Prologue
The ride started from its usual location at Gordon State College in Barnesville. As Robert and I drove into town Saturday morning, we stopped at McDonald's for a bathroom break and for coffee for Robert. As I waited for Robert to get his order, I noticed a group of older men hanging out and having breakfast. They looked just like the group of older men who meet every morning in Monticello and probably every other small town in America. One of the men was wearing a hat that had the words "FBI" and "JESUS" on it with some smaller words in between. It was like a gothic detail from a Flannery O'Connor story; I just had to know what the other words were. I couldn't decipher them from the few surreptitious glances I made, and so I walked a little closer. By that time, it was pretty obvious that I was staring. I said, "I'm sorry. I'm just trying to read your hat." The man wasn't offended at all. In fact, the whole group was quite jovial and started poking fun at each other the way longtime friends do. Here's what the entire hat read: "FBI Firm Believer in Jesus." Kind of creepy and hilarious all at the same time. I love the South. Even though this man's brand of Christianity isn't the same as mine, I felt a kinship with him. In the words of Sting, "It's a big enough umbrella..."
Peaceful Easy Feeling
Eight of us rolled out of the college parking lot, followed by Jennifer Cain, who very graciously drove the SAG vehicle for us all day. Thank you, Jennifer! Stony joined us several miles into the route, riding from his home in Lizella. (Those of us who rode from Barnesville did a total of 126 miles, but Stony did somewhere around 175 miles!) Daniel also joined us later, riding from his home in Thomaston.
The weather during the first weekend in February, when we usually have the Pine Mountain Challenge, tends to be beautiful. Saturday the temperature was mostly in the 40s and 50s, and the sky was a brilliant blue. Add some glorious woods and rivers, and that's winter riding in Georgia at its finest.
Knowing that it would be a challenge for me to hang with the guys, I sat in for the entire ride. Before Daniel joined us, we had an odd number, and so I just enjoyed chilling on the back of the peloton. The guys were chatting with each other, adding a pleasant, murmuring backdrop to my reverie. We averaged about 21 mph for the first 50 miles, and I barely felt like I was putting out any effort. I knew that wouldn't last forever, though.
"P" is for Power
The first hiccup in my ride was only about an hour in as we approached pee break time. I was really starting to need it. When Stony said, "I'll be ready to stop whenever somebody calls a pee break," I said, "I hear ya!" Then he suggested that I call it. So I did. Whoa! The peloton stopped immediately! Riding past the others to find a secluded spot, I joked, "I have the power!"
My dominion didn't last long. It's always a challenge to pee quickly because I have to dash into the woods while the guys just pause by the side of the road. Wintertime can be especially challenging. Saturday I had to take off both my jacket and my jersey to be able to pull down my bib shorts. As I stumbled through the brush back toward my bicycle as the guys were riding by, Robert joked, "Are you lost?" I said, "Not all who wander are lost." Of course, my gloves had to be finicky as I tried to put them back on. I went as fast as I could but saw the peloton getting farther and farther away. At last I was ready to go again and took off. Fortunately, Jennifer had hung back in the SAG vehicle and helped me motorpace back to the group. Just what I needed - an exhausting L4 effort with more than 100 miles to go!
The Climb(s) up Pine Mountain
I was still feeling fairly strong after several hours. We decided not to stop at the store in Shiloh around mile 57. I was fine with that because I had plenty of food and drink to last until our lunch stop at Dowdell's Knob, about 18 miles farther. It was no picnic getting there, though.
I knew that an attack zone was planned for the climb to the ridge along Pine Mountain. Not surprisingly, I got dropped at the attack zone. I just kept pedaling as strongly as I could. Jake added a bonus to this year's route. Once we got to the top of Pine Mt., we descended and rode through a beautiful part of FDR State Park that I had never visited before. The bonus was that we had to climb back up to the ridge a second time. As if once weren't enough. Oh, well, I just put my head down and powered my way up again.
Once I got back up on the ridge, it was still six miles to Dowdell's Knob, and it wasn't flat along the ridge. Jeff Kahley and I rode the last few miles to the lunch stop together. The road from Highway 190 to Dowdell's Knob is only a moderate climb, but it seemed pretty hefty after the two climbs we had just made up to the ridge. And it seemed to go on forever! But at last we made it to the rest of the group, who had already arrived.
Dowdell's Knob
Dowdell's Knob was a favorite picnic spot of Franklin D. Roosevelt when he visited his Little White House in nearby Warm Springs. It's easy to see why he took such solace here (photos never do justice to the view):
We ate lunch at the overlook. I had made sure to label by lunch sack because I didn't want anyone to steal my sardines:
I can't carry crackers in my jersey because they would get smashed to crumbs, but thanks to the SAG vehicle, I got to have saltines with my sardines on Saturday. Fancy!
This was our only real stop of the day, and so I had to soak it up:
You’re Getting Very Sleepy
The plan was to stay together the rest of the way, riding two up. I resumed my position at the back of the peloton. Shortly after our lunch stop, I started getting really sleepy on my bike. Not fatigued, but sleepy – like I could lie down by the side of the road and take a nap. This has happened another time or two on Peach Peloton after a stop. It must be my blood redirecting to my digestive system after I eat. I haven’t noticed this sleepiness after eating during randonneuring events, and so I suspect the intensity of Peach Peloton has something to do with it. Fortunately, I have been able to fight my way through it and feel (relatively) normal again.
Although the sleepiness went away, fatigue from exertion started to affect me. We approached Cove Road, where the guys slightly ramped it up. At about mile 94, next to the big satellite dishes, I finally had to back off. I waved Jennifer in the SAG vehicle around me and told her to stay with the front group. Even though I would be riding the rest of the way by myself, it was worth it to be able to go at a manageable pace. Robert later told me that if I had hung on for just five or ten more minutes, I could have stayed with the group the rest of the way because they finally sat up. Maybe. But I certainly wouldn’t have predicted that based on the usual Peach Peloton m.o.
Solo Riding
I plodded on, not worrying about my speed but simply trying to ride steadily. About 108 miles in, I decided that a five-minute break would do me a lot of good. I stopped at a church where I had tried – unsuccessfully – to get water three years ago during the Pine Mountain Challenge. This time, I had plenty of Gatorade. I just wanted a safe place to get off the road, and the grassy area next to the church fit the bill. It’s amazing how much that brief break helped. By the way, later I noticed on the Strava map of my ride that I had stopped right next to Buzzard Mountain. If I had lingered too long, the buzzards might have mistaken me for dinner.
The remaining miles dwindled. With about four miles to go, here came Robert in our car. He knew better than to try to convince me to stop there, but he was very thoughtful to follow me the rest of the way back to Gordon State College.
Post-Ride
Back at the parking lot, I changed into warm clothes as quickly as my tired bones would allow. Robert drove us to Jonah’s, a decent pizza place in Forsyth that was on the way home. It may not be IVP (Ingleside Village Pizza in Macon, our very favorite pizza place and one of our team sponsors), but Jonah’s got the job done.
When I got home, I took a nice, warm shower and changed into flannel pajamas and my robe. Even so, I still felt chilled. Robert said he felt the same way. We attributed it to our bodies starting the repair work after our hard effort. It was a luxurious feeling to know that I would be able to rest and sleep for the next 12 hours.
I'll be ready when Peach Peloton season rolls around again next November. Peach Peloton may be tough, but it is so worthwhile – yet another way that cycling is like life. And I’m grateful to have such great companions along the way.
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| My Peach Peloton Peeps Front (L-R): Van, Stony, Robert, me, Jake, John Back (L-R): Cal, Daniel, Jeff K., Cody |
awesome blog, and thanks for sharing. The storytelling aspect is a work of art, and you do it well. Cannot wait to read about your spring adventures
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for following along! I'm glad you're enjoying my write-ups.
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