Page 6 of Bicycle Built for Two

Three

Perfection.

That word described the ride after lunch better than anything else. The clear, blue water along the coastline shimmered in the afternoon sunlight. Jason wished he’d stayed back at the beach for a while longer to enjoy the weather and Ben’s company.

Instead, he clocked miles and stayed in close proximity to his teammates. The terrain was mildly hilly, but the four of them handled it with no problems. He wondered how Ben was holding up and regretted that he hadn’t pushed harder for him to leave with the team so he’d have a group.

When the four pulled into the last rest stop, after riding nearly eighty-seven miles for the day, they were tired. The next place they got off their bikes would be at the hotel. That meant showers, dinner, and relaxing. As Jason filled up his water bottles, he spotted Ben. The redhead looked haggard as he dismounted his bike.

A volunteer took Ben’s bike and pointed the way to the porta-potties before also taking his bottles for filling. The crew always knew exactly what to do when weary riders arrived. As Ben removed his helmet, Jason noticed that even his hair looked tired, as the spikiness from earlier was now plastered to Ben’s skull.

“You holding up okay?” Jason asked as he trotted over and fell in step next to Ben.

“That was the most difficult sixteen miles ever. I thought it would never end.”

“It’s okay. We’re almost home for the day.” Jason put his arm around Ben and gave him a squeeze as they walked.

“Five minutes until this rest stop closes.” The ride’s logistics manager called through a bullhorn so everyone could hear. “You need to be on the road by then or you and your bike must get in a van.”

“Shit. Really?” Ben sounded defeated.

“It’s okay.” Jason remained chipper. “We can get you out there in five. You hit the bathroom, and I’ll grab some food. What do you want?”

Ben sighed. “At this point I’ll take anything.”

He left Ben in the restroom line and went to the food table and gathered up a couple options—a power bar and peanut butter crackers.

“You ready to roll?” Kyle stepped up next to Jason. Diane and Drew were on their bikes already.

“I want to hang back and ride with Ben. He’s running on empty, and I think he could use the support.”

“Then we’ll wait.” Drew was matter-of-fact. “I hated that we left him at lunch.”

“Are you sure? I don’t keep everyone from getting in sooner. We’ll make it to the hotel and we can meet up at dinner.”

Kyle shook his head and smiled. “No one left behind. I’ll let them know.” He gestured to Diane and Drew.

Jason nodded and clapped Kyle on the back. “We’ll be ready in a minute.”

Ben wasn’t hard to find. Most people scrambled to ride out while he sat on one of the park benches drinking down Gatorade.

“Hey man, I grabbed a couple of things so you could pick.”

“Thanks, Jay.” Ben took the packet of crackers and ripped into it. “You should get out of here with them. I think I’m going to take the van option. I’m spent.”

He popped two crackers in his mouth and crunched.

“We’re so close. We’ll be at the hotel in no time.” In reality it’d be at least an hour, but Jason didn’t want to make the trip sound daunting. “It really is pretty flat from here.”

“I don’t know if I’ve got it in me. My legs are screaming. Can’t you hear them?” Ben managed a slight grin. “All the miles and hills have slammed into me with a vengeance.”

“You’ve made it this far. And you’ve got us too.” Ben pointed to where the rest of the team waited, chatting amongst themselves.

Ben munched and thought.

“It’ll go by faster together. Trust me on that.” Jason paused for a moment before making his last comment. He didn’t want to guilt Ben into going, but he also knew the mind game of not keeping to your goal. He wanted to offer options. “I really think you can make your goal to finish.”

“Helping me out twice in one day. I’m going to owe you more than a glass of water.”