Bethany's Big Adventure
An Advocacy Story Follow Up: The Art of Self Care
Barry Roubaix after report
Chasing The Chaise for the #MillionsMissing
Enjoy Bethany’s triumphant advocacy story as a follow up to my earlier post about how she decided to raise awareness for ME/CFS and shine a light on our community! She’s taken a page out of our book about listening to her body, knowing her limits, and living at just the right speed for her.
One of Barry Roubaix’s sponsors is Salsa Cycles, and they have a chaise lounge they bring to large events and place somewhere out on course with the message, “If you can make it to the chaise, you can make it to the finish.” I was incredibly excited to learn that I was going to have a chance to have my photo taken on The Chaise!
The 62-mile route was set to start at 11 am. A strangely late time to start and unfortunately on a very hot, sunny day. I’m a redhead, and while living in Arizona, learned that my body’s capacity for work drops significantly when air temp hits 94 F (34 C). Starting a big ride like this at 11, where the temps on course reached 90 at one point, is not something I can take lightly. Covered in sunscreen, with one water bottle of electrolyte and one of plain water, I set off with the third wave start and quickly settled into the back of the pack, because for me, this was a game of challenging my body and taking care of it.
I’ve done multiple gravel races in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho with big elevation. I can climb, but Michigan is different. I call it death by a thousand paper cuts. None of the climbing on this route is sustained. It’s a nonstop rollercoaster of hills. The best way to ride it, is to never coast. Pedaling downhill to pick up speed to get momentum to carry you partway up the next hill minimizes the work. This was a strategy many in the back of the pack did not employ and paid for dearly.
Somewhere around 25 miles, the course took a curious turn onto grass heading up a hill. Then came the signs, The Chaise was just ahead! I took my turn for a photo. Barely 30 seconds and I was on my way.
The second checkpoint was at 44 miles. I made it under the cutoff with perhaps 5 minutes to spare. I kept encountering people standing next to their bike and using it to support themselves, their legs locked up from cramping. A lack of hydration, a lack of electrolytes. I helped where I could. This is where knowing my body and its limitations came into play. At mile 60, I find out that the 62-mile course is actually 65. Uff da!
I reach the finish. There are two guys there to cheer me across an imaginary line, because the decorations have been taken down and the road is open to motor vehicle traffic. The entire venue is being disassembled. I missed the party, but still able to get a Founders beer and a slice of pizza. I won last place in my category, because the woman behind me was disqualified for reasons I don’t know.
The morning of the race, I spoke with a little boy. I told him I was going to be in a bike race, and he asked if I was gonna get 1st place. I told him probably not, then he said that second place would be ok. I told him my “secret,” that finishing is my goal and that if I finish, I win. I won this race because I shared my message of #MillionsMissing, I got to sit on The Chaise, and I finished.
On behalf of the #millionsmissing, thank you Bethany!
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