My first dalmac will not be my last

I returned late last night from my very first dalmac. Dalmac is a 340 mile, 5 day bike ride from Lansing to Mackinaw City. I rode with my friend-in-law, Ken and his family. Ken and Buster have been super close friends since they were little kids. When I married Buster, Ken was just as much a part of the deal as Buster's parents and siblings. Luckily, Ken is one of those genuinely good people that you can't help but like. He and his dad and his uncles and cousins made me feel very welcome on this trip. I barely even noticed that I was the only girl in the group. By the end of the first day we were all laughing and trading barbs and having a fantastic time.

Here we are in Lansing about to get on our bikes for the 81.5 mile ride to Mt Pleasant.

Ken is the tall guy in the middle and that's me in the red and white jersey standing next to him. The guy on Ken's other side in the yellow is one of Ken's cousins and peeking over his shoulder is Ken's dad. Those two are a royal pain in the tush. The gentlemen on the far right and left are Ken's uncle and his uncle's friend. They were a joy to ride with.

Here's a stop in Lake George where we ate lunch and relaxed for a bit on the second day.
Day 2 took us 67.8 miles from Mt Pleasant to McBain. There were a ton of people on this ride. It seemed there were always other dalmac riders in view ahead or behind us, despite our late starts and long stops every day.

Here's some of our group on the road on day two.
That's Ken's uncle in front. See all the little banners below the orange dalmac flag? Every year you ride dalmac they give you another banner. He's ridden a LOT of dalmacs. So has Ken and most of the guys I was riding with.

When we reached McBain we grabbed our things from the baggage truck, hopped in Ken's van, and went to spend the night with Ken's aunt and uncle in Cadillac. They're super nice folks and they have a really beautiful house. They fed us a wonderful dinner and a fantastic breakfast the next morning and we all had a really nice time. Most of the boys slept on pull out couches and air mattresses. I got the guest bed and my own room. After hardly getting any sleep on the hard ground the night before, that bed was a little slice of heaven! I felt like a million bucks in the morning and I was more than ready for the 61.3 miles from McBain to Elk Rapids.

Day 3 was a great ride. The weather was perfect and the terrain was getting a little more hilly and scenic. I rode out ahead of the group for a while enjoying the rolling hills. On the third or fourth leg I was riding with Ken and his cousins. We cut loose a little and raced and chased each other through the hills. I had no trouble getting out ahead on the downhills, flats, and low grade climbs. But they all left me in the dust on the steeper climbs.

We pulled into Elk Rapids tired and happy. We gathered our things from the baggage truck, set up camp, and headed strait down for a dip in Elk Lake.
The water was a little chilly but it felt great anyhow.

Day 4 was the Day Of Pain. At 75.4 miles, the ride from Elk Rapids to Petoskey was the second longest day. It was also the hilliest day. 50 miles into the day we reached a low grade climb that went on and on. After about 2 miles of gentle climbing we came to a sign reporting a steep grade ahead. We turned a corner and arrived at The Wall. The Wall is an impossibly steep section of road. It's probably no more than a third of a mile long but it seems to head strait up. Walking up feels like climbing stairs. You really can't see how steep it is in the pictures.

Here's Ken's cousins climbing the wall. Look at that bum in the front showing off waving to the camera. He used to be a track star. I think that might be an unfair advantage here.

Here's Ken's cousin's friend climbing the wall. He rode that mountain bike the whole way. That guy's just plain strong. And determined.
Here's Ken climbing the wall. Ken did next to no training before this ride. With tactics, stubbornness, and raw strength he made it up the wall.

I'm a pretty strong rider and I trained quite a bit for this ride. But I couldn't get up the wall. I just wasn't strong enough.
I got within about 75 yards of the top before I simply couldn't turn over the pedals again. I stopped about 10 feet below where you see me standing. Next time I'll make it. It's one heck of a challenge!

When we reached Petoskey that evening I was more than ready to get off my bicycle. I could have used a nice long lukewarm shower. Instead, the showers were screwed up and the water was scalding hot. I ended up taking a sponge bath and washing my hair in the sink. I was tired and achy and crabby and I almost stayed behind when the guys went into town. As it turns out, sitting on the pier with a cold beer watching the sunset over Little Traverse Bay was the perfect balm for all my ills.

I couldn't help feeling a little sentimental and ended up with a couple great father-son photos.



The next day was the last. We had only 52.2 miles to ride from Petoskey to Mackinaw City. We slept in a little and took it easy, stopping several times and staying fairly close together for most of the ride. I ate ice cream and drank beer and enjoyed the scenery and the company.

Here we are a little more than half way through the day's ride at Leg's Inn in Cross Village overlooking Lake Michigan.
It was really a pretty day. We all took our time. I imagine everyone else felt the way I did. I was worn out and sore and glad the ride was coming to an end. At the same time I was sad that it was nearly over.

We arrived at Mackinaw City High School, our final destination, around 3:30pm. That must have been the slowest 52 miles I've ever ridden!
We tossed our gear in the van and strapped our bikes on top of The Chateau. We cleaned up a little and changed our clothes and hit the road.

Before turning south we made a quick stop for fudge and taffy and souvenirs near the Mackinac bridge where I snapped a picture.

It was a wonderful trip. I rode every mile of the route (except that little bit of the wall -- and I'll conquer that next time!) and had loads of fun hanging out with Ken and his family. I'm grateful to Ken for inviting me along. I couldn't possibly have fallen in with a more fun or friendly group. This will definitely not be my last dalmac. And I sure hope Ken and his family keep riding because I plan to crash their dalmac family vacations as often as I possibly can.