Some rides are ill-fated from the start. These are the ones where you left one shoe cover at home, or found a bulge in your tire from a torn casing, or your water bottles leak Perpetuem all over your frame as you drive to the shop. Sometimes you feel like hanging it up before you even turn a pedal.
Other rides start out great and then surprise you with circumstances that challenge your willingness to suffer. You can’t plan for these situations, but these are the rides that you remember as being “epic”.
The team had one such epic a few weeks ago when we were caught by a surprise cold rain 20 miles from the end of the ride. We could have made the decision to ride through it, but it was cold enough that it would have invited hypothermia. Instead we bivouaced at Jonathan’s house south of Leiper’s Fork and got a ride back into town.
The Harpeth Racing team huddles around the gas range for warmth
Now this particular ride would have been considerably more “epic” if we had chosen to continue, but most of us had endured enough of the epic (epic in this case equals rain) and wanted to go home and stand in a hot shower with a cold beverage.
The season is young. There is much time remaining for suffering.
Read my full report of this ride here: http://www.nathanrtaylor.com/jonathan-saves-the-day/
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i’m glad you guys made it home safely. and i’m glad i wasn’t the only one that had to get a ride home. i made it as far as stephen collins’ house …i thought i was going to make it, but then i got a flat and had to beg for help.