Prep ride #2

Flat terrain and a flat tire looping around Emerald Isle

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My second preparatory ride for the 300 miles of the Ride For April was my most ambitious: almost 110 miles over 2 days. The big caveat: riding along the eastern coast of North Carolina is about the flattest terrain you can find.

Almost eight miles of the ride took almost two hours, navigating around 2-foot deep potholes.

That said, the ride wasn’t without its challenges. As pictured above, a big unpaved chunk of road was a big mess. I passed a pickup truck trying to navigate the same road; I was able to go at least a little faster than it could, dodging the worst bits of road.

Then on the second day, I got a flat tire just outside the lovely little town of Beaufort. Nice town but a flat still sucks, particularly when it’s the first time you’ve had to patch one on a relatively new bike. The remaining 25 miles of riding was a little anxious as I kept checking to see if my patch was holding.

But among the high points of the ride were two journeys on the Minnesott Beach ferry. On the first day, I was virtually by myself (top picture). On the way back, I shared the ride with an enormous construction vehicle. Just one of its tire was almost twice the size of my bike.

Also, on the first day, I started at a lovely coffee shop with a dragon in the adjacent pond and ended the day at the beach. Pretty sweet bookends to a long day!

On the second day, I had to ride up and over some pretty steep bridges but the view from the top of them was gorgeous (sorry — couldn’t stop and snap a pic!) And even as I was feeling anxious post-flat on the second day, I rode by a house that reminded me that, all and all, my life is pretty fantastic!

Please tell your friends and family about The Ride for April and lend your support. Thanks!