GABRAKY Post

This post is a culmination of two weeks because I have been basically living out of my backpack and hotels for over ten days. The week leading up to GABRAKY consisted of mostly hour long rides, and I managed to get in a couple of low intesity crossfit workouts, a run and a 1000 yard swim. I felt great leading up to this event, and while it is not a race it is definetly challenging with the length and amount of climbing involved.

God blessed this years cyclists with some of the most beautiful weather for GABRAKY. Crystal blue skys, temps in the mid 80's, and no wind awaited everyone. That did not stop the early morning cool crisp temps from making many of the cyclists including myself bundle up for the first hour or so. Compared to last years cold freezing rain and frigid temps this was picture perfect.

Day 1: TM:3:39:43/DST:61.47/AVG:16.7
Day2: TM:6:20:44/DST:100.11/AVG:15.7
Day3: TM:4:34:20/DST:75.19/AVG:15.7

Total: 236.77 miles

It goes without saying that the ride was awesome. As is the case every year it was the friendships made along the route that made the ride so enjoyable and memorable. GABRAKY continues to register between 40-60 people every year so you get to actually meet every cyclists. This year I had the pleasure of riding most of the event with three other gentlmen, Ted from Louisville, Neal from Detroit, and Jeff from Dallas. We hit it off and all had equal riding ability, so it made for great company. It made me think of my TTT brothers, infact that is how Neal and Jeff were on the ride. They are friends that no longer live in the same geographic location and choose an event each year to come togther. I am convinced that GABRAKY is the event for my TTT brothers. It has everything we are looking for. Hanging out each night with riders and sharing stories is the highlight for me. The sag stops are filled with stories of chasing dogs, and homemade remedys to avoid cramping and muscle fatigue. Laughter is easily found on this trip.

Hanging out in downtown Frankfort after day one is always a highlight, but I especially appreciate the day two sag stop at the Four Roses distillery; that's because Angela and Charlie share their homemade muffins, and special chex mix bags with all the cyclists. This is the best cycling food ever. The lunch stop in Perryville is the strangest stop but the one I look forward to the most. It's a simple country gas station, but these people love us and the kitchen is open for business. I have never seen so many fit people eat so poorly. It's just so good you cant say no. By the way, the homemade coconut custard pie was delicious.

I missed it this year, but I was told that the dinner at Camp Acton prepared by the church ladies was the best to date. Lasagna, salad, desserts, and more. I saw a lot of smiles the next morning so it must have been great. Now I'm used to it but everyone loves the day three lunch break at LWC, and I don't think this year was any different. After our meal we always take a large group photo with the Begley Chapel as the backdrop. The meal was so good, one young man asked me if he could go back for more food before he started the final leg of the journey.

If your wondering, yes we did ride when we were not eating our fellowshiping. A few of us added a few miles to some of the days, especially day 2 so that we could say we completed a century. As far as difficulty, Phil the ride chair who is a tremendous event organizer provides data pertaining to the course descriptions. Whoever he got the elevation grade information from lied. We climbed and climbed, rolled and rolled, mile after mile. There was alot of cramping and soreness going on. I appreciate Margo from JAMIS bikes for encouraging me up the last hill in to the park. The great news is I will do this ride again next year, because the course layout, scenery, organization, and especially the people truly make it a GRAND event. I am challenging you boys to make it to Kentucky next year for this ride.

The second half of my adventure started less than four hours after I got home from GABRAKY. I showered and started packing for my NYC service trip to Gods Love We Deliver. There were 34 LWC students and staffers along for the trip and we departed campus at 11pm. We loaded up the charter bus and headed out. I do not recommend riding over 235 miles and then sitting on a bus for 14 hours. My legs hated me all week while I was in NYC, going from riding muscles to walking muscles is a terrible transition. The great news is we completed four days of service and prepared and delivered thousands of meals to elderly, terminally sick, and others throughout the five boroughs. LWC and GLWD have a fantastic relationship and we are proud to partner with them. Our afternoons were filled with walking excursions all around the city. I even managed a 40 minute run along the Hudson River. By Thursday evening we were back on the bus and into Columbia by Friday afternoon. I turned right around and was in doc classes in BG all day Saturday followed by my wife's 15year HS reunion that evening. So I dedicated today, Sunday to my family since we have not all been together in almost two weeks. We went to church, headed to the lake for some kayaking, then a nice home cooked meal and just simply hanging out. Wow, what and adventure.

So ends my year. No more big events, no more focus on training. Now is Doctorate time; time to get focused and make the push to the end of December with all my work and research. All exercise now will just be fill in until then. I know this has been long top read but it was healthy to get it out and share it with you. Be well friends.

L3-Live, Learn, and Lead
Schmidty