Mini Metric

**This is the exact same post I put up on Pokey Slow, so if you read it over there, don't bother here!



My husband rode in his first ever bike ride this morning! I am so stinking proud of him that I can hardly put it into words!

Watching me train and run over the past few months motivated him to get active, but he wouldn't run unless something was chasing him. He decided to look into cycling as a way to be fit and have fun. He's been training for about six weeks and just finished his first mini metric this morning.

The bike race was day one of the California Classic Weekend which includes cycling today and my half marathon tomorrow. Eric wasn't going to sign up at first, but he figured, why not? He has made a great friend where he works who is very into cycling, and the friend rode with him the whole way. (That made me feel better knowing someone was out there with him!)


Quick breakfast before heading out the door at 5:45 this morning.


All geared up and waiting at the start line to get going.


Child #1 ready to cheer on Dad!


Child #2 and me. As usual, the little one clung to me like a monkey for most of the morning.


Eric's friend who rode with him the whole way. Eric looks like he's asking Greg, "Why? Why I am doing this?" Hee hee!


Still waiting. They had just played the National Anthem. Almost time to start.


There he goes.

Then I had to try to figure out what to do. Two little boys were tired, grumpy, hungry and not going to last several hours hanging out at the finish line. So, we got in the car, found a Jack in the Box, and then set out to find Eric along the course.

The cool thing about this race is that they closed down one of the freeways in order for the riders to ride! We zipped onto an overpass and saw Eric ride by underneath us! He saw us and heard us cheering! That was a lot of fun.

We jumped back in the car and zipped up to the next overpass and saw him again!

Then we headed out to a spot out in the country (Shaw and McCall for people who know the area). We waited there for quite a long time, cheering all the riders as they passed. I had to chuckle, because I had three separate cars of people ask me if I was okay and needed help! Good to know that a female with two small boys hanging out on a corner in the country will be looked after!

We cheered and yelled as Eric rode by. I think he liked being able to see us at various spots.

By that time, we were close to home, and I needed to pee. We made a quick pit stop to change clothes, update Facebook, and get a snack. Then we got in the car and headed out again. We passed Eric on the opposite side of the road, flipped around, and waited for him in the parking lot of a mini mart. He actually stopped to talk and rest for a bit. He was hanging in there just fine!

Finally, the boys and I headed back to the baseball field where the race started. We parked ourselves on a curb and waited for Eric to ride to the finish.


The boys waiting for Dad to finish.


Here he comes!


Victory! He finished in three hours and 44 minutes. Not bad for a first ride which included some pretty lengthy hills on the freeway!

So so so so so so proud of this man!