Pelotonia Interlude: Highlights and Lowlights in Athens

I've been working on my write-up for Day 2.

It's not ready yet.

And, of course, there's more to the story of Day 1.

Unfortunately, I don't get paid to write this blog, and The Man needs my attention.

So do BCB and the LAs; and they deserve it!

I am accepting that I will never capture it all. I have some memories that will last a lifetime. Other memories will fade into time-fogged images formed more from emotion than reality—the impressionist art of our collected past.

For today, here are a few highlights and lowlights from Athens.

Highlights

Highlights included seeing volunteer queen extraordinare and absolute cutie Liz (and having her recognize me). Each year she was a beacon of support—for so many. She was always up (even at 0530) and ready for the challenge.

A Brief Digression

Here's an example...

Pelotonia 2010. I finished with the top 20 riders. We were in Athens just after noon. While most of the bags had made it, mine had not. I was standing there, stupidly, exhausted and unsteady on my feet, still wearing my soaking kit and bike shoes, with absolutely no ability to think.

No bag = no shower.

No bag = no personal support (food, clothes, teddy bear).

No bag = no anchor; no clue.

She's the woman in charge—she should be!
She's darned good!
And she's a cutie!

I looked at her blankly. I think I said something like: "Point me in a direction."

She put her hands on my shoulders, looked me in the eye, and said: "Go get some food. Relax. I'll handle this. When your bag gets here, I'll come find you."

I did as I was told. I got some food. I relaxed. I let her handle it.

The next thing I knew (time meant nothing; I could have been sitting there for 10 minutes or an hour), I got a tap on my shoulder from another volunteer, who directed me to my bag, and offered to carry it for me.

That, ladies and gentlemen, is volunteer support at its finest!

Back to the highlights

What else did I enjoy?

• I loved watching others finish. Everyone has a story. The joy and catharsis is inspiring.
  
• I enjoyed telling parts of my story in interviews. Shameless self-promotion? You cynic! I prefer to think of it as furthering my mission as a Thriver.
  
• I love the randomness of conversations at the finish. People approach other people to congratulate or appreciate, and warm personal exchanges manifest. It's an absolute joy to soak in the positivity and the overwhelming heart of the finish.

Lowlights

Somebody's got to write it.

To quote Genius Ed:   "We can do more. We can do better, and the best time to fix next year is right now."

Showers
The scalding hot-hot-hot showers in the convocation center left something to be desired. In a way it was funny—we all wanted a hot shower after the ride. But the complete lack of cold water was ridiculous. I know that Pelotonia could not control it, but it is worth mentioning...

Massage
I was lucky—I got in early enough to get a (very short) massage. Unfortunately,
the lack of massage and chiropractic was disappointing. I applaud those who showed and offered their services. I hope there can be some incentives put in place for future events, to ensure this support for the riders—especially the late arrivals. They were told that there was a four-to-six hour wait for massages. And these are folks who really needed it! Something better can be done.

AUDIO VOLUME!!!

Wheelsucker on the left.
VS DM Jeffry on the right.
I would have liked to have had a
conversation with my favorite
Victoria's Secret Dungeon Master.
But who could hear anything?

The bands. Crikey! Who thought it a good idea to have music that loud blaring across our recovery meals? Might we maybe have an environment that is simultaneously festive and conversational? We had just ridden long and hard. We wanted to share the experience with family and friends, and we wanted to commune with the wonder and joy of the experience WITHOUT SHOUTING! WHAT, YOU CAN'T HEAR ME? I SAID WITHOUT SHOUTING! I'm not bitter...much. Really, the bands are way over the top. This has nothing to do with musical taste. It has everything to do with the objective of the event. If you want to go over the top on the opening ceremonies, great. more power to you. I can pick up my packet an leave. But the finish is our finish. And we want to share.

Say, maybe channel some of those band funds into incentives for chiropractic and massage therapy for riders. Now there's an idea!

Sherpas
Finally, some kind of carts or logistics to get the bags from the dorms to the trucks on the Sunday morning.

I can completely understand the logistics behind Saturday, and how support to the dorms would be difficult.

Getting out is different. If we had a bag drop at the dorms, it might be possible to pull a truck up to the dorm and sling the bags all in one fell swoop. It would eliminate the problems we have of navigating a long-haul early morning.


None of these individually or in combination reduced the overall goodness of the experience. My Pelotonia memories are not defined by these personal lowlights.

But my experience would have been enriched that much more , if they wre made to (poof!) go away!