In June I had the opportunity to ride in the Tour de Cure bike race for the cure against diabetes. I did it with some friends. This was my first all biking race and by far the longest I had ever ridden. We had decided on the 60 mile route. I had been training with my "bike gang". Really, there were only a few of us, Anna, Jessica and Bryce. And Bryce and I were able to get out on some longer rides together, which helped me get ready for this race. It was a beautiful day.
Anna, Jessica, me and Bryce. There were a few other people in our group, but they weren't in this picture and I don't have the picture of the whole group at the finish line.
There were lots of stops along the way, where you could refill your water bottles, check your bike and use the restroom. We weren't fast by any means. We took our time. I had taken my way in the back, as the car lookout. The course isn't closed off to cars, so you are constantly watching for them. We got to the halfway mark and had made a pit stop and then decided that we were going to change up the order a little bit. Bryce was leading and I was right behind him. Keep in mind that we were drafting, so I was right behind Bryce and Jessica was right behind me.
We came to a point on the course where we needed to turn left and go up a little hill before we met up with the highway. I don't know if the turn just snuck up on us, but I also didn't slow down enough for said turn. I hit some loose gravel on the road and Ruby came right out from under me. I can still hear the sound of my body scraping across the road before I finally came to a stop. Luckily my fall didn't cause anyone else in the group to fall. My sweet roommate told me it looked like I was sliding into home. At least I looked good when I had my first crash.
I survived my first crash! Immediately after I fell, someone pulled off the road and ran over with a first aid kit. We got my arm rinsed off and wrapped up so that I could finish the race. He was part of the road crew and told me it was close as to whether or not I needed stitches. I wasn't going to stop. We just wrapped my arm and we were back on the road. I decided not to send the picture to my family until after I had finished the race. I knew I would get messages to get it checked out right then.
I was feeling really good and around mile 45 I was thinking, "I feel great. Maybe next year I can do the 80 miles." Well, then we got to about mile 52. We only had 8 miles left and I really didn't know if I was going to make it. It was about 2:30 in the afternoon, in June, it was really hot and my legs were tired. I just wanted to be done. But we finished! It was a fun race and I'm glad I was able to be a part of it.
Once we finished, I decided to send the picture out to my family. Especially to my brothers, who are way into biking. I told them I was officially in the cool crowd because I had survived my first crash. Of course after sending that picture, I was told I should get my arm checked out because I might need stitches. I went to the first aid station at the end of the race. Once they unwrapped my arm and the air hit it, I really started to feel it. They told me it was borderline as to whether or not I would need stitches, but if I cleaned it out really well (which would be the worst part) and then bandaged it, I should be good. I headed home with the knowledge that I would have to endure the pain of irrigating my wound when I got home. I was not excited about that prospect. I ended up going to the instacare when I made it home. They cleaned out my wound and bandaged it up. I did not end up needing stitches because the doctor told me it would just be stitching in the road rash. My arm is all healed up now and I have a nice battle scar to remind me of my first bike crash.
