I am still on a high from just having finished my first Century, so permit me to share my story.
Last September, while speeding downhill, I lost control of my bicycyle in a series of S curves and crashed. (rider error). I broke my hip (neck of the femur if you want to get technical), seperated the AC joint in my shoulder, tore muscles all through my back and chest and had the worst case of road rash you would want to see. The hip took 2 compression screws to hold back together. A winter of crutches, a cane, physical therapy and then a slow road back in the gym followed.
Came Spring, I got back on the bike (which needed far less repair than me, just truing the wheels). Balance was an issue. I also could not unclip with the damaged leg, so I shifted to unclipping first with my other leg. I was determined to get back into the same shape I was in before the crash and the goal would be to ride a Century to prove that I was (even though I had never ridden one before).
Well, today I finally road that Century, almost exactly 1 year from the date of my crash. The hills seemed to never end The weather never warmed up and the sun never came out and I was cold. But I didn't care. I was going to keep on going. And to my surprise, I realized that I was as strong going up the hills as almost all of the other riders (although they flew by me on the curvy downhills).
When the computer hit 100 miles, I could feel myself smiling from ear to ear and a small prayer escaped my lips. A spring and summer of early morning training proved more than worth it. I felt myself redeemed from my mistake and while my shoulders and calf may be sore and stiff, my hip, and my head, feel fine.
So if any of you are worrying about achieving your goals, just get out there, train, and do it. The result will be worth all the effort.
And since many of you in this forum (including those who gave me some good advice last Fall) are numbers oriented, here are the numbers:
100 miles in 6 hours 51 minutes 23 seconds
total ride: 103.81 miles (I missed a turn and needed to ride back uphill to find the route) in 7 hours 6 minutes 56 seconds for an average speed of 14.5 MPH (I had been targetting 14.4 MPH to get me in in 7 hours, so I was right on the money.
Climbing distance: 51 .05 miles
climb elevation: 8453 feet climbed over the 51.05 miles
average grade of the climbs: 3
age: 46
height; 5 ft 11 (6 ft before the crash)
weight: 167