Team Bikeaholics

Description

I finished PBP in the allotted time - 83 hours. I had 84, actually 85 after they gave all the riders an extra hour. It seems no one actually measured the course beforehand, and it was 1250 km, not 1200. (One extra hour doesn't seem sufficient to go 50km does it?) I knew there was no hurry at the end, so really took my time. Throughout the ride, I never pushed or hammered. That was probably one thing that went right. Another thing that went right was being part of the Davis Bike Club. It was like being part of a huge family out there in the French countryside. Seeing people I knew and just exchanging a comment or two gave me a real boost during the ride. For me, it was not a difficult event in terms of biking, but difficult for other reasons. At the 5 AM start, I feel strong and happy, riding with other Davis people. It is warm, though - no need for a jacket or tights. Large packs of riders form and stay together for a few hours, but by late morning the packs thin out. I am riding by myself when a motorcycle pulls alongside. There are 2 riders and the passenger has a video camera and boom microphone. They stay for a few minutes, interviewing me - I have no idea what for. About 100K out, the spring in my right shift lever breaks. This keeps me from shifting well, or at all in some cases. I struggle with it, hoping it is just loose and will pop back in, for another 200K. It is also very hot and humid, which makes it hard to think straight and slows me down to what feels like a crawl. On the "chip seal" road surface, my rear fender is rattling against the brake and the nosecaps on both shifters are also loose, making a huge racket. Jim Bradbury helps me fix the fender problem (with corn pads!) and I secure the nosecaps with tiny strips of duct tape. Finally, at Fougeres a mechanic at the controle pronounces the lever dead. He installs a replacement lever - 900 FF ($160). This also means losing touch with my odometer, which is integrated with the shifters. Already several hours behind my schedule, I realize PBP might be over for me and think quickly "let's just see how far we can get today". I hope that the course is well marked (which turns out to be the case). Getting lost would be another huge time drain I now could not afford. Riding out from Fougeres, I meet up with a 50-ish French rider named Serge and we take turns taking pulls (being in front) for about 100 miles. He is a strong rider and I am glad for the company. Conversation is tricky, because I speak very little French and he speaks pretty much no English. His bicycle is a serious machine, but all his other equipment seems very casual - cotton cycling shorts and a pink child's school backpack - probably his daughter's. Serge is a strong confident night rider, despite poor lights - we pass many, many cyclists. Later I imagined he must have been glad for my blazing American lights and Petzl headlamp, which really helped illuminate the many dark descents. It is a great feeling, arriving in Tinteniac at the Controle - I sing out the name. Pressing on, Serge explains that the little town St. Meen le Grand is the place where champagne used at the Tour de France comes from.

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