My First LOTOJA - September 2007

This is a detailed account of my first LONG distance bike ride, hence the length and possibly boring, endurance sport information.

I decided to register for and ride LOTOJA with my friends Brenda and Natalie.  It is a 206 mile bike race from Logan, Utah, to Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  We wouldn't be racing, we would be happy if we finished within the allotted daylight hours.  LOTOJA is the longest single day sanctioned race in the continental United States.  It is apparently quite an experience for anyone who finishes it, and I believe it.  We figured it would take us between 12-13 hours to finish.  Training was all-encompassing for me, but I think my efforts proved worthwhile in the end. 

I invited my family to be at the finish line in Jackson Hole or at our Aunt's house in Preston, Idaho, to see us ride by; my entire family surprised me and wanted to be there.  My parents helped by being a second support vehicle because we thought the three of us may be separated enough ,after the first 100 miles, to need more than our support person, Elizabeth, for the last half of the ride. 

Training entailed a lot of riding this spring and summer.  I strengthened my legs and my head, neck, and shoulders got used to cycling for hours.  Hopefully it would help on the big day.  Brenda and I rode to Snowbasin and back; it was a 122 mile ride with 9000 feet of elevation gain and took just over nine hours with temperatures getting above 100 degrees.  This was a great gage for what LOTOJA might feel like.  I rode to my brother, Jason’s house in Springville twice, one time I took a detour and rode the Alpine Loop in the rain on my way there; it was cold and beautiful.  I rode to the entrance of Antelope Island a couple of times, a long, flat 90 mile ride to remind my body of how non-climbing rides feel; they hurt just as much, but in a different way. 

I enjoyed climbing the canyons to get out of the heat of the city during the summer.  I had to start riding by 5:30/5:45 to beat the heat because good training rides take 5-7 hours. I knew I would enjoy waking up casually after this big ride is done. 

I tried to imagine what it would feel like to cross the finish line, but I couldn't really tell.  When I climbed Big Cottonwood canyon and Millcreek canyon, back-to-back, without stopping to rest, I experienced a few tears of accomplishment, because it was something I didn’t know if I could do.  I surprised myself with the rides I was able to finish.  I just hope the weather cooperates and there are no mechanical issues for any of us.  It snowed during the 2005 ride and only 30% of the riders finished, which proves that Mother Nature plays a big part in which challenges are faced each year. 

Training was a beast for most of the summer because it was the hottest summer on record in Salt Lake City.  We three rode in an organized century ride, the Desperado Dual in Panguitch, Utah, and did well.  We all rode beyond the 100 miles, to make it our longest training ride before the big day.  We all rode between 125-150 miles.  I feared my training plan may have made me peak during that ride, which would not be good.  We were ready to have LOTOJA there and just do it.

When all my training was done, I had ridden over 3500 miles, burned over 144000 calories, spent 215 hours on my bike (it seemed like so many more), and ascended over 175000 feet.  These stats are amazing for me; they show that I had a summer of cycling.

The time to leave for our adventure finally arrived, so we packed into our Support And Gear vehicle (SAG) and headed to Logan.  Elizabeth was our SAG driver and had done a couple of long practice rides with us to get the feel of what SAG’ing was all about.  We were as prepared as we could be.

Check-in was easy.  We bought some gear and then met my parents for dinner.  We talked through everything we needed and then went to the quick update for LOTOJA riders.  We learned that we could not listen to music, which was very disappointing for me.  I considered taking mine, but knew I wanted to obey the racing rules 100% to have a real LOTOJA experience.

We pre-packed our “food” bags for each SAG stop and had a bag with possible clothes/gear that we may need.  The weather looked perfect, so I took only minimal things in my bag.  We  called it a day around 10:30 and set our alarms for the real thing, no more practice rides!!!!

 

LOGAN to PRESTON
We registered as Team Huntsman to ensure we all had the same start time, which ended up being 7:10 a.m.  The first group started at 6:30 so we were forty minutes behind them, not bad.  The last group started sometime after 7:40.  The temperature was 49 degrees in Logan so I decided to wear my jacket, long gloves, and ear warmer.  I knew I might be warm by Preston, but I did not want to feel chilled at the beginning.  The temperatures were forcasted to not get above 71 degrees during the entire ride, perfect!  I dressed so I could shed layers as needed.

Brenda, Natalie and I said goodbye to Elizabeth, got on our bikes and headed over to the start line.  We got there with about ten minutes to wait.  We worked our way up towards the start.  Before we knew it, our group was being called to the start.  I had to hold back my tears of excitement; I couldn’t start LOTOJA with blurry vision.  The countdown started 5-4-3-2-1-GO.  People clapped and we were on our way.  We had a police escort for about ten blocks, then we were on our own with the fifty other riders in our group.  We three were the only girls in our group.

 

The terrain was rolling hills in farm country.  Our group was in a nicely paced double line for the first 10 to 15 miles, until the next group caught us and our organization was ripped apart.  It was chaotic for about three miles.  I saw that Brenda was still with my group, but I could not find Natalie.  It ended up that I would not see her again during the ride. 

I heard someone talking to me by name to my right, so I looked and it was my coworker, Andrew.  He and I have been talking LOTOJA for months so it was quite a surprise to see him pull up along side of me and recognize me.  It was fun.  He was quite sure he would not finish because he did not do the adequate amount of training.  Good for him for still starting.  We talked off and on throughout that first section, but I didn’t see him after that.

The pace picked up as we rolled through a few right and left turns.  I was anxiously watching the miles tick by because I knew I had family waiting to cheer me on at my aunt's house in Preston.  I just had to wait to see the Idaho state sign and then two houses on the left would be a crazy cheering section.  It took just over one hour to get there.  I saw what looked like a bunch of people ahead and figured it was them, so, as soon as I thought they might see me, I started waving both of my arms frantically above my head.  I saw some movement from their group and knew they had seen me.  My heart rate jumped into my danger zone, as I felt the adrenaline shoot throughout my body.

My family had driven for a long time in the early morning hours to cheer for me.  I could hear their noise as we got closer.  They were loud!  I could see the group of people but it was hard to focus in on every person individually.  I definitely saw my aunt jumping up and down in the road, pumping her fists in the air.  I felt myself smiling as big as possible and waving frantically.  I have to say the boost of energy I felt from them was more than I anticipated feeling.  It was beyond wonderful!

Soon after seeing my family, I noticed Brenda on my right.  We rode together for a bit and then we found ourselves making our way to the first SAG stop.  I cruised toward our predetermined meeting place and looked for Elizabeth.  It was great to see her just like we had planned.  I grabbed my food (a chunk of cinnamon bread and shot bloks), exchanged my water bottle, looked for Natalie, exchanged my jacket for my vest and gave up my ear warmer, and then headed out.  Brenda and I left together, before Natalie arrived.  The group we had been riding with was probably quite faster than what Natalie was comfortable riding.  I was proud of Brenda and me for staying with them, but knew we would probably pay a price later.

I was supposed to keep my heart rate less than 90% of my max during this first section, but that definitely did not happen.  I actually ended up hitting my highest heart rate of 181 during that first section.  The group behind us was full of yay-hoos, as our friend Ray would say, and they totally broke up our nicely paced line when they came flying through.  My heart rate was quite a bit higher than I would have liked during this entire section, but I made it within my predicted time. 

	HR avg/max	Time hr	MPH	Prediction	Stoppage time
Preston  58˚	158/181	1:31	21	1:25 – 1:42	2:00 min/sec

PRESTON to STRAWBERRY SUMMIT
We headed out again with a few other riders, ready to take on the next phase of our adventure.  I remembered the terrain well because we rode this portion of the course on a training ride earlier in the year.  I was well prepared and this time I was riding it with other cyclists.

The ride into Mink Creek was rolling hills.  I noticed that Brenda had dropped off, which was good  because she wanted to pace herself and I ride just above her comfortable pace.  I was with a group of guys riding a nice pace so I decided to stick with them.  We caught up to a larger group and as we got closer I recognized a girl from earlier, dressed in a bright pink jersey.  She looked like a strong rider so I thought I could ride with her and have some female company for a while.  She ended up riding much slower than I wanted to, so I rode with the guys and headed towards the long gradual summit.

This part of the ride was absolutely beautiful.  I enjoyed listening to the conversations around me.  I rode with a couple of steady riders and I was impressed that we let some more aggressive cyclists pass us without speeding up at all.  The pace was perfect for me.  I looked at my odometer and it showed over 50 miles.  It had gone well so far.  I felt much stronger than the last time I rode that section.  My climbing during training was definitely paying off. 

 

I made it to the next aid station and filled up my water and cytomax bottles.  I wasn't stopped long before I hopped back on my bike and headed around the corner to find more climbing ahead.  We rode another mile before the actual summit and then head down.

The second section of my ride was done.  I had been riding as good as I had imagined.  I felt good and my heart rate had not gone crazy.  I never had to slow down because of my heart rate, which was good with that summit.  I felt warm with my vest on during the climb, but I knew I would be happy to have it for the descent.  Off I went, down the mountain towards Montpelier.

	HR avg/max	Time hr	MPH	Prediction	Stoppage time
Strawberry Summit  73˚	165/179	2:06	14	1:52-2:09	3:45 min/sec

STRAWBERRY SUMMIT to MONTPELIER

The descent from the summit was fast.  As it started to flatten out, I pushed myself to be able to catch a group ahead of me and stayed with them for a while.  We were cruising along, when a freight train of a pace line, led by three tandem bikes flew by us.  I immediately searched for an opening and took the first one available, about twelve riders back.  When I could, I glanced back and saw that the paceline was a long one.  There were maybe 20-25 cyclists in it.  It was great.  Before too long the tandem riders started to pull off and wanted to cycle through the pace line like we normally do, bummer for us.  We were going to have to take our turn pulling.

About half way into Montpelier, we all started organizing us to work together in a short cycle paceline that rotated through going continuously counter clockwise.  We talked with each other to make it known when it was clear to come away from pulling.  It took me a couple of rotations to get it because I was behind a yay-hoo type of rider, who just didn’t ride smoothly, but it was cool when the rotating double paceline was working.  Unfortunately it was feeling good right as the obnoxious rumble strips appeared and made us break up our organization.  Those rumble strips were huge and could easily take a rider down that wasn’t paying close attention.  I could see Montpelier ahead and dealt with the stoplights in town.  Soon enough the second SAG stop was within my view and I headed to our meeting spot.

I stopped at our designated stop and couldn’t see Elizabeth.  I hollered her name, but no response.  I felt a small wave of concern because this wasn’t supposed to be the problem stop.  I moved forward a bit and continued scanning the crowd.  I finally spotted Elizabeth and she wasn’t alone, my parents  were with her.  I was quite surprised.  Mom and Elizabeth rushed towards me; mom was clapping her hands with excitement, as dad stayed behind snapping photos.  It was good to see my support crew.

 

I immediately started taking off my layers so I could ride with my underarmour layer, jersey and vest.  I withered out of my sleeves and it felt great.  I was relieved I decided to wear my short sleeve layer on the bottom.  It would pay great dividends as the ride continued.  I drank a cold V8 which tasted WONDERFUL!  I switched out my cytomax and water bottles, exchanged my gel flask, took a last shot of strawberry gel from my almost empty container, put my turkey sandwich in my pocket, gave up my remaining cinnamon bread, put another package of bloks in my pocket, put a Luna bar in my pocket, zipped up my vest, thanked my parents and Elizabeth and then headed out.

It was great to see my parents.  They were both so excited to see me and I am happy they decided to make their way to this SAG stop instead of skipping forward as planned.  I almost asked them to meet me in Afton, instead of hoping Elizabeth could make it, but I didn’t want to throw any kinks into the flow of things, so I kept quiet.  I should have said something because I beat Elizabeth to Afton and had to use the neutral food provided by the race, as we thought I might have to. 

 

	HR avg/max	Time hr	MPH	Prediction	Stoppage time
Montpelier 75˚	162/178	:42	25.5	:49 – 1:00	3:30 min/sec

MONTPELIER to SALT RIVER SUMMIT

I left my support crew and pointed my bike towards the final two climbs of the ride.  The weather was great, I felt strong and was remembering to eat and drink; these are very important things for this length of a ride.  I found a group of about seven riders on a team and thought I would hook onto them for a while, but plans changed when they did their roll call and found one of their riders wasn’t with them.  They stopped and waited and I continued on.  I was next to a rider who was quite chatty and on the inside I hoped that a faster rider would come along so I could leave “Chatty Craig” in the dust.  Thankfully that happened and I never saw him again. 

About four miles outside of Montpelier, we had to ride through a construction zone.  I saw three tandem bikes ahead of me and decided to catch them before the construction zone; I caught them and we all worked our way along the dirt packed section of road and then up and over the railroad flatbed cars being used as the road.  The tandem bikes started going slower because we were climbing; there is more weight for them to haul up the hill.  I had to ride my pace which meant to leave them behind.

I rode with random groups of people over Geneva summit.  There was one very social rider who was sharing information about what lay ahead with those unfamiliar with the ride.  He also was thinking of annoying old songs and then sharing them with the group, you know the ones you get in your head and they stay there.  I thought he was entertaining and he complemented me on my strong climbing, so I decided I would put up with him.  During that same ascent a rider behind me said how great the scenery was.  I hollered back that I would take that as a complement and he said that was exactly what he had meant.  Our group laughed and it was fun to share my personality for a moment during the ride.  I was the only girl in that particular group.

The Geneva descent was fast and then leveled off pretty quickly.  I found myself in an average paceline then all of a sudden a fast paceline passed us.  As I looked at them, I realized they were all girls.  I turned and looked for an opening.  I had to join this group of female riders.  The last of probably six riders passed me and was slowing down.  I moved over and caught her wheel as we passed my previous paceline.  The rider ahead of me hollered out to the others and they slowed down for her.  She caught them and then we were off again.  I smiled from ear to ear because I was part of a paceline of only women cyclists.  It felt incredible.  Their pace was fast, but I maintained it for probably 11-12 miles.  It was a perfect place to ride fast and my heart rate stayed in control.

I knew I needed to be smart, so when we approached a slightly slower rider, I decided to drop off and ride with him.  I hated to let those fast women go, but it was the right thing to do with still over 100 miles to ride.  I ended up riding behind that one guy until we reached the Salt River neutral feed station.  His pace was perfect for me, so I stayed with him.  We passed quite a few riders along the way and none of them hooked on.  I was happy because I could stay tucked behind him and enjoy the ride.  We did have a slight tailwind during that section, which helped him not need to take turns with me.  I thanked him for the pull as we slowed down for the next aid station.

At this aid station there was someone near the road with a huge water container just filling up water bottles.  I stopped and held out my two containers to be filled and then started pedaling again.  I passed a volunteer handing out bananas so I grabbed one, said thanks, and then I was off to complete the remaining four mile climb to Salt River Summit.  This was the section designated for the King/Queen of the Mountain competition. 

Towards the bottom of the climb, after the feed station, I saw my parents pass me.  It was fun to wave to them and gain some adrenaline from their support as the climb intensified.  They actually stopped along the climb and got in position to wave to me and take a couple of photos.  It was wonderful to see them at that part of the climb.  I hoped they could see I was doing great, as I was keeping pace if not passing other riders. 

 

The climb seemed much shorter and less steep than I remembered.  My training was again paying dividends.  I passed many riders during that climb and it was exhilarating for me.  Towards the top there were a couple of cyclists that passed me and I noticed they were on expensive bikes, which made it easier to appreciate being passed by them.  They spent a lot of money to be able to climb fast.

I summitted and saw the finish line for the King/Queen of the Mountain.  I pumped my fist as the summit leveled out and I could leave the big climbs behind me.  This was the first half of the ride in my mind and it was exhilarating to have ridden it as I did; one big thing to cross off my list.

The cars had slowed to a creeping climb at the summit so we were passing cars at the top.  There were so many cheering fans at that summit and it was fun to be a part of what they were cheering for.  I waved to so many people who were cheering along the road.  It was the least I could do, even if I wasn’t the primary person they were cheering for.

	HR avg/max	Time hr	MPH	Prediction	Stoppage time
Salt Rvr Summit 80˚	160/174	1:55	16.5	1:56 – 2:12	:15 sec

SALT RIVER SUMMIT to AFTON 

The descent from Salt River Summit into Smoot was FAST!  There were some shifting winds to deal with on the immediate descent, which required me to go a bit slower than I would have otherwise.  I ate my Luna bar on the descent and had to be extra careful.  A couple of yay-hoos passed me and I really hoped they would not crash in front of me, requiring me to make sudden adjustments.  I didn’t want to deal with them and the shifting winds, so I let them get far ahead of me.

I also had been watching for my parents to pass me, but I hadn’t seen them.  I thought they were maybe waiting to see Brenda.  I kept my eyes open for Elizabeth also, but did not see her either.

I knew my brother, Ryan, and his wife, Hailey, were planning to be somewhere in Smoot to cheer me on.  I watched for them and it wasn’t too hard to see the people cheering because there weren’t very many spectators during that section.  Smoot ended up being really small and I never saw them; I hoped I did not miss them.  That would be a bummer.

The roads were awesome through Smoot and partway into Afton.  I was in another great paceline with a strong group of guys.  We weren’t rotating through because the guys in front just kept driving forward.  I was tucked in and keeping up nicely.  There was a slight headwind from what I could tell, but it didn’t matter to me because of my position in the paceline.  I did some mental calculations about my potential arrival time into Afton and figured I had a good chance to beat my best estimated arrival time.  I felt very good, but knew I still had some hard miles ahead.

The sign for the Afton SAG stop came into view and I was happy to arrive at yet another feed zone.  I had not seen my parents or Elizabeth pass me, so I glanced through our meeting place and didn't see them so I headed to the neutral feed station.  I filled my water bottles, mixed new cytomax with the powder in my pouch, ate a couple of oranges, grabbed a bar for my pocket and then headed out.  I was alone when I wheeled out, but I knew someone would come by whom I could work with.

I missed my V8, gel refill bottle and electrolyte shots that were in my bag.  It was good to know that the neutral zone had appropriate food, but my special food was missed more than I thought it would. 

	HR avg/max	Time hr	MPH	Prediction	Stoppage time
Afton 74˚	149/165	:41	23.2	:38 - :45	3:15 min/sec

AFTON to ALPINE

There was a definite sidewind or headwind from Afton into Alpine, depending on the direction the road was heading.  Paceline work was be critical during this section.  It took me a few miles to join a paceline that was working, but when I got it I stayed with them until they stopped to take a potty break.  That was a great group of guys to have ridden with.

During this entire section there were rumble strips on the side that we had beware of.  They could throw a bike off line quite easily.  I never had to veer onto them, which made me quite happy. 

I wondered if I would see any family during this section and see them I did.  I thought it might happen in Thayne, but the first town outside of Afton had a surprise for me.  Just after the Grover City sign I saw some cheering people with signs on my side of the road.  I thought it was cool that someone would make signs for their riders.  Then I was shocked to hear my name, so looked closely and saw Ryan and Hailey and my other brother, Jason, and his wife, Sarah.  It was wonderful again!!  They found me.  I waved and smiled big.  I felt a boost of adrenaline and pedaled harder.  My family loved me and were so supportive of this big adventure of mine.  I was thankful for the boosts of support during this difficult section of the ride.  I don’t know how Brenda and Natalie made it without seeing anyone.  Brenda ended up not seeing anyone familiar from Afton until the finish line.  Natalie had Elizabeth at each stop, so that was something, and I had my family there intermittently along the way.  It was awesome!  It could not have been better.

Jason and Ryan waved and hollered loudly as they passed me in their vehicles.  It was good to not feel alone out there.  I had not seen my parents pass me in their car since I was on Salt River Summit.  This had me concerned.  I thought they may have been held up in traffic and now wondered if they would be there for me in Alpine.  I thought of a back up plan that would work if I could see Ryan again; I would tell him to meet me in Alpine.  That way I could give him my vest and arm warmers and have him tell our parents to find me up the canyon and stop to give me my food then.  I eventually saw Ryan outside of the Cheese Factory and hollered to him to meet me in Alpine, at stop #8.  He shouted OK and I felt much better after that.

The headwind/sidewind continued along that entire section.  I came upon a cyclist who worked at my bike shop, Contender, and we rode together for the last ten miles.  It was enjoyable to ride side by side and talk with each other. I was glad he was there and we did a good job of keeping pace with each other.  We helped the time pass for each other.  As we rounded the corner and started to see buildings we knew the stop was getting closer.  We said our goodbyes and headed towards our last SAG feed zone.  I was VERY relieved to see my dad right under the #8 sign.  They had passed me at some point and I just didn’t see them.  WHEW!!!

I saw Jason, Sarah, Ryan, Hailey, and my parents grouped together cheering for me.  I pulled up and happily accepted my V8 and oranges.  I took off my vest and arm warmers because I knew I was going to beat the cooler temperatures.  I exchanged my Cytomax, opened my jelly beans for my pouch and put my Cheez-its, Espresso gel, turkey sandwich and Luna bar in my pocket.  I couldn’t even think of eating the banana.  I should have trusted my instinct and not packed any bananas in my food bags – they ripen to quickly and I am a picky banana eater. 

My dad asked me what the white stuff was on my face and I explained it was salt.  A very nice lady asked if I would like some wet-wipes to clean my face; I eagerly thanked her and used two of them to clean my face.  After looking at the photos I can understand why dad asked me; the dried salt was very visible.  When I had everything I said thank you and rolled away from my last SAG stop.  The next time I would see everyone would be at the finish line.  I could hardly wait.

	HR avg/max	Time hr	MPH	Prediction	Stoppage time
Alpine 77˚	153/171	1:42	19.9	1:25 – 1:53	5:15 min/sec

ALPINE to HOBACK

I was off, headed up Snake River Canyon to the finish line.  I had just under 47 miles to go.  There was a slight tailwind, which was nice after the side/headwind since Afton.  I got my sandwich out and did my best to eat it.  I ended up holding it in my mouth and occasionally chewing/swallowing parts of it.  It was hard to eat anything, just like everyone said it would be. at that part of the ride.

Within the first couple of miles a paceline passed me with my friend from Contenderleading it.  He said bye to me as he passed, I told him I’d see him soon.  I could not find one bit of desire to pick up my pace to grab hold of that paceline.  Hindsight taught me that it would have been worth the effort to try and catch onto them.  It would have been difficult, but would have made these last miles much quicker in the end.  I ended up passing the guy who had been putting annoying songs in our head during the Galena climb.  I had him in my sights since leaving Alpine and kept my eye on him as the gap got shorter and shorter.  It probably took me close to ten miles to catch and pass him. 

The river was a great distraction, but it only distracted a small part of what I was feeling.  I felt my feet, stomach and bowels starting to disagree with what I was trying to accomplish.  I needed to use the restroom, but it wasn’t a crisis.  The Hoback stop was a comfortable distance for what I needed.  The miles became longer and longer and I was alone for most of that section.  Occasionally I was passed by someone or I would be going slightly faster and able to pass someone.  The terrain was rolling hills that seemed more downhill than uphill, which was totally backwards than what it really was.  I knew I was gradually gaining altitude and thankfully it didn’t feel like that too often.

I finally saw a couple of riders ahead, working together at a slightly slower pace that I was riding.  I pushed myself to catch them and ended up riding with them for one mile, if that.  They broke up and I found my comfortable pace was right in the middle of each of theirs.  I was relieved to see the feed zone ahead sign.  Hopefully my bathroom stop would relieve some of my abdominal discomfort. 

I coasted into the feed zone, stopped, laid my bike down and one of the restrooms became available.  It felt good to go, but unfortunately didn’t resolve all my discomfort.  While I was off my bike, I could feel my right toe and big joint throbbing intensely.  Something was not right.  I considered taking off my shoe to see what damage had been done, but knew better than that.  What was I going to do at that point?  It was better if I just kept riding and hopefully the tedious encroachment upon the finish area would help lessen some pain.  It felt like I would surely loose a toenail and might have some damage to recover from, but this was not unexpected during an endurance event.

I grabbed a banana on the way out, forced it down the hatch and felt relieved and excited to be tackling my last section of LOTOJA.  I was tired, but still had the ability to ride.  My seat was sore, but nothing could prevent me from completing these last 26 miles.  My goal was within reach; I would become a LOTOJA finisher.

I had eaten a few jellybeans along this section and had my espresso gel, but overall I don’t think I ate like I wanted to because of all the food I had remaining in my pocket at the finish.  I should have had a flask of gel for this part of the ride, but it was in my Afton bag that I didn't get.  I also could not drink anymore Cytomax, it was just too sweet.

	HR avg/max	Time hr	MPH	Prediction	Stoppage time
Hoback 74˚	151/164	1:14	19.5	Not done	3:45 min/sec

HOBACK to FINISH

I got back on my bike and felt better, probably because I knew my next stop would be the finish.  The temperatures were cooling quickly while riding in the shade.  The sun made a huge difference.  I wondered where Brenda and Natalie were on the ride and hoped they were both doing well. 

Within the first mile, I caught up with a team of riders with a quick pace.  I held onto them for a few miles, but then had to let them go.  My seat and feet were starting to make themselves known, not to mention the ongoing abdominal reminders.  I knew I had to just keep going as fast as I could.  It seems as if I had spurts of a quicker pace followed by rest periods for the remaining miles.  There was a climb that I was actually relieved to see.  It was nice to be able to ride at my quickest pace because of the climb.  I was able to pass a few riders while climbing at my normal climbing pace. On the flat, rolling sections, I felt pressure to try to ride faster because it was flatter.  Maybe some of the pressure to go faster was coming from random body parts, but I know I felt it mentally.  My knee had been annoyed off and on since the start of the ride, which was not expected.  I was testing my limits.

After the climb ,I caught up with six riders and we rode a good pace for about five or six miles.  I was with them as we saw our first stoplights and caught a glimpse of the Tetons.  This gave me a burst of energy.  Our pace quickened and we each took turns pulling.  I felt strong during this section.  We approached the large intersection where we would turn left towards Wilson.  Most of our group decided to go through a late yellow/red light, but I was one of two who decided to stop.  We waited and a group with a tandem bike caught up with us while waiting.  We finally got a turn signal and headed out.  That left turn felt great! 

I found myself with one other rider who may have actually waited for me on the first little hill after the stoplight.  I thanked him for waiting, if that was what he did.  We took turns pulling because we were headed into another headwind.  On a bigger climb he was pulling and I could see his pace was slowing.  I went around him and took the lead, pulling at a pace I thought was good for both of us, but when I turned around he was quite a ways behind me.  I decided to leave him and continue at my own pace.  About that time the tandem led paceline passed me at a quick pace.  I tried to catch them, but each time I neared the rear rider they seemed to pull away.  I finally let them go and watched them ride ahead and eventually take that last turn towards Teton Village. 

After the last right turn to Teton Village there were still ten miles left.  I paid particular attention to the LOTOJA directional sign at that turn.  It was the last one I would see.  I wished there were less miles remaining as I headed down this road alone.  I found myself having thankful thoughts for my health which allowed me to train for, start and finish this ride.  I realized that my life was headed in a positive direction in every aspect.  I felt peaceful with my thoughts, then I turned into another headwind and had to pay more attention to what I was doing.  There were no riders within my sight, both in front of and behind me.  I rode the majority of that road 100% alone.  I would have appreciated the distraction of having to focus on a wheel in front of me, but that didn't happen.

I remember riding alone earlier, somewhere after Alpine, and finally catching someone and feeling like I immediately became more automatic with my actions and thoughts.  It was like I knew what to focus on, rather that being alone and not having a critical need to focus on something.  The spinning wheel in front of me became a comfort zone during this ride.  It helped me ride like I needed to naturally, rather than constantly monitoring to see if I was going fast enough.  I think I was less aware of my pains while in a paceline, or even just behind one rider.  This was an unexpected phenomenon. 

I finally saw a yellow sign in the distance and could hardly wait to get close enough to read it.  Finally, I saw it read 5 km.  I didn’t know what to think.  I just pedaled and noticed that people were starting to pass me.  I didn’t care.  There was not one competitive desire in my body.  My goal was to finish and I could smell it now.  Maybe a part of me wanted to have an emotional moment, but I could hardly stand the excitement.  I remember thinking of a photo of a previous LOTOJA finisher who picked his legs off his pedals and threw them forward.  I considered trying something like this, but since I had never done it before I decided it would probably be better to skip that type of celebration.  I wondered what I would do when I crossed that line.

I could see where the cars were being directed off the road into Teton Village.  Then I saw the 1 km sign on the side of the road.  I could see orange cones.  Oh my, there was what might be the finish banner.  Was this really happening?  Was I actually finishing LOTOJA or was this just another visualization of what it might be like?  Riders were passing me.  Did I want to position myself to cross alone?  Hell no, I was going to get across that line as soon as possible.  I followed the gradual turn in the road as I passed cars turning to park.  The line of spectators was getting closer quickly.  Where would my family be?  I could hear the cheering.  I kept pedaling down the corridor towards the finish area.  People were lining the left side of the road, cheering.  I saw a timing devise across the road, but it was well ahead of the finish banner.  Weird??  As I rode across it I heard someone say “5820 – Finish”.  Before I knew it I was crossing under the finish banner.  I stopped pedaling, naturally lifted both arms into the air and officially became a LOTOJA finisher. 

I saw and heard my family going crazy on the side just after the finish banner.  I passed them and found myself being guided down a chute of volunteers.  Someone congratulated me and put a finisher medal into my pocket while another volunteer took off my timing chip.  I got off my bike and walked towards my family coming to celebrate with me.  My brother, Greg, took my bike and then I was engulfed with Jones-esque celebration.  I hugged those who wanted to hug me and we made our way to the side to wait for Brenda and Natalie.  While we were walking, Greg pointed out that he knew what I would walk like as a grandma.  I blamed it on the clips on my shoes, but I am sure we both knew my waddling was not only because of them.

I felt the urgent need to get my shoes off.  I sat down, took them off and put on my new fleece socks and comfy slip-ons.  I was getting cold fast so I put on my fleece pants and long sleeved t-shirt.  I eventually put on my hoodie because of the cool breeze.  I drank two Powerbar recovery drinks, which tasted good and cold.  I did not eat one other thing for the rest of the night.  My stomach just could not do it.

 

	HR avg/max	Time hr	MPH	Prediction	Stoppage time
Finish 68˚	151/162	1:22 (+ 1:14)	18.5	1:58 – 2:21	none

We waited for another fifty minutes for Brenda to cross the line.  We all went crazy when we heard them announce her name.  It was just starting to get dusk as she finished.  I wanted to get to her first to give her a hug, so I took off running.  Her sisters, Cathy and Debbie, were close behind me, but far enough behind for Brenda and I to have our cry of excitement with each other.  We did it!  Amazing!  Our summer of training was worth it because we both did the best we could have.  We finished!!

The Jones and Hansen crew waited for another hour for Natalie as it continued getting darker and colder.   We finally got in touch with Elizabeth who told us that Natalie had gotten into the SAG vehicle because it was too dark to continue safely.  She rode 190 miles and then it simply got too dark to continue safely. 

LOTOJA was done for all of us!  No more early morning training rides to avoid the heat of the summer, no more anticipation and wondering about everything; it is now all fact.  It took some time to internalize that I actually did it.  It was my first big athletic accomplishment, as I had never participated in any type of endurance event before LOTOJA.  I am happy with my dedication  and follow through to accomplish my goal. 

I didn't know when or if I would do it again, because that year was perfect, why try to repeat or beat it?  Eight years later, I can proudly say I've finished it five times; two of those times, I somehow crossed the finish in first place within my age group.  That was a total surprise to me and is an entirely separate story.....