Face of America 2008

Posted By Laughing_Wolf

The warrior was having trouble with the hill, but despite injury he pressed on. Hands reached out to help, and were vigorously rebuffed. As the warrior slowed further, another came along side. Unlike the others, this fellow warrior was also on a recumbent bike, and this time, the hand that came out and helped push his bike along was not rebuffed.

The Face of America 2008 Bicycle Ride from Bethesda to Gettysburg was full of such moments. A mix of wounded or ill service members and "regular" riders, it was a collision of roads, a test of wills, and a testament to courage and tenacity. The "bikes" ranged from advanced racing bikes to specialized recumbents that were adapted to a variety of needs. Indeed, about the only means of motion not seen was through the use of teeth and biting, though I wouldn't put such past some taking part as there was that level of determination present.

That determination showed elsewhere too, with more than $109,000.00 being raised to help fund participation by service menbers. This is much more than just the ride, but also includes accomodations, food, bike use, cycling clinics, outreach, and more. A joint project of World Team Sports, Soldier's Angels, and the Semper Fi Fund and working with Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the National Naval Medical Center, and Brooke Army Medical Center, the ride is designed as both a fun activity for service members and a way to show the wounded and ill that they can still do many things, are a part of the team, and -- most of all -- they do not ride alone.

There were problems and accidents, most thankfully minor, and even those involved with the most spectacular pressed on. Chuck Z writes about one such in his post on the ride. His own strength and courage showed many times in the ride, from giving the helping hand early on as noted above, to climbing back on his bike and finishing the event even after ringing his bell when his bike decided to assume missile launch position on a steep hill. Riding with the resultant headache was no fun, but Chuck did it anyway.

My own participation had been iffy, but Chuck and Carren took care of a major problem by loaning me her trail/mountain bike. While it is not necessarily the best bike for such a long distance, it worked and worked well. It did handle the occasional gravel and such much better than the racing bikes did, and the rough terrain capability came in handy when a family in a Yukon put me on the shoulder of the road at one point. You would think that my fat fuzzy rump would be hard to miss, but...

Per Carren's discussion, both Chuck and I had to miss portions of Day One as neither one of us is 17 anymore. I had to sit out a portion of one leg after dehydrating and overheating, and both of us missed the last two legs because of that and other issues. Yet and still, based on the mileage maps they gave, it appears that both of us cleared 80 of the 110 miles involved.

The first day started beautifully, if late ("Shut up and ride!") with cool weather and a nice five mile jaunt along a bike/jogging trail that ran through a lot of Bethesda. Chuck, trying out his new wheels, even whipped off the path and around where Carren was shooting photos and video of us. Since staying on the bike was an issue in and of itself, I had given Carren and Soldier's Angel Lisa my still and video cameras to use. While the video camera decided to malfunction again, there is some really good video there I am trying to recover to post later. My thanks to them both!

The first leg, while it had its challenges, wasn't too bad. The worst part was trying to keep up with Chuck. Recumbent bikes have some interesting characteristics. They are not the speediest or best at going uphill, but they can fly going downhill. This makes it interesting trying to keep up with one, especially as mountain bikes don't fly downhill. Net result was I lost Chuck, and raced to find him only to discover I had beaten him to the first rest stop. Repairs and adjustments were made to all the bikes as needed, and additional air pressure didn't hurt anything for me.

The next leg wasn't too bad, but with the late start the heat began to kick in, and kick a lot of people. It was also a time for exploring just what some of the bikes could do, and that was a blast to watch. Or it was until I realized that Chuck was hitting or breaking 40 mph on a long downhill stretch and that there was no way for me to keep up. I was close enough to hear, however, when at the bottom of the hill there was a 90-degree left turn and a safety escort who's voice went almost falsetto yelling at Chuck to slow down for the turn. Chuck, in a scene reminiscent of the chariot race in Ben Hur, didn't and took said turn on two wheels so as to have momentum for a hill coming up.

Lunch was served at a park near a nice river/stream, and was enjoyed, but by then I was already feeling the effects of not hydrating properly, and the following leg saw me having to cool down and guzzle down a lot of liquid. I convinced the nice medics (the medics for the ride rocked all around!) that I was okay, recovered my (Carren's) bike, and rode on in to the finish of that leg. Actually, I felt like dreck but the tenacity being displayed by the wounded/ill was such that I was not going to ride in to the next rest stop in a medical van. That said, Carren wisely encouraged us to listen to our bodies and the decision was made to not ride the next leg. That turned into not riding it or the next, but that was for the best.

The second day was another beautiful day for riding, though country roads and one-lane bridges do make for a number of interesting situations. One is traffic, and while many were gracious about letting the group through, some clearly showed their boorish selves. It also made for something Chuck and I wish could have gotten on video. On a steep hill, there was an interesting pitch in one section, and Chuck dropped to his lowest gear and dug in with his feet on the pedals. When he did so, the front in came up off the ground and came up, and up, and over. The bike, thankfully, stopped with the back on the ground and did not come on over.

Initially, the waves of the ride were bunched too tightly together, which made for the amusing spectacle of Chuck and another warrior on a hand-cranked recumbent essentially running rings around a motorcycle escort that was trying to slow things down so as to keep the waves separate. Lunch allowed things to get spaced better, and the ride into Gettysburg Battlefield was nothing short of gorgeous. We paused at the battlefield to regroup, and then rode on into the finish at the home of Marine, where steak and beer awaited.

While they arrived dead last at the finish, the Marines ruled this event. I am not sure how many teams they had, but it appeared to be several and the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps rode with us both days and not an aide in sight. While it pains me to say it, the Green Machine got skunked on this ride in terms of people and participation.

I want to thank all the people who made this happen, and thank Chuck for putting up with my general smartassery (Ramming Speeeeeeed!). I also want to thank Lynette and Soldier's Angels for getting involved in the ride -- and I plan to be a member of Team Chuck Z again next year too. Given that has been 33 years since I did any serious riding, and 27-30 years since I've even been on a bike, that means training starts now. How about you, will you join us?

LW

NOTE: I am doing the photos with a copyright of Team Chuck Z. Not only am I not sure of who shot what, but because if anyone uses them I want the use fee to go towards next year's ride.

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Comments

[defendusa]

Well,I've done alotta training in life and athletics. But, I am seriously too damn chicken to ride a bike on the road. I can cheer, weight train the riders, fatten and hydrate, even rehab...but asking me to get on my bike and ride makes me break out in hives.
Congrats to you for taking on the challenge. As I am a bike chicken, My hats are off to you and those who are missing parts, but remaining in action.

[Lands’nGrooves]

LW,

Congrats, sounds like a great event and a good time had by all.

[MaryAnn]

Team Chuck Z rocks! Great achievement on everyone's part. Looks like lots of fun, too ;-)

[Maggie45]

wow, Blake, looks like you all had a lot of fun. Chuck always has that really mischievous look on his face. LOL.
Thank goodness Carren was there to keep an eye on you all.

[douglas]

Over $100K! You guys rock!

"...and a safety escort who's voice went almost falsetto yelling at Chuck to slow down for the turn. Chuck, in a scene reminiscent of the chariot race in Ben Hur, didn't and took said turn on two wheels so as to have momentum for a hill coming up."

If Chuck's gonna ride like that, he'd better switch to a tadpole style trike (two wheels in front which steer, one in the rear you drive, you have a shot of one in photo five after the "brain bucket" shot). They have a lower center of gravity and are more difficult (not impossible) to flip over. You have to get sideways and hit a bump or dip to flip one, just about. They are a hell of a lot of fun to ride.

As for hydration, the rule is you can't drink too much. Besides, with a little practice, you can relieve yourself without dismounting! Just make sure it's clear behind you...

[Jaded]

Thanks for the greatest time my son and I had all year....we love to serve those who serve us....great pleasure to meet you Laughing Wolf.

[Laughing Wolf]

Thanks to you all, and to all the reader's who contributed -- in all ways. Jaded, it was great to meet you and look forward to seeing you there again next year.

LW