the hardest week of riding

This past week we have faced the hardest week of riding we will have on this trip. It was very rough, and exhausting. Quick recap...

Poughkeepsie to Port Jervis: 64 miles...don't remember too much about it cause it feels so long ago. I was feeling pretty dizzy after lunch (probably dehydrated) so I called the van for the last 14 miles and gave myself a break.

Port Jervis to Mt. Pocono: 60 miles (Port to Mountain...) There was a 4 mile slow climb at the end that just killed me. I got a flat right before it and it was hot. We made it though and got ice cream.

Mt. Pocono to Berwick: 60 miles? It was another hot day with a big climb. I stopped to help 3 people with a flat and then got one of my own so it was a long day. We had a nice downhill into town and I stopped for ice cream where I met 5 lovely old ladies from Philly who talked to us for awhile. That was a lot of fun.

Berwick to State College: 100 miles!! My first century. I was freaking out about it before it happened but it was my favorite ride so far. There was a long but not steep climb after lunch and then a bunch of rolling hills. I got a flat (3rd one) right off but I managed to fix it and catch up with people. After lunch I stuck with a group and we stopped to look at Penn's Cave, at a former B&Bers house for tea and rope swinging, and then for ice cream before arriving at the house we were staying at. The last 20 miles were rough just in terms of wanting to be done but it was a great and beautiful ride.

State College to Johnstown: 80 miles. This was very rough. On top of the century yesterday, this had a huge mountain to climb right after lunch. A lot of people ended up in the van but I got through it with help from my friend Jo. It was a huge mental test for me and I proved I was a lot stronger than I thought I was. The last bit was a 14% grade descent into town that scared the living crap out of me because I hate going that fast down and I didn't know if I'd be able to break in time to make the turn at the end. It all worked out though, and the YWCA we stayed at was really nice.

Johnstown to PITTSBURG: 80 miles. I was riding sweep yesterday, which means that Meg and I had to be the last riders in and stop with anyone who had a problem. Within the first 20 miles we'd stopped for one rider pickup and 3 flats. By the time we left lunch it was 2 in the afternoon and we had another 40 miles to go. By mile 48 I wanted to stop. There were just a lot of hills and they were steep and my body was exhausted. I fought for another 18 miles before it was 5 o'clock and we were still 14 miles away. One of the leaders called to see if we wanted to get picked up and I finally said yes. I felt bad for Meg cause she wanted to continue but I knew there was a giant hill coming up and then a ride through downtown Pittsburgh (the "worst" area). It would have taken us forever and I just didn't want to put myself through it. It took 2 1/2 hours for the van to get to us (which i used to read US weekly) but I knew I made the right decision on the ride into town. The hills we would have hit were NEVER ENDING and STEEP. The peopple in the van after lunch saw them and were horrified for us. Even the fastest group didn't get in until 5 which is unheard of. Everyone was hurting.

Last night I just ate, showered, got into my PJs, called Michaela and left messages for a couple others, and then went to bed. A bunch of people had gone out by the time we got in so it was really quiet for awhile. Then a bunch of them came back and then out again right as I was about to go to bed so I hung out with them for awhile.

Today we have a day off. Thank goodness. I don't think anyone wants to be on their bikes today. Unfortunately, I have to go to a bike shop because I did all of the climbing and stuff with messed up gears that made my life a lot more difficult. I also need new tires cause I have the crappy stock tires and one of them has a small hole. But other than that, my only plans include breakfast at a place this girl from Pittsburgh loves. I want to relax.

This week was the roughest riding of the trip and I survived pretty well. I spent only 30 of the over 400 miles we did in the van and I made it through. They were long, hard days, but I proved that I can do this and I'm really excited about the rest of the trip. And I am really excited we are almost done with stupid mountains for awhile. Other than the rough riding, the trip is going pretty well and I am 150% glad I decided to do this.

Oh, I also talked to Graham for about an hour the other day swapping stories which was great. He told me about his riding buddy, Sarah. Guess who had the lemonade stand for us with the rope swing in State College. Sarah! Skip, one of the leaders is on this trip a lot because of her and I am on this trip because of Graham. The dynamic duo strikes again.