I arrived in Cancun on Monday January 7th. I land about 2pm, get to my airbnb about 4pm and pick up my rented bike at the bike shop that is only a couple blocks away. The bike store, Elite Cyclery – The Big Store, is trying to promote riding so they have a 5:30 AM group ride on Tuesday and Thursday. I signed up for the Tuesday ride but woke up Tuesday morning to rain. Martin at the shop thinks that they went anyway, as the chase vehicle was already in place. I felt the road were just too wet. I don’t mind a little rain. In Scotland in August I rode most days in rain. But the Cancun concrete? roads just looked too slippery with so much standing water so I went back to bed.
Wednesday morning was clear. I rode over to the normal meeting place at the head of the hotel road. I got there about 5:45. This group usually leaves at about 6:15 but one never knows what will transpire on the first ride of a new year. There was a “chase van” in the normal place. Over the next 30 minutes it was joined by 3! more vehicles including the pickup truck that actually went with us. I’l have to ask people what is the meaning of the others? Maybe they are delivering rented bikes to tourists in hotels?
Riders started showing up. We gather by a wall in front of a gas station. There are lots of “Buen dia” and fist bump handshakes that even after 4 years I can’t do. Most are fast enough to pick up on my needing to do the western handshake. I think there were 10 of us when we pushed off at 6:15. I hang in the back so it is easy for me to drop off. One man positioned himself in front of me and gave good hand signals about the holes in the road etc.
Years ago I did not wear lights but now I do. I have one blinker on the helmet and new this year a clip on blinker on the back collor of my shirt.
can you see it?
There are only a couple riders without lights. The chase pick up also has a large yellow blinker on the roof.
The hotel road is marked with Kilometer signs. I turn around at the blue ball structure that is just before 28k. I was able to hang onto this group until about 18K. I was very happy with that result. I worked hard to keep up but did not kill myself and finally gave up on the hill that leads down to the Mayan archaeological site. The chase vehicle was slow to pass and leave me. They are always checking to see if one needs assistance but what is wrong with me, tired body, is not something they can fix.
Finally I am alone. It is dark! Most stretches have good street lights but when one hits a stretch with no lights and no one in front of me to show the way and point out bumps, it is a little scary. I remember that I do not have any ID on me. I should have one of the normal “Ride ID” that they sell but I don’t so I need to carry a card with my money in my shirt pockets so they know to call Kim if I end up in a ditch and hospital. I also have to remember to sign up for the “Accident Insurance” where they pay to have you flown home.
Here is a picture of me at the Blue Sphere.
Being 73, I do not do a lot of selfies. The daughters have told me to smile, and, as they say, how did that work out for you?
It is after 27K as I have said and I stop there to try to put on a new rear view mirror that is designed to attach to my helmet. The one place that really scares me on this ride is on this home stretch when I am alone and come upon a bus parked at the side of the road. I have to pass it which is normally no problem but I have been very scared if while I am passing the parked bus another bus or large vehicle passes me. There is just too little room when I am between the two rather than in my normal position on the right shoulder.
Made it back to the start at about 8:30. The road home was rougher than I remembered, more pot holes. More buses coming too close. I could not get the rear view mirror to work. I’ll take it to the bike shop when they open and see if they can figure it out. But I was careful to not be passing a parked bus when any other traffic was around. Abut 21K? the group I had gone out with raced by. Clearly they had gone beyond the Blue Sphere and beyond the end of the hotel road.
Once back at the park at the head of the hotel road, I did a little stretching. Said ‘Grasias, Monana” to the group that I had gone out with and who where relaxing on a bench. Then road the 1k home. All in all, a reasonable start. Glade to get a day in my legs before I ride with the cycle shop group tomorrow. Much better start than list year where I got dropped at like 13K then 9k and then 5k! I had to take a day off then in case the time kept getting shorter! Taking the day off helped a lot.