STP in a Day - well, almost!

This is a shortened version of the actual event weekend for my adoring fans. I made it 185 out of 202 miles. Except for the last two hours, the whole trip was a blast, the culmination of months of preparation and sacrifice, by not only me, but by Jim as well.
It was already 57 degrees on Saturday morning at 5 a.m. when we lined up at the start line at the UW stadium parking lot. It got hotter. A lot hotter. When I stopped it was 93 degrees; even at 11:30 p.m. when we left the restaurant and went on our meandering trip to our hotel it was still 85 degrees, and riders were still arriving. Obviously, I wasn't the only one who had a problem with the heat.
What will I remember fondly? The joy of a road trip with my cycling friends, in particular Tom Baffney, Jon Bren and Phil Kress, with whom I have ridden for nearly 20 years. This was Jon's one and only STP in a day, and I absolutely agree with him that neither of us needs to repeat this taxing experience.
Then there was the joy of hearing one of the guys at almost every stop-light or stop sign saying "Where's Deb?" There were quite a number of times when I got separated from them, but one of them always dropped back to "pull" me back. It was such a time of camraderie and I appreciated their efforts to help me. In St. Helens, at 175 miles, I was ready to quit. I was gagging when I just tried to swallow. Nevertheless, Phil was encouraging me to solider on like the good coach that he is. He said "I know you can do 10 miles, Deb, I know you can." So, I did, with him slowing to my turtle-like pace. But after those 10 miles, I knew that it was indeed time to stop, as I felt that I could no longer ride safely. So, I feel entirely satisfied with my effort and achievement. Here's a picture: