Day 2: Shakedown Ride

May 30, 2022 in Yorktown, Virginia

My 6am wake-up this morning was shockingly easy! A lovely surprise.

Once we had practiced our chores and packed our bags (it went well, but I need to give myself more time tomorrow), we learned some bike maintenance. It was also the first time we were all suited up, so we took some obligatory pictures.

After reviewing how to change a tire, we moved into some drills, including looking back while riding, merging, stopping, and an obstacle course. They all went swimmingly, expect looking back (more on that later).

It was at this point that I asked my leaders to do a quick errand run with me, because my towel rescue mission from yesterday failed. I acquired a cat-mermaid and narwhal towel from Kohl's, which will get the job done. We ate lunch on the way, and headed out to our shakedown ride after we got back.

A shakedown ride is essentially just practicing group riding. We set out for a 16 mile loop around Yorktown in groups of three to four, and practiced our newly learned hand and voice signals, as well as group spacing.

We rounded out the day with a BBQ and a visit from so local kids–– the food was delicious and I treated myself to two hotdogs. I also had some time to talk to my parents today, which helped the homesickness I felt on the edges today!

I found myself feeling upset about little things more often than I'd ideally like. For example, during our drills I had a really hard time with looking behind me with only one hand on the handlebars. Ostensibly it helps you get a better range view, but to me it feels super unstable and scary. I started getting really frustrated with myself about not being able to do it for long, especially since it seemed to easy to everyone else. I pulled off our test course and took a break in the shade for a while, because I felt like I wasn't making progress because I was so worked up.

My biggest takeaway from today was that I bike way faster than is comfortable for some fellow riders. Since we group ride, it's my responsibility to slow down and make sure my group is all with me. I'm a little bummed out, because to me it feels really slow, but I'm sure I'll get used to it in the same way I got used to biking a little faster with my dad.

I have a 5am wake-up tomorrow and I'm planning to get up at 4:45 to make sure everything is ready, and I think we're riding about 80 miles. So I'll keep this short and sweet!

Today was harder than yesterday, but tomorrow will be happier!