These are my Mountains

Dee Dee and I managed to sneak away for the weekend to Panama City Beach. She had mentioned a while back that this was a good weekend to get away. We decided early on in the week to just "go for it". Sometimes, you gotta just do things for the sake of doing, and just damn the consequences. It doesn't matter how far it is. What the consequences are. Just get'er done.

We drove up Friday night with Matthew in tow, and three bikes on the bike rack, arriving at Venture Out around 10 PM local time. My father was just overly enthusiastic about us staying in his place. He went out of his way to make sure everything was smooth and comfortable. He wanted us to make the most out of our weekend.

Panama City Beach is extremely hot this time of year. It's not so much the heat though, as it is the humidity. We climbed out of bed around 7:30 AM local time to get in an hour and a half bike ride. You could cut the air with a knife as we left the complex. Lucky for us, the skies were partly cloudy and the road mostly deserted. This was to be Dee Dee's first ride since Iron Girl Atlanta, and I didn't want to work her over. We rode at Dee Dee pace.

Our path followed Thomas Drive along the beach for four miles, where we made a left and continued along The Boardwalk, site of IM Florida. At the Walmart, we made a left down Front Beach Road on the bike route for the Ironman. The wind was blowing and snapping in our face. I had encouraged Dee Dee to push it a little bit, which would just about equal my easy pace. About the time we turned around, you could tell she was pushing it a bit too hard. We stopped just past the PCB pier and gathered our wits before setting back. We had a nice tail wind, and the sun peeked out from behind the clouds every once in a while.

About the time we made it back, Dee Dee's left arm seized up and she could barely hold onto her bike. Not sure what was up with that, but she recovered fairly quickly after we got home. I was really proud of her for hanging on for 22 miles for her first ride in a month. We spent the rest of the day hanging out at the beach, swimming in the gulf, stuffing our faces, and then soaking the pool to end our day. We ended up going out for dinner that night and ended up paying way too much money for the worst seafood ever. I won't name names, but if you want to avoid this craptastic place, drop me a line.

I knew that Sunday was going to be a busy day for me. I needed to do a 3.5 hour brick, and I really didn't want to take anytime away from my family to do it. I sat the alarm for 6:30 EDT, which was 5:30 AM local time. I didn't actually get out of the house until 6 AM, but that was OK with me. The sun was up by then. I made my way long the same route that Dee Dee and I had followed the day before. I rode past our turn around point, past the right turn on Hwy 79 for the IM Florida route, and kept following Front Beach Road, further and further west.

Front Beach Road finally made a dead end into Highway 98. I was a little worried that this high way would be too busy to bike on. It had been years and years and years since I had been on this section of 98. As a child, I just remembered it being the highway we took from Mobile to PCB, fast and furious. Now a days, nobody rides on 98 from Mobile due to the commercialization along the beach. I was pleasantly surprised to find bike lanes and a 45 mph speed limit. After crossing the bridge at Inlent Cove, I saw a sign that said "Scenic Route - 30 A" and some beach or another. I thought, "Beaches!" and made the left hand turn.

The scenery went from Florida country to manicured lawn in the blink of an eye. Not only that, there was a bike/running trail and this was some kind of fitness mecca. There were quite a few people running and biking, despite the windy, rainy weather.

I followed 30-A for some minutes, when finally, I decided I'd had enough of the dayum wind blowing in my face. It was five minutes early, but I could make up the extra minutes with the wind at my back!! I turned around and started back the way I came.

That's when I heard the first thump. I kept riding. Thump, thump, thump... Uh oh, I thought. I looked back, and sho nuf, my tire was flat. My legs had been feeling pretty crappy, and with the wind and rain, I was not in a great mood, and now this. I stopped on the bike path, took my tire off and couldn't find the doo-hickey for the air cannister. How the hell was I supposed to inflate my tire without my doo-hickey? Now, I was really just pissed.

About that time, it started to rain again, and along came a man and his wife on their bikes. They were kind enough to stop and help me fix my tire. He had a pump and a doo-hickey. We opted to use the pump. After getting the tire back on, they took off, and so did I. Less than a minute later.... Ssssssssssss.... The tire went flat again. Good Lord! I thought. This time, I got out the cell phone and called Dee Dee to come pick me up.

While I waited, I took the tire off again, and found th piece of glass that eluded me on my first search. I put the new tube in and waited. Another couple came by and offered me their pump. While I was pumping up the tire again, some runners came by and asked if we needed help. That was when I ripped the stem off. ROFL... It just wasn't my day. I thanked them and sent them on their way. Dee Dee was over half way there. I just decided to start walking until I met her. I think ten people stopped and asked me if I needed help, including one guy in a truck that rented bikes. It was nice to be broken down in such a friendly community.

Eventually, Dee Dee pulled up, and we threw the bike on the back of the SUV and returned home, via motorized vehicle. It isn't at all the way I wanted to enjoy my long ride in PCB, but stuff happens eh?

After my no PR weekend last week, and this awesomely sucktastic weekend of training, the mood was set. I was off reading Stef's blog at lunch. It's really nice to have someone who is honest about their struggles, honest with themselves and kind enough to share. I wrote in her comments that we all struggle. I struggle. I wrote this out of my heart, not realizing the sheer truth of what I said until I read it over and over again. I'm going to go back out there. I will swim again, run again, ride again, and not because I want to win a race. Not because I want to reach some arbitrary time goal (I gotz goals), but because these are my mountains to climb. And when I reach the top of the mountain, I feel... indescribable.

Wes