatest challenge and gave me a lot of time to reflect -- at this point, I was 3 hours and 45 minutes into a race I thought I could finish in three and a half hours. I pushed through that wall by drawing inspiration from Kate who has had to work ten times harder than other kids to learn to walk and communicate. For someone who was told she would never walk or go to school in a mainstream class, she has rightly defied those narrow expectations and walked into school for her first day this September. If Kate can do all that, surely I can climb a hill.
Ken