I encountered the participants of the Ride 2 Recovery Texas Challenge while I was out on a ride last year. I told myself that I’d join the ride this year.

The Challenge started in San Antonio on Monday, and yesterday was the leg from Austin to Ft. Hood. I signed up for the one-day ride, and took the day off from work so that I could participate.

The weather report for Wednesday was for rain, followed by a cold front. It was raining when I got up at 5:30 AM, but it was about 70 degrees outside. I don’t especially like riding in the rain, but I’ll do it if I have to.

When we started the ride at 9:00, it was about 55 degrees and still raining. The cold front had arrived. 55 degrees isn’t bad. 55 and rain is uncomfortable. 55, with rain and wind is miserable. And then the wind picked up and the temperature dropped. By the time we’d been on the road an hour, it was about 40 degrees and the wind was 15 to 20 MPH with higher gusts. I was so cold that I was shivering uncontrollably. I’ve been pretty uncomfortable on the bike before, but that was unbearable. We made a scheduled stop for a bathroom break, and the organizers gave us some extra time to warm up. We were inside where it really was warm, but I was unable to stop shivering. After about 30 minutes, they gave participants the option of continuing with the ride or taking a bus to the finish line. Considering that I couldn’t get warm and the weather hadn’t changed, I elected to cut the ride short. I’ll do a lot for the cause, and goodness knows I like a challenge, but I draw the line at hypothermia.

I can’t think of a time I’ve ever been colder. That was the most miserable bike ride I’ve ever been on, although it did have a few high points. The organizers arranged for us to ride by a number of elementary schools. The kids were all out waving American flags, cheering us on and holding out their hands. We rode by slowly and touched their hands. The kids got a real kick out of it, and many of the veterans I was riding with were touched by the gesture. Nice to see such support from the kids and also from adults who braved the cold and wet, not only near the schools but in many places along the route. We even had people get out of their cars at intersections and cheer us on as we passed.

The weather was beautiful for the Monday and Tuesday legs of the ride, and this morning was a little chilly but would not have been uncomfortable. And the forecast for the next two days is very nice. It just happened that Wednesday, the day I wanted to ride, was an unusual day. Disappointing, but that’s the way it goes. This whole month of April so far has felt more like a typical March. Dang weather, anyway.

Next year will be better, right?