kentcowgill.org/blog

I've got a bit to update you on, but I promise I'll do my best to not bore you!

After testing out the road bike on the trainer, I decided to see how well I'd fare on some trails. So I packed up my bike and drove out to my friend (and sponsor!) Lisanne's place to ride with her and her 8 year old daughter. Should be easy, right? Boy was I wrong! Her daughter was quite the biker and put me through my paces! We drove up to where Warren and I and his father stopped for lunch a month or so ago (up in Highland Park, maybe), got on our bikes - destination, Chicago! We didn't quite make it because we both had things to do that night, but it was pretty fun! And a nice 20 miles, too. Lisanne and I have decided to try and ride every Sunday.

I rode to work the following Monday - nothing too terribly exciting there. Again, about 20 miles. I've decided I'm going to buy another bike lock (that'll be three total) so I can ride my road bike to work and get in some extra miles on the way home. It'll be really nice to have my rear-end stay in the same seat I'm going to be riding in September :)

The rest of the week was hectic, so I didn't make it out on either bike :(

Saturday, I hosted a fundraising houseparty which was GREAT! There were 16 people, and they all pitched in $2,505! I'm simply amazed at the generosity of the great group of people that I was honored to have in my home.

Sunday, much to my dismay, I woke up with a horrible headache (too much celebrating!) - but forced myself to drive out to Elgin where Lisanne and I rode another 20 miles, this time on the Illinois Prairie Path. We really need to start a little sooner so we can get in some more miles!

I just rode 55 miles this past saturday.

This week was particularly fun; I drove to Winnetka with a friend, where we joined up with a group of riders that (I think) refer to themselves as "playa del lago" or something like that - or at least that's the name of the mall where they depart from. It was a nice, rolling ride through the streets of Winnetka, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Lake Bluff, Lake Forest, and a few other towns that I can't recall.

My friend, Warren, and his dad, Mike, and I finally turned around about 6 miles shy of Gurnee, primarily because Mike had to get back to town. The way back was beautiful - we found a route that went through some lovely neighborhoods - it felt like we were riding through peoples' back yards. About an hour after turning around, Mike turned up the steam to get back as quickly as he could, while Warren and I meandered around a bit more. We wandered through Fort Sheridan, a cool little town that used to be an army base - with all the original buildings still intact! All the officers' quarters had been turned into homes, and we couldn't tell what the barracks had been turned into - but they were huge!

Warren and I took a few rest-stops along the way because we were really getting tired. We finally made it back about 6 hours after we set out, and boy was I sore. I could hardly move the rest of the day and most of Sunday, but I think it was well worth the effort - riding with a group seems to be a great way to keep myself motivated!