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Topics - whit517

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General Discussion / Doin' it well
« on: May 24, 2013, 09:22:36 pm »
Hey seasoned bike tourists-

I am 26 and today returned from my first trip (solo).  I live in St. Paul, MN and my route was planned to go from St. Cloud > Brainerd > Itasca > Bemidji > Chippewa Forest > Iron Range > Ely, and was just about 400 miles.  I've been a road cyclist for a long time and am in reasonably good early-season shape.  Unfortunately, my trip ended at 250 miles in Bemidji.  I had some pretty good rain the first 3 days (actually heard on the radio that the radio that the year-long Northern Minnesota drought is officially over - you're welcome!), as well as some strong headwinds.  I was rolling at about 10 mph most of the time, which was frustrating.  I got some seriously sore knees and major muscle fatigue on day 4.  I did have a rest day scheduled on day 3 but had to ride through it because weather shortened the day before.  By day 5, I had gotten a cold from somewhere.  The weather was scheduled to turn bad again and when I talked to Boyfriend on the phone, he said he could come get me today but otherwise he'd be out of town.  So, I jumped on the opportunity and quit.  I've never been a quitter before and I am agonizing over whether or not this was a smart move or the lazy girl's way out.  So I guess my real question is how to approach my next tour so it goes better.  I thought I had planned the crap out of this trip and thought I was in the shape to handle it, mentally and physically, but apparently not.  Is this normal?  Should I have pushed through it?  Should I tell all my friends it was supposed to be a 250 mile trip so they don't judge me?  Should I bring a nurse and a cheerleader along next time?

Thanks for the input, everyone

Whit

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