The Journey of a Lifetime...
Posted by DaveMcD | | Posted On Friday, May 25, 2012 at 1:23 PM
And so begins my odyssey.
On Saturday I will leave Nashville, TN on my bicycle to follow the Natchez Trace Parkway all the way to Natchez, Mississippi. I'll be riding with my nephew Richard and my friend Renee. My wife Ann will be accompanying us in a van providing what cyclists refer to as SAG - which stands for Support And Gear. Basically, Ann will drop us off in the mornings and pick us up in the afternoons on the "short" days (60-70 miles). On our longer days (80-100 miles) she'll meet us with lunch.
The mileage has been carefully calculated and takes the elevation changes into account. Plans are for us to tackle the 444 miles of the Trace over the next 6 days.
Last weekend I took a training ride on Saturday to assess my preparation. I rode 64 miles with the intent of not really riding for distance, rather focussing on time in saddle and the rate that my legs were spinning. Cyclists refer to this as cadence and it is measured in revolutions per minute (rpm). The ideal cadence that cyclists strive for is 90. Over the course of the 4 hours I spent training, I maintained a cadence between 85 and 95. That's exactly where I feel I need to be.
On Sunday I went out for a short spin of about 13 miles. It had been a while since I had done much hill work, so I set a course that would carry me over Black Jack mountain in East Cobb county - twice. That little ride went exceedingly well and let me with confidence that I'll be able to rise to the requirements I'll face on the Trace.
Following the Sunday training ride, I took the family for dinner. During the meal, my father called me to let me know that a childhood friend of mine had died suddenly participating in a triathlon the previous day. My friend is a man named Chris Petty. His parents had been friends of my parents from before either of us was born and Chris and I had grown up together in the church, attending Sunday School, Vacation Bible School and youth group events together my entire life. Chris was like a close cousin to me and his parents, like surrogate parents of my own. To say I was crushed would be an understatement. My stomach literally ached for Chris' wife Lisa, his parents and his bother Tony and his family. Chris was a humble man with a quiet confidence in his faith in God. He was a great friend, a loving son and husband and a gifted manager who managed payroll globally for The Coca Cola Company. Chris had been in the swim leg of the Turtle Crawl triathlon at Jekyll Island. The sea was angry that day churned up by a tropical storm in the Atlantic. The race start had been delayed a couple of times but had finally gotten underway. Chris' wife Lisa had completed her swim and was on to the bike. About 250 yards into a 400 yard swim, Chris was fighting a rip tide and needed assistance. He raised his arm in a symbol of distress along with several other swimmers. When the rescue boat got to him he yelled to them to help the others first. When the boat returned to Chris they found him face down in about 8 feet of water and were unable to revive him. Chris was pronounced dead at the Brunswick Medical Center around noon.
This past fall, I was participating in the MS Cox Atlanta Ride. A charity bicycle ride For the Multiple Sclerosis society of Georgia. I ride with a small team of riders but our team partners with several others to reduce costs. One of the teams we partner with is team Coca Cola. As such, our team tent was adjacent to the team Coke tent. We arrived in Calaway Gardens the afternoon before the event start. One of the first people I ran into was my childhood buddy, Chris and his wife Lisa. Over the course of the weekend I ended up peddling over 30 miles with Chris, catching up and sharing the experience together. Chris was a great guy. He was the definition of a friend, always more concerned for you than for himself. The following photo is from that weekend:
So tomorrow is Saturday. We are in Russellville, Alabama right now, dropping off my kids with my wife's parents and preparing to head north to Nashville. Richard followed us over in his truck and we are combining supplies and checking gear. I'm excited to get started, hopeful that I'll have enough in the tank to finish and reflective as I remember my friend Chris.
Come along with me on this odyssey. I plan to blog every evening. Your thoughts and prayers are appreciated as I trek down the road.
I am dedicating this ride to Chris and I'll be asking you to donate in his memory to a charity that means so much to both of us... The MS Society of Georgia.
On Saturday I will leave Nashville, TN on my bicycle to follow the Natchez Trace Parkway all the way to Natchez, Mississippi. I'll be riding with my nephew Richard and my friend Renee. My wife Ann will be accompanying us in a van providing what cyclists refer to as SAG - which stands for Support And Gear. Basically, Ann will drop us off in the mornings and pick us up in the afternoons on the "short" days (60-70 miles). On our longer days (80-100 miles) she'll meet us with lunch.
The mileage has been carefully calculated and takes the elevation changes into account. Plans are for us to tackle the 444 miles of the Trace over the next 6 days.
Last weekend I took a training ride on Saturday to assess my preparation. I rode 64 miles with the intent of not really riding for distance, rather focussing on time in saddle and the rate that my legs were spinning. Cyclists refer to this as cadence and it is measured in revolutions per minute (rpm). The ideal cadence that cyclists strive for is 90. Over the course of the 4 hours I spent training, I maintained a cadence between 85 and 95. That's exactly where I feel I need to be.
On Sunday I went out for a short spin of about 13 miles. It had been a while since I had done much hill work, so I set a course that would carry me over Black Jack mountain in East Cobb county - twice. That little ride went exceedingly well and let me with confidence that I'll be able to rise to the requirements I'll face on the Trace.
Following the Sunday training ride, I took the family for dinner. During the meal, my father called me to let me know that a childhood friend of mine had died suddenly participating in a triathlon the previous day. My friend is a man named Chris Petty. His parents had been friends of my parents from before either of us was born and Chris and I had grown up together in the church, attending Sunday School, Vacation Bible School and youth group events together my entire life. Chris was like a close cousin to me and his parents, like surrogate parents of my own. To say I was crushed would be an understatement. My stomach literally ached for Chris' wife Lisa, his parents and his bother Tony and his family. Chris was a humble man with a quiet confidence in his faith in God. He was a great friend, a loving son and husband and a gifted manager who managed payroll globally for The Coca Cola Company. Chris had been in the swim leg of the Turtle Crawl triathlon at Jekyll Island. The sea was angry that day churned up by a tropical storm in the Atlantic. The race start had been delayed a couple of times but had finally gotten underway. Chris' wife Lisa had completed her swim and was on to the bike. About 250 yards into a 400 yard swim, Chris was fighting a rip tide and needed assistance. He raised his arm in a symbol of distress along with several other swimmers. When the rescue boat got to him he yelled to them to help the others first. When the boat returned to Chris they found him face down in about 8 feet of water and were unable to revive him. Chris was pronounced dead at the Brunswick Medical Center around noon.
This past fall, I was participating in the MS Cox Atlanta Ride. A charity bicycle ride For the Multiple Sclerosis society of Georgia. I ride with a small team of riders but our team partners with several others to reduce costs. One of the teams we partner with is team Coca Cola. As such, our team tent was adjacent to the team Coke tent. We arrived in Calaway Gardens the afternoon before the event start. One of the first people I ran into was my childhood buddy, Chris and his wife Lisa. Over the course of the weekend I ended up peddling over 30 miles with Chris, catching up and sharing the experience together. Chris was a great guy. He was the definition of a friend, always more concerned for you than for himself. The following photo is from that weekend:
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| Cox MS Atlanta 150 - Photo courtesy Kent Ruby |
So tomorrow is Saturday. We are in Russellville, Alabama right now, dropping off my kids with my wife's parents and preparing to head north to Nashville. Richard followed us over in his truck and we are combining supplies and checking gear. I'm excited to get started, hopeful that I'll have enough in the tank to finish and reflective as I remember my friend Chris.
Come along with me on this odyssey. I plan to blog every evening. Your thoughts and prayers are appreciated as I trek down the road.
I am dedicating this ride to Chris and I'll be asking you to donate in his memory to a charity that means so much to both of us... The MS Society of Georgia.
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