I have to start off by saying Happy Birthday to Chris! He celebrated by eating Mr. Pork Chop and having a Tailwind!
He also had his first Beekman’s ice cream. I’d say it was a good day for him!
We started out pretty early again because today was century loop day. I had planned to do it but would decide for sure when I had to make the turn.
Unfortunately the first few towns we went through weren’t really towns so breakfast didn’t happen until mile 17. I was hungry and had sweated out a ton already. Much of our ride was on a 4 lane highway and they let us have one whole side. It was so nice and we had a little tailwind. When we got to Jessup I couldn’t pass up the giant homemade cinnamon roll! It was as big as my head! I knew I’d probably have a major sugar crash, but it was worth it! For perspective that is a large take out container!! I also knew I needed some protein so I had a steak and egg bowl. It was ok, but not my favorite.
After Jessup I left Chris and Emily because I knew if I did the century it would be a very long day. When I got to Rowley I had a piece of peach pie and a mango smoothie.I just needed something cold and refreshing. Those over cast skies we had yesterday had disappeared. Today was going to be a full on sun day!
As I was going into Walker I was thinking “man I could use a pickle” and then as I rounded the corner I saw that pickles were the theme! This was going to be great! But before I got to town there three girls were shooting people with high powered super soakers. Each one of them and a direct hit on me and I was soaked. I went back and got a picture with them because they had the best aim and best shot all week!
Here comes the disappointing news of the day! Walker had no PICKLES even though they had a pickle theme?!? How is that even possible. I feel like if your theme is centered around pickles you need to have pickles. And pickle juice and all the things pickles! They did have some fried pickles but who wants that when you really want a cold pickle?Center point was the meeting town and their theme was Go Pig or Go Home! Everything was pig theme. I even got a fun little squeaky pig toy. They had a slip and slide with a pool but I was already soaked from the Walker girls. I got my pickle here, but it wasn’t that great. Thankfully even if it wasn’t that crisp, they still work the same.
I really wanted Thelma’s today but the timing just wasn’t right. It was getting close to when I needed to decide about doing the century loop. The loop this year added on 27 miles and over 1000 ft of gain. You turned for the loop when you were 3 miles from the end, so it would have been real easy to bail. I saw my girl Shari right before the turn off and her exact words were “oh hell no” when I asked her about doing the loop!!
Thankfully I had met up with Mark, Dan, Coz, and Noah from our charter and they had connected with Emma and Paul. We all decided to do the loop and stick together. Mark, Dan, Emma, and Noah had ever done a century, so it was cool to ride with them. When we made to turn to start the loop it started down a screamer of a hill!! It was a ton of fun but you had to make a right turn at the end, so you had to brake a bit. My top speed was 41 mph! But we all know what happens after a big downhill…a HUGE uphill. I think they said it was a 9% grade for over a mile. It was very challenging, but thankfully it was in the shade. That’s probably the only silver lining of that climb. We all stuck together and made it up the hill.
When we got to Waubeek we got out patch!! That’s the main reason you do the loop! The woman giving us the patch has worked or ridden 45 RAGBRAI…she only missed the first 3. She told us stories of the worst days and memorable moments. It was cool to hear her love for the event. Where we got the patch was near the river with this cool stone building! The century loop was very scenic. I didn’t have too many pictures, but it was gorgeous.
I’m thankful to have this group to ride with. They all brought their own strengths and we worked together well. Definitely proud of the first timers because it wasn’t easy. I felt like the heat wasn’t as bad as past days, but the sun was strong. That makes a huge different even if it isn’t that hot. We got a picture of everyone except Emma and Paul when we got back to camp. I can’t share it right now as I can’t get it loaded, but trust me.
As we made our way into Anamosa we went past the old prison. It looked like a castle! Unfortunately our camps site was at the stop of some steep hills, but when we got there it was totally worth it. It was a nice Arboretum with several opportunities for shade! Emily and Chris had gotten my bags and started putting up my tent! What a score! Also as we were coming into town the thought of leaving camp to get food was daunting. I really just wanted to order a pizza to be delivered to camp. That became even more daunting once I saw where we were camping. GUESS WHAT?!? When we got to camp it was Pizza night. The charter had about 30 pizzas there and my prayers were answered! I didn’t need to leave camp!!
It was a pretty low key night. Tonight is supposed to get “cold” so I’m breaking out the long sleeves for the first time this week.
For the day I rode 111.5 miles and 3635 feet of gain. It was a tough day but honestly I felt very strong all day. I just wanted to be out of the sun! Having the group to ride with made a huge difference. A good reminder that you’re almost always better together! I hadn’t ridden with any of these guys for more than a few miles this week, but we had a really great group and it made 111 miles very enjoyable. Invite others to join you on your next adventure and don’t be afraid to ask to join. Life is too short to go it alone!! I’m going to sleep well tonight!
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