My brother Jason crosses the finish line!

What an experience this weekend!

I was registered to participate in the 65-mile course at the 4th Annual Conquer The Coast cycling event on Saturday, September 29th. Much to my dismay, Saturday morning was dark and stormy with several strong thunderstorms moving through the Corpus Christi area.

I was this -> <- close to hanging up my shoes and staying in the hotel where I knew my chances of being struck by lightning would be much better. Instead, I joined my Dad, brother, nephew and brother-in-law on an easy ride from the hotel to the start of the ride during a break in one of the storms.

Soon we learned that due to flooding, the 65-mile course had been cancelled. This was both a disappointment and a relief. I really think that I would have attempted the 65-mile course had ride officials allowed it to start and I likely would have been miserable trying to complete 65 long miles in driving rain.

Instead, ride officials announced the 25-mile ride was still on. After some additional weather delays, we were off. The ride down Shoreline and Ocean Dr. was a ton of fun. It was a proud moment to be riding with family members that had made their own committment to participate in this event.

At the start of the ride I settled into a good cadence with my 12-year old nephew, Tanner and his father. About eight miles or so into the ride we encountered some heavy rain and were absolutely soaked by the time we reached the half-way and turnaround point.

I waited for everyone to safely show up and we enjoyed some Cliff-Shots to give us an energy boost. I advised the group that I wanted to finish up the ride at my own pace to see what kind of time I’d make. As we started pedaling again, we hit it.

A very strong headwind on a stretch of the route just North of Corpus Christi Naval Air Station. The wind was steady and strong. I pedaled with full power and saw that I was only moving at 12mph despite a heart rate of 158 beats per minute!!

Fortunately, the strong headwind died as I entered the metro area of the city where buildings and homes provided some shelter from the high winds. In this stretch I averaged 18-20mph and it was quite an experience to be flying along with wet pavement and the occasional puddle.

I’m happy to report that I was able to get safely back to the ride start where I grabbed a camera and welcomed the rest of my family as they crossed the finish line and completed their first cycling event!

We couldn’t stop talking about our experiences for the rest of the weekend. I am so proud of them for completing the ride despite what Mother Nature threw at them. Awesome guys…just plain awesome!