thinline
Posts:325
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| 06/23/2013 10:49 AM |
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Well, all went well. 212 miles with somewhere in the neighborhood of 11,500 in climbing, the vast majority of that from mile 140 to the finish. Rode smart, stayed on top of fluids and food, had to dig way deep at times on the hard climbs and went places I never went before and experienced that crazy break through the suffering euphoria heading for the summits of the late ride climbs. Awesome experience and one great big EFF YOU to that damn car accident 2.5 years ago. Some of the VeloNews refugees know about that. Thanks for the advice and encouragement. Time for a shot of Patron Silver and a nap! |
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huckleberry
Posts:824
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| 06/23/2013 11:00 AM |
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Congrats!
Sounds like a great ride and an even better memory ; ) |
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cycling chick
Posts:72
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| 06/23/2013 11:12 AM |
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| You are THE man! Congratulations on an EPIC ride! It sounds fantastic. |
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jmdirt
Posts:775
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| 06/23/2013 11:24 AM |
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I have so much respect for you now...no, not because you came back from an ugly crash and rode 200+ miles, because you drink Patron Silver! ;} I love that stuff! For a refreshing summer drink try three shots of Patron Silver with one shot of real lemonade over crushed ice.
Good ride! |
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Oldfart
Posts:511
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| 06/23/2013 11:42 AM |
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| Good on ya mate |
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Entheo
Posts:317
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| 06/23/2013 11:47 AM |
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| double chapeau |
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ChinookPass
Posts:809
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| 06/23/2013 01:18 PM |
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| I'm very excited for you, Thinline. Awesome! |
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Dale
Posts:1767
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| 06/23/2013 02:19 PM |
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| I remember the wreck. Congratulation on the comeback, well done |
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79pmooney
Posts:3189
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| 06/23/2013 02:19 PM |
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Good work. Up there with my two huge victories. 10th place in the State championships, '78 after my head injury. A break got away and took places 1-8. No way I had any business riding the front with 50 miles to go! 2 miles from the finish on the small hill, 9th place got away. I wanted to go there, but he beat me to it and chasing him down would have killed it for both of us. I took off at the town line sign, half mile to go and pulled the surprise. It worked. That 10th place was a huge victory!
3 months later, I rode the Mt Washington road race as a Cat 2. My district rep (who watched my States 10th place and who was at our club's awards dinner 4 days after my accident) upgraded me just so I could ride that race. She watched me spend July and August getting repeatably dropped in shorter races as I tried to get up to speed. We started the race on a VERY windy day. Upwind the first 3 hours with just 40 riders. The day's break with all the strongest legs went near the end of that windy stretch. I got dropped but stayed in the middle of the lane so the wheel vcan with the rep in the front seat could not pass me. She watched me struggle to catch the next rider, then the next and finally back on. I finished in the field. Again, a huge victory!
These rides were nowhere near your ride yesterday. But for the guy who walked out of the hospital the fall before unable to beat up a 5 year old, they were as big as Mt Everest.
And I rode the super hilly Cycle Oregon last fall fixed on Jessica J, the bike that was being built a year before when Jessica aka Team Dumpster was hit by the car. I didn't see your euphoria. But I did dance up Dead Indian Road out of Ashland for 16 miles trading places with a woman riding for a child named Sarah with cancer on day 6.
A long way of saying I know how big this is for you. Congrats!
Ben |
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thinline
Posts:325
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| 06/23/2013 02:47 PM |
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Thanks to all. Really, very much.
Ben, yeah, I've read your posts over time and know how much you get it. I'm sure others here do, too. But, I pick up on it from your posts directly. Your reply brought tears to my eyes. For some reason when I finished I was really controlled. Maybe exhaustion or focus. But it hit this morning when I woke up. All I could do was think about the worst two hours I could imagine where I was wondering whether if I would survive or if I did would I even walk again, much less bike or ski. The tbi, ptsd symptoms all overwhelmed me and I bawled like a baby, but with relief and happiness. |
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longslowdistance
Posts:2886
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| 06/23/2013 06:25 PM |
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Wow, very impressive, "Congratulations!" doesn't begin to show my respect for what you've accomplished.
I raise a glass of milk to you for your comeback (inside joke.)
What was the route? Last double century I rode in VT (many years ago) was rt 100 at the Canadian border to VT30 to US 5 to the Mass line, I think the same distance. That was hard. |
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dkri
Posts:95
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| 06/23/2013 06:28 PM |
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Great job. I finished my long ride, which is funny because at 125 miles it was nothing even close to what you did, yet it was a way bigger ride than I've ever done. But yesterday was just a ride for me, not so for you. The simple 20 or so miles I did with a very select group of good friends after very badly breaking my leg and being on crutches for a few months, not able to ride outside (can't ride outside if you can't walk), not really knowing what I would or wouldn't be able to do anymore, was much more my version of what you did yesterday.
Congrats. |
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| formerly dkri |
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thinline
Posts:325
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| 06/23/2013 07:26 PM |
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| LSD, I think you did the original route on this ride. It was changed a few years ago and in East Jamaica where 30 goes to Brattleboro 100 turns right and up and over through Wardsboro to Mount Snow. The "official" route now ends off of a road called Tunnel Street out of Readsboro. Cool someone here has been on the route and done it! |
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Pin0Q0
Posts:229
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| 06/23/2013 07:30 PM |
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| Awesome, just freaking awesome. congrats. |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 06/23/2013 09:45 PM |
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| Good stuff |
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