So I started this blog post a few days ago but wasn't able to post it due to faulty WiFi. I'm glad I was able to, though, because I completely changed my mind of how I feel about the Appalachian mountains.
Day 1: 90 miles along the Blue Ridge Parkway. Within the first couple of miles we had already made a wrong turn. It wasn't that big of a deal because we had come from a build day so our legs were relaxed. The hills started immediately, but they were rolling hills like the ones I trained on back home. And then we hit the wall! It was 2.5 miles straight up. It felt like it was never going to end, but my adrenaline was pumping, it was the first mountain that we had encountered and I we were excited to get over them. At the top of the hill we stopped for lunch over this gorgeous scenic overlook. I took a picture and sent it to the group and mistakenly wrote, "it's all down hill from here". Boy was I wrong! The next 10 miles were uphill. The slope wasn't steep, thankfully. As we rode on we went up even more with only a few small hills in between. The view is what kept us going. And then once we turned off the Blue Ridge Parkway we hit this INCREDIBLE descent down a 4.5 mile 8% grade downhill. We coasted down the hill at 40mph. It was the best feeling after that long day of climbing!
Day 2: 80 miles, still in the mountains. I was sweep so I had to stay behind and make sure everyone gets to the destination safely. A couple of girls didn't feel well so they had to take a lot of breaks. I didn't mind because the day before was a really long day so it was nice to take our time, but at the same time it was a little slower than I wanted to go. At 7 miles they were thinking about giving up but decided to push on, and they made it to mile 32 before they decided to call it and get in the van. When the van arrived our leader told us that lunch would be at the top of the hill and then started to describe the hill. It was a Category 2 (1 being the hardest). It was 4.5 miles long and was steeper than any hills that we did the previous day. Her exact words, "Picture the worst hill you can imagine, its worse!" The three of us that remained went on our way, we went 2 miles and then we reached "The Hill". It was worse than I could ever imagine, it seemed endless, it was so steep, and it was 90° so I'm swearing bullets! At one point i started cursing out civil engineers for designing these ridiculous roads! After taking a few breaks we finally made it to lunch. Because the morning took so long we had to book it to our destination so we wouldn't get vanned for taking too long. We had to average 13.3 mph to finish before our cutoff, 40 miles in 3 hours. That may not seem that hard but we also had two more inclines ahead of us and we were only doing a solid 6 mph up them. After lunch there was a really nice descent, we crushed 10 miles in no time. The second incline was a little easier than the first but it was still intense. You have no idea how happy we were to see that yellow sign with a truck going down a hill with the grade and the distance. They are what kept us going. Finally the third incline and we are about half way up when it started pouring. It was already a pretty crappy day, having gone so slow, having to rush, and now riding through the rain. It got so much better at the top, though, because we hit the West VA border. It felt like such an accomplishment that we made it though one of our 11 states and we made it to the host church with 10 minutes to spare. Overall, I was exhausted, cold, and wet, it just wasn't my best day.
Day 3: 72 miles, and still in the mountains. I woke up and I could barely move, my shoes and my gloves were still wet from the day before, and I just wasn't having it. We were told that there would only be a couple of mountains and then the rest of they day would be flat. That was a lie, we had a 6 mile ascent almost immediately and five or six 4 mile ascent throughout the day. I had my rain coat on because it was cold, but then I started the ascent and just started sweating profusely. I took it off and then started to freeze when we went down even the smallest hill. My toes were freezing and the climbs WOULD NOT STOP! I just wasn't having it! I honestly wasn't sure if I was going to make it, I was just miserable. I made it, and just so happened to be one of the first ones in. I was going so slow all day, but then I had a quick lunch, and with 15 miles to go I just decide to crank it out or otherwise I probably wouldn't have made it, so I switched it into high gear and rode into the church. Even though it was a crappy day, arriving at the church switched it around. They had a basketball court, a pink pong table, and COUCHES! It was a blast, playing a variety of games all night.
Needless to say I have mixed feelings about mountains, they're beautiful to look at but a pain in the rear to bike up... Both literally and figuratively!
