Horsey Hundred 2017

In 2013, Pam, my spin instructor, talked me into riding the Horsey Hundred, a 100+ mile ride through the heart of Kentucky horse country. I had never been on an organized bike ride, and had never ridden a distance longer than 20 miles. The bike I had was a low-end triathlon bike that I bought off Craigslist for $500. I would go on to have a tough but enjoyable ride, finishing that 104-mile trek.

I was hooked on "century" rides from that point on.

In 2014, 2015, and 2016, I completed the Kentucky Century Challenge, which consisted of four rides (The Redbud Ride, the Horsey Hundred, the Preservation Pedal/Bike Morehead, and the Hub City Tour).

This year, I entered the Horsey Hundred feeling unprepared. The birth of our adopted daughter, Abigail, was complicated: she spent 49 days in the NICU, including five days on the ECMO* machine.

That blew a 2-month hole in my training schedule.

Still, I had no doubt that I could finish this ride. In fact, I had done a 100-mile ride 4 weeks before: it was my Redbud "makeup" ride. I had also put in some strength work, including squats, in the weeks leading to the HH. I wasn't in the shape I wanted to be, but I was in decent shape, better than I was going into my first HH.

I was able to connect with Dan, a fellow rider who sometimes rides in our Slow Ride Group (SRG) on the century routes. He seemed to have the same goal I had: finish it comfortably. I figured I would hang out with him. We departed at 0630 with another group.

Our biggest concern was the weather: there had been forecasts of thunderstorms all week. But it seemed that we were going to get a break. Our hope was that the storms would hold off until evening.

This year, they changed the HH route, taking us around Midway whereas in previous years we stopped in Midway. On the front 40 miles, the climbs were more brutal than in previous years.

Still, going into the Frankfort stop, at mile 40, I felt good. My wife was able to meet up with me at that point. I got to kiss Abigail before heading out.

Coming into mile 50 (Millville), I was feeling good. The sun was coming out, and there were some nasty climbs in the next section, but this was doable.

The climbs on the back 50--before and after Clifton--were long but not particularly steep. In a sinister way, I enjoyed those.

Coming into the Versailles rest stop (mile 63), things looked good. It was warm and humid, the sun was out. But there were no storms. The rest stops were well-stocked with goodies, including pickle juice, which protects from cramps.

The stretch from mile 63 to 75, which included the infamous "Dry Ridge Rollers", was easier for me than it had been in previous years. That strength work was paying off. I felt pretty good--albeit slightly tired--at mile 75, but I still had plenty in the tank.

From mile 75 to 92, I noticed that my legs were getting tired. While I was doing fine on flat roads, I found that I had little power on uphills. I was plodding on the uphills. Still felt better than I did at that point last year.

At Bethel Church (mile 92), I enjoyed a root beer float before heading in for the last 9 miles.

That final stretch was uneventful. There were storm clouds behind us, but we were going to make it before they arrived. My wife and baby were waiting for me at the finish.

In all, a nice ride. I'm still not in the shape I want to be, but my performance at the HH tells me I'm not that far off the mark.

Here are the stats from my Garmin.

--- *ECMO is an acronym for ExtraCorporeal Membrane Oxygenation. In layman's terms, it's the "heart-lung machine". It is last-ditch life support.