It was another lovely day for a bike ride. What are the chances that the temperature will not get above seventy degrees all summer? It is possible to get sweaty enough on a sixty-nine degree day like today, and I'm not too fond of being sweaty. Even amidst the eyerolls of darling Hubby I loaded up the bike and went to check out the Dakota Rail Trail http://www.dakotarailtrail.com/ that starts in Wayzata. It is all asphalt, and smooth asphalt at that, making for an extra silky ride. The trail ventures through many communities that surround Lake Minnetonka and you get many a glimpse of how the other half lives. It also makes me a little nostalgic for the days when my dad was co-owner of a 18' Chris Craft that was docked in St. Alban's Bay and he would take me along for some crusin' around the lake. But that boat had a habit of sinking so eventually it was sold. But it was fun while it lasted!
But back to biking...this trail has portions that are very popular and it wasn't wildlife that I had to watch out for but other bikers, roller bladers, strollers, and walkers. Some chose to disregard the rules of the trail and didn't stay to the right but there are no major crashes to report, other than watching a roller blader biff it on a corner, but that was her own doing and I had plenty of time to swerve around her. And no, I didn't just leave her in distress, she had a friend tending to her.
I made it 24.35 miles today, which is my longest ride to date. I can't tell you how much joy it brings me to get to the half-way mark of my ride as that is when I get to turn around and then there is a sense that I just might be able to pull this ride off. I am almost at the half-way mark of my fund raising goal as well, just $25 shy of it to be exact, so I'm feeling like $2000 is in reach.
When I arrived home and was getting in the shower, Hubby asked if I felt healthy (he used to be a runner and weight lifter so we have had discussions on changes one's body goes through as it gets stronger). Again, another question I had never considered. At that point, I felt sweaty and a little sore. Upon further rumination however healthy is not the word to describe how I feel but thankful is. I am thankful to have a body that functions well enough that I can ride a bike farther than I have since I was sixteen. I am thankful that I seem to be making progress in this burgeoning athleticism. I am thankful my knees and quads, back and elbows recover more quickly than they did a month ago. I am thankful for the support of friends and family. Perhaps I'll get to the point of feeling healthy AND thankful soon as this quest continues. For now, I am satisfied being thankful for having another cool trail close to my house and having completed one more training ride. Now, to go plant the annuals that are calling my name!
http://www2.jdrf.org/goto/gjengdahl
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Out of the Zone
This spring I did something a bit impulsive. I signed up to participate in the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Ride to Cure Diabetes. This ride takes place in La Crosse, WI in August and is 100 miles long. My family has been dealing with type 1 (juvenile) diabetes since May 10, 2008 when my daughter Annika was diagnosed. The past three years our family has participated in the JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes and with the love and help from friends, family and people we don't know, we have raised about $5000. Why JDRF? Because it is the largest charitable funder of and advocate for type 1 diabetes research. Their mission is to find a cure. Annika wants a cure, her twin sister Johanna wants a cure, the family wants a cure, and the three million Americans affected by this debilitating disease want a cure.
After clicking the "Register" button this spring on the JDRF site, the gulping and wondering "what have I done?" began. First off, I am no athlete. I can hear my hubby now, groaning and muttering to himself that I need to practice speaking in the affirmative and believe that I am an athlete. Perhaps I'll modify my initial statement to humor him...up to now, I have not been an athlete. The only organized sport I ever participated in was softball when I was about 14 years old. My friend Brenda was joining the team and somehow convinced me to sign up as well. My career only lasted one season and it was a toss up as to who was last in the batting lineup, me or the other Heidi (can I blame it on the namesake?) on the team. Otherwise my time was spent in right field or as catcher. It was not a bad experience but it didn't lead me to want to join anything else either. The things that I enjoyed doing included rollerskating, badminton, neighborhood games of "chase", rollerskating, riding bikes (I probably logged over 100 miles just going around Robin Circle...which is a cul-de-sac that has a grassy knoll in the middle that all the neighborhood kids endlessly circled), walks around Lake of the Isles, rollerskating...stuff like that. None of this required training or specific clothing items.
But if Annika has to deal with diabetes every hour of every day, I thought I could at least push myself way out of my comfort zone and train for the JDRF Ride. My rationalization was, "Hey, I know how to ride a bike. How hard could it be?" Oh, to be so naive. I started out in April, riding Hubby's bike (as mine was purchased from a police bike auction 20+ years ago and is probably not the best choice for this event). We live about a quarter of a mile from the L.R.T. trail that hooks up to miles and miles of trails. We also live on the top of the hill, so getting to the trail is great and getting home after the ride is mostly up hill. Did I mention that I am a fair weather athlete and hills are just not that fun to ride up especially at the end of the journey? That being said, it became imperative to drive to the lakes to ride instead, which Hubby found to be near impossible to understand. Fortunately I had picked up a bike rack at a garage sale last year for $5 and off I went. Since then, I have mixed it up and ridden to and from the lakes solo and with my friend Chris, and have ridden the L.R.T. trails. I just have to walk the bike up half of the first hill on the way home, or else I will die. Progress has been made however and today I completed a 22.28 mile ride.
As I mentioned, I entered this process naively. Thankfully JDRF provides access to a local coach who helps with questions and will go on rides with you if available. I'm too chicken to have Terri, the coach, go on a ride with me but I do assail her with questions. One of my favorite things that she asked me was what my experience was with "endurance sports". Endurance sports, that's funny! I've done a couple of all-night roller skating events (back in the day) and ridden through some hot and humid weather to get to the Dairy Queen but that's about it. However, I have started to learn some things from Terri and through experience and here is a sampling thus far: we have "sit bones" and they can hurt, biking attire can have pads to help cushion the aforementioned "sit bones" and other tender parts...much like riding with a loaf of bread between one's legs (joy!), bikers don't wear underwear, biking attire is sized for tiny people...Lilliputians at best, if you ride with someone there is less time to curse to oneself and wonder what in the bleep you signed up for, geese can be evil, headwinds are no fun but tailwinds rock, bumpy asphalt is worse than gravel to ride on, gnats can enter many orifices and stick to sweat, polyester and Spandex supposedly wick moisture (since when?), there are many accessories for bikes and a bell or bullhorn is going to be my next purchase so I can warn off the geese and deer and other creatures laying in wait for me, and bikes need more cup holders.
The other day, one of the professors at MSUM asked if I was enjoying all the riding. I had to pause and think as it hadn't occurred to me to think about it in that way. At times, yes. At times, no. Why ride? Perhaps it is some type of self-flagellation in the hopes that my "suffering" will hasten the cure for type 1 diabetes so Annika doesn't have to suffer anymore from it. Perhaps it is my burgeoning athleticism that is experiencing growing pains and soon it will be effortless and enjoyable all the time. Perhaps it is just such new territory that it hasn't become a part of my comfort zone yet. In many ways it feels like one of the most uncharacteristic things I've ever voluntarily done.
I'm hoping my springtime impulsiveness, the miles logged, and bugs unwillingly consumed in training will reap rewards that I am too naive to understand just yet.
After clicking the "Register" button this spring on the JDRF site, the gulping and wondering "what have I done?" began. First off, I am no athlete. I can hear my hubby now, groaning and muttering to himself that I need to practice speaking in the affirmative and believe that I am an athlete. Perhaps I'll modify my initial statement to humor him...up to now, I have not been an athlete. The only organized sport I ever participated in was softball when I was about 14 years old. My friend Brenda was joining the team and somehow convinced me to sign up as well. My career only lasted one season and it was a toss up as to who was last in the batting lineup, me or the other Heidi (can I blame it on the namesake?) on the team. Otherwise my time was spent in right field or as catcher. It was not a bad experience but it didn't lead me to want to join anything else either. The things that I enjoyed doing included rollerskating, badminton, neighborhood games of "chase", rollerskating, riding bikes (I probably logged over 100 miles just going around Robin Circle...which is a cul-de-sac that has a grassy knoll in the middle that all the neighborhood kids endlessly circled), walks around Lake of the Isles, rollerskating...stuff like that. None of this required training or specific clothing items.
But if Annika has to deal with diabetes every hour of every day, I thought I could at least push myself way out of my comfort zone and train for the JDRF Ride. My rationalization was, "Hey, I know how to ride a bike. How hard could it be?" Oh, to be so naive. I started out in April, riding Hubby's bike (as mine was purchased from a police bike auction 20+ years ago and is probably not the best choice for this event). We live about a quarter of a mile from the L.R.T. trail that hooks up to miles and miles of trails. We also live on the top of the hill, so getting to the trail is great and getting home after the ride is mostly up hill. Did I mention that I am a fair weather athlete and hills are just not that fun to ride up especially at the end of the journey? That being said, it became imperative to drive to the lakes to ride instead, which Hubby found to be near impossible to understand. Fortunately I had picked up a bike rack at a garage sale last year for $5 and off I went. Since then, I have mixed it up and ridden to and from the lakes solo and with my friend Chris, and have ridden the L.R.T. trails. I just have to walk the bike up half of the first hill on the way home, or else I will die. Progress has been made however and today I completed a 22.28 mile ride.
As I mentioned, I entered this process naively. Thankfully JDRF provides access to a local coach who helps with questions and will go on rides with you if available. I'm too chicken to have Terri, the coach, go on a ride with me but I do assail her with questions. One of my favorite things that she asked me was what my experience was with "endurance sports". Endurance sports, that's funny! I've done a couple of all-night roller skating events (back in the day) and ridden through some hot and humid weather to get to the Dairy Queen but that's about it. However, I have started to learn some things from Terri and through experience and here is a sampling thus far: we have "sit bones" and they can hurt, biking attire can have pads to help cushion the aforementioned "sit bones" and other tender parts...much like riding with a loaf of bread between one's legs (joy!), bikers don't wear underwear, biking attire is sized for tiny people...Lilliputians at best, if you ride with someone there is less time to curse to oneself and wonder what in the bleep you signed up for, geese can be evil, headwinds are no fun but tailwinds rock, bumpy asphalt is worse than gravel to ride on, gnats can enter many orifices and stick to sweat, polyester and Spandex supposedly wick moisture (since when?), there are many accessories for bikes and a bell or bullhorn is going to be my next purchase so I can warn off the geese and deer and other creatures laying in wait for me, and bikes need more cup holders.
The other day, one of the professors at MSUM asked if I was enjoying all the riding. I had to pause and think as it hadn't occurred to me to think about it in that way. At times, yes. At times, no. Why ride? Perhaps it is some type of self-flagellation in the hopes that my "suffering" will hasten the cure for type 1 diabetes so Annika doesn't have to suffer anymore from it. Perhaps it is my burgeoning athleticism that is experiencing growing pains and soon it will be effortless and enjoyable all the time. Perhaps it is just such new territory that it hasn't become a part of my comfort zone yet. In many ways it feels like one of the most uncharacteristic things I've ever voluntarily done.
I'm hoping my springtime impulsiveness, the miles logged, and bugs unwillingly consumed in training will reap rewards that I am too naive to understand just yet.
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