RSVP (Ride from Seattle to Vancouver) - Day 2

Day 1 was about the ride. Day 2 was about the destination.

Give me an 'F': Flat, Fast, Ferry, and FINISH!!!

Some people loathe hills on rides. I despise flats! It's boring, and there's always a good headwind. Anyway, I woke up at 5:30 and got on the road by 6:30. I guess getting lost last night was fortuitous because I knew exactly where to go that morning to get back on route.

The ride to the border was flat and boring. Except when we got into Lynden...what a cute little town and I wished that I didn't have the free continental breakfast at my hotel. I guess it's an RSVP tradition to go to the Dutch Mothers for the breakfast buffet which they prepare especially for the riders. I'll have to note that for next year. After Kanako had her breakfast we continued on to the Aldergrove Border Crossing. They were prepared and I've never gotten across the border so quickly! We were moving so fast, I barely got a picture of me crossing the border on my bike! I wore my Velogirls jersey just for Day 2 because I wanted to take a picture of me wearing it as I crossed the border. You see, Velogirls is a cycling club down in the Bay Area that I went on club rides with on the weekends when I first got my bike (back in 2003). I thank Lorri Lee Lown and her club for giving me an opportunity to grow, develop, and love the sport of cycling. It was also through that club that I met my BFF, Kirsten (love ya, miss ya girl!!!). It was a monumental moment for me to reflect back to when I could barely climb the hills around Canada Rd. (kahn-ya-da) or even clip-out of my pedals before falling over on my bike and to where cycling has, literally and figuratively, taken me in life. 'Passport Please!' Poof - so much for my reflection :-)

About 5 miles from the border, we hit 'The Wall' which is a short but very steep climb (I heard 10% grade from 1 person, 14% from another so it's probably safe to say it was somewhere in between). For the first time on my ride, this hill looked daunting as we were coming out of a flat section. Up ahead, it really looked like a wall with its victims and carnage laying to the right (i.e., cyclists walking their bike or riders bending over by the grass....ew, were they throwing up?). So, I sucked it up, changed gears, stood up on my pedals and danced my way to the top. Hill?! What hill?! I was pumped....I doused myself with water at the top and resumed our tour through the farmland on roads with little to no shoulder and a headwind that seemed to be picking up by the minute. Made passing challenging but then again, it was a good excuse to poach off of someone's tail :-) But, I did my share of pulling on this ride, that's for sure.

In Fort Langley, we found a great coffee shop and popped in for an Orange Tangerine smoothie (immediate brain freeze - owwwww, worst pain I had encountered on the ride so far) and I got a cheese scone (no wonder I didn't use any gel at all that day). Then, it was on to the Albion Ferry which was a 15 minute ride across the river. The wait wasn't too bad (maybe 30 minutes?) but we were out in the sun so it was just uncomfortable.

After the ferry, the ride wasn't as scenic or as enjoyable as Day 1. But, riding-wise, I felt my best on the Barnet Highway (highway 7a, mile 61, or mile 169 of my total ride). It was only 6 miles (10km) but it was all uphill with a lot of traffic going by really fast. I wanted that leg over and done with as fast as possible. I was cruising along but starting to feel fatigued for the first time on my ride. After I had passed a group of riders, 3 men came roaring up on my left and told me to 'jump on' which I gladly did. All of a sudden, my average speed went from 10-12 mph to 18-20 mph and at one point, where it wasn't as steep, I was cruising at 22 mph and passing people like they were standing still. That was probably my favorite part of the ride that day because I just felt really strong and powerful while cycling as a part of that train. Thanks to those 3 men who pulled me to the top....it was so exhilerating! At the top there was a guy with a bag of ice which he so kindly shared and filled my water bottle...twice! It was so hot that the ice that he had given melted by the time Kanako showed up and it wasn't that long of a wait. That's the other thing I really enjoyed about the ride, that everyone pitched in to help each other get through the ride and on to the finish line.

After that, it was tour through Burnaby (home town of my all-time favorite ice hockey player, Joe Sakic!) and finally on to downtown Vancouver via Chinatown and Gastown. At the end, my odometer read 190 miles (thanks to the extra miles I put in on my 'recon' trip) and I rolled in to the hotel where the party was with a big ole grin on my face and satisfied that, not only did I make it, but that I had completed the ride without any mechanical or physical issues to deal with. It was an almost perfect ride and even when I was lost at the end of Day 1, I ended up benefitting from that stumble the following day. Kanako, on the other hand, could give you a different story about Day 1 from her perspective....but, hey, she finished and finished strong!

This is a ride that any cycling enthusiast should do. But, sign up early because it sells out (1300 riders max). Tickets for 2009 go on sale January 1, 2009. Thanks Cascade Bicycle Club for the route, and, thanks to all the vols who supplied us with water and fuel along the way (mmmm, WATERMELON). I'll be back next year.