Dad's Summary

Old Man’s Summation
Well we all survived the OKFreewheel. Kind of surprising considering all of the miles traveled and all the fruit was ate in route. Was it fun? Well that depends upon how you define fun. It was hard riding while being sleep deprived and being HOT every afternoon. It does give you a feeling of accomplishment. Yes it does!
I began this “event” with some level of concern about my overall condition and my ability to keep moving forward. I felt that my wind and heart conditioning was ok. I was less sure that I could sit on a bike seat for the 6-7 hours per day needed to finish some of the long rides. Bike riding also exacts a heavy toll on your shoulders and neck.
As it turned out I got a little stronger every day – but it was not until the last two days that I actually felt like my conditioning was reaching a level that I could finish the ride that days without wanting to just lay down for a couple of hours. The first 3 days I had many doubts that I could even finish the course.
Do I recommend it to you? Well not if you don’t train for it! And I mean to train hard. Is it fun? Yes it is fun. You can meet as many people as you want to meet. Or you can be a hermit and meet hardly anyone. Most folks are really friendly. And most of them do their best to allow you your space and to be courteous in all of their dealings. I actually did not hear any arguments the whole week.
This OK Freewheel idea came from my son Hal. Hal got Dan on board and then they put it to the Old Man and twisted my arm to go. Dan put the pressure on beginning from January on by reporting his training on his Blog (mymountaintrail.blogspot.com). Anyway I HAD to go. They teamed up on me. It was GREAT to have Dan and his wife Lori here from California. Lori is a super tri-athlete so she was ready for this event (any event!). Dan trains with her so he is in top condition too.
We met some neat folks, Paul, Larry, the guys from Texas and Colorado that tented next to us in Apache, Mr. Baker, David Jones, the lady with the dog that she pulled from town to town, Jan Wilson that kept my insulin in her ice chest every day, the people of Oklahoma that hosted us all week in all of these great towns, the Oklahoma State Troopers who watched us like hawks and kidded with us when they had a chance, the volunteers who planned the OKFreewheel and kept things on track.
I think that plans have been set in place to do it again next year. We shall see. But the ride this year is going to be a major event in my life. Why don’t you try to go next year too??