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do what you don’t know you can’t

April 8, 2010

  “Things are only impossible, until they’re not.”                                             -Jean Luc Picard

Summer 2008 we (Me, Michael, neighbors Adam & Debbie) were planning a longish bike ride.
 (Ivyland, Pa to Frenchtown, NJ is approximately 38 miles).
The ride was scheduled for a Sunday & the plan was to attend a Wine/Beer Festival held in downtown Frenchtown.
Someone was going to meet us there to bring us AND our bikes home
so we’d be free to imbibe and not have to bike home.
On the SATURDAY before the scheduled ride, we were literally having a heat wave in Ivyland
BUT Michael & I were at the Beach playing volleyball where it was nice, cool & breezy.
{What heat wave???}  In any case — the next day – the Sunday of beer & wine festival – the forecast was for
the same weather (HOT, VERY)  so Adam & Debbie bailed (on SATURDAY for Sunday ride….)
 b/c “it was too hot”.  BUT – we didn’t “KNOW” it was HOT
(I’m kind of thinking if we WERE home – we might have been tricked into their same thinking
 – of quitting before we began………)
We were like – well, we’re going anyway…. so we did.
We didn’t know we couldn’t do it
(“b/c it was too HOT”……)
But Adam & Debbie knew they couldn’t……
We did the ride & it was my best average speed to date –
 not only did we ride in the “heat wave” but I broke a personal record!
In the end – it was NOT HOT riding – when you are biking at 15mph it creates a breeze – so you’re not hot.
We WERE hot when we got to the festival.
When you stopped moving & it was 90, sunny & humid it WAS HOT.

That was ONE story about doing the impossible/not quitting–
hope it wasn’t too convoluted & you were able to follow it……
I have others…….

Mission Accomplished

From → biking

2 Comments
  1. Constantin's avatar

    My longest bike ride was about 90 km (56 miles) and at some point my blood sugar dropped so badly that I had to stop and look fro food. I had nothing with me so I “hunted” some apples in the trees on the side of the road. I also found some walnuts. I was lucky to find that – otherwise I would have begged for food..perhaps :-).
    Indeed the breeze may take away the hotness of the air.
    Cheers!

    • helcha8's avatar
      helcha8 permalink

      Constantin – Thanks for visiting my blog & sharing your story. I love hearing about “hunting” for apples & walnuts! Survival of the fittest – LOL. Now I’m going to scoot over & check out your website….

      Helen
      http://helentdiehl.posterous.com/

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