Beautiful Buena Vista Colorado. The place where I just rode my first Century Ride (100 miles). Buena Vista is one of my favorite places in Colorado- so much so that I would consider living there….So what a great place for my first Century!

I drove down to BV w/my good friend TJ. She wasn’t riding in the Bike Fest but wanted to get away- and as my others had bagged at the last minute it was great to have her come along. We stayed in this great old hotel and got to bed at a descent time.

Saturday morning came and I was up at 5:30. I have never done a Bike Festival before- I’ve only raced triathlons- so the idea of there not being an official start time was strange. It seems at a Bike Festival you start whenever you want to. I decided a 7:30 start would be a good time for me…

I got up-had my instant oatmeal-tried to figure out what to wear (it was windy, cool and overcast)-decided w/TJ’s help on the clothing- and then went outside. As I brought my bike out, I met a woman from Gunnison who was waiting on her friends. They were about an hour away from being ready so the two of us decided to start our ride together.

We rode for about 45 mins then she decided to ride faster than I was ready to….I soon caught up with two other women who seemed to be riding at a pace I was comfortable with. I told them I was riding alone and asked if I could join them. They graciously agreed to let me tag along. And thus began the 6 hour journey w/ Heather and Michelle!

We had a ball- talking and getting to know each other. Both are rock climbers so we had fun stories to talk about. We hit the first aid station- fueled and watered up- then hit the road for a good 2 hour pedal…..

So this next two hours was the section where we began our serious climbing. We cycled up to Turgoise Lake- rode around the back side and then began the serious climb! The ride around the lake was beautiful and I enjoyed it as it was mostly flat…little did I know what lay ahead ;0

And so began the climb…this is were we seperated to go at our own pace w/Heather taking the lead. I had no idea how long the climb would be and welcomed the top! The climb was HARD and took a lot of effort. It seemed to go on and on and on….and just kept getting steeper! Not sure if that’s true, but it seemed like it to me!

But finally I made it to the top and there I met Pam who needed some food and I gladly shared a PopTart with her. This was just what she needed-and so began the downhill section w/Pam! That’s the fun thing about a Festival as opposed to a race. You get to meet people and talk to them…not just race by them.

After the downhill section-we arrived in Leadville for a fabulous Lunch! I regrouped with Heather and Michelle and we ate lunch together. The best part of lunch for me was the really yummy, stong coffee that one of the local cafe’s made! I soooo enjoyed that w/my turkey burrito!

Following lunch we were faced w/ a climb out of Leadville that took us onto a bike path which circumnavigated the town. This was brutal after cooling down…But after a bit my legs warmed up again and the climb didn’t seem so bad….I must say- I was psyched when we got through w/ those 10 miles of climbing.

The rest of the ride was pretty much downhill. We stopped for fuel about mile 70 and then it was literally the horse to the barn type action. We just pedaled back to Buena Vista in a pace line….Heather wanted to be in front, blocking the wind, the whole way, so Michelle and I obliged her! It was just fun, fun, fun!!!

One thing I discovered in riding my first century-Is it’s a heck of a lot easier than running 30 miles!! I wasn’t even sore when I got done! I couldn’t believe it! There was not stiffining up- or sore anything! And I definatly felt that I could have run when I got off the bike- Not a marathon mind you…but it’s nice to know that this early in my training I would feel good running following 100 miles of biking…..
Whodathunk!

All I can say- is a Bike Festival is a great adventure! The people are great, the atmosphere is awesome, and the time just flies by! I have to give a special shout out to Michelle and Heather- they were very kind to let me ride with them…and being w/ them is part of what made this such a great experience!!!!!