Road to RAGBRAI: Metric Century

Distance: 63.5 mi / 102.1 km
Time: 5 hours 25 minutes
Route Taken: North Riverside, Cedar Valley Nature Trail

I tried to be a bit more prepared than last time I took a long ride. It appears that I'm not quite there yet, but I certainly did better this time.

I brought a peanut butter and honey (spun clover, mmmm) sandwich, some pretzels/honey roasted peanuts, 3 granola bars, a banana, two 32oz bottles of gatorade, and my two 20oz bottles full of water. One of the gatorade bottles had been shoved to the back of the fridge, so it was frozen. I figured it would melt by the time I got to it, so I took it with me anyway. I had a bowl of cereal before I left. For next time, I think another sandwich would be great, more to eat beforehand would be better, and I definitely need some more fluids. Well, one more water bottle anyway. My bottle of gatorade never did thaw out, so I bought another smaller one on the way home.

I took the same route that I did last time, I just went further along the trail. I wanted to make it to La Porte City this time, so I set that as my goal. The wind wasn't bad, but it was a headwind, so I got tired kind of quickly. I got warmed up ok though, after about 5 miles, and then was able to pedal without many problems.

I got to La Porte City and decided, for some reason, to keep going. I had heard that the trail bridge was still washed out over the Cedar River between La Porte and the town of Brandon, so I guess I wanted to see this for myself. I'm honestly a bit surprised that they haven't rebuilt it in the 4 years after the flood that destroyed it, but I suppose that a bridge wasn't their biggest priority. I plan on riding to Marion on Monday, so I will need to take a detour on a few county roads.

I really don't have much else to note about the trip, honestly. I was kind of light-headed but it didn't get as bad as last time, at least. As I said, I will likely need to eat/drink more, and just get used to the distance.

I did buy a new saddle a few days ago, just to test it out and see. It isn't molded up in the back like the other one is, but the part near the nose is wider so it still digs into my butt, just in a different place. It hurt quite a bit today by the end of the ride. I still haven't decided if its any better or any worse. I can return it within 30 days though, so I'll give it another week or two.

I might ride tomorrow if I have time, but not far. I need to get used to getting back on the bike after a long ride. My first big trip to Marion/Cedar Rapids on Monday, hopefully I make it with no problems!