Well it's been over a year since I've updated this thing, and who knows when I’ll update it again but I’m sure it will be sooner than a year. I've done a lot of riding since my last post and will be doing a lot more in the coming weeks but last Saturday's ride was definitely something I need to write about.

In April I rode in Cycle Zydeco again. It's a 200 mile bike rally in Southern Louisiana. Shortly after, I posted some pics of the ride on my site and sent the link out to everyone as a way to share my experience. Not long after, Lisa visited the site and decided then that she no longer wanted to miss out on these experiences and decided to buy a road bike. We went to the bike shop the next week and bought her a new Giant OCRW road bike and the appropriate gear.

She then started to ride around the neighborhood, 3 miles here, 10 miles there. She was amazed at how much faster and easier it was to ride than her mountain bike. She also decided that she wanted to ride a few of the weekend rallies that I do. She had already ridden the Tour de Pants twice, in 2004 and 2005, on her mountain bike. But she had only done the 12 mile route (which just happens to be the toughest 12 mile route in the area) and had not really experienced the bigger and longer rides. We decided her first rally on her new bike would be the Cow Creek Classic in Waxahachie. She did the 20 mile route. It's mostly flat with a few rollers but very manageable for a novice. She completed the route easily and seemed to have a good time.

Next, she decided she wanted to do the Peach Pedal ride in Weatherford. They had routes of 11, 26, 42 and 62 miles. The morning of the ride she decided she would do the 26 mile route. My route (62 mile) started at 7:30am and hers started at 8:00am.

7:30 rolled around and I was off! I was having a great ride and had completed 57 miles when Phil, Rick and I rolled past the last rest stop. We had no plans on stopping until we noticed a smiling Lisa waving at us as we passed. At this point I was a little confused. I knew the 26 mile route did not join up with the 62mile and could not figure out how she had made her way to that particular rest stop. I stopped and asked how she was doing and she had that "I'm done" look in her eyes, but she was still smiling. She asked if I would ride back to the car and come pick her up. Still thinking that she had only ridden about 21 miles, I said, "come on, it's only 5 miles to the finish." Thats when she told me she had done the 42 mile route and had just completed 37 miles of it and that was enough for her.

I was blown away! My baby had just done 37 miles! Not because she got lost, but because she wanted to! The 42 mile route on this ride in no picnic either, it's very hilly and definitely not for a beginner. I'm so proud of her for having the will to go for the longer route and for sticking with it as long as she did. I'm also ecstatic that I have a new riding partner and someone to share these experiences with and even more excited that she's my wife!

I was a little worried that she had over done it and that it would discourage her from doing future rides, but the next day she felt fine and was asking when the next ride was.

She'll be doing the 50 mile route at this years Hott'er than Hell!

Yea Baby!!

-blanca