Over the past weekend I successfully completed the 100 mile Seagull Century bike ride hosted by Salisbury University. It is the 19th annual event, which has become a nationally acclaimed bicycle tour and serves to finance student programs, scholarships, and charities.

I have my buddy Menassa from work to thank for dragging me back into cycling. I've always had bikes and have ridden off and on, but never very frequently. I think that has to do with falling into the whole mountain bike rut that the world is in right now. Like many folks I've bought several mountain bikes with no intention of ever going off paved surfaces with them... this, of course, lead to frustration for a guy who prefers to see the world as a blur (at least when it comes to going from one place to another.)

Once I finally decided to ride my bike to work in the mornings with him, and after having him push me down the B&A Trail two or three times, I broke down and bought an outright road bike. The Trek 1500 I chose is actually a racing model and it's aerodynamic riding postion & skinny tires let me cruise along at a pace that let's me really feel as if I'm going somewhere, which keeps me happy as I pedal along. Much nicer and less frustrating... the right tool for the job, so they say.

I think Menassa is actually using me as an excuse to ride more himself, but it has gotten me out exercising which I've never liked to do, but really need to do more of (don't we all?) It has also given me some personal goals to try and acheive and that certainly comes in handy when trying to meet those needs Maslow always talked about. I've certainly noticed a difference in the last few months as we've biked to work and riding the first two-thirds of the Civil War Century was a great accomplishment.

But the goal starting out has always been the century ride in Salisbury. I pre-registered in August as rider 2564 out of an eventual 5,400 and booked a hotel room in nearby Seaford, Delaware with the intention of Mary & I making a weekend out of the event. She lined up horse-sitters and on Friday afternoon we packed up and hit the road south. Along the way we visited one of Mary's friends in Smyrna, who fed us some awesome lasagna, and arrived at our Quality Inn room around 9:30pm...

The room left a little to be desired, the obvious water stains on the pull-out sofa and desk screamed leaky roof, and the dirty coffee pot and stained towels didn't make for a very inviting stay. But the bed linens were clean, the air conditioner worked, and the wireless internet was high speed & free so what more does a person really need?

We woke up in the morning and got a later start than I really wanted to. I didn't get a chance to eat a real breakfast and settled for a Clif bar in the Jeep on the way to Salisbury. Traffic was obviously heavy in the downtown area as everyone descended on the university, but it proceeded smoothly and we were able to get to our parking spot and meet up with Menassa before he shoved off with his ABRT buddies. The intention was for us to ride together in their group but I knew from the beginning that it wasn't meant to be. The traffic made it hard to get a good run and I never really got up with them. Besides, I wasn't feeling very frisky that morning. So I gave him a wave and settled into my own rhythm. Once things stretched out a bit, I was able to tack onto the back end of a group that was cruising along closer to my pace and we made an average of 21mph to the first rest stop at the 22 mile mark.

The stop was located in the Pocomoke River State Park and had snacks, water, and bath rooms available. I had intended to skip the first stop, but it sat far off the main route and I didn't realize that the turn I made was actually taking me to the stop, since I was just following the painted markers on the road. So since I was there I hit the porta-pot and quickly headed back out, hoping that maybe I would be able to stay close enough to Menassa and his group that we could meet up at Assateague.

I set off on my own and a few miles later I came up on a couple cyclists along the road that were changing a flat. As I rode by I asked if they were okay, but they said they needed a pump, so I turned around to help out. The one guy had a mini-pump but it wasn't working, and the other guy had a CO2 cartridge inflator but he had already used it. I gave them my pump, but the tire wasn't inflating. Knowing my pump worked, I suggested they try another tube. And although it was brand new, when they pulled it back out of the tire the hissing noise confirmed it was the culprit. The one fellow pulled out a new tube and replaced the tire and in a short time they were back on the road, so I continued on my way.

I mostly rode on my own, keeping a fair pace of around 20mph but would jump on the tail end of a line if one came along that was going about the same speed so I could save a little energy. The pacelines that I got into were very frustrating though so inevitably I would get fed up, kick it up a notch and ride past them and off the front.

Several of the folks I was following would pedal & coast, pedal & coast... which is very annoying. Then another group I was in, instead of rotating through the pulls where the first guy pulls off after a minute or so, then the second guy, then the third, etc... the person up front would be up there forever, then throw up a hand, and some other guy would come pedaling his ass off up from the middle of the group and then he'd be up there forever, rinse & repeat. I was at the back of one group for a long time, waiting for my turn to put in some work- since it's only fair... but it never came. So at one point I pedaled up to the guy who looked like the group leader and told him I'd take a pull, and slid into the number 3 spot... and that's as close to the front as I got. He yells to the number one guy to take a break, so he pulls off and the number two guy is up there. And up there, and up there. I'm waiting, stuck to his back wheel, waiting for a flick of the arm or some signal that it's my turn to pull. Waiting.... Eventually somebody behind me tells the guy to take a break and he pulls off. Yay! I finally get to repay them for the letting me tag along in their group... Nope, here comes some guy from the back, pedaling his ass off to get to the front. Oh well.

I hit the 42 mile mini-rest stop at the 2 hour and 4 minute mark, keeping my average speed at about 20mph. Once again, it was my intention to bypass the stop to try and keep the gap between me and Menassa as short as possible, but the crowd around the intersection made it hard to tell which way the route went so I stopped and filled my one empty water bottle and then continued on to Assateague, riding across the pedestrian bridge on the way into the State Park where I stopped for about 20 minutes.

I reached Assateague in 3 hours and 8 minutes which I thought was a really good time for the 63 mile trip. I had looked for Menassa on the way into the island but never saw him, and I didn't see him among the hundreds of cyclists at the beach parking lot. As it turns out he was probably nearing the last rest stop at that time... a full 20 miles ahead of me. I called Mary on the NexTel to check-in and let her know how I was doing and see if she was keeping herself busy. Then I chowed down on a banana and some cookies, and filled my bottles with some fresh, cool water & Gatorade.

The ride out of Assateague was beautiful, the fog and overcast of the morning had given way to sunny skies, as this photo from the century's website shows. The police had one lane of the Verrazzano Bridge closed off to traffic so the cyclists had the outbound lane to themselves, so I was able to take in the scenery and watch a biplane flying over the Sinepuxent Bay. Maybe the next time, I'll take a camera along and snap some of my own photos as I ride...

Once again I was riding at my own pace, picking off slower riders and passing them. At some point I passed one fellow in a white shirt and he stuck. I towed him along and into Berlin, Maryland. As we slowed to make our way through the town he got alongside of me to explain that he had fallen behind his group of buddies and offered to tow me along for a bit, happy to have been able to make up some time while on my wheel. I gladly accepted the break and followed along for a couple miles until he pulled off and I again took over. Happy to have a competent partner, I put my hands in the drops and kept up the pace he had set, even though it was a little faster than I wanted to go... since I was starting to tire a bit. But we kept motoring along, passing slower cyclists at a fair rate and eventually caught a paceline of about 6 guys. I eased over to the left and began to overtake them, my new found friend in tow. As we reached the front it became evident that this was the group that he had been a part of before getting dropped. My buddy slowed to rejoin his friends and I pedaled on putting distance on the group for a few miles before I slowed and they eventually caught up again. As they passed, their lead rider shouted for me to jump on the back and I gratefully accepted an escort into the last rest stop at Adkins Mill Park where riders enjoyed pie and ice cream.

I skipped the long line and opted for an apple. So far, I had covered 84 miles in 4 hours and 16 minutes riding time making my average speed just shy of 20mph. Not too bad considering I rode most of the way by myself. I was feeling pretty good and took some time to talk with Menassa on the cell phone where I learned that he had finished the course already. I also talked to Mary, who wanted to know when I was close to the end so she could watch me cross the finish line.

After 15 minutes or so I started off again, anxious to finish up the remaining 16 miles. I pedaled at an easy pace and took things slow, putt-putting down the road at about 15mph, staying in my small chainring. In hindsight I probably should've kept going the way I had been all day, because I started getting a cramp in my right calf and it bothered me just enough that when a pace line came by at 20mph or so I didn't feel like I'd be able to sprint to catch them and tag along. So I plodded on. The apple wasn't setting in my stomach all that well, and I was to the point that I needed to go to the bathroom. The miles slowly ticked by... it seemed like it was taking forever. Finally a group came by that I was able to latch on to. My pace picked up a bit, I was in my big ring and my calf was starting to feel better, and I was feeling better too. I followed along with them until the outskirts of Salisbury where we came to the overpass at Route 13. With my bum in need of a break I took the small climb up and over the highway as a chance to stand up, but the extra effort cause the cramp in my calf to come back and the group went on their way as I slowed a bit while I rubbed my leg. No matter though, there were only a couple of miles left and I pedaled my way back through town and through the tunnel and onto the Salisbury University campus. As I appeared out of the tunnel Mary was there to greet me. I saw her immediately. She was infatuated with a recumbant bike that was in front of me and didn't notice me until I waved, so she missed the photograph that she wanted, but I like the one she did get just fine.

I crossed the finish line in 5 hours and 23 minutes of riding time, with an average moving speed of 18.5 mph. All told my adventure took me 6 hours and 20 minutes and I burned over 6,700 calories. Even though I had a few minor annoyances toward the end, I felt great once I finished and can say that I had a really great time. I'm glad that Menassa suggested that I do it. I'd highly recommend the Seagull Century to anyone looking to participate in such an event. It was well organized, very well supported, and a beautiful place to ride.

Be sure to check out the pictures in my gallery and check back in a few days to look for some updated photos as I expect to have some coming from Marathon Photo, the company contracted to provide photo service for the ride.

You can also take a look at this story & video from WBOC, a local news station in Salisbury. And you can look at the data I uploaded from my Garmin bike computer on MotionBased. It'll let you see the route I covered, and see the different speeds I reached, my heart rate, etc.