The Broad Running Broad

Back in college one of my acquaintances shared a picture of a Post-It note in her agenda. On the Post-It she wrote “Thou shalt not write your plans with a pen, because plans are bound to change.”

That was the truth this week.

When I got home last Sunday night, I thought I was going to be able to on a run the following Monday. But my knees had other plans. So I spent Labor Day becoming one with the couch.

The 25-mile week with the planned 18 mile long run on Saturday was scrapped.

But, since I never wrote my plans down in ink – actually, I rarely write anything down at all unless I have to- that just meant I was following Plan B.

Plan B ultimately turned out to be an hour on the recumbent bike Tuesday and Thursday evenings, followed by upper body strength training Wednesday and Friday mornings.

My main concern this past week was trying to figure out what was wrong with my knees and fixing it ASAP. During my recumbent rides I would watch YouTube videos to determine what each pain point meant, to figure out if it was IT band issues or cyclist’s knee, and after my rides I would do some of the recommended stretches to alleviate the knee pain.

They kinda helped.

Strength training was a better time. Last Wednesday I lifted before work and noticed the back pain from my desk job wasn’t aggravating me like normal. I forgot how fun strength training is. Running and cycling show you who you are, while lifting just makes me feel (and look) like a boss.

Nothing wrong with being the boss.

I finally concluded my knee pain was stemming from neglecting lower body strength training and the saddle height on my bike. I’m five foot nothing on a good day, so my bike seat is pretty low for me to reach the pedals. According to the PTs of YouTube, my seat was way too low and that was the source of my knee pain, so I needed to adjust my seat. Go figure that stupid clasp is easy to loosen but not to tighten.

Armed with new knowledge, some homemade rehab and ibuprofen, I decided I was going to attempt a long ride yesterday, from Galena to Howard and back.

The ride to Howard

The plan was to be starting my ride between 7 and 8 AM. However, in between packing up the car and myself, I didn’t leave my place, get parked in Galena and start the ride until 9 AM.

Unlike two weeks prior on the ride to Gambier, it was a cool day where the high would be in the low 60s. I also decided to take the Pelotonia approach.

Back when I rode Pelotonia, the course was designed so every 10 miles riders would have to go through the aid stations. The stations were tents set up in business parking lots with any food or first aid items a rider would need. If you didn’t need anything that was okay, but you still had to get off the bike and walk through it.

I decided was going to stop every 10 miles for my energy gels, ibuprofen (if needed), to squat and walk the bike a bit. If at any point I was experiencing knee pain, I’d cut the ride short and head back.

The first 10 miles on the Heart of Ohio Trail to Centerburg were wonderful, as were Miles 10 to 25 to Mount Vernon. My knees weren’t giving me any problems with the seat being higher, and before I knew it I was at Ariel-Foundation Park, which is the 25-mile point from my start and one of my favorite places to ride through.

I took an Ibuprofen there and did a quick squat to confirm I could keep riding.

I was good to go.

I rode to the Kokosing Gap Trail connector and ate part of my Kind bar there, since it had been about two and a half hours on the bike and I figured I needed to eat something. The KGT from Mount Vernon to Gambier is a pleasant, shady ride along the Kokosing River. Over the wooden bridges and alongside Lower Gambier Road, eventually you pop out at the bike crossing, and on the other side up a slight hill is Kenyon College.

I made my one bathroom stop here and took a call from Mom to confirm everything was going well. My plan was to ride to Howard and then head back, which was going to happen after a week of uncertainty. Thankfully from the university in Gambier to the village of Howard, it was about 4.5 miles, which was doable and not overly ambitious.

I enjoyed my ride from Kenyon through peaceful countryside, daydreaming about nothing and wondering if I would find the Stone Arch I had seen in pictures. I was passed by several Amish or Mennonite families on their bikes, all of whom were very friendly. I’m chuckling to myself now – compared to the modest clothes they wear, I was probably damn near naked in my jersey and with my bike shorts rolled up.

Wouldn’t that be an interesting sight to see on a leisurely stroll with your family.

And as I rode along the KGT and reached Rotary Park in Howard, there it was. The 14-42 Stone Arch.

I rode about a mile or two beyond the bridge into Hellbender Preserve (the irony of a nature preserve in Amish Country being named Hellbender is not lost on me) and turned around at the Mile 10 marker. I felt great, but if I rode any further I would have ran out of fuel and gotten myself into some trouble.

The most I will say about the ride back is that I hate headwinds, especially when they hit me on the hillier part of the trail. But once I got past the incline, it was smoother sailing.

Final round trip mileage: 74.1.

Total time on the bike: 8:04:17.

And most importantly, after eating, getting home, getting a shower and sleeping a lot – my knees still feel good. A little sore, but nothing alarming, since it was my core, glutes and quads doing all the work.

I’m back in business, knights ‘n dames.

And with that being said, I hope you all have or are enjoying a peaceful Sunday.

Yours in riding and life,

Allison