The week of Cycle NC just keeps getting better and better. The day started out a bit chilly once again, but quickly warmed up. Riding into the morning sun certainly helped. Riders started breaking camp and hitting the road around 7:15 a.m. heading to Henderson, NC.
I stayed in Graham last night, a short 7 miles away from the campground. I decided to solo ride back to the campground to pick up with others on the route. Soon after passing the campground and riding thru Mebane I picked up another rider named Dan and we safely peddled around the bike traffic while making our way to the first stop. He seemed like a fairly strong rider and was latched to my wheel so I invited Dan to ride with me and Howard who was waiting at the first stop.
Sure enough, Ole Howard was there waiting. We stopped long enough to top of our bottles and grab some air in my tires. Then it was on! The three of us rode a great pace and worked together the entire route. What a fun ride that was.
The route today took us thru Butner, NC, the new home for Mr. Bernie Maddoff. I looked but didn’t see him out in the prison yard managing anyone’s cigarette stash. Maybe the other prisoners have already lost too much with him. Rumor has it he is a pretty piss poor money manager. After that we rolled into the town of Butner Park where one of our rest stops was awaiting. A quick bio break and a bottle topper and we were once again on our way.
The next 22 miles consisted of a series of rolling hills thru the back country roads. Maintaining our pace was hard, but we kept pushing thru the pain, and took turns leading the group. We met a couple of very strong riding ladies from Southern Pines named Malyn and Elizabeth. They worked with us for a while and eventually decided to back off a bit. However, they blew right thru the last stop and were sitting at the finish line when we arrived.
For the next ten miles we cranked the peddling train back up and kept it going strong until we reached the finish line. The friendly volunteers from the Henderson YMCA were standing at the finish line banging cow bells and cheering the riders on. A big thanks to all the volunteers that stood out there for at least 8 hours today welcoming riders.
I was extremely excited to see one of the vendors selling YooHoo drinks. Man that’s my favorite recovery drink (other than Fat Tire Beer). I grabbed two YooHoos and knocked them down. Ahhhhhhhhh.
Today my motel was literally right across the street. This was certainly nice because I knew I could go check in, shower, and run back over to the YMCA and grab a 30 minute massage from the Sunshine Massage therapists that are traveling with us all week long. My legs were hurting a lot worse than I thought they were.
Being close by also allowed me to hang out and take some Cycle NC photos. These include riders coming in, volunteers, the camp grounds, and some historic town sights. As I look out the motel window now riders are still trickling in.
Tonight is going to be a chill out night for most. The town of Henderson is hosting an event in the historic district for Cycle NC. Rumor has it, there will be bands and FREE BEER. Yeh Buddy!
Well, that’s it for now. I need to clean up my new 2012 Pinarello Paris and get her ready for tomorrow’s ride. Then It’s Beer:30.
Finney