Today was the ING Marathon and we were fortunate enough to be able to ride safety for an amazing group of wheelchair racers.
The boys and I pre-rode the route yesterday, and I'm so glad we did, since we got lost a couple times. It really helped to know the turns and any bumpy roads, pot holes, sharp turns, etc. I wish I had taken pictures on the pre-ride because this route was beautiful. It takes you all over Atlanta and you go by some amazing old homes and parks. (and a Ben and Jerry's)
It was pretty cold this morning, but the rain stopped just in time for the 6:55am race time. We left the house at 4:30am and it was in the low 40's. It never warmed up, but it got a bit windy.
Our cyclists lined up by the curb and took off with the wheelers as they came by. These athletes were truly an amazing group. The boys rode with the first and second place female racers and one of them was from Australia. I rode most of the way with a very friendly guy from Marietta. He loved the downhills and detested the climbing. His rhythm was great, though, and he pulled all those hills so that he could cruise right on down the other side.
Lots of flats for the wheelers today. Probably due to the amount of broken glass that was on the street from the tornado that hit the area a couple weeks ago. I couldn't see it, but I'm sure there were slivers along the start.
Huge shout out to Kindle! This girlie just started riding the Sorella Stone Mountain rides like 8 weeks ago and was out there today mixing it up! She grows stronger with each ride and was a great asset to the wheelchair racers today. (I'm not just saying that because she brought me a bottle of wine last night...really :>)
Leslie Shapiro heads up this whole volunteer group and does an awesome job each year. She is our lead volunteer Sorella and a wonderful member of the board, as well. We couldn't do it without her.
We got the chance to hang out with Mattie today, too. Cool, even though he didn't bring us any BBQ or hamburgers or anything!
We are really looking forward to next year and hope the weather is a bit more agreeable.
Kari
No comments:
Post a Comment