It made me

beyond happy

How I did it: I enlisted my brother early and we signed up right away! Both of us purchased our first road bikes earlier this year and rode them as regularly as possible gradually working up to a 100 mile ride.

during the ride we both carried camel paks and took advantage of all the free stops to power up with food. We have the most amazing parents who met up with us at many of the stops and finish line cheering us on and our wonderful sister and her kids met us at the Tenino stop close to their home.

The first day we rode 118 miles into Winlock to make the second day much easier. Read how I did it… 10 months ago

It made me

SUPER HAPPY!

How I did it: It has been a few weeks since I completed this, but I haven't had time to write about it until now.  I must say that this was one of the most rewarding undertakings I have ever pursued.  Completing something like this, that a few years ago I would have never believed I could do, makes me believe that I can achieve almost anything if I want to badly enough and work hard.

The best thing I did was get hooked into a wonderful riding group that has had years of experience with STP.  They taught me how to ride in a pack, how to be a good biking citizen, and most importantly, how to be prepared and have fun.  The next best thing I did was ask my husband to ride along and he agreed.  I was somewhat surprised he did so.  But he is competitive enough with me that I knew that he would be successful if I was.  It was a wonderful experience and having him along on the trainings both helped to keep me more motivated and decrease the guilt I have felt about the amount of time it takes to train for an event like this. 

I followed (sort of) the Cascade Bicycle Club's training schedule.  However, I had been told that it was overly ambitious and that I should be able to ride without doing quite as much training as they suggested, especially since I had a relatively good base from my triathlon training.  The website also said that if I could complete the June Flying Wheels 45 or 65 mile rides that I would be fine.  Those rides have much more severe hills.  I was able to complete the 65 in June and sure enough, STP was a breeze in comparison.

There was so much camaraderie along the ride - the other bikers were for the most part super.  A few drivers were obnoxious, but we were able to ignore their horns.  A few injuries in our group, one fairly serious, but recoverable. 

Most rewarding of all were the strong friendships we formed with the other riders in our group, along with random conversations with others along the ride.  It was so awesome, and I immediately felt the letdown of knowing that I would have to wait a whole year to ride it again.  STP 2012, can't wait! Read how I did it… 22 months ago

It made me

sore, but happy

How I did it: I started by buying a bicycle in February 2011, as well as an indoor trainer since the weather in Washington wasn't that great yet. I started riding on the trainer a couple times a week to start building up endurance. In March I began the Cascade Bicycle Club's recommended training schedule, trying to follow it as closely as possible. When the weather began to improve I started riding outside, discovering new routes to acheive longer rides.

Though I didn't exactly keep up with the training program, I did keep persisting. I signed up for and rode in the Redhook Haul Ash and the Flying Wheels rides, which were both good experiences for riding with large groups of people.

On the friday before the ride I parked at the UW parking lot and stayed in one of the dorms so I could get an early start. The first day's ride was a bit tougher than I expected, but not too bad. I tent camped that night at Centralia Community College. Due to neglect on my part (forgot sunscreen the first day and improper handlebar placement) the second day was much harder for me.

But I finished! I loaded my bike on the truck, got a shower and something to eat, and got on the charter bus home. Read how I did it… 22 months ago