STP 2007 - Been there, done that
The much-anticipated STP weekend was July 14 and 15. Considering I bought my bike at the end of May, I know there was some craziness involved there. But well, now that it's done, who is to say so? :) But the most interesting things that led up to the day are worth mentioning.
Friday morning: (STP - 1) day:The earlier San Juan biking experience had taught me two things about cleats - 1) that they really do increase efficiency, and 2) that they hurt a lot if they are even slightly tight. (Cleats are clips that attach to two nails under biking shoes. They clip you on to the pedals so that there is efficient transfer of power from legs to pedals) So in a scramble I went and exchanged my cleats for a larger size. Now, on Friday the 13th I realized that I would have to try my shoes on at least once before regretting it over 2 painful days. So, I fitted the cleats onto my shoes and took my bike out to the parking lot. Alright, so get on the bike, try one cleat at a time and you'll get it. Except that I lost my balance, couldnt unclip the cleat quickly enough and went bang! It may have been funny to see me sprawled on the ground with one leg still caught on the bike, and the other leg scratched by the chain wheel, but it wasnt then. I was feeling very nervous about the whole thing... but I thot I'd manage somehow. Friday evening was spent in a flurry of packing and checking lists. We were to check in our sleeping bags and luggage bags into the luggage van at the start line. They would be delivered to the destination we had chosen to be our mid way stopover for the night. (We were to stay at Bethel Church at 108 mile distance). Mixing electrolytes, filling water in the camel paks to carry on the back took some more time. Ultimately was able to sleep only around 12am. So much for all the advice about sleeping by 9pm!! Took a bath before sleeping and had kept all my clothes ready for the next morning. Saturday morning: Day 1 of STP
Had a restless night's sleep and got up and out of bed by 4.15 am. Since the bridge to Seattle was closed for repairs, we were supposed to take a longer highway route. Somehow, between Aparajita and I, we managed to get done and leave the house by 5. Abhijat was dropping us to the start line in Seattle as a token of enouragement :-) (And that was what I did need :) ) Traffic was really bad and like us, we saw hundreds of cars with one or more bikes hanging on to their bike racks behind. All heading to the same place. At least there was no chance to get lost!We checked our luggage in, did a few stretches and got in line for the port-a-potty. These mobile restrooms were to be our solace for the next 2 days. The less said about this experience, the better!! It was ages by the time everyone got together and pictures were taken and all that. I wished I'd have slept longer instead!! We FINALLY took off from the start line at 7.12am. Wow!! Off we went! And I was already looking at my mileometer and thinking - hmm.. half a mile done just another 204 miles to go. Vineet was my companion as we biked on. We were literally going at 18 - 20 miles an hour. Along Madison Park (One of the most beautiful areas around Lake Washington), onto Rainier Ave, through Seattle. Chatting... talking about Asha, the organization for which we did this fundraiser ride. BTW, our helmets had a very pretty handmade decoration - two table tennis balls made into a little girl and little boy with a book being shared - the official Asha symbol. In no time we reached the 25 mile mark which was the first food stop... time for breakfast. It was another 45 minutes before we left this spot... restroom, food, timepass... this was much longer than we should have stayed there. So our original group of 10-12 people started to split up into 2-3 people as we started taking off. By now, the sun was already going up and it was getting hotter...I dabbed another layer of sunscreen and went off. I later got to know that it was 91F!!!! All this while I wasnt wearing my cleats. Just biking hard to keep the pace. 10 miles went. Another 5 miles... and then the dreaded Puyallup hill. For goodness sakes!! The heat, the temperature, and this damn hill. I shifted to my lightest gear and kept trudging. Now, I hate to give up on hills, but the heat was really getting to me. People were getting off their bikes all around. And suddenly I dont know why, but I stepped down too. The chest strap for the heart rate monitor was feeling too tight and I could barely fight the incline. Sadly I got down and walked the last 20 steps up. :( One would expect that after such a steep uphill, you would be rewarded by a beautiful downhill... but no. That hill cheated me... it was flat and the road just went on. I was drinking water from my camelbak. At least the pipe didnt make me have to get down for a sip. I could just squeeze the tip with my teeth and water would squirt into my mouth. But somehow, the heat was getting unbearable. I knew that the lunch stop was at 50 miles, so I decided to hold my pace and keep going. "Drink some gatorade, but dont stop". So I kept going. By now, I was in the midst of a crowd of riders none of whom I knew. My mileometer showed 50 miles now, but I didnt see a food stop. Well, maybe another mile. But it was 53 now, and still no stop. Finally at 54.5 miles I saw the STP sign for food. By this time my palms were hot in my gloves, my face was red and my entire body felt very hot. Over the past 25 miles, my shoulders and neck had been hurting and the pain was getting progressively worse. I got into the rest stop and coudnt wait to sit in the shade. The food wasnt that great but I ate anyway. The line outside the restroom was long again... but man, who can complain when you are drinking a gallon of water an hour?! Everyone in my group kept coming in and by the time the last two people came in, I was ready to leave. It was still too hot, but we had to go on. We were just half way there yet. So I took off with Vineet and Narendra. I had just gone 3-4 miles when I started feeling the heat even stronger. It was becoming hard to ride and my eyes were feeling glazed. I was pedalling, but it was getting hard to focus. Headwind was too strong. Again, it was getting hard to breathe. shoulders hurt. I remembered a wise person saying that it was important to realise when to stop and not go on. I decided I had to heed those words. Fortunately, Narendra adn Vineet were just behind me. So I told them I wasnt feeling that great. They stopped for me... so many riders on the way asked if everything was ok and we needed help... those things really touch me. Everyone feels the heat, but they still try to help. And you end up doing the same. :) Ankur came by in a few minutes... I drank plenty of water, took an energy shot and sat in the shade for a few minutes. Then started again, feeling better. I was able to bike to the next mini-stop stop then, where a beautiful shady tree stood. We stopped there for a little while. Caught our breaths while the others caught up with us. And then I got back to normal. That rest was needed and that helped me to continue without any mishaps. We had a lot of laughs there, took pictures and then started again. It was around 2.30 by the time we came to the long bike trail in the woods. Covered with trees on both sides, no traffic lights to wait for, cooler air... maan, this was what I was on that bike for!! :) And now I was back biking with Aparajita, Sree and Srijan with whom I really have a great time! So we were having a lot of fun... with Sree / Srijan taking pics as they rode, and even taking video clips. I saw a shiny snake slithering as fast as it could to get out of the way of the bikers. I said a prayer for it to make it safely on the other side and hoped noone ran over it. There were lakes as we biked on, and even a glimpse was soothing. Sometimes there were dust clouds... sometimes the road was bumpy. Also, you have to follow protocols - with traffic, cars, and other bikers. For a pedestrian you are a car, for a car you are a bike. Hand signals are necessary, and you can only cross a biker from his left. Also, you have to shout 'On your left' before you cross someone so that they dont sudenly move out of line in front of you. Well, you start off merrily shouting 'On your left' but it gradually turns into hissing 'Leffft' as you get tired :) So anyway, we thus pedaled our way to Centralia where the 100 mile mark was. We were looking forward to the free ice cream that we had been told about. Had at least 2 each. Some gluttons in the group had 4! But we were encouraged to eat whatever we could! Moreover, the caloriemeter showed over 3500 calories burnt... so who cares :) A lot of bikers sleepover at Centralia to start early the next morning. They sleep in tents or take rooms. But we had about 8 miles further to go. So around 6.45pm, we started on the short journey ahead, dreaming of a nice shower, good food and a place to rest the already sore back and butt. In my case, my dream was just to take the camelbak off my shoulders!!! But well... whatever comes easy?! At 108, we found ourselves in Chehalis with no sign of Bethel Church. Not many people were around... we had left them at Centralia. Somehow, colelcting titbits of info, we kept going over the next 6 miles... to finally find our resting spot at 114 miles :) We checked in our bikes, got our luggage, and went into the dorm type room were several people were already fast asleep in their sleeping bags. We found our reserved corners - just enough area to spread out the sleeping bag, and keep a chair. I took off my shoes and was thankful for the slippers I had packed in. We headed to the food and ate like wolves! There was pasta and bread and salad. We all devoured it withour relish. Only after that did we think of bathing etc. Once clean, we could sit down outside and talk. Of course I spent some of this time looking for a spot where I had cellphone coverage so I could report to the big boss (read Abhijat) the happenings of the day. My shoulders and neck were excruciating, but by now I had learnt what I needed to do. At Centralia, I had tightened the straps on my camelpak so that it now fit more smugly and that actually reduced the drag on my shoulders. Unfortunately, I already had 100 miles under my pedals before I figured out the correct length. Well, it would help the next day!
So we sat around for a while... some of us took small massages (paid) from the masseuse service there. We ended up going to sleep around 11.30pm after card games, random talk and exchanging experiences.
Sunday : Day 2 of STP
I barely slept throughout the night for fear that everyone in the hall would end up oversleeping and consequently we (or I) would be late in starting the next day. Well, I neednt have worried. Many bikers were already off by 5am. I woke up at 5 and got ready almost immediately. Madame Aparajita could not be woken up until 6! Anyway, we all had breakfast - hot potatoes, muffins, cereal, oatmeal. Somehow someone or the other kept delaying and we were finally back on the road by 7.15am We got back on the STP route. The next big step would be the hill at Napa Vine. And then the banana bread that Napa Vine people were famous for! Both things lived upto their promise :) Thankfully we did not spend too much time here and were on the way quickly again. We took restroom stops at gas stations a couple of times. The second day was quite hilly, but thankfully the sun was playing hide-and-seek with the clouds! Just what I was hoping for!! The trail was pretty interesting because of the hills... there was something to work on and the downhills were sooo enjoyable. The only downside was that Arvind had to stop at mile 140 since his knee had really started swelling up and now it looked angry red. Apart from that, the ride till the lunch stop was confortable.Lunch was another sad story, but it was fun to talk about all those horrible hills and what interesting things we saw. I am amazed still, by the number of riders who do the STP in recliners, pushing with hand-pedals, their legs in front of them... where do they get that kind of aspiration? It was getting hotter after lunch, but it was bearable. We all started from lunch together, but eventually I found myself biking myself with a strange groups. I guessed that my friends must have got split in groups... perhaps someone's chain fell off... hopefully nothing bad happened. But anyway, my phone was on, so they could call me if there was anything. Just one thing almost spoilt my ride. Now, from the later part of day 1, I was using my cleats. And in fact, on day 2, I was clipping my cleats to the pedals right from the beginning. Was doing ok with getting down and back up and the cleats were also getting worn in fine. But at this traffic light, I was trying to stop... my right cleat wouldnt come off the pedal. There were bikers in front of me, cars by my side... and I was frantically tugging... the light's still red... dammit! It has to change... I cant crash... oh...my... godddddd... I was an inch away from the biker in front of me and my cleat still wasnt off. And the light changed to green. I pressed back down and went across in a sprint. Then checked what was happening, figured out why my cleat was catching before thanking my stars! Phew! So many people fall... experienced/seasoned bikers... they just laugh it off. I guess I should expect and get used to this anyway :)
Another very interesting thing was the Lewis-Clark bridge that joins Washington State to Oregon state. This bridge needs an escort as it has heavy vehicular traffic. So bikers are lined up at the ramp in the beginning. Once there are about 100-150 bikers, one lane of the bridge is cut off to cars and the bikers go in. Now this bridge is like a steep hill. It is curved, with the center at quite a height. And the Columbia river flows beneath it. You can see Mt. St. Helen's and the view is just out of this world. If you look down, you see water, and on the side, there are winding freeways... you see bikers going on them at top speed since they are sloping down... it fills you up with a sense of exhilaration! And right in the middle, there is a sign which says, 'Entering Oregon'. It's inch to inch with the other riders and you can stop although it's tiring to keep biking up. But it's also so lovely! I had the most fun doing that bridge!
So anyway, at the 176 mile mark, I met my fellow riders again. I was constantly filling water in my backpak. Was feeling much better with the shoulders too. Plus, I had the bridge to talk about. I was wondering why Aparajita, Sree and Srijan had fallen so far back, so I waited for them at the lunch stop. Turned out that Aparajita had taken a tumble and hurt herself. She was fine by then, but her hands were scratched.
Anyway, there were just 30 miles left to go, and nothing could stop any of us anymore. I set off... this time alone again. At 7 miles hence, I saw the Scappouse mini-stop. It was crowded, so I decided to stop at some gas station closer to Portland to relieve myself later. Bad mistake. I never got a chance to do that. There was absolutely no stop till the Finish Line. It was crazy, but the best part about reaching the Finish became the rest room... rather the honeybucket!! The last few miles were gruelling. I kept seeing signs 'Portland 12'... 'Portland 10'... 'Portland 6' ... I was inside the city too... but there was still a series of uphills and downhills and traffic lights and all kinds of nonsense! I had to stop at about 5 traffic lights at every block from the finish line at Holladay Park! I could hear the music, but I wasnt there yet. And then suddenly, I was. And I knew I'd done it. The STP could be checked off my list. And I was fine... no flat tires!! Except for one time when my chain dropped at 10 miles from Portland, nothing else happened!
There was fun and festivity at the finish line. 3 of the others had already reached before me. Others followed about 30-50 minutes after me. Looks like the restroom problem made me pedal really hard and improved my timing by a lot :)
So the STP closes at 7pm. We were still hanging out there waiting for the friend who was to give us a ride back to Seattle. He got lost on the way (he was driving! :) ) so it was 8 and we were still there. There were very few people at Holladay Park then. Most others must have even reached Seattle by then. The Finish line had been removed, the music was over, the stalls were gone. And this handicapped girl in her hand-pedalled recliner came up. She reached, stopped and burst out crying. I was looking at her. Her family was there. They threw their arms around her. And she kept on crying. There were tears in my eyes too, and I just started clapping for her.
2 other ladies, at least 65 years old also rode up around 7.30. I cheered for them and they stopped and gracefully bowed. :) It was so beautiful...
There are so many small and big things that happened... I cant write all of them. I'll probably remember them at different times and smile to myself. But I am sure glad that I have this wonderful experience to think of... my first STP! And I am thankful that I am able and healthy to do this.
Friday morning: (STP - 1) day:The earlier San Juan biking experience had taught me two things about cleats - 1) that they really do increase efficiency, and 2) that they hurt a lot if they are even slightly tight. (Cleats are clips that attach to two nails under biking shoes. They clip you on to the pedals so that there is efficient transfer of power from legs to pedals) So in a scramble I went and exchanged my cleats for a larger size. Now, on Friday the 13th I realized that I would have to try my shoes on at least once before regretting it over 2 painful days. So, I fitted the cleats onto my shoes and took my bike out to the parking lot. Alright, so get on the bike, try one cleat at a time and you'll get it. Except that I lost my balance, couldnt unclip the cleat quickly enough and went bang! It may have been funny to see me sprawled on the ground with one leg still caught on the bike, and the other leg scratched by the chain wheel, but it wasnt then. I was feeling very nervous about the whole thing... but I thot I'd manage somehow. Friday evening was spent in a flurry of packing and checking lists. We were to check in our sleeping bags and luggage bags into the luggage van at the start line. They would be delivered to the destination we had chosen to be our mid way stopover for the night. (We were to stay at Bethel Church at 108 mile distance). Mixing electrolytes, filling water in the camel paks to carry on the back took some more time. Ultimately was able to sleep only around 12am. So much for all the advice about sleeping by 9pm!! Took a bath before sleeping and had kept all my clothes ready for the next morning. Saturday morning: Day 1 of STP
Had a restless night's sleep and got up and out of bed by 4.15 am. Since the bridge to Seattle was closed for repairs, we were supposed to take a longer highway route. Somehow, between Aparajita and I, we managed to get done and leave the house by 5. Abhijat was dropping us to the start line in Seattle as a token of enouragement :-) (And that was what I did need :) ) Traffic was really bad and like us, we saw hundreds of cars with one or more bikes hanging on to their bike racks behind. All heading to the same place. At least there was no chance to get lost!We checked our luggage in, did a few stretches and got in line for the port-a-potty. These mobile restrooms were to be our solace for the next 2 days. The less said about this experience, the better!! It was ages by the time everyone got together and pictures were taken and all that. I wished I'd have slept longer instead!! We FINALLY took off from the start line at 7.12am. Wow!! Off we went! And I was already looking at my mileometer and thinking - hmm.. half a mile done just another 204 miles to go. Vineet was my companion as we biked on. We were literally going at 18 - 20 miles an hour. Along Madison Park (One of the most beautiful areas around Lake Washington), onto Rainier Ave, through Seattle. Chatting... talking about Asha, the organization for which we did this fundraiser ride. BTW, our helmets had a very pretty handmade decoration - two table tennis balls made into a little girl and little boy with a book being shared - the official Asha symbol. In no time we reached the 25 mile mark which was the first food stop... time for breakfast. It was another 45 minutes before we left this spot... restroom, food, timepass... this was much longer than we should have stayed there. So our original group of 10-12 people started to split up into 2-3 people as we started taking off. By now, the sun was already going up and it was getting hotter...I dabbed another layer of sunscreen and went off. I later got to know that it was 91F!!!! All this while I wasnt wearing my cleats. Just biking hard to keep the pace. 10 miles went. Another 5 miles... and then the dreaded Puyallup hill. For goodness sakes!! The heat, the temperature, and this damn hill. I shifted to my lightest gear and kept trudging. Now, I hate to give up on hills, but the heat was really getting to me. People were getting off their bikes all around. And suddenly I dont know why, but I stepped down too. The chest strap for the heart rate monitor was feeling too tight and I could barely fight the incline. Sadly I got down and walked the last 20 steps up. :( One would expect that after such a steep uphill, you would be rewarded by a beautiful downhill... but no. That hill cheated me... it was flat and the road just went on. I was drinking water from my camelbak. At least the pipe didnt make me have to get down for a sip. I could just squeeze the tip with my teeth and water would squirt into my mouth. But somehow, the heat was getting unbearable. I knew that the lunch stop was at 50 miles, so I decided to hold my pace and keep going. "Drink some gatorade, but dont stop". So I kept going. By now, I was in the midst of a crowd of riders none of whom I knew. My mileometer showed 50 miles now, but I didnt see a food stop. Well, maybe another mile. But it was 53 now, and still no stop. Finally at 54.5 miles I saw the STP sign for food. By this time my palms were hot in my gloves, my face was red and my entire body felt very hot. Over the past 25 miles, my shoulders and neck had been hurting and the pain was getting progressively worse. I got into the rest stop and coudnt wait to sit in the shade. The food wasnt that great but I ate anyway. The line outside the restroom was long again... but man, who can complain when you are drinking a gallon of water an hour?! Everyone in my group kept coming in and by the time the last two people came in, I was ready to leave. It was still too hot, but we had to go on. We were just half way there yet. So I took off with Vineet and Narendra. I had just gone 3-4 miles when I started feeling the heat even stronger. It was becoming hard to ride and my eyes were feeling glazed. I was pedalling, but it was getting hard to focus. Headwind was too strong. Again, it was getting hard to breathe. shoulders hurt. I remembered a wise person saying that it was important to realise when to stop and not go on. I decided I had to heed those words. Fortunately, Narendra adn Vineet were just behind me. So I told them I wasnt feeling that great. They stopped for me... so many riders on the way asked if everything was ok and we needed help... those things really touch me. Everyone feels the heat, but they still try to help. And you end up doing the same. :) Ankur came by in a few minutes... I drank plenty of water, took an energy shot and sat in the shade for a few minutes. Then started again, feeling better. I was able to bike to the next mini-stop stop then, where a beautiful shady tree stood. We stopped there for a little while. Caught our breaths while the others caught up with us. And then I got back to normal. That rest was needed and that helped me to continue without any mishaps. We had a lot of laughs there, took pictures and then started again. It was around 2.30 by the time we came to the long bike trail in the woods. Covered with trees on both sides, no traffic lights to wait for, cooler air... maan, this was what I was on that bike for!! :) And now I was back biking with Aparajita, Sree and Srijan with whom I really have a great time! So we were having a lot of fun... with Sree / Srijan taking pics as they rode, and even taking video clips. I saw a shiny snake slithering as fast as it could to get out of the way of the bikers. I said a prayer for it to make it safely on the other side and hoped noone ran over it. There were lakes as we biked on, and even a glimpse was soothing. Sometimes there were dust clouds... sometimes the road was bumpy. Also, you have to follow protocols - with traffic, cars, and other bikers. For a pedestrian you are a car, for a car you are a bike. Hand signals are necessary, and you can only cross a biker from his left. Also, you have to shout 'On your left' before you cross someone so that they dont sudenly move out of line in front of you. Well, you start off merrily shouting 'On your left' but it gradually turns into hissing 'Leffft' as you get tired :) So anyway, we thus pedaled our way to Centralia where the 100 mile mark was. We were looking forward to the free ice cream that we had been told about. Had at least 2 each. Some gluttons in the group had 4! But we were encouraged to eat whatever we could! Moreover, the caloriemeter showed over 3500 calories burnt... so who cares :) A lot of bikers sleepover at Centralia to start early the next morning. They sleep in tents or take rooms. But we had about 8 miles further to go. So around 6.45pm, we started on the short journey ahead, dreaming of a nice shower, good food and a place to rest the already sore back and butt. In my case, my dream was just to take the camelbak off my shoulders!!! But well... whatever comes easy?! At 108, we found ourselves in Chehalis with no sign of Bethel Church. Not many people were around... we had left them at Centralia. Somehow, colelcting titbits of info, we kept going over the next 6 miles... to finally find our resting spot at 114 miles :) We checked in our bikes, got our luggage, and went into the dorm type room were several people were already fast asleep in their sleeping bags. We found our reserved corners - just enough area to spread out the sleeping bag, and keep a chair. I took off my shoes and was thankful for the slippers I had packed in. We headed to the food and ate like wolves! There was pasta and bread and salad. We all devoured it withour relish. Only after that did we think of bathing etc. Once clean, we could sit down outside and talk. Of course I spent some of this time looking for a spot where I had cellphone coverage so I could report to the big boss (read Abhijat) the happenings of the day. My shoulders and neck were excruciating, but by now I had learnt what I needed to do. At Centralia, I had tightened the straps on my camelpak so that it now fit more smugly and that actually reduced the drag on my shoulders. Unfortunately, I already had 100 miles under my pedals before I figured out the correct length. Well, it would help the next day!
So we sat around for a while... some of us took small massages (paid) from the masseuse service there. We ended up going to sleep around 11.30pm after card games, random talk and exchanging experiences.
Sunday : Day 2 of STP
I barely slept throughout the night for fear that everyone in the hall would end up oversleeping and consequently we (or I) would be late in starting the next day. Well, I neednt have worried. Many bikers were already off by 5am. I woke up at 5 and got ready almost immediately. Madame Aparajita could not be woken up until 6! Anyway, we all had breakfast - hot potatoes, muffins, cereal, oatmeal. Somehow someone or the other kept delaying and we were finally back on the road by 7.15am We got back on the STP route. The next big step would be the hill at Napa Vine. And then the banana bread that Napa Vine people were famous for! Both things lived upto their promise :) Thankfully we did not spend too much time here and were on the way quickly again. We took restroom stops at gas stations a couple of times. The second day was quite hilly, but thankfully the sun was playing hide-and-seek with the clouds! Just what I was hoping for!! The trail was pretty interesting because of the hills... there was something to work on and the downhills were sooo enjoyable. The only downside was that Arvind had to stop at mile 140 since his knee had really started swelling up and now it looked angry red. Apart from that, the ride till the lunch stop was confortable.Lunch was another sad story, but it was fun to talk about all those horrible hills and what interesting things we saw. I am amazed still, by the number of riders who do the STP in recliners, pushing with hand-pedals, their legs in front of them... where do they get that kind of aspiration? It was getting hotter after lunch, but it was bearable. We all started from lunch together, but eventually I found myself biking myself with a strange groups. I guessed that my friends must have got split in groups... perhaps someone's chain fell off... hopefully nothing bad happened. But anyway, my phone was on, so they could call me if there was anything. Just one thing almost spoilt my ride. Now, from the later part of day 1, I was using my cleats. And in fact, on day 2, I was clipping my cleats to the pedals right from the beginning. Was doing ok with getting down and back up and the cleats were also getting worn in fine. But at this traffic light, I was trying to stop... my right cleat wouldnt come off the pedal. There were bikers in front of me, cars by my side... and I was frantically tugging... the light's still red... dammit! It has to change... I cant crash... oh...my... godddddd... I was an inch away from the biker in front of me and my cleat still wasnt off. And the light changed to green. I pressed back down and went across in a sprint. Then checked what was happening, figured out why my cleat was catching before thanking my stars! Phew! So many people fall... experienced/seasoned bikers... they just laugh it off. I guess I should expect and get used to this anyway :)
Another very interesting thing was the Lewis-Clark bridge that joins Washington State to Oregon state. This bridge needs an escort as it has heavy vehicular traffic. So bikers are lined up at the ramp in the beginning. Once there are about 100-150 bikers, one lane of the bridge is cut off to cars and the bikers go in. Now this bridge is like a steep hill. It is curved, with the center at quite a height. And the Columbia river flows beneath it. You can see Mt. St. Helen's and the view is just out of this world. If you look down, you see water, and on the side, there are winding freeways... you see bikers going on them at top speed since they are sloping down... it fills you up with a sense of exhilaration! And right in the middle, there is a sign which says, 'Entering Oregon'. It's inch to inch with the other riders and you can stop although it's tiring to keep biking up. But it's also so lovely! I had the most fun doing that bridge!
So anyway, at the 176 mile mark, I met my fellow riders again. I was constantly filling water in my backpak. Was feeling much better with the shoulders too. Plus, I had the bridge to talk about. I was wondering why Aparajita, Sree and Srijan had fallen so far back, so I waited for them at the lunch stop. Turned out that Aparajita had taken a tumble and hurt herself. She was fine by then, but her hands were scratched.
Anyway, there were just 30 miles left to go, and nothing could stop any of us anymore. I set off... this time alone again. At 7 miles hence, I saw the Scappouse mini-stop. It was crowded, so I decided to stop at some gas station closer to Portland to relieve myself later. Bad mistake. I never got a chance to do that. There was absolutely no stop till the Finish Line. It was crazy, but the best part about reaching the Finish became the rest room... rather the honeybucket!! The last few miles were gruelling. I kept seeing signs 'Portland 12'... 'Portland 10'... 'Portland 6' ... I was inside the city too... but there was still a series of uphills and downhills and traffic lights and all kinds of nonsense! I had to stop at about 5 traffic lights at every block from the finish line at Holladay Park! I could hear the music, but I wasnt there yet. And then suddenly, I was. And I knew I'd done it. The STP could be checked off my list. And I was fine... no flat tires!! Except for one time when my chain dropped at 10 miles from Portland, nothing else happened!
There was fun and festivity at the finish line. 3 of the others had already reached before me. Others followed about 30-50 minutes after me. Looks like the restroom problem made me pedal really hard and improved my timing by a lot :)
So the STP closes at 7pm. We were still hanging out there waiting for the friend who was to give us a ride back to Seattle. He got lost on the way (he was driving! :) ) so it was 8 and we were still there. There were very few people at Holladay Park then. Most others must have even reached Seattle by then. The Finish line had been removed, the music was over, the stalls were gone. And this handicapped girl in her hand-pedalled recliner came up. She reached, stopped and burst out crying. I was looking at her. Her family was there. They threw their arms around her. And she kept on crying. There were tears in my eyes too, and I just started clapping for her.
2 other ladies, at least 65 years old also rode up around 7.30. I cheered for them and they stopped and gracefully bowed. :) It was so beautiful...
There are so many small and big things that happened... I cant write all of them. I'll probably remember them at different times and smile to myself. But I am sure glad that I have this wonderful experience to think of... my first STP! And I am thankful that I am able and healthy to do this.
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| STP2007 |
posted by LightRain at 4:03 PM
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