When Babycakes Conquered the U.S. of A

Lessons from Lemming

2010-07-21T21:19:00.000-07:00

Our dear little Lemming made my night when she had this conversation with some of us.

Friend of Lemming: "Are we going into a new time zone tomorrow?"
Lemming: "Yeah (said with sass)! What time zone? The Western time zone?"
Lindsay: *stares at Lemming with amazement and love*
Lemming: "Well it makes sense! Eastern time zone!"

Lemming and Lindsay in love in Manhattan

Mountain Dance Party!

2010-07-17T21:53:00.000-07:00

A few days ago we had an intensely steep 5 mile climb up the Teton Mountains within the first 10 miles of a 87 mile day. The grade was 10% or more at some points! Lindsay actually did really well going up the bike trail and was one of the first ten riders to get to the top. Once we reached the top, we cheered on the other riders who shortly followed. When everyone was accounted for, we had a rousing dance party to celebrate our accomplishment. Everyone's favorite part came after the high of conquering a mountain wore off--the descent. Some riders got to 50 mph but Lindsay was scared and feathered her brakes all the way to the bottom.

By mile 20, we were in Victor, ID a town famous for their Huckleberry milkshakes. Being the fatties that Bike & Builders are, we all stopped to have a shake. Lindsay and I split a Caramel Spud which consisted of espresso, caramel and Mexican cocoa. Unfortunately this was the beginning of the end. Lindsay felt sick by lunch and suffered from the urge to vomit and poop her chamois at the same time for the rest of the ride. It was definitely a day of highs and ultimate lows.

Idaho? No, U-da-ho!

2010-07-17T21:01:00.000-07:00

We're in Idaho if you didn't get that from the title. Also please disregard Lindsay's cameltoe in the second picture.

Journey to the Top of the World

2010-07-12T20:37:00.000-07:00

On July 3, we embarked on the most epic ride of the trip: going over the Rockies. Lindsay was definitely nervous about the ride since it is the Rocky Mountains after all. The grade stayed around 5 to 6% for most of the climb so Lindsay took her sweet time averaging about 7 mph. It was definitely a long ride but it allowed me to enjoy the beautiful scenery and truly majestic Rocky Mountains.

The trip did not come easy though. There were intense winds blowing from every which way. One gust pushed Lindsay over while she was on her bike; another literally moved Lindsay and her bike over by a foot on a gravel road; and the last brutal wind pushed Lindsay into a gravel ditch that was next to a beautiful meadow. Lindsay nearly walked up a hill because the wind was so bad. She was deathly afraid of being blown over a cliff which thankfully didn't happen.

It was quite a relief when we reached the top of the mountain. The winds definitely did not cease and it was horribly cold but it the trials and tribulations were absolutely worth it. A marmot greeted us at our lunch stop--we all thought it was either a gopher, groundhog or, in Christina's case, a beaver. After spending a bit of time trying to stay warm, a group of us headed a mile down the mountain for the Visitor's Center. We toasted hot chocolates and coffees and Lindsay proceeded to buy a number of Rocky Mountain memorabilia including a bandana, a long sleeved t-shirt and a Colorado pin.

The descent was equally as epic and Lindsay constantly feathered her brakes due to her accident anxiety--no one wants to careen off the side of a mountain and die. I felt so free as the wind blew through my silky brown fur. There was nothing like it. And to top it all off, the Continental Divide was on the way down. We stopped to take pictures to commemorate the occasion. It was the ride of a lifetime for Lindsay and I'm glad I was able to hitchhike along with her.

What's Up, Wyoming!

2010-07-10T20:42:00.000-07:00

As of today, we're in Wyoming! Let me welcome everyone to the wild, wild West.

Celebrating the Birth of Our Nation

2010-07-10T20:32:00.000-07:00

The 4th of July is my favorite holiday. The reasons? 1. We get to celebrate America (hell yeah!) 2. Fireworks (who doesn't like fire in the sky?) 3. The food! (mmm, mmm good). The Bike & Builders had to ride on the 4th despite it being a holiday but it made for a wonderful day. We had a ride from Granby, CO to Kremmling, CO and it was only a 27 miler which is the shortest ride we've ever had. Unfortunately the short ride didn't deter the strong headwind that met us for most of the way.

We still got to Kremmling in killer time and got some yummy lunch (a cheeseburger, sweet potato fries, corn nuggets and an M&M shake for Lindsay). After that we had to set up the campsite for our first official night of camping. We made our own little commune with cute tents of various sizes that had to fight the wind and rain. The downside to the day was that it was freezing cold so Lindsay had to layer all the clothes she had just to keep herself somewhat warm.

Later that night, a group went to the town square for the fireworks that they light from the cliffs. We were surrounded by kids with sparklers and men yelling "Yeah!" and "America!" The Bike & Builders even got their own sparklers and ran around chanting "Bike and build!" It was a good night for fun, friends, fireworks and America.

Peace and Chamois Butter,

Babycakes

A Little Late...

2010-07-06T21:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Belated Birthday to the great U.S. of A!

Love, Your Biggest Fan (Babycakes)

Bike & Build Models

2010-07-01T18:39:00.000-07:00

Here's a fun little post to share with you guys! While we were in Denver--an absolutely amazing specimen of a city--Efrain Cruz, a photographer, took studio photos of all the B&B-ers. Lindsay and Zach took some great shots and, admittedly, some not great shots. Don't get me wrong, Lindsay can be photogenic at times and can even rival Giselle...but these weren't her best photos. I'm planning on teaching her how to pose and turn her head so her face doesn't look so fat. But that aside, please enjoy these fun and sometimes adorable pics!

Nothing Says Bike & Build Like Hay Bale Pictures

2010-06-24T20:50:00.000-07:00

The other day we had a lovely ride into Beloit, KS. It was sunny but not too hot; the clouds looked like they came straight out of a painting; and there was barely any headwind...for half of the ride. A lot of the Bike & Builders stumbled upon some perfect looking hay bales and decided to take pictures. Lindsay and I stayed on the ground and were the lone photographers but we got some very nice pictures to share with you. I realize that I need to have a photoshoot of myself so you can all be reminded of my good looks. I promise that I will con Lindsay into doing one soon.

God Bless the Midwest!

2010-06-10T17:49:00.000-07:00

Hola Rabid Readers!

I'm back on a computer and here to give you some updates. We are now in Greenville, IL after making our way through Ohio and Indiana. It's amazing to think that we're already this far into the United States after a few short weeks. Lindsay is finding that biking is becoming a bit easier. Today Zach pointed out that her average at the beginning was 11 mph and today was a whopping 15 mph. Quite the improvement for such a small girl and amateur cyclist.

This week's rides haven't been extremely horrible. A few of them had pretty strong headwinds and made Lindsay feel like she was going 2 mph. The last two rides have been rough only because one of her fingers on her left hand has gone numb. Take in mind that this is also coupled with her numb big toe. Hopefully both will go back to normal soon. Her legs are getting stronger everyday but they're continually sore and/tired from all the work and no rest.

The days have melded and I've lost track of time. Most days are the same. Wake up between 5 and 6 a.m., get ready, bike, arrive at the host site and devour as much food as possible. We've been to very lovely towns including Portsmouth, OH; Georgetown, OH, Cincinnati, OH; Columbus, IN; Bloomington, IN; Terre Haute, IN; and Effingham, IL. I must say that the Midwest has been treating us very nicely. We've been eating like kings! Lindsay is finding out that her high school appetite is back and better than ever. Last week she ate 20 chicken McNuggets in one sitting. A few days later she ate nearly 4 plates at a Thai buffet for her afternoon snack and proceeded to eat dinner a mere 3 hours later. Perhaps she won't be losing the weight she thought she would.

Some recent highlights from the trip include seeing Zach's family in Cincinnati, Lindsay writing 5 of her 20 gazillion thank you postcards, getting care packages from Show and Abigail, finding out that you can buy 50 chicken McNuggets for 10 bucks and generally just biking across the country. Some lows to tell you about: having a numb finger and big toe, eating to the point of feeling like she wants to puke and Lindsay's Havaiana's falling apart this morning.

Lindsay has some shoutouts she'd like me to include. A big thank you to Zach's mom for getting her the sweet Nike hat. It looked like it had been to war and back after just one ride. A hello to Tails (Zach's brother's dog). She hopes that you can both move on from the incident that occurred in Cincinnati. A big congrats to all her work people who got to get a sneak peek of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and got a FREE Ipod Touch. Jealous. And another big thank you to Auntie Malu from promising to get me new flip flops after the debacle this morning.

I know I've been truly awful at blogging and my posts are often without many details. I've come to discover that my little otter memory isn't big enough to recall all the adventures I've been having. I will try to become better about keeping you all in the big loop I call life. And now....PICTURE TIME!

Updating Through the Pain

2010-06-01T19:23:00.000-07:00

I finally have internet access this week and it's about time! We've been traveling through a few sketchy parts of Virginia and West Virginia. Cell phone service has been on and off and internet has been pretty much nonexistent. Thankfully Lindsay was able to finagle a Macbook from her new friend Sarah. She's a true gem that one. It's almost 10 p.m. here in Huntington, WV (proud home of Marshall's Thundering Herd) which means that I am quickly falling asleep so I'll try to keep this post short and syrupy sweet.

This past week has been full of early mornings. 5:00 or 5:30 a.m. wake up calls, breakfast and then we're out the door and on the road. We've also been racking up around 80 mile days. Lindsay's been learning how to correctly ride her bike. Hip Watch 2010 can officially be resolved. Her hip is doing well and everything is pretty much back to normal despite some brief pain and soreness while on the bike. On the other hand, her left leg is still suffering. The ligament or tendon or whatever it is behind her knee is incredibly sore and her knee is scraped up from a little tumble she took while on a short break. She's pulling through and I'm proud of how scrappy she is.

The riding has been tough but somewhat bearable. Lindsay's still getting used to the physical toll all this riding is taking on her. She pretty much takes her time with all the rides but is getting better and stronger with each day. I will admit, I felt really bad for her as she had to climb hill after hill and mountain after mountain! The group has already rode over the Appalachians and the Blue Ridge Mountains. Usually she's one of the last to get to the host site which has meant we've been caught in about 3 storms so far. She got drenched, I got drenched, her camera got drenched and her Blackberry got drenched. Luckily her blackberry weathered the storm and is still operational! There have been a lot of ups and downs but it's been quite the experience.

What really has Lindsay down is the chaffing she's been experiencing. In all of her nearly 24 years, she's never has the chance to meet chaffing. Now they are nemesis and are currently battling each other for dominion of her poor bottom. She's got a whole routine down to try to appease the problem--a spritz or two of Bactine, slathering of Neosporin and a nice handful of Gold Bond powder. We have clearly moved on to Saddle Sores Watch of 2010 now. I won't scare you off with pictures mainly because I'm too frightened and appalled to even take a peek.

Aside from all old people physical problems, things are going swimmingly. Lindsay and I are making friends with the fellow riders. I have a few friends my size. Jen Carboni brought her suction cup monkey and there's also a lucky pig. We've had a couple of good times so far.

So there's a quick little update. We're all doing fine. Zach is cruising along despite some knee pain and the group is bonding swimmingly. Now for some pictures....

In Between an End and a Beginning: Day Four

2010-05-23T19:56:00.000-07:00

Also captionless but this time Kermit the Frog is involved.

In Between an End and a Beginning: Day Three

2010-05-23T19:52:00.000-07:00

Captionless but still tasty as ever...

In Between an End and a Beginning: Day Two

2010-05-23T12:10:00.000-07:00

Since I have limited access to the internet let alone a computer, these next D.C. posts will have to be strictly photo posts. So enjoy with your eyes!

*Note: Captions may follow at a later date

Freak Accidents Suck...and Hurt

2010-05-23T11:52:00.000-07:00

Today was our third day of riding and where was I? I was in the support van with Lindsay. Yesterday morning she dislocated her hip and is now out of commission...but hopefully not for a long time. Here's how this whole fiasco went down.

Lindsay was on the ramp of B&B's trailer and talking to a fellow Bike & Builder. She turned around quickly and tripped over the metal wire that connects the trailer to the ramp. She tripped with her right leg and caught herself with her left but the force was so great that it popped her hip out of the socket. She heard and felt a pop and then it popped right back into place. The pain wasn't so bad but it wasn't good either. She decided to continue with the ride that day. We did about 45 miles too. You may be thinking "Was that really a good idea?" I'm here to tell you, no.

The pain wasn't bad on the bike and only creeped up when Lindsay was walking or just on her feet. When she finished the ride, the pain was pretty rough. She then spent probably 2 hours in a small room on her sleeping bag icing her inner thigh and such. Of course I watched over her to make sure she was ok and then she took a quick nap to ease her from the boredom. It's amazing how much you need your hip. Sitting, standing, walking, sitting, everything. Don't ever hurt your hip...ever!

So because of this accident we spent the day in the van with Derrick, one of the trip leaders, and Scott, a fellow rider. We didn't see that much as we drove through Virginia but we did drive over some hills which Lindsay definitely would not have been able to go over. For now, we're taking it day by day. Lindsay hasn't seen a doctor yet and I'm icing her hip whenever I can grab spare ice. She's also taking Advil around the clock as well as muscle relaxers. No fun pictures for now but I will try to get some posted as soon as possible.

That's the update for now. I'll let you know how Hip Watch 2010 unfolds.

Quickies with Babycakes: Part One

2010-05-20T19:53:00.000-07:00

In the "Quickies with Babycakes" posts, I'll quickly keep you updated with the trip. I've realized that it's going to be harder to blog on the road than I thought....even for a little otter like myself. These posts may not have fun and exciting pictures but I'll try to use colorful and descriptive language that will force you to imagine yourself in the places I'm passing through. And so we begin...

Lindsay, Zach and I have been in Virginia Beach, VA for the past 2 days for orientation. I learned a lot. I learned what saddle sores and am now frightened; I learned that Lindsay isn't a very good cyclist and could use some practice; I learned that old Virginian women make a mean spaghetti with meat sauce and garlic bread. It's been quite the eye opening experience. Nothing really monumental has happened. We held a bike clinic for little kids which was somewhat successful. Lindsay pretended to be a puppy that ran across the street and in their way. Some kids liked it. Many didn't. We also went for a shake down ride today and rode for a nice 13 miles or so. I got a good bit of sun on the reasonably short ride and am looking refreshed and chocolate brown. In perfect time for tomorrow!

Zach looking sleazy in his bike gear

Cheering on little bebes on bikes

Yes, tomorrow is the BIG DAY! We'll be dipping our front tires in the Atlantic Ocean and starting our big ride. Our first ride was initially supposed to be 41 miles give or take a few but it has been bumped up to 55. You can imagine my surprise as Lindsay and I learned this as we slurped up spaghetti. Hopefully we'll pull through by the grace of Baby Jesus and something called water.

Other than that, nothing special to report or at least I can't remember it right now. Lindsay is experiencing major envy on this trip. She's jealous of everything everyone else has brought for the trip. People brought laptops, 2 peeps brought digital SLRs and others brought their Keen sandals. I don't know how she's going to deal without these things but at least she has her REI down booties. She's gotten at least 5 compliments on them tonight. The hardest part so far has been the packing situation. Lindsay and Zach's 18 gallon bins barely held together during the trip out to VA Beach but it has only gotten worse since they got their Bike & Build jerseys and Thermarest. Lindsay will literally think about how she'll pack her bin every moment of the day.

The sleeping sitch is also something Lindsay has had to contend with. She isn't a camper so she's having a hard time adjusting to the sleeping bag on the floor idea. I, on the other hand, and having the time of my life! I get to sleep wherever I want! In the sleeping bag, in Lindsay's Camelbak or on top of Lindsay's bin. The world is my sleeping oyster! I can't wait to see where I'm sleeping tonight. I might sneak in one of my new lady friends' sleeping bag. I'll let you know.

Anyways, it's just over 10:30 PM and I am exhausted. Lindsay's already ready for bed in her Boston College Superfan shirt and L.L. Bean boxers. Adieu and I leave you with this picture to imprint on your mind and dream about.

Blogger wouldn't download the picture properly--just tilt your head to the left and enjoy.

Love and Chamois Butter,
Babycakes

p.s. I'll try to finish the three remaining D.C. posts when I get the time.

In Between an End and a Beginning: Day One

2010-05-18T21:23:00.000-07:00

A big hello to all my fans out there! It has been quite the week for your favorite little otter and I'm here to tell you all about it!

The end of an era was upon us. Lindsay was about to take off from work for a 3 month hiatus and start the journey of a lifetime with me...oh, and with Zach too. I decided that I wanted to go all out for my last weeks in LA. I have to admit that I may have been a tad bit excessive but that's what otters and people do.

I started my bender in preemo dugout seats at the Dodgers game. I binge ate on 2 Dodger dogs (1 with chilli and onions and a 2nd with ketchup and relish), the best nachos I've ever had, some Caesar salad (gotta keep my bod toned) and some ice cream to top it all off. Also, seeing Andre Ethier have an awesome game made my night the ultimate experience. There's one thing Zach and I agree on...our man crush on Andre. SWOON!

Waiting for my slammin' nachos to come my way

Intently watching Andre's every masculine move

Stalking Andre from a comfortable distance

Zach and Lindsay doing their "coupley" thing

Right after the big win, we headed over to Valley Village for Brad's birthday bash. Brad hosted the party at one of my favorite bars in town The Fifth. Why do I love this place? First, it looks like a strip club from the outside--always a plus. Second, they are heavy handed with the liquor--a drunk otter is a happy otter. Third, they have pretty good music on the jukebox despite Brian saying it was a very "white jukebox." Lastly, the ladies are loose and ready to mingle with a charming otter like myself.

Falling off the wagon once again

The men want to be me and the women want me

And then in an instant, the weekend was gone. Zach and Lindsay had to pack up their bikes and ship them to Virginia Beach for the beginning of the trip so they didn't have a proper final training ride. I did my part and did some crunches and some leg work at the LA Fitness. They went back at work and I went back to lounging around Lindsay's apartment and playing some Uncharted 2 on the PS3.

Lindsay had a insanely busy last week of work at NBC and barely made it out alive. After preparing a gazillion talent letters and keeping track of billions of excel sheets, she was finally free for her 3 month hiatus. We were on our way to Washington D.C.! Of course Zach came along and I was extreeeemely embarrassed because he decided that it was a great idea to look like a serial killer (see photo below). Words don't even describe. I usually don't like to associate myself with people like him but I had no choice in the matter.

Zach's packing skills made for a very questionable bin

Me, Lindsay and a serial killer named Zach

Saying good bye (for now) to the City of Angels

And we were off! We were on a red eye that left LA at 11:30, arrived in Atlanta at 7:40 and departed for D.C. at 8:40. I definitely needed to catch some z's so I performed my pre-flight ritual and popped some Ambien and downed some white wine spritzer. I think I dreamt of my old home on the river or possibly some random night drinking on the streets...it's all a faint memory to me now.

It was very fitting for us to start our grand adventure in our nation's capital! There is no better way to pwn America than starting at her core. Lindsay's D-Block crew (Christine, Melissa, Romeo and Amit) kindly picked us up from the airport in Amit's baller BMW. I'm glad they realized that I only travel in style and in bougie automobiles. We dropped Lindsay and Zach's bins off at Romeo's (who was kind enough to host us three hobos) and went to grab some grub.

Melissa and I really hit it off...too bad she has a boyfriend

The gal pals...and Zach

Scoping out the happy hour menu

Drinking my liquid lunch

I quickly realized that liter glasses full of beer are very heavy to hold

Drinking some Sam Adams Summer Ale with Lloyd and Rose

Giving into the peer pressure

By 1:00 PM I was successfully buzzed and ready to explore more of the fantastic capital of ours. We walked the D.C. streets some more and we ended up at the Waterfront in Georgetown. The place resembled a picturesque city on the coast of France or Cancun during Spring Break. Our group made our way to an outdoor bar that overlooked the water. And surprise, surprise, we started drinking again!

Roaming the rough streets of D.C.

Jumping on the rough streets of D.C.

Lloyd and his humongous backpack...he is such a scholar

Totally looking like I'm in Cannes, France

Christine and Lindsay totally looking like they're in Cancun for Spring Break 2010

Jumping at Spring Break 2010!

Trying to make the move on Melissa...looks like it's working

Spotted: Babycakes miserably drunk

The picture of the perfect woman

What happened next is hazy. I remember tiramisu gelato and blueberry stoli. There may have been some sub-par Thai food mixed in there too. Lindsay suffered a serious headache from the sun and booze. She passed out from exhaustion for an unknown amount of time. Definitely a great way to start an adventure and prep for a cross country bike ride.

To be continued....

Preparing for the Journey

2010-05-10T22:22:00.000-07:00

A big thank you to all the readers! I've gotten a lot of great feedback telling me how awesome I am not limited to me being witty and super brave. It's nice to know that I have very intelligent followers out there.

Relishing in my blogging capabilities

Now that I'm done with all my praising, I guess I can start my post now....

What do you do when you're an otter who will be traveling on a bike for nearly three months? Answer, you go to Target! Now I usually enjoy wandering around the crowded aisles of the local Target (pronounced Tar-jay), but it's quite upsetting when you need to buy specific items and end up spending almost $200 at one time. I ain't made of cash--I live off of Lindsay's measly earnings. But it was something I had to do and there was no way around it.

First I needed to buy some food to keep me energized and nourished for at least a few weeks of the of the trip. I learned on my last ride that I don't really like Clif Bars. Too chewy in a bad way for me and I've assumed it's because of all of the soy in them. I passed on the icky Clif Bars, the Powerade Bars and the Protein Bars. I did, however, happily embrace the box of Nature Valley's Sweet & Salty Nut granola bars. I love me a good sweet and salty nut! mmmmm.......

Me and my humongous box of sweet and salty nuts

Next on my list was sunblock. Since I'll spending up to 8 hours under the hot blazing summer sun, I figured I needed something to keep my nice silky fur still silky and milk chocolatey brown. Lindsay may have gone a bit overboard but you can never have too much sunscreen. As you can see in the picture below, they came with handy dandy smaller sizes that I can easily use on my cute little button of a nose.

Introducing my new band: Babycakes and the Coppertones

Not really sure what the next purchase about. Lindsay insisted we get a whole box of these. I don't understand her sometimes.

Finally we had to buy the bin that Lindsay and I would be living out of for the next 2 and a half months. Bike & Build only allows 4500 cubic centimeters and 50 lbs for each rider to pack. So we bought an 18 gallon Rubbermaid Roughneck bin for the road. I have no clue how we're going to survive off of the 3 shirts, 2 pairs of shorts, 3 pairs of socks and 3 pairs of underwear but we have to. I'm just hoping it fits in the bin!

I am the master of the bin!

I was exhausted and starving by the time we got back to the apartment. It's a good thing Lindsay thought to buy food while we were at Target--the land of dreams. So after we took pictures with everything and put all the loot away, we cooked up some corn dogs and plopped down to watch some Glee.

There's nothing like batter-covered hot dogs on a stick

This is me after I cracked up when Sue Sylvester made a funny about Mr. Shu's hair

Sadly, we later realized that we forgot a ton of stuff and needed to go back to Target again. At least we only spent $125 the next time. That's it for now!

Love and Chamois Butter,

Babycakes

A Warm Welcome...to a World of Pain

2010-05-04T15:49:00.000-07:00

This is my first official post to a brand spanking new blog! Here, I will chronicle my journey as I bike/hitch a ride on Lindsay's back across America with Bike & Build (http://www.bikeandbuild.org/). It is sure to be an exciting time in my life and I'm determined to share my experience with you all. I am very confident that I will conquer this great country one beautiful state at a time....and you'll all be able to witness the greatness that is Babycakes.

So I welcome my loyal readers with my open fuzzy arms! And with that I will start my tale....

Me and my sweet pimped out ride

Sunday, May 2
With a little over 2 weeks before Bike & Build trip begins, we needed to get a long ride under our belt. So we went on a leisurely little 70 mile ride around Los Angeles. We started out at Marina Del Rey at the crack of dawn (10 a.m.) and eased into the ride through Culver City. Lindsay had an unfortunate accident and fell over at a traffic light. Luckily I was there to ease her fall and help her get back up again. I made sure her spirit wasn't broken and urged her to continue the challenge.

After a few missed turns, we decided to travel along the scenic Slauson Ave which goes through the heart of Inglewood. I will admit that we got a lot of stares while on Slauson which I blame on Zach's stylish outfit. We finally hit the beginning of the LA River (if you could call it a river), we took a break at a charming park that smelled like urine.

Refueling with a Chocolate Brownie Clif Bar

Chillaxing with Zach--I was totally jealous of his outfit

Hydrating with the Camelbak

After our much needed break, we followed the LA River all the way down to Palos Verdes. By this point, we were a little over 40 miles into the trip. Lindsay's legs were in pain and felt like jello mostly because the path that ran along the LA River was basically a wind tunnel. I coached her through the pain and she was doing pretty well untill we reached the HILLS of PV. The more experienced cyclist, Zach, made it through the first few hills pretty easily. When we sat at the bottom of the most monstrous hill I have seen in a while, Zach even said that it was going to be tough for him. So Lindsay let him go ahead and she kicked it to her lowest gears to try to granny bike it up the monster. Unfortunately, Lindsay's legs weren't up to the challenge so we walked up the last hill to meet Zach at the top.

Embarrassment set in.....

But once the shame passed, we finished up the trip (another 30 miles) with a gorgeous route around PV and up the Strand. The Strand was a wake up call for biking through sand. Here's what you should know: don't do it. It was a struggle getting through it and Lindsay nearly fell over in the middle of a sand pit. Thankfully she didn't--she had enough falling and failure for the day.

Finally, at 7 p.m. (9 hours after we started) we made it back to Marina Del Rey. We were all so happy to accomplish 70 miles and even happier that the ride was over. Lindsay's body was not as happy, however. She found herself in a world of pain and exhaustion. I reminded her that this was only the beginning to which she responded with a long sigh. Poor girl.

We finished the long weekend with dinner at El Torito. Lindsay shoved massive amounts of food into her mouth and stomach which she deeply regretted later. I tried to keep my figure in tact by drinking some water and eating ice cubes. I seriously think Lindsay could use some of my dietary help.

And that was the recap of our first 70 mile ride. There will definitely be more of those to come this summer. Hopefully Lindsay will handle them a bit more gracefully. That's it for now. Check in for more posts.

Love and Chamois Butter,
Your Favorite Otter Babycakes

P.S. Go to http://bikeandbuild.org/rider/3747 if you haven't donated yet! Lindsay's THIS close to reaching her goal of $4000!