Get on your bike and ride
Training for the Tour de Rock starts with a bike.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Fifty miles. It’s roughly the distance from Little Rock to Hot Springs. It’s also the distance I will attempt to ride in the fifth annual CARTI Tour de Rock on June 14.
The mega-bicycling event features an 18-mile Family Fun Ride, as well as 30-, 50- and 62-mile advanced rides. Close to 1,000 people are expected to participate, including me. And, though hesitant to take on this challenge at first, I feel confident I can complete the miles that lie before me, particularly since I’ll be taking part in Tour de Rock training rides on Saturday mornings.
As of today, I have 24 days to prepare for my ride. I like to think I am in relatively good shape. I attempt to exercise year-round and each spring, like a slumbering bear, I rise from my winter hibernation and start to walk, run and hike regularly. I’m sure, though, that the Tour de Rock will show me what kind of man I really am.
Arkansas Cycling and Fitness owner Richard Machycek offered me a boost of confidence when I recently went to his store to find a bicycle. He looked me over and assured me that I could ride 30 miles right now. Considering that I didn’t even own a bicycle a week ago, that’s good news.
Choosing the right bicycle is essential to completing the grueling, 50-mile ride that will take me out to the farmland west of Keo and back. So Rob Ayers, a salesman with Arkansas Cycling and Fitness in west Little Rock, spent about 15 minutes helping me find the right bike for my frame.
“We’re all built differently,” said Ayers, also known as the Grand Poobah of Sales. “I don’t like to call it a custom fit but a correct fit.”
When fitting customers for bicycles, Ayers first takes into account the type of terrain they will be riding on. He also takes into consideration the rider’s height. He had me sit on three different road bicycles while he measured my reach. He finally settled on a Trek 1.2 Series road bike. After helping me choose an Arkansas Cycling jersey and shorts (you have to look the part, after all), Ayers offered a few words of advice.
“Drink lots of fluids the week of the ride, and that doesn’t mean beer,” he said. “And to practice for a 30-mile ride, you just need to go out and ride.”
With Ayers’ advice still lingering in my mind, I set out for Outskirts Bike Shop in Bryant, a store that is part cycling shop and part neighborhood hangout for cycling enthusiasts. It was there that co-owner Herman Martin helped me choose a helmet, gloves and water bottles, all necessary equipment if you’re going to ride. When he heard that I would be participating in the Tour de Rock for the first time, regular customer Duane Jackson offered tips for continuing when the pain becomes overbearing.
“That pride kicks in and you keep peddling,” he said, noting that when you see children and older people passing you the pride will kick into overdrive.
The other piece of advice Outskirts patrons offered me? The common refrain of hydration.
So here I am. Twenty-four days and counting. I have my bike. I know to hydrate. And CARTI Tour de Rock co-chair David Holsted has been kind enough to train with me during the week as a supplement to those Saturday training sessions. During our first ride together, Holsted and I covered 15 miles along the Arkansas River Trail in about an hour. Afterward, he gave me another boost of confidence by saying that I could do the 30-mile Advanced Ride after just a few more training sessions.
Now all I have to do is ride — as much as possible. If I do that, then I’ll be prepared for the Advanced Ride come mid-June. I just might even meet my goal of completing the 50-mile leg of the journey.
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