Highlight reel

One of my favorite parts of cycling is the social aspect. Sure, I enjoy riding by myself some days, but riding with friends is one of the very best parts of cycling. Saturday was a great day in terms of community, and I had an amazing time in Clarksville. My friend Eric loaned me the first bike that started all this so it was a joy to be part of his first century. I’m so proud of him, really. Here are a few photos of the day and some highlights. Happy riding!

• I ran into some Nashville JDRF riders at the start, which made my heart so happy:

• I sacrificed my tan lines for the day to wear my colors since it was kickoff to football season. And apparently it worked; we’re undefeated. War Eagle!
• Poor Eric caught a lot of slack for his Gator jersey. It seems folks near Kentucky just don’t appreciate the Florida fanfare. As he passed a group, someone teased about his jersey and when I pedaled by a couple of seconds later, they teased about mine. I responded: “Yeah, and can you believe I’m with this guy?” And then we heard, “Oh honey, you can do better.” While I meant I’m only “riding” with this guy, the joke lasted the rest of the day. And something tells me, with our group of crazy friends, it may come up again in social settings. 😉

• I met a great guy from Kentucky who is also a type 1. We chatted about JDRF and the Ride program. I’m hopeful to see him at a future Ride. How awesome would that be?!
• We met a guy wearing an Oklahoma jersey and he said everyone kept thinking it was Ohio. Yeah, that’s cause neither are SEC teams therefore neither actually matter. (I fear I may regret saying that somewhere down the road.)
• At one stop, this happened:

• When cycling, we always yell “car back” when a car is approaching from behind and “car up” when one is approaching in front of us. During the Clarksville ride, I was able to yell “horses up” for the first time. That was fun and an opportunity for everyone to laugh. Also, it seems fitting this first-time declaration happened in Kentucky.

• Aside from feeling like an ant beneath a magnifying glass most of the day, it really was a scenic and beautiful ride. I’ve blogged before about how I often experience God through nature. The morning of the ride yielded lots of these moments, and for each one, I was grateful.

• We latched on to a couple of pelotons a few times and had a blast. Going around a curve in a line like that is a beautiful sight. For a split second, if you allow yourself to dream, you can imagine what it would be like to ride in the Tour. It’s a fun moment.
• We saw plenty of tobacco barns smoking out the plants. The first one we saw was too far to tell if it was on fire, or if it was a tobacco barn. Luckily, it was the latter.

• Within the first three miles, a kid whizzed past us pulling a peloton of about seven riders. Yeah, he couldn’t have been more than 12 years old. Face. Palm.
• Aside from the initial high at the day’s start, I had beautiful riding blood sugars. I ate at each rest stop, and a few times in between depending on how I was trending. But I was really pleased with the result for the day.

• The best highlight of the day… those 82 miles!!

I am in the middle of my #40for14 campaign to support the Nashville JDRF Ride on Sept. 21. Please watch the video below and consider sharing it with others. It takes a community to change the face of diabetes; we can’t do it alone. Thank you.