Trans Iowa Stories: No Rest

A bit of the action from the Spring 2016 Geezer Ride.

"Trans Iowa Stories" is an every Sunday post which helps tell the stories behind the event. You can check out other posts about this subject  by clicking on the "Trans Iowa Stories" link under the blog header. Thanks and enjoy! 

By this time in Trans Iowa's run of events I had finally figured out that I needed to take the Monday after the event off from work. I didn't used to do that, partly because RAGBRAI madness would be setting in at work, partly because the business I worked at was picking up a lot of general repair business about this point in the year, and mostly because I thought I should. That usually led to a day of sloth-like movements, slow thinking, and generally ended up being a non-productive day anyway. My employer at the time was supportive of my taking a day off, so I started doing that toward the end of the Trans Iowa run. That's what I did after T.I.v12. 

But even with that day, I was a wreck for several days after T.I.v12. I would spontaneously burst into tears at odd times and I would have bouts of heavy sleepiness at random times. This slowly went away throughout the course of the following week, but did I take any extra rest? Oh! Of course not! I forged ahead with work and planning for another ride which occurred two weeks past T.I.v12 called the "Geezer Ride".

This particular version of this ride comes into play later on for Trans Iowa v14, otherwise I wouldn't delve into that subject any further than merely mentioning it. However; this ended up becoming a feature of T.I.v14 which, originally, wasn't my idea. It was a a bit of the final Trans Iowa that someone else contributed which, as a result, caused a situation which was a pivotal part of the final Trans Iowa. At the time, I had no idea how important this "Geezer Ride" was going to be.

The barn quilt at Hinkletown Iowa from the Geezer Ride. If you were in T.I.v14, you may recall this being on course.

The Geezer Ride was my idea to invite the 'gravel-curious' cyclists who maybe had wondered about riding gravel, but needed a good, easy excuse to try it. The routes were always around 40 miles, the pace was casual, and there was no one left behind. We stopped early and often, and the focus was on fun. This Spring 2016 ride was a bit different, as the course finding was all done by a riding buddy of mine at the time named Martin. He lived in the area where we rode and had asked if he could do the route for the Spring Geezer Ride, to which I said yes! Especially since that would ease my load a lot and especially after Trans Iowa. 

But that route finding aside, all the promotion and some of the logistics were on my table, so it wasn't like I got off scot-free. No, it was another ride which I had to do a lot of thinking and communicating for. Plus, I was concerned - to a small degree- about the course. Oh, the course! That's the entire point here. Let's get back to that....

Without giving too much away, a lot of what Martin came up with ended up in the T.I.v14 course. It was an impressive bit of Iowa, what with most of it running through the heart of an Amish rural community. I always was looking for unique, cultural and historical bits to route Trans Iowa by or through. This course for the Spring Geezer Ride was too good not to steal from for a Trans Iowa route. 

So, at the time, like I mentioned, all it was to me was a ride I was putting on. Work. Lot's of thought and energy, which was on short supply due to Trans Iowa's recent running. But that wasn't all. The very next weekend after the Geezer Ride I was summoned up to Cherry Grove, Minnesota to help with an aid station for the mighty Almanzo 100 event! 

Apparently, the folks scheduled to volunteer to do this aid station pulled out at the last minute and my partner in RidingGravel.com, Ben Welnak, found out about that. He in turn volunteered our services, seeing this as an opportunity for spreading the word about the website and to just plain have a good time. Well, this was more logistics, last minute planning, and an entire Saturday spent aiding and cheering on hundreds of gravel riders. More energy I maybe didn't really have to share at the time, but again, I didn't know any better either. 

I was the one that set up my schedule earlier in the year. I didn't have to promote a Geezer Ride right after Trans Iowa. I didn't have to go do events in the Summer months, but- I thought I had to do these things. It was foolish, really, and burning my candle at both ends. Maybe...... Well, it is hard to say, but had I had a personal manager that cared about my well being, I wouldn't have stretched myself so thin, and who knows? Trans Iowa may still be happening. Maybe......

But I had been on the hamster wheel for ten years by this point. I had no one to blame but myself. I don't point at anything but me when I stop to think about those years from 2005-2018. I was doing waaaay too much, and Trans Iowa was just one of several things that ended up sapping me of my strength. But in 2016? Yeah, I just thought I could handle it all. I didn't know any other way. 

Next: One last post about the people of Trans Iowa with "It's About The People - Part 3