Today’s post comes from Derek Hasel of Adelaide, Australia.
As a self-described “Total Cycling Nut” and a devoted fan of The Man, I was excited that living in Adelaide, Australia, host city of the “Tour Down Under” might just provide a chance to experience a Lance Armstrong Twitter Ride. As luck would have it, my lottery ticket was received last Thursday in advance of the Saturday ride. Local mobile wireless companies may want to thank Lance for the surge in talk time and texting. A barrage of SMS and telephone calls by yours truly ensued to cycling friends in the region. Who was going? The answer was easy: everyone, with a universal response, “What, miss an opportunity to ride with Lance? Are you kidding? Are you nuts? ”
The big day came. I headed down to the coastal town of Glenelg, starting point for the ride. The forecast was for a sunny day with slight southeast wind. On arrival at Glenelg, an hour before the start, I estimate there were 1,000 riders. The local city council had gone to great lengths, with very short notice, to arrange outlet for drinks and food, and the requisite facilities. Suddenly, many motorcycle police and police cars rolled up, along with literally thousands of more cyclists. I was in awe. A buzz went through the group that not only was Lance going to lead the ride, but Robbie McEwen, George Hincape and Team RadioShack would be there. This was going to be bigger than we imagined.
We positioned ourselves alongside local motorbike police officer. He gave us the inside scoop just like he was on race radio. Right at 9:15 a.m., there was a flash of a red and gray, and a voice saying “I can not believe how many are here. They just keep going on and on.” It was Lance. He was overwhelmed by the turnout. And just like that, the ride started like a stage of Le Tour: slow, easy and soon gathering momentum.
What happened over the next 30 kilometres was something that I’ll never forget. The main double-lane road had been closed to traffic in both directions. There were hundreds of people standing on the sidewalk. The pace had gathered to 40kph. Many of the less fit who had started at the front of the 5,000-rider peloton were soon dropped. The momentum and tempo just kept increasing. I am sure that Lance, Robbie and George thought the ride was not much more than a “stroll,” but for me it was “flat out” to keep up. With my heart rate at about 85 percent of maximum, I wondered when I would finally find myself in difficulty. But I surprised myself and entered that cyclist’s dream zone of effortless commitment. The pace was hectic, and yet I was suddenly passing people half my age. I was determined now to make it to the front of the whole group before the ride’s end.
We turned at the halfway mark into a headwind. The temperature was 20c. My strategy was simple. Tuck behind riders, then pass them. That meant even the pros who were not concerned with riding near the front. I had a few seconds to say “Hello, and welcome to my hometown” Team RadioShack rider Jason McCarthy. He was blown away by the number of local cyclists and how friendly they were. Near the end of the ride, I had Lance, George and Robbie, in my sights. There were probably about 30 riders between me and the elite group. I was happy to stay in that position, knowing that I had in fact ‘ridden’ with the man who inspires me to get on my bike and to help spread the message of LIVESTRONG. The ride ended with a general yell of “stopping!” Lance dismounted and looked back at the number of riders who could be seen in the distance. It was obvious that he was surprised and pleased. A few words of thanks were spoken. All those riders around him gave a cheer, whistled approval and broke into spontaneous applause. He jumped into a waiting car and was gone.
Postscript: Derek just reported that he followed up last week’s ride with having Lance Armstrong sign a copy of his latest book: Comeback 2.0
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