Lodi Bike Ride

I survived the 38-mile bike ride in Lodi this past weekend. It was actually rather easy. The ride was flat, there was no wind, and the heat only really kicked in towards the very end.

When we reached the Sacramento area on Friday afternoon, the thermometer in my car said it was 106 degrees outside. Yeeesh! I knew then that we would be getting up the next morning as early as possible so we could beat the heat on our ride.

I awoke at 5:45am and started getting ready. My dad came downstairs shortly thereafter. It was all going well until he broke the valve stem on one of his tubes as he was trying to add a little extra air. Hmmm.... None of my spare tubes would fit his tires, but fortunately he had an extra one on hand. I quickly swapped out the bad tube for the new one, we inflated it, and it he was all set to go!

We arrived at the starting point (Lodi High School), checked in, and started our ride. The ride was easy, but a little monotonous. The roads are all straight and flat as they cut between the farmland. There was very little traffic which was very nice. However, a few more turns or ups and downs would've broken up the ride nicely.

We reached the halfway point in good time and stopped for some juice, cookies and a brief rest. It was already starting to get quite warm so we didn't dawdle for too long before we headed back.

The ride back was much like the first leg. I hung back with my dad a bit as he was getting tired and was feeling the effects of the heat. Towards the end, I left him behind and sprinted to the finish. When I got to the car, I checked my phone to see that I had a message. It was my dad. He had pooped out just a few miles from the finish. Fortunately, I had thought ahead and asked him to give me the car keys at the halfway point. So, I jumped in the car and drove back to retrieve him.

For those who don't know, my dad is 76 years old. I was duly impressed that he went as far as we did, considering that he hadn't ridden in quite some time. I hope I can do half that distance when I'm that age!!! Good job, dad!!

After the ride we came home, showered, had l lunch, and relaxed. We even napped a little bit. Kristen and the kids, who were down in Tracy visiting her newborn cousin, arrived a bit later and we had a wonderful hamburger dinner before I crashed at 9pm.

It was a great weekend and I'm hoping to do the ride again next. Maybe next time I'll try the 100k...