Spring Classic 2010

2010-04-12T10:35:00.006-04:00

Sunday April 11, 2010 I rode in my first cycling event the Spring Classic 2010 held by St. Petersburg cycling club in Palmetto, Florida. All around it was a fun day even though I have nothing to compare it too it was a great event to attend.

The choices for rides was 60,36,and 22 miles. Since it was my first organized ride and I knew I could do the distance I decided to do the 36 mile ride.

The day was mild with cloud cover, no need for sunscreen today. When we first arrived I noticed mostly of middle aged adults with little to no younger people. This was alright for me because I know most of these riders are experienced and they could ride.
When the first group let off it was the 60 mile group which seemed to have most people.
My dad decided he would ride too, his birthday was last week and we got him a new Specialized Globe Vienna as a gift. He too said he would ride 36 miles which surprised me because he does not ride that often yet, but he does run 3 miles a few times a week.

So at 8:10 we were off the first few miles the group was together and well-paced with riders two abreast going 20-30 rows of riders back. Police officers were blocking intersections so we would ride on through red lights and all. After the first 1/4 of the ride the groups started to split and I found myself riding with my dad, a group of 4 girls and a couple others around. I was feeling real strong and the pace was a bit weak for me so I decided to go up ahead and see who was up there so I left the pack before the start of a hill and went on by myself. Every now and then we would get a light drizzle/mist that instead of being a nuisance it really felt good to have it cool me off. After a few miles and leaving the main packs behind I started to worry about directions because I did not know the route and I wasn't sure how the road marking system worked. I saw a rider up ahead and caught up with him he had "Fat Boys" or "Fat guys" on the back of his jersey, after speaking with him he said that he was in the 60 mile ride and he hadn't seen anyone from the 35 pass him yet so I must have been 'cookin'. The stretch seemed fairly long so I went up ahead only to come up to a Suncoast Cycling club member, I think his name was 'Tim' (I wish I would remember these things, im real bad with names). We introduced each other and he told me a bit about suncoast cycling club as we rode and said I should come out. He also explained to me how to follow the road marking system and that he was having knee pain from a long ride yesterday and that he was taking a shortcut to the first SAG stop. So we parted ways and I continued the route for the next leg it was a solo ride most of the time in headwind, so I pounded away for the next few miles passing a few lone riders and small groups working together against the wind, until I got to the first rest stop. There I ate few really good pb&j sandwiches on wheat bread and drank some gatorade, while refilling my bottles. I decided I would wait for my dad to catch back up, but after about a half hour I saw a bunch of people pour through from our ride and still no sign of him. The group of four girls from the beginning were headed out and they announced if anyone wants to join so I obliged and went with them, they were fun to ride with kept a good pace and were really nice so I stayed with them for the last part. One of them asked if I wanted to pull so I went ahead and made the same mistake I always do, I got too far ahead and they were pacing slower. I got far up ahead and still felt strong so I went ahead and caught up with the next guy ahead who was riding quick, I asked him how far he thinks we have left and then next thing we were at the starting point again.

Afterward, they had a meal of chicken, rice and beans, with a bread roll and salad, also with your choice of beer or soda. I opted for the beer, and the rice and beans were really good, rounding out an all above good ride. Hope to go again soon!

Thank you to St. Pete bicycle club, the volunteers, other riders, and anyone else that made this event happen, I'll be back!

Steer yourself any direction you choose

Spring Classic 2010