SE Athlete Meagan Gehrke breaks Trans Ohio record
On Saturday, October 3rd, Meagan rode her bike across Ohio.
"We rolled out at 5:07am and it was 35 degrees with a frost warning. Clothing-wise I decided on a wool buff, wool base layer tank, my MFF Summer weight LS, my LGS winter jacket, a cycling cap, wool glove liners, Specialized long finger fall gloves, MFF Most Versatile pant, these really, really thick Ridge Supply socks that I got in their mystery deal, and my Exos road shoes.
The first three hours I got to watch the sunrise. Everything but my feet were warm. Breakfast was still in my stomach but I was drinking Skratch. I took two bathroom breaks in the corn fields and had to navigate stripping in freezing weather to pee while being attached to a radio. After that second bathroom break, my MPH average went from 19.8 to 18.2.
About 100 miles in (5.5 hours) I was back on a normal eating routine and it had warmed up enough to take off my winter jacket. The rest of the day stayed just below 60 degrees which was perfect. Never got too warm. The first 125 miles were excellent! I was able to hold a steady HR Zone 2 pace like planned. Every time I wanted to sprint up those little inclines that started to show up I had Joe's voice in the back of my head "Don't burn any matches on any hill". My average plateaued at 18.3 mph.
We weren't stopped by any trains. The traffic that freaked me out on the SR just outside of Tiffin was non existent that day but the follow car stayed behind me anyway. We discovered how much easier hand ups from the car were compared to the side of the road. I got to see my family and friends cheering me on the side of the road through Medina, which was amazing!
Shortly after, about 180 miles in I crashed somewhere in Akron. My crew got me rolling again and we crossed the Pennsylvania border 13 hours 43 minutes later (pending WUCA certification) with a 17 mph average.
I am so happy and thankful for all the help from friends, family, and sponsors who helped make this possible."
Nice work Meagan! What record will you break next?
Meagan works with Source Endurance coach Kristen Arnold MS, RDN, CSSD.
