Sunday, September 25, 2011

Big Dam (damn!) Bridge Bike Ride 2011, Little Rock

This is everyone but Kyle and Kara (Jackie's in the distance)
Bob, Polly, Beth, Cecilia, Stan and Martin
 Saturday, September24, 2011

Oh the Big Dam Bridge 50 mile bike ride....last year was so fun even though my 3 flat tires held us all up.  But this year...hmmm... the jury's still out on this one.  We were all enjoying the scenery and conversation until the aid station at Cato, Ark. at about 38 miles.  Then the hurt began when hill after hill then that 3rd hill that we all got off and walked up EXCEPT Kara's mom Polly and Stan.  Jackie was wondering if Polly's dopping....just kidding..she rides 30+ miles every day.  She's made of some kind of steel.  I will say that once in North Little Rock, we cut through a gas station parking lot, I almost got bumped by a car and got behind everyone.  Then a low blood sugar (thank God for the sensor) and another hill, I could feel my thighs burning and had a moment of silence being all alone.  And in Burns Park, a 100 mile finisher passed me and said, "you've got it made (as I was going about 10 mph) the finish line is straight ahead".  I did try and hook it on in.

Hmm....I loved cycling with our BBC group and visiting about family, food, church, kids and joking about where Kara had her hair cut back in the 80s, and talk of big bangs, feathers and home perms...but one thing's for sure....next year, I'll be sure to check out the BDB website and make sure they've changed the crazy 2011 50 mile route.  It was rough, I'm telling you, rough.  And a quote from two passerby cyclists, "enough with the hills already, " and another, "this is not the Big Dam Bridge, it's the Big Damn Hills" and for me, "it's the Big DAMN Bridge 58 mile bike ride".  A shout out for their tshirt, it said, "It just the Big Dam Bridge...Get over it!"  I guess I should too...

Oh and a note about the 100...according to Kyle and Martin, it was 106 miles and don't use a new seat for a 100 miler...b-b-bbbuuurrrnnn....:)

A shout out must be given to the wonderful, friendly aid stations.  The cookies, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, pickles, gatoraide and toilets were so nice!


I am guessing there were 5,000 plus riders.  The LaHarpe and ?

Even though the start time was 7:30, we arrived at 7:45 and
still had to wait until the cyclists thinned out

Polly had trouble with her odometer...Kyle got on it, but it
was unfixable....she'll have to put one on her Santa list

Thank God for the finish line....that ride nearly killed me the last
10 miles....

At the Mayflower, Ark aid station, mile 24.  We all felt good but
little did we know on the 58 mile loop there were 6 hills to come...
Me, Cecilia, Bob, Polly, Jackie, Kara, Beth and Stan

The view while crossing the Big Dam Bridge....it was a beautiful
day to ride bikes.....it's a little blurry!

This is at the beginning of the bridge, that's Kara
and Cecilia, Stan and Jackie are up ahead

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