IT'S RACE DAY!

Last night I was anticipating and preparing for my first gravel race. I went to bed early because I knew I wanted to be as fresh and energetic as possible. Once I prepared my bike gear, packed my Hammer Nutrition gels and heed, a couple Clif Bars, and my Lauf True Grit, I brushed my teeth and went to bed, but I was too excited to get any sleep.

I was first surprised that I would have the opportunity to race this year due to Covid. My second surprise was the huge thunderstorms we had last night. It downpoured like crazy in Middleville. My neighborhood lost power for a bit. Hearing the sound of generators running, I thought, “Man tomorrow is going to be a muddy ride!” I was prepared though. I packed extra clothes, towels, and had my bike ready to roll.

Much to my astonishment, driving out to Ionia, everything was pretty dry and the gravel roads were just damp enough to have a perfect ride.

Since this was my first ride, I gave myself four hours maximum to finish the course. We had to wear our masks from the staging area to the starting line. That was two miles, and it was a tough, but understandable way to start the race. My racing gear was perfect! I felt so proud to represent Grand Rapids Bicycle Company. The jersey and the bib kept me comfortable, and I felt cool in every way.

As I started riding, I was going up a hill and I saw people on the side of the road cheering me on. It was my girlfriend, Chelsea, and some of our friends. It filled my heart with motivation. About thirty minutes later, I saw them waiting for me at another intersection. I started to look forward to seeing them at the finish line.

When I got to the finish line, however, no one was there waiting for me. I called Chelsea. She was surprised I was finished. I initially thought it would take me four hours at the most. I finished in two hours and thirteen minutes! Little did I know that I had more groupies coming who wanted to cheer me on at the finish line, but I had gotten done before anyone got there.

I think I could have finished in two hours exactly if it wasn’t for the cramp I got in my right hamstring while going up a hill. I legit thought I was out for the count. However, I was cheered on by two fellow racers while going up the hill, so I knew I had to keep moving!

The ride was amazing. It was so fun to see the smiley faces in the cow pasture. I immediately started cracking up at the sight. The course was marked wonderfully. I was nervous that I might take a wrong turn somewhere, but it was basically impossible to do. It turned out to be a gorgeous day, and I couldn’t have asked for better weather for a ride.

PHOTO CREDIT: Rob Meendering Photography

It was such a blast and I couldn’t stop talking about it! I find myself regularly promoting biking and talking about how much I love it. My next race is the Dirty Thirty. I know that I can finish in a lot less time than I had planned, so my next goal will be to relatively stay within my two hour and thirteen minutes time frame at my 9-13 mph speed category. So if you plan on waiting for me at the finish line...get there early because here I come! Huge shout out to Joe and the whole Cow Pie team for making this amazing ride possible! Thank you MGRS for giving me this opportunity! I am so grateful!