Bellingham to Kendall

February 8th, 2015

Bellingham, WA to Kendall, WA and back

55 miles

1600 ft ascent/descent

Sunny, 58 degrees

My, how things change. When Peter and I started cycling together, I was totally content with what we were doing--one nice 30-40 mile ride a week on my commuter. I remember both of us saying how we weren't interested in racing, didn't need special bike clothes, thinking the whole middle-aged men in lycra culture was laughable. Then about the time we started this blog, things got more serious. Peter bought a new bike; I bought some new parts for my bike, and as I installed them, I realized how cool bikes are from a mechanical perspective. I became interested in taking things apart, cleaning them and putting them back together. I couldn't stop hanging out with my bike. Every spare moment I had at home seemed to be spent looking at bike websites--maintenance, parts, repairs, builds. Every time we rode, I felt like I discovered something else I could love about cycling. 

Then came Christmas, and along with it, two surprises that pushed me to the next level. First, I got some cycling shorts which enabled me to go for even longer distances without feeling uncomfortable. Plus, I can't deny the increased badass-level that came along with sporting them. Second, I got a cycling computer from my brother. Oh, so much fun! I could now time my rides and accurately brag about my speed! I just couldn't get enough. 

But then about a month ago, I started getting pretty bad pain behind my knees while biking. I adjusted the saddle over and over again to try to fine-tune it, but the ache just wouldn't go away. It started to become painful even to walk. I figured I had better give cycling a rest for a few weeks until whatever I had done to myself healed. In the meantime, I realized the pain might just be from pushing myself for 40-50 miles on this three-speed bike that was honestly made for the sole purpose of relatively short city rides. Yes, it is time, I told myself, for the next step in my cycling love-affair, the +1 in the infamous n+1 equation. I needed a real road bike.

So I started scouring the internet, checking Craigslist, Ebay and many other bike websites daily, trying to find the perfect bike for me. But after a few weeks of intense searching, I noticed Nashbar had released their new aluminum road bike equipped with the brand new Shimano 105 5800 groupset. From what I could tell, this thing was budget badassery at its best. I ordered it in a moment of payment pain/extreme excitement/payment pain again. But it was done, and within seven days, it had arrived. As soon as I put it together, I wanted to test it out, but the weather wasn't having it--it is Bellingham, after all. So after waiting with bated breath through three straight days of rain, I got to take my new ride for a spin.

Wow, this bike is so much different than my commuter. It just feels good, man. Not to mention the clipless pedals and cleated shoes, which were another monumental step up. It took awhile to get used to the shifting, but after about an hour of riding, I felt like I had the basics down. I was flying down hills at almost 40 mph without even pushing it (compared with my commuter which seems to absolutely max out around 36 mph), and I was able to maintain an average speed of around 22 mph. Until about mile 40...

As I rode back toward Bellingham along the Mount Baker Highway, cars and semis whooshing past at 60 mph, I suddenly began to feel weak. And as I continued, I felt worse and worse. I kept powering through, as one does, but after another ten minutes or so, I physically wasn't able to go more than 10 miles per hour. I couldn't think straight, I felt very lightheaded and absent from my surroundings--not good on the shoulder of a highway. I had to stop. My legs and arms shook uncontrollably as I dismounted and reached into my saddle bag for the granola bar I had thankfully brought along in hopes of reversing this awful feeling. It was the dreaded "bonk," as they call it in the endurance sports world, though more officially known as hypoglycemia. Luckily, that granola bar gave me just enough energy to push through the last 15 miles back home. But I'm vowing "never again!" with this whole bonking business. I'll be getting another bottle cage for my bike so from now on, I will have one bottle of water and one bottle of sports drink with me anytime I'm training.

And as for clothing, I'm moving into the upper echelons. I've bought some cycling gloves and a jersey to complete my kit. Still on the budget side, but hey, I'm a student. When I'm richer, I'll go for the full-on, color-coordinated bib and jersey thing with cycling-specific socks. Yes, not too long until I, myself, am a middle-aged man in lycra. My, how things change.