A Sore Bum but a Full Heart

When I was interning for GMI a couple summers ago I had heard people talk about how amazing the MS 150 bike ride from Duluth to Minneapolis was. When I saw flyers go up this year I thought, "Why not, it will be a good way to get to know some more General Mills employees."

I signed up and then struggled to raise the minimum amount of money required to ride, as I hate asking people for money. Once the money was raised I started to feel a bit nervous about the ride itself. It was such a cold spring out here that I had not gotten very many rides in yet and the longest ride I had yet done was about 25 miles. Not exactly awe inspiring when facing 75 miles two days in a row. Well the day before the ride came and I loaded my bike into a truck and got a bus headed for Proctor High School, in you guessed it, Proctor Minnesota. Once in Proctor I started to realize how big this ride really was when I went down to the bike corral and realized that this was only a portion of the bikes that would be on the trail the next morning.

Bike corral

The morning of the ride dawned cool and clear, perfect for a day in the saddle. The majority of the ride was very beautiful, and I did manage to stop to take pictures in the most amazing spot, this little gorge somewhere near Duluth... not exactly sure where.

I never knew I could see things like this in the Midwest!

For one brief moment my mountain bike looked appropriate for the ride :)

Throughout the ride there were rest stops where volunteers handed out food and drinks to those of us riding. My favorite were the little peanut butter sandwiches and all the fruit. Mmm, nothing better during a ride I think.

Rest stop along the ride

My second day on the trail I was struggling, I had a saddle sore bum and my back was not appreciating being bent over for so long. There was no doubt in my mind that I would finish the ride, but I was thinking that I had been silly to sign up for something I was obviously not in shape for. At the lunch break rest stop my attitude received a check when a man with a very advanced case of MS stopped a group of us. He was in an electric wheel chair, had an oxygen tank, and with tears in his eyes thanked us for what we were doing.

Seeing this man put a face to what I was doing. I was not longer riding to finish and be done, I was riding so that man could have a better quality of life. Getting back on my bike for last 35 or so miles my bum was still sore, but I did not mind it as much anymore.

Finishing the ride was an invigorating feeling. I felt good for having done something for others, and also for having done something for myself as well.

All packed up and ready to go home!