My favorite way to bring in the new year

In 2006 I had done my first ever 10k and my first ever Triathlon which was a difficult race. In the Fall of 2006, I continued to play soccer and ride my bike. As 2006 ended I had not committed to any races in 2007. I knew I would probably do the Monument Avenue 10K again because it was not only fun to race but also training with my church group was fun. Beyond that, I did not really plan any races.

First I had to plan my New Years Day epic adventure. I had started a tradition the previous year of doing a very long bike ride with as many friends as possible. The previous year was just my friend Chris and I. We rode our mountain bikes from my house all the way out to Ashland to Poor Farm Park where there are some good mountain bike trails.

This time around, I had invited a bunch of friends to do the same ride- ride from our friends house out to Poor Farm, ride the trails, and then ride back. I had about 6 people lined up to do the ride. I awoke to the alarm at 6:00 AM on New Years Day. It was pouring rain. I was not sure if we would still be doing the ride or not. I decided that I better plan as if we were so I could be prepared. I ate my bananas and granola and drank my Red Bull. I put on on my riding gear and was pretty much ready to go when the phone rang. It was the first person dropping out. Soon after that call, the phone rang again and another person had dropped out. I called Mario and he was also out. But apparently Bill was up for it. He was on his way to Mario's. So I headed out in the pouring rain to ride over to Mario's house where we would meet and then head out to Poor Farm.

To summarize the ride, it was a great ride. It poured rain the whole time though. Not just drizzle but pouring rain. Bill and I rode hard on the road as if we were in a road race. We had to keep pushing it so we would stay warm. Parts of the road were under water which really slowed us down. When we got to the park, some of the trails were totally under water. We rode for about 45 minutes on the trails before stopping for a quick snack and then making our way back home.

The ride home was tough. Bill lead most of the way. I stayed on his tail so I could draft. The water was spraying off his tire into my face but I did not care. I wanted to stay close to him so the draft from his bike would help me along. There is one word to describe my friend Bill and his biking ability. Bill is a BEAST. He was nice enough to slow down when I fell off the back. We rode back to Mario's, went inside real quick to say hello and then made our way back home. It was a 45 mile ride in the pouring rain. I will never forget it. It was perfectly epic. A great way to start the new year.