A week ago today I was in Houston, about to start the MS 150. Over the course of the week I've continued to think of the craziness of biking 120 miles over two days.

My schedule didn't allow me to start cycling in Houston so I had planned to start at the lunch stop around noon. Because of that, Derrick decided he would start closer to 9am instead of 7am so that we could both arrive at lunch around the same time. Though Carolyn, Angela and I were able to hit the road on time, a lack of proper road signage caused us to drive past the lunch stop by about 10 miles! By that time, the lunch stop was already out of food, so we ended up at a nearby Subway and I grabbed a quick lunch while Derrick came rode out to meet us. We took a few quick pictures and then headed out on the road. At that point, Derrick had already traveled 50 miles, and we had 50 miles to go till La Grange (Day 1).

As we headed out, I remember being amazed at the sheer number of bikes on the road. A reported 13,000 people signed up for this ride. People of all different skill levels riding for the same purpose, to bring an increased awareness to multiple sclerosis. My training definitely paid off, as the topography of the area had several steep hills. Since we live in a pretty hilly area, I've had to deal with hills throughout the last several months on each of my rides. I felt like I was able to handle inclines with little problem.

The rest stops were spaced out well so that we could take a breather and fill our water bottles. I feel like we set a very good pace for this first day, traveling at a rate of about 15-16 mph. Our overall average speed was a lot slower though since rest stops included waiting in line for water, snacks or porta-potties. We arrived at the campsite around 5:30 to much fanfare. An announcer was welcoming all the cyclists in by reading their name off their helmet numbers. After hearing my name called out, I heard the announcer go, "Derrrrrreeeeck POW!"

Kin had already arrived about 2 hours earlier and fortunately he staked out a good location to pitch the tent. Special shout out and thanks to Katie M. for loaning us her awesome tent. The event organizers had brought in these mobile showers, which essentially were giant tractor trailers converted into several personal showers rooms. The lines were really long for that, so Derrick and I got on a bus that took us to a nearby middle school to shower in their boys locker room. We got back, ate dinner, and then the three of us were in our sleeping bags around 9:30pm!

Though none of us slept comfortably in the tent, the entire campsite was up and about by 5am the next morning. I was the lazy one sleeping in until 5:30am! We got up, ate breakfast, then packed up our stuff onto the luggage trucks and then got in the starting line around 7:30. We waited in line for about 20 minutes before actually getting to head out. It was less than 50 degrees outside, my butt was sore from the day before, and the terrible roads out of La Grange weren't helping. We pressed on, but we saw several people who gave up and decided to wait for the SAG wagon to pick them up. Fortunately, things got better from there on out. After the first rest stop the sun started coming out, my butt got numb again, and the roads got much better. Kin, Derrick and I started picking up the pace and began to draft one another till the lunch stop. Kin's bike computer clocked us at around 20 mph.

As we got closer to Austin, there was this building excitement that we were close to finishing. I started developing some knee pain, but two doses of advil took care of that; by the time we finished the pain was gone. I didn't realize this, but the city of Austin is actually pretty hilly. Cutting across MLK Blvd, Manor Road, and going through East Austin was nothing but rolling hills. I saw several people who had to get off their bikes on the inclines. As tired as I was, I refused to have to walk my bike up a hill, so I stood up and powered through each uphill.

One thing to mention about the organization of the ride is that at every traffic intersection there was a police officer directing bike traffic and automobile traffic. As we got into Austin, one policewoman was shouting to the riders, "THREE MORE MILES! YOU CAN DO IT!" That pumped me up to be able to finish this ride strong. We rode under I-35, onto the UT campus, and finished right in front of the Bob Bullock museum in view of the state capitol.

We were pooped, but we felt so good. The rest of the day was spent with the Paus as we recouperated and hung out in Austin before heading back to Houston the next day.