ToTG Day 1 - Y we race?

Silver City, NM -> Mogollon, NM

Anatomy and physiology of a meltdown.

Today is the first day Jim started the full 5 stages of the Tour of the Gila, racing 35+.  He's raced the 3 stage race as a Cat 4 in the past so he was excited to do the full race this year.  The race has lots of climbing and Jim is a large man, but hey, he likes to climb.

Today's stage was 74 miles from Silver City to Mogollon  Jim had 3 goals.  1.  Not get dropped on the neutral roll out.  2.  Make it with the main bunch to the turn to Mogollon.  3.  Make the time cut.  Goal 1 was met easily, Goal 2 was not met, and at this point we don't know about Goal 3.

Jim probably should have been a bit concerned about his race.  On the way out, Jim, Craig and Wes took turn driving and watched 8 hours of old Zinger Race/Coors Classic videos.   Good buddy Wes mentioned that Mike Carter, a decent pro that we saw in many of those races was racing in Jim's class.  Perfect.

The day started with a tough climb for around 2 miles out of Silver City, but fortunately that was raced neutral at a reasonable pace - Jim only hit a heart rate of 185 - so Jim met Goal 1.  Then 25 miles of mostly downhill to the first feed.  Fortunately Jim was at the front when a large crash happened so Goal 4, not even known about before the race was met - no crashing.

Wes and Craig fed Jim water at the first feed and Jim was comfortable in the bunch.  There were quite a few rollers over the next 5 miles out of the area of Cliff and things were heating up, but Jim was OK.  Then back to the main road and the cross winds hit.  30mph winds today (gusts to 50mph 2nite.)  Jim fought for a while, but got dropped.  There went goal 2.  Jim eased up and let a few guys who had gotten dropped earlier catch him, then they dropped him.  No panic but 30 miles to go, alone, into a headwind.

Before the 2nd feed at mile 65 Wes, who is out here training, not racing, rode toward Jim then turned around and paced him for about 10 miles to the turn off of Mogollon.  Jim's legs were kinda shot by that point and there is 7 miles to go, all climbing, gradients up to 10%.  Just ride easy and make it to the top.

Wes had continued down the main road and planned to turn around in a bit and chase Jim up to Mogollon.  Several Cat 3 racers and a few 35+ racers passed Jim on the climb, but he could only ride his own pace.  He could not join anyone else.  He became worried that he might not make it to the top and might have to turn around and quit the race.  It didn't help his morale when he went by the 2 mile to go sign and descending riders said "your almost there."  Yeah, riding 4 miles per hour thats 30 minutes.  Thanx alot.

Around mile 2 Jim started praying that Wes didn't catch up with him.   Emotionally he was doing OK riding alone, but if Wes caught him Jim honestly thought he would start to cry.  At the 1 mile to go point Jim's legs were cramping and his morale was not good.  He had to get off the bike.  He tried to walk and couldn't so he stood there for a minute or so.  Back on the bike, feeling a little better.  Until the 500 meter to go point.  Off the bike again and seriously considering turning around and going down hill.  He just didn't think he could make it.  Back on the bike and OK until the 200 meter to go mark and he had to get off the bike _again._

Rolled across the line, drank a bunch of Gatorade and ate a banana.  Sat there for 45 minutes hoping his leg cramping would stop (it wouldn't.)  Jim and Wes descended (Craig starts his 4 stage race tomorrow and figured he should only ride the flatter stuff today and not completely up Mogollon - good choice.   Jim had to stand for the first half of the descent due to leg cramping.   That got better.  Back to the car then the hour drive back to town.

Laying on the bed back at the hotel room felt really, really good.  If this is what dying feels like, Jim say's he's ready.

As mentioned we still at this point don't know whether Goal 3 has been met - making the time cut.  The boys have George Heagerty (one of the head USCF guys) and his teammates bikes in the back of their trailer, so the release of their bikes may become conditional on where the line is drawn for the time cut.

So, this is why we race.

A Day Off- The Sights of Mallorca

It really wasn´t a day off, but we only went 55K with 15 Switchbacks of climbing. I did learn that RP descends like crap as he ended up on his ass right after he said he does so like Paolo Salvodelli.

Anyhow, we took the afternoon to get lost a little and hit the town.

MANPRIs, notice I got 3 in one pic, that should tell you how popular they are. So now, can everyone lay off mine when I wear them? I´m just being Euro.

Center of Town

Central looking West

Side road opposite of the town square

For Colby, the RS4 Audi, 0-60 in 4.5s. My favorite car here.

¨View¨from the Hotel Balcony

300K

12 hours, plus stops. (7am-9pm)
308K, 182miles
A crapload of climbing.
I don´t think I´ll ever ride that far again, unless I´m lost.
Too tired for pics, not to mention that I didn´t carry my camera thanks to having my pockets too full.

200K-Things I learned-

8 hours of riding today...the arse is sore, and the legs are tired. I did get some Take Aways.

Don´t trust a Dane when they say the ride is flat, especially when it´s followed by ¨That´s where we are goin¨ (as he points to the mountains in the pics below).

200K to distance really means 200K(ish), like 215k. That is apparently RP´s max distance.

420, A Wheel for Lutz

RP knows the owners of the local Colombian restaraunt that they imprinted his name on the plates.

Europe has good taste....WHAWHUT!

First Day Riding Mallorca-Arantxa

Christian Williams came back about 4 years ago talking about Mallorca. At the time, I thought he was overhyping how much fun it is to be here. Actually, he was downplaying it if anything. I think I´ve already gotten my money´s worth.


¿Como se dice "IndyFabulous" en Español?














The Lunch Stop, Cappucino in Port Arantxa














This 40 something beat me up the climb and had to recharge at the bottom.














This is looking down the cliff...

RP on the Switchback

Random Airport Sightings..

RP and I are in Mallorca after 24 hours of flights and layovers. After thinking our bikes missed the connection, they showed up at customs. My bag had been rummaged through and they confiscated all my bike tools. Someone gave them the heads up on Renae B. Tomorrow we do a short 4 hour ride and hit 200K on Monday. We are going to relive RPs clubbing days when he was rocking to KLF tonight at Discoteca Style.

Apparently there is a way to die sooner, it´s the cigarette smoke locker at the Barcelona Airport. The picture doesn´t do the actual haze justice.

Mallorca is Disneyland for cyclists. 50 plus bikes getting loaded.

Don´t see this in the states, a bike being ridden from the airport.

They aren´t too shy about things either. We saw them on the Billboard, then in person

"SUE"

"I tell you that I fought tougher men but I really cant remember when". johnny cash

This is the song that continually went through my head all weekend during the Ft. Davis Hammer Fest. We had a good team showing this weekend as this is a super good and hard road race on the Texas schedule. I personally think it is the BEST RR in Texas but that is only my opinion and in no way reflects the opinions of everyone else on the board of directors or anyone that has come in contact with the board of directors.

The calm before the storm

My new steads this year. I havent had new equipment in a few years and once I started buying I couldnt stop. This time I am also sporting some TT equipment. Hope it helps as I have had pretty lackluster TT performances in the past. If nothing else I will look the part.


" The Kaiser" and "Tuco"

"Myronic" and "Mr.Smith"

Friday afternoon several of us gather for a Hill Climb recon with most sporting the new team kit's that just arrived this week. GREEN is the new black you know.

"MoFo" and "Slausonater"

The two old guys on the team. Naturally, both elect not to ride the last one mile to the top on pre-ride. Its only one mile they say but at 17 % it can wait until sat afternoon when it counts. This also gives us time to work on strategy as we will both be racing 45+. Told you we were old.


The view from the top of the state park were we camped. You can look in all directions and see for miles.

Taking the RV makes it easy to bring along my Two Maniacs. This parting shot is looking over the Pecos river on hwy 90 on our way home.

I have race pics comming from family and friends so I will update with action shots and race coverage later today.

dougie ramone

PacTour AZ Day 7 - Finale

Turk immediately post massage.  PAC Tour brings a professional masseuse along (Jon Jahant) who takes care of the riders for at least 6 hours each evening after we ride.  Paul seems to enjoy Terri's recovery expression...

Turk n Lara aka "Irish Cats" heading towards dinner at the Longhorn Restaurant, one of our favorite on the tour each year.

We used to stay a mile or two out of town (downhill no less) making it hard to get into Tombstone after the Wilcox to Tombstone ride.  We now stay right in town, 1 block from Main Street in the Tombstone Motel.  Mixed reviews.  Turk and Jim enjoyed the room as much or more than any on the tour.  Other's had smokey rooms with strange smells and the sounds of Harley's thru the night...

Back to the Longhorn Restaurant for breakfast on the last day.

Turk and Lara, the Irish Cats at breakfast.

Clare had a surprise for us this morning, Skull n Crossbones skullcap!  Ciolle's gonna be jealous for sure.

Clare's Canadian roommate, Sandra is an art teacher.  Sandra was sporting Harley biker doo-rag this morning.

So they ended the week with high fashion art.  Clare a smiley face and skull n crossbones, Sandra a Harley Davidson motif.

Jim started the day changing a flat on the back of the Tandem.  Inauspicious start, particularly when careful exam of the tire fails to reveal the source...

Paul and Lara sensing the end of the tour.  Paul got to touch the tandem today, but never actually got to ride it.

The favorite sight of for a tandem.  "Trucks on Cheese" signaling the top of a climb.  It was actually 10 miles downhill from here to lunch, after around 6 miles of rolling climbing.  Jim and Terri had climbed well together today, keeping alot of the small groups in check as they came by.

8 hours into our 12 hour drive home we saw the telltale flashing blue lights in the rear view mirror.  When the sheriff asked the driver at that time how fast he was driving he said "85, 90?"  He almost seemed disappointed when the sheriff told him he had clocked him at 82mph.

Fantastic PAC Tour week.  Best ever for Jim and Terri.  Sharing one of these treasured weeks with Paul made the week exceptionally fulfilling.  Hopefully more of the Bicycle-Heaven riders and clientele will join us next year for a week or two.  Hopefully Paul can rejoin us.

For Jim and Paul recovery started a little early.  You saw Jim changing a flat above, prior to the ride.  Well he ended up putting 3 more tubes into that rear wheel during the day and a few additional CO2s too boot.  We could find the hole in the tube and exactly on the tire where the small thorn or piece of metal should have been but could never find the culprit.  Jim is still suspicious that there may have been an "Irish Cat" claw involved here.

Jim and Terri were supposed to ride the first and third legs of the day on the tandem, with Jim and Paul riding then second and last together.  Due to the recurrent flat situation Paul never made it onto the bike.  Jim and Terri got about 40 miles together on the Tandem and Terri rode the last 35 miles into Tucson together.  All good and we all had a great week.

Thanx as always to Susan Notorangelo and Lon Haldeman who run PAC Tour, and their great crew who make the trip possible and wonderful.  Hope you enjoyed following our adventure, and that it has stimulated you to think about joining us next year!!

We appreciate everyone's support.  Rick for getting the Tandem running flawlessly.  Matt for picking up Turk's slack for the week.  Dot and Dot (Turk's mom and sister) for flying out and watching out for Will and JW this week.

Until next time.

PacTour AZ Day 6 103 Miles to Tombstone

Today we rolled out of Willcox, AZ beginning to head back towards Tucson.  A landmark on the horizon is called "Dos Cabezas"  ("Two Heads" for the gringos.

It took a while, but we eventually got closer.  There is a coal refining plant nearby and our friend Lara, who's dad lives in Willcox part of the year blames the plant for the haze.  Not sure why the rest of SE AZ has a constant haze, however.  Certainly couldn't be the winds and desert dust.

Turk was not happy when we started the ride.  The distance (over 100 miles,) the feedback (everyone said how hard the ride was with the winds.)  She suffered for the first 20 miles and now we see why.  We did all the climbing in the first 20 miles!!!  She did get happier as the day went by.

This stretch is the land of tumbleweed and it lines the windward sides of the fences.

Jim and Paul on the Tandem.  Paul tucking down behind, obviously to maximize the aerodynamics.

Turk and Lara on single bikes leaving lunch.

We saw Tumbleweed after lunch also!!

I'm sure this city limit sign is worth more points than most...

The obligatory photo of a beautiful woman for our friend Wes.  Turks new friend Clare brightens each day for us.  Lara and Jim hammered home on the Tandem the last 20 miles so Turk and Clare rode together a little bit.

The pictures say it all.  Great ride today, toughest part was the first 20 miles (most of the climbing.)  Jim had a blast, he rode the first leg with Lara, the next with Paul, the next with Terri, then Paul and finally Lara.

Lunch was the best today - Burritos.  Dinner in Tombstone tonight at one of our favorite restaurants, the Longhorn Restaurant.

PacTour AZ Day 5 Mountain Week w/o The Mountain

Pacing ourselves, as we have been, we chose not do the 20 mile climb up Mt. Graham.  We did ride by it, however.

Paul and Jim started out on the tandem for the first leg.  We really enjoyed seeing several flocks of Yellow-Headed Blackbirds, which winter in Arizona.

Turk's usual view on the Tandem.  At least she had a chance to see last year's PAC Tour jersey, which told her which cactus was which.

These signs always puzzle us.  Does that mean that at mile 19 there are no animals to watch for?  Or, that the animals past mile 18 don't matter?  At least we felt as though we were at home in Texas.  Notice the bullet holes in the "target practice" sign....

The climb to lunch was into the Coronado National Forest.  The Turk got on the tandem at mile 19 and said "we only have 11 miles to go to lunch?  That'll be easy!!"

Well as you can see by the profile, the next 12 miles were 5-6% grade and took well over an hour...

So, the lunch truck signaling the top was a welcome site.

Just for Rob we had a 4 mile stretch of dirt road after lunch.  Not just dirt, but sand, gravel and chatter bumps.  Jim and Terri put there heads down and hammered the Tandem thru this stretch.

Only bouncing 1 water bottle out, in the process.

Since we did the short ride we got to the hotel an hour and a half before the motel van.  So we enjoyed some Starbucks and FW!!

"Cowboy" Jon Jahant.  Masseuse extraordinaire.  Taking good care of the Turk this week for sure.

Well we have "crested" Mountain Week and are on the descent.  Today we rode from Safford, AZ to Willcox, AZ.  Today offered routes from 66 to 107 miles depending on whether you climbed all or part of Mt. Graham or not.  We elected not to climb Mount Graham and took it a little easy today.

Jim has climbed Mt. Graham twice during past Mountain Weeks and figured that's enough.  The climb is 20 miles long, starting at 3,000 feet and cresting at 10,000 feet.   It is beautiful, climbing into piney forest with switchbacks and lined by snow.  The problem is that the temperature is around 30 degrees at the top and you have to turn around and descend 20 miles, freezing and hands cramping on the brakes.

So, we decided to stay in the "lower lands" and stay warm.  Paul is still having saddle issues, so he rode the first 20 miles with Jim on the tandem, then the Turk hopped on for the rest of the day.  We still got 3000 feet of climbing and 4 hour 40 minutes of riding over our beautiful 60 mile course.

Lunch today was hamburgers (yay!) and dinner was at the fantastic Salsa Fiesta mexican restaurant across the street from our hotel.

Tomorrow should be intersting.  104 miles from Willcox to Tombstone.  Potential for lots of headwind.  Stay tuned

Thanx for reading.

PacTour AZ Day 4 Hump Day

Last night before dinner at the local Green Chile burrito shack Paul, Terri and Jim got a quick photo taken by the PAC Tour motel truck.  Turks legs are surely coming into definition midway thru the week!

This trip is made extra special because our friend Lara, who crewed with us on our PAC Tour Northern this summer, is with us.  More on Lara later.

Everyone has their own method of doing laundry on PAC Tour.  Here the hotel room suitcase holders are used as clotheslines.

Rolling out of Lordsburg, NM today we saw some cool cactus from the Yucca family.

As we neared the Arizona border we rode thru farmlands along the Gila River.

And past a Holstein ranch.

We helped Sandra change a flat and she rolled with us for a while.  Sandra comes from Winnepeg, Canada - good time of the year to get out of Canada for the perfect southeastern AZ weather.

Turk and Jim must be in the right place, they rode along Lovers Lane today.

The major climb of the day was to lunch.  6 miles with 1200 feet elevation gain.

Today Paul rode the 2nd leg with Jim on the Tandem.  Lara rode the 1st, 3rd and 4th because Paul is still trying to find a comfortable position on the tandem.   No, Lara is not blind, she just has her eyes squeezed shut and is grimacing, because...

She is afraid of heights and this massive bridge across the Gila river must be crossed to start the climb for lunch.

Turk was very happy finishing the climb to lunch, for sure.

The descent from lunch was spectacular.

On the way down we saw some cool cactus that looked like deer antlers and some maroon Prickly Pear cactus.

Tomorrow the brave of the bunch will tackle the climb to the peak of Mt. Graham.  The road starts at 4000 feet and tops off at 10000 feet, 20 miles later.  Jim has done this climb twice in the past and says "No Thank you" this year.  See that snow on the top.  It is cold up there and you freeze on the 20 mile descent back down!!

Successful day for all, and Jim's newest favorite stoker, Lara added to the beauty of the tour so far.  Lara is so powerful on the bike that after Jim and she flew up the 6 mile climb today Jim told the Turk "Honey, if I weren't married to you I'd marry Lara."  Turk quickly replied, at the top of said 6 mile climb "Honey, she can have you...."

Tomorrow we ride from Safford to Wilcox.  We'll have the best Mexican food of the trip.  Some of the riders will brave Mount Graham, our contingent will not.  Today was day 4 of 7, so the trip is more than 1/2 over.  Bummer, cycling in AZ is simply brilliant.  

Hopefully more Bicycle-Heaven customers and friends can join Terri and Jim out here next year.

Thanx for reading.

PacTour AZ Day 3 Tailwinds and Tandems

Easy riding with spectacular surroundings and a tailwind.

Turk certainly seemed at "peace" with the ride today...

Paul was enjoying the cool morning air on the back of the tandem.

Gorgeous vistas, rolling from Douglas, AZ to Lordsburg NM.

Turk got on the back of the tandem at the first rest stop, taking over for Paul.  And reacquainted herself with the Stoker's view.  Notice the other tandem just ahead.

The "other" tandem was Captained by PAC Tour's fearless leader, Susan Notorangelo, with superfast Emmy Klassen stoking.  Emmy has competed in solo RAAM twice and is as fast as any male rider at Mountain Week for sure.

When you put 2 fast tandems together  combined with alot of gradual false flat downhill and a tailwind you get a very fast day.  

Not too far from the NM state line is a monument signifying Geronimo's surrender.  No comments from the peanut gallery, please.

We caught Lon on his Bike Friday, just before the 2nd rest stop.  Susan and Emmy put the hammer down and promptly dropped him.   Terri and Jim were obligated to follow Susan, she is the fearless leader, right?

At the second rest stop a nice example of Apache Pine.  This tree is found in Northern Mexico and SE AZ.  Unfortunately I'm sure the peanut gallery would prefer its scientific name, Pinus engelmannii...

Racks of bikes at the busy 2nd rest stop.  The flatter course and tailwind kept the whole group more tightly bunched than usual today.

The back of the trailer is where the water and Gatorade is and is a constant behive of activity.

Terri and Jim enjoyed their fast ride together on the tandem, and also taking  a break at the rest stop!!

Turk's new friend, Clare likes to body paint a theme.  Rumor has it that Turk's gonna draw Skull n Crossbones tomorrow.  Arrrr!!!!

Remember that Lordsburg has been referred to as "what it all will look like as we near the end of time."  Well we don't see Diamond Shamrocks in San Antonio anymore, they've been converted to Valero's.  What the significance of the "non-conversion" is, is not apparent.

Fast 100 miles from Douglas, AZ to Lordsburg, NM today.   Paul and Jim did the first and last legs together on the tandem.  Turk did the first and last legs on her single bike, and stoked for Jim in the middle half.

Always a fast ride, when there is a tailwind.  Today was no exception.  Susan and Emmy waited for Jim to get the tandem converted from Paul's setup to Turks at the 2nd rest stop, and it was a good decision.  We absolutely flew probably averaging 25 mph for the next 50 miles.

Another great day on PAC Tour.  Cool morning, warm and dry afternoon.  Great friendly cycling and the food is tops.  

Til tomorrow.  Thanx for reading.