Hello, Bike Gear

She was a little dusty and out of air, but Ruby was finally put back into commission.  I haven't ridden on the road since August.  Oh my!  I've done my share of spinning, but I had to remember what to pack and wear again.  Not that I actually forgot, but just having to actually "think" about it and not be on auto-pilot was different.  I was a little worried about the bike ride since it has been six months since I'd been on it.  I've gained some weight and was worried I wouldn't fit on it.  Luckily that was clearly an unfounded fear!

We had a swim workout prior to the bike ride.  Luckily, we arrived early and when Coach Dave asked me where the chalk was, I had a big, "Oh shit" moment!  We have all the chalk to mark the bike course at our house and I forgot it.  So we ran to the grocery store to get some chalk and then one of the other Training Captains and I went out to mark the course.  We made a few wrong turns ourselves, then had to go buy some water to "unmark" our wrong arrows and resume the real course.  Needless to say, by the time we got back to the pool, there were only 20 minutes left of the swim workout so I changed into my bike gear instead.

We love our Rubys!

Getting ready to head out

Since this was several people's first real bike ride, I knew my job this weekend would be to help the new cyclists with their bike handling skills and to provide any support needed to them.  I volunteered to sweep.  I know how much it meant to me to always have someone behind me so I wanted to be that for someone else.  We ended up having more novice cyclists than anticipated and extra help was needed to take them out on a trail before heading out on the road.  I went on the trail with one of the other coaches and worked with the girls on shifting and clipping in and out. After awhile they were comfortable enough for a short ride in the street to get used to the traffic.

In the end, I missed my swim workout due to the chalking debacle; and, my first ride back on the road was an extremely leisurely 10 miles rather than a good 25 miles.  But I reminded myself that I was volunteering my time for LLS.  Besides the small amount of fundraising I'm doing myself, I also get to help a group of people new to triathlon (who are also fundraising) grow into the sport.  Then they will be successful and love it so much they will come back for more and bring their friends, ultimately expanding our reach to helping more patients!