This was my 3rd organized ride in as many weeks and IMO it was best! The ride started at 11:15am in downtown Muenster and headed south for the first 10 miles. The ride started with a strong tail wind as we climbed 2 moderate hills…… then nothing by rollers until mile 10. Next we encountered a series of challenging hills and we now had a wicked cross wind, 18mph with gusts of 26mph. I stayed with a small group of riders until rest stop #2. There, I grabbed some Orange slices, a few cookies and meet up with Danny and Michelle, from the Bull N Bush. I would ride with them the rest of the route.

The next 14 miles were the most challenging. One hill after another and they seemed to gradually get bigger. The largest hill came at around mile 30 and it was as painful as it looked. Most of the hill was visible as we approached it. Danny just kept saying “don’t look at it, it’ll only make it worse”..... and DAMN, was he right! I barley made it up and many of the group that had been following us were walking it.

At the next rest stop we fueled up and prepared for the strong head wind that we would be battling the final 6 miles. I lost Danny and Michelle briefly as they were drafting off another rider..... I wasn’t paying attention and dropped off pace pretty quick. I couldn’t seem too catch up with them until the last 2 miles, which thankfully, was all downhill.

After crossing the finish line, I hung out in Downtown with Nathan and the MBBC team for a while. I then wandered over to the German Festival for my, well earned, FREE beers. I meet up with Shayne and the Fam at the festival. Unfortunately I could only visit with them for about and hour........ I had plans (To see the greatness of Steve Poltz) later in Dallas and had to leave.

The last total I heard was somewhere around 2000 cyclists at the rally, although the highest registration number I saw was 1551. I later found out from Danny that we (Danny, Michelle and I) were in top 100 riders to finish the 40 mile route. That’s gives me a little more confidence going into the Beauty and Beast ride in Tyler next weekend.

One Sad Note:

Not long after the first rest stop, the group I was riding with was passed by 2 ambulances and a fire truck. It turned out that a cyclist had been hit by a car while descending a hill, one rider appeared to be seriously injured and was still being treated by the paramedics when we passed the scene. Another was transported via ambulance just prior to our arrival. I later heard that the rider that was hit, was riding in a group of about 30 and when he went down, he took 10 – 12 other riders with him. Most of the others just had minor injuries and were gone by the time I passed. Hopefully, all those involved in the accident are alright and doing well.