One Helluva Ride! 2008

The gods were not smiling on One Helluva Ride this year. Bad weather and a chemical spill conspired to overshadow the amazing work of the OHR organizers and volunteers.

I got up at the crack of dawn and drove out to the Chelsea fairgrounds hoping I could get my 100 mile ride in before the bad weather hit. There were probably two or three hundred cars already in the parking area when I arrived. The threat of bad weather sure didn't keep too many people away!

I was all checked in and on my bicycle pulling out of the fairgrounds just before 7:30am. Less than a mile into the route, still in Chelsea, we needed to make a left at a fairly busy intersection with a "smart" left turn light. When I'm on a bicycle "smart" lights are one of my pet peeves. What's one to do when the traffic signals never change in your favor? The only thing we could do was run the light. Some riders were more considerate about it than others. Kudos to the riders that politely yielded to motorists before running the red. Next year maybe we can ask the Chelsea police if they wouldn't mind posting an officer at this intersection to help us out.

I actually feel a bit whiny mentioning that intersection because the number of police and sag along the route was absolutely wonderful. There were friendly faces at nearly all the busier intersections. I do a fair number of these tours and OHR has more police and sag support than any other ride I've done. And every year it seems to get even better.

You'd think all this police presence would remind motorists to slow down, be patient, and give cyclists plenty of room. But the morning was not without incident. On the west side of Dexter I saw a cyclist was being loaded into an ambulance. She was conscious and on her feet, so I think she'll be ok. On the east side of Dexter I rode past a rider holding a handkerchief to his face. He told me he'd been clipped by a car and he and his friend had already called for assistance. There was a cop at the intersection not a mile behind us. I sure hope someone got a license plate number!

The rest of the first leg of the ride went quite well. The sun was still peeking out below the clouds. The air was heavy and we all knew the rain was coming, but not quite yet. Several miles north of Dexter we turned west onto Darwin Rd and headed toward Hell, MI. Maybe I'm a complete dork, or maybe I just like to poke fun at the Creationists, but I sure do get a kick out of the fact that Darwin is the road to Hell.

While riding the hills of Hell I happened upon Paulie. I met Paulie back in May on the DCC's Metro Grand Spring Tour. On the MGST he was with a couple other riders that rode at about the same pace I do. This time he was with a girl I hadn't met before and I had a hard time keeping up. When we reached the first rest stop (28 miles in) I quickly tucked all stuff I wanted to keep dry into ziplock bags (the rain was definitely coming), grabbed a banana, filled my water bottles with gatorade, and said goodbye to Paulie. I didn't want to waste any time as I was still hoping to get the full 100 in before the weather got nasty. I figured Paulie and his friend would catch up with me before lunch. Sadly, I didn't see them again.

At around 40 miles a couple gentlemen passed me slowly enough to chat a bit. The clouds were starting to look ominous and we all agreed we were likely to get wet. I boldly proclaimed that I didn't mind getting a little wet, I just didn't want hail or lightening. Literally two minutes later I got my wish. Ten minutes later it was raining hard enough to hurt, I was soaked to the bone, and the whole thing stopped being fun. The rain finally let up then stopped all together just a few minutes before I pulled into the lunch stop at Portage Lake in Waterloo State Recreation Area.

I called Buster (in case you're new around here, that's what I call my husband) while I was eating my peanut butter and banana sandwich with a side of yummy pasta salad. He said the weather forecast was not looking too good. When I'd checked the forecast that morning the winds were expected to kick up in the afternoon with the worst of the storms hitting around 4pm. Armed with a dismal forecast but no immediate signs of bad weather I forged ahead thinking I might still be able to make the 100 miles but giving myself permission to take the shorter route if the weather looked bad when I reached the split.

The 100 mile route splits from the 79 mile route right near the Race Rd exit of I-94. The 100 mile route heads west a mile or two on Ann Arbor Rd then heads south to Napoleon before turning back north to Grass Lake, while the shorter route turns East along the service drive for a bit before taking a more direct route to Grass Lake.

As I rode south on Race Rd approaching I-94 I discovered a big knot of traffic. There was a cop directing traffic and an OHR volunteer stationed near the corner to inform us that the 100 mile loop was closed due to a chemical spill just a mile or so west of us. Everyone, motorists and cyclists alike, were being directed East along the service drive. While I was disappointed that riders would not be allowed to ride the longer loop (I helped paint the markings along that loop), I was a bit relieved to have the decision made for me. I would take the 79 mile route the rest of the way (at this point my knees, legs, and sore tush were all quite grateful).

The rest stop in Grass Lake is outside a very nifty old train station. There was a barber shop quartet here this year to serenade the riders. They were pretty gosh darn good. I rested, stretched, ate cookies and bananas, refilled my bottles, and discussed the virtues of a clean shower, a dry towel, and a cold beer with some like minded women. Then I headed out to complete the ride.

At this point the wind really picked up. Luckily it was out of the south so we had a good tail wind for several miles until we turned east for the final leg of the ride back into Chelsea. There were friendly volunteers and plenty of watermelon to greet riders returning to the fairgrounds.

I was dead tired so I skipped the watermelon and headed strait home for that nice clean shower and dry towel I'd been dreaming about for the last 16 miles. A handful of ibuprofen, a nice long nap, and copious amounts of Thai food later I felt human again. Many thanks to the bossman for bringing the Thai food!

The more I think about this year's ride the more proud I am to have been part of the group that made it happen. The weather and the chemical spill were bummers, but everything that could be controlled was nearly perfect. The route was well planned and well marked with both signs and street markings (I helped with a section of the street painting). The maps and cue sheets were flawless. The rest stops and lunch stops were well spaced, fully stocked with good food and beverages, and run by hardworking friendly folks. The sags were copious and responsive and the police were reassuringly ubiquitous. And the t-shirts are really classy. I don't think I could possibly be more impressed or more proud of the folks that made all this happen.

I am more than a little disappointed that I have yet to complete a century this year. I might head down to Findlay, Ohio in September for the Hancock Horizontal Hundred. I know that at least a couple other aabts members will be there and I'm still holding out hope that Mary's knee will stop being so cranky and let her back on her bicycle by then. But I'd really like to have a century under my belt this summer before I ride DALMAC at the end of August so I might just have to map one out myself and do my very first unsupported century. It's a rather daunting thought... We'll see if I can work up the courage to give it a shot.