Fall River Century

I loved growing up in the Fall River Valley. It was a beautiful, quiet, peaceful place to be raised. I am proud to call it my hometown. This is one of the reasons why I was so excited when my husband wanted to ride his bike in the Fall River Century!

M's longest ride had been 65 miles (and I thought that he was crazy to ride that far)! His new challenge was to ride 100 miles and it turned out to be a sweltering day in my hometown! But he was up for the challenge.

The kids and I headed up with him so that we could be his cheerleaders. We brought along bells and our words of encouragement. We planned to meet him throughout the day. This is what it looked like...

M's first rest stop (with his cheerleaders) was in Cassel (only a short walking distance from my parents' home). The kids grabbed their bells and walked down the street to cheer their daddy on! As you can see, he was so excited to see us! This rest stop was after 44.2 miles of riding. He started at the fairgrounds in McArthur, went through Glenburn and Dana, to Burney Falls, and continued on 89 to get to the Cassel turn off. Next he was off to Fall River (on the back road) heading to his lunch break.

The kids and I went back to Grandma and Grandpa's house to pass a little time. Grandma, being the wonderful Grandma that she is, had water guns all ready for them to play with. Their favorite thing to do was shoot the water bugs in the pond. :)

Next, we caught up with daddy in Pittville. At this point he had been riding for 65.6 miles. We came up behind him, rolled down our window, and began cheering while we rang our bells. He later told us that it was a little bit embarrassing, but that he loved every minute of it. We joined him at his next rest stop where we ate lunch and helped him to stay hydrated. At this point, he had been riding for 69.3 miles. Next, he headed up Lassen Bench back to 299.

The next rest stop was going to be at the end of Day Road (a ten mile long road upon which I grew up!) The kids and I stopped at my childhood home and were greeted by the current owner (thanks, Bob!) He let us come in (much to my surprise and delight). I was able to show my kids my bedroom (which still had my wallpaper hanging). Boy, what a rush of memories! That was a trip down memory lane that I will never forget. Z said that it was so great to see where I grew up. I'm so glad that he enjoyed it. The picture above is the view from the community center at the end of Day Road. BEAUTIFUL!

M arrived very tired and sore. At this point, he had been on his bike for 83 miles! This was the best (and most needed) rest stop by far! The ladies of Day Road were incredibly hospitable. There were homemade cookies, fruit, popsicles, gatorade, sunscreen, showers to ride your bike through or to simply rinse your feet. And below you can see the awesome bike rack! :) Ok, so it wasn't a bike rack, but it was perfect. :)

M spent a little while at this rest stop cooling his body down and getting rid of the cramps in his legs. He only had 17 miles to go! The hardest 17 miles of his life!

This is my amazing husband and our two VERY proud boys at the "finish line". Wow, what a feat! M will remember this for a long, long time! He definitely made a lasting impression on his wife and children.

That night M and the boys slept in our tent at the fairgrounds. A and I thought that we would get the tent all set up for daddy. That was another feat in and of itself! I am not much of a camper and have never set up our tent before, but by the time daddy rolled in, it was finished!