Day 1 of Bike MS

Day 1 started bright and early at 5 a.m. I was the first to arrive, so I was able to gather my wits and get my act together. I eventually ran into Kari, my co-captain for team Saddle Soar. 

 Sonya, Michelle, Kari, and Me

 We were finally able to gather the entire team except for Collin and Dean. Dean was running late, and Collin had already decided to start the ride an hour or so later than the rest of the team (he caught up to my right before lunch). This year, Saddle Soar consisted of 11 team members. We had a team jersey for everyone but two. 

 Collin was kind enough to eat lunch with me before taking off to finish the ride. 

 After Collin left (and got a flat right after that delayed him a bit), I found the rest of the team. This is Adam and me relaxing before finishing up Day 1. 

 At the finish line was Collin (he'd finished an hour prior) and mom and dad cheering me through. What a great sight to see faces I know at the end. 

 What was also so very special to me was my best friends from Nebraska were also at the finish line. They came to Denver for Michelle's 30th birthday (in purple), and while I wasn't able to celebrate with them, they made sure to be at the finish line of Day 1 so I could hang out with them for a bit. I love these girls to death!

Katie, Me, Michelle, April (We missed you, Irish!)

This is a team picture, which includes Collin and Dean (but two girls were missing). I wasn't able to get a complete team pictures this year. 

 I spent several hours after the ride with Katie, Michelle, and April. We went to downtown Fort Collins and did some shopping, and then we had dinner at Beau Jo's Pizza. There we gave Michelle her birthday present (a Coach wallet-super jealous) and caught up on life. It was the perfect way to end the day. 

They eventually dropped me off back at the finish line where I met up with Dean, Sonya, Michelle, Kari, and Collin. We sat in the beer garden for an hour or so chatting and laughing. Around 7:30, we all headed back to our rooms so we could have an early night to bed. Kari and I roomed together and were fast asleep by 8:15. 

No amount of sleep can prepare you for Day 2, though, and we both went to sleep with thoughts of what lay ahead the next day. 

Overall, Day 1 was a great day. The clouds came in shortly after lunch, which helped with the heat. It sprinkled for a short bit, and we were all sad when the rain stopped because it felt so good as we rode. It took me 4 1/2 hours to ride 68 miles, which made my average speed 13.7 mph. Not great, but with the amount of hills we rode, I wasn't too disappointed.