Two days ago, in Crowley, Texas, I did my 16th bike rally of the year and my 488th overall. Things have not gone well for me at this rally during the past two years. In 2008, while riding with Phil, I crashed on gravel at an intersection and had to sag in at 48 miles. It took at least a year for my injuries to heal. In 2009, I rode 40 miles in pouring rain. I was starting to think that the cycling gods were punishing me for some transgression.
All went well this year, at least as far as I'm concerned. My friend Phil was not so lucky. About 10 miles into the ride, his rear tire blew. Randy and I stopped to assist him. We discovered that something had sliced the tire. The tube worked its way through the hole and blew, making a loud noise (not unlike a rifle shot). We had no spare tire, so our only hope was to put a patch on the inside of the tire, over the hole. I had patches, but my container of glue was dry. We tried placing the patch between the tire and the tube, but when we inflated the tube, it was threatening to go through the hole like the other one. Discretion being the better part of valor, Phil decided to call it a day. A sag wagon happened to be coming by, so Phil loaded up his bike and headed for home. Randy and I continued our ride.
The day was overcast and humid, though not hot. Randy and I negotiated the many turns on the course, stopping at several rest stops, before arriving safely at the finish, where we were applauded by dozens of spectators. For a moment, I thought we won something. Ha! I averaged 16.87 miles per hour for 58.35 miles. (Elapsed time = 3:27:25.) My maximum speed was 31.6 miles per hour. I burned 3,305 calories. My average heart rate was a ridiculously low 92 (I've seen it as high as 132) and my maximum heart rate 144 (which is also low). I guess that shows I didn't work very hard. But I had fun, which was the point. Randy was good company.
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 