Trek 100 Tribute

(Warning: I think I am falling in love with my bike ... again. And this euphoria may be affecting my general outlook.)

The Trek 100 is an epic bike ride.

The only thing I don't like about it is that it's over. Well, that, and the fact that it won't happen again for another year, which means I have a whole year to wait.

I hate waiting.

Let me set the scene: Trek HQ in little Waterloo, WI, an employee parking lot filled to the brim with volunteers, people on bikes and tents of all shapes and sizes. On the docket for the day, four rides: 100 miles, 100 meters (62 miles), 36 miles and 19 miles. The longest two had a start time of 7:30 a.m., with the second two kicking off at 9:30 a.m.

I arrived at 8 a.m. to on-site register. The deal is you have to pay your entrance fee ($55) and raise a minimum of $2/mile for whatever race you are going to do. (This is a fundraiser for the MACC Fund and next year I promise to do a better job of raising more.)

JC hard at work. 

My Lexa S bike got a quick tune-up from my brother-in-law and Trek employee Juan Carlos and his friends in the on-site bike mechanic tent. They determined that I should probably get a new shifter and cables in the next few weeks, and offered me a demo bike to ride for the day if I wanted one. I didn't. Dance with the one that brung ya, you know.

We lined up and the volunteers split us into waves. Former Milwaukee Bucks player and MACC Fund leader Jon McGlocklin got the event started with Bucky Badger. He talked about the hundreds of millions of dollars that the 25-year event has raised and introduced a rider in the crowd who had ridden all 25 years. I shed more than a few tears as a mom who lost a child to cancer spoke about what the MACC Fund had done for her family. I shed a few more when two teens, cancer survivors, told their stories.

Then the UW Band played as each wave rolled out.

There were bikes and riders of all shapes and sizes. Young and old (87!). Fit and not. Some decked out in serious bike gear. Some out for a leisurely Sunday roll.

The little girl on the right enjoyed the ride on a pull-behind. I also saw many
bike trailers with one or two kids inside. Number 2172 brought his dog. 

The ride itself was hilly and challenging enough. We rode out of Waterloo, around part of Rock Lake and into Lake Mills. We wound around on Highways 89 and S, back around the lake again, then back to Waterloo.

We rode for a while with the guy who had ridden in all 25 rides. He was 82 or 83 ... I can't remember now what he said. "I think I might be addicted," he said and smiled. "Maybe you ought to give it a couple more years to know for sure," I grinned back.

JC and I skipped the first rest station at about Mile 9. We stopped at the second one, at Mile 20. It was spectacular. I'll tell you about that tomorrow. There was another at mile 32-ish, but we didn't stop there either.

As we rounded the final stretch, volunteers lined the finish line chute, waving pompons and cowbells. Some of the 100-milers who left 2 hours before us were finishing at the same time. We'd been on the course for about 2.5 hours, which means we probably averaged 14 mph ... and they were averaging more than 22 mph. For 4.5 freaking hours!

Truthfully, I think my legs could have gone another 10 miles (if I was being chased by zombies or something), but my butt and my shoulders had had enough.

The party afterward was worth the price of admission. A huge food tent with pulled pork, chicken and a dozen other things. Capital Brewery had a tent with free beer, Starbucks and Pepsi were there. Two massage schools were representing with big tents of their own, rubbing out your sore spots. There were merch tents, bike tents, freebie tents.

Lots of tents. Music pumping. Cleats clicking. People smiling.

The whole day was so organized, so well run, so smooth. The course was fantastic, the volunteers were plentiful and helpful. The party was awesome.

I'm totally going back next year.

And I think I might ride my bike to work every day this week in preparation. Never too early to start.

You know you're in Wisconsin when the Sausages show up.