Good day folks. What a weekend! This weekend I was blessed to be part of a great event for a great cause. Some of the Tulsa residents thought it would be a good idea to incorporate a bike ride alongside their Juneteenth Festival held in the Greenwood district of Tulsa, OK
The Ride
So, a group of bike folks that I ride with here in St. Louis decided to rally together and travel to Tulsa to be a part of this experience. Most of us opted for the 50K route and a few decided that the 25K was more their speed.
What we did not anticipate is how difficult the 50K route would be. I thought Tulsa would be flat! That have tornadoes there, right? Farms? Prairies? Yes, they have all of that and HILLS! Yes, nice climbing hills. Between the hills and the intense heat it made for a very difficult ride. The most difficult 36 mile ride I have ever experienced.
I’m told that there were at least 400 cyclists who attended this first time event. We were even invited by the ride coordinator to a welcome party at the Fulton Street Books and Coffee a day before the event. What’s so great about this bookstore on Fulton Street? At least 70% of their books are written by or featuring BBIPOC (Black, Brown, Indengendious and People of Color) and/or marginalized communities (Fulton Street website).
The start/finish of the ride was located at the corner of Archer and Greenwood in the heart of the Black Wall Street district. We were met with local cyclists and those from out of State. They were several Major Taylor Clubs and of course I had to represent with my own Major Taylor Cincinnati kit!
Before I continue with the rest of my story, I want to leave a few takeaways from this event that I hope will help you along your cycling journey.
Fuel Fuel Fuel
Yeah…so I did not fuel my body enough to endure 30+ miles in 100+ degree weather while fighting the sun and the wind!
Hydrate
I screwed up on this one. While I am usually hydrating the day before a ride, this time I did not. I was traveling by car 6hrs the day before and I have a nervous bladder so I did not drink nearly as much as I would/should have. No amount of water, Gatorade or coconut water the day of would have helped me hydrate any better.
During the ride snacks
While I did take my Nature Valley Protein Bars, I am used to eating just a bite every so often for fear that eating more in one sitting will bother my stomach. I should thought of other snacks to pack in my jersey pockets to eat during the 3 stops along the route.
During the last 7 miles of this ride, I had the shakes. I had no more fuel. I had burned off all of the calories that I had consumed and some I had not consumed.
There is still so much I need to learn and research about fueling and hydrating, So, I will be spending all week sharing what I have learned on my YouTube channel. Tune in!
The History
The Hubs was especially helpful during this weekend. He was gracious enough to join me on this weekend even though he did not participate in the bike event. He spend the morning bourbon hunting. It was still great to have him around and he made sure I stayed on track.
We will have to take a return trip to Tulsa when we have more time to explore. So much history is there and we made every attempt to absorb as much as we could. The Tulsa Massacre was heartbreaking. What it did to the Greenwood residents in 1921, and their children and children’s children is heartbreaking. Its definately a story that needs to be told.
We were able to visit the Greenwood Cultural Center. Their mission: “promoting, preserving, and celebrating African American culture and heritage.” Within the walls of this beautiful space are photos and stories of the lives ruined during the Tulsa Massacre and their resilience. What a humbling experience.
I am so very glad that I decided to take this trip. I wanted to prove to myself that I can do things without my social anxiety, general anxiety and my introvert-ness causing havoc. And while all of these ‘ailments’ did rear their ugly heads at times during the weekend, I was still able to meet some new faces, have conversations with other cyclists and visit new places.
Until next time…
Curvy Cyclist Out