Bicycle-Heaven

ToTG Day 4 - 1st Goal Met

2010-05-01T19:47:00.000-07:00

Day 4/5. Downtown Silver City Tour of the Gila criterium!

Pinos Altos is a town north of Silver City (where tomorrow's Stage 5 ends) and a street in Silver City. I cannot understand why outsiders cannot say Pinos Altos without giggling, each and every time.

I am ready to give it a go at the crit. Notice the new trick Bike Race Number mount off the seat tube Foxy, Ydays and I got going this trip.

Big Jim of the Peloton on the crit course. Hanging tough. It was cold - about 48 degrees at race time.

Turk on the prowl near some typical Southwestern motif fancy steps.

BV and Ydays. Lovers on the steps.

Over the top of the short steep climb is a streets of San Francisco type descent. Notice the large dark figure of Big Jim of the Peleton midway back on the right side. I could coast for about a half lap from this point, even move up some while regaining my breath to begin the hammer again.

Foxy hammering it up the short steep hill closing in on George and Tom.

Big Jim figures keeping near Bain is always a good idea.

The crit course. Innocuous looking. Safe, fast, spectacularly spectator friendly. Downtown Silver.

Nasty little bump each lap makes it tough.

Turk and Ydays got to take in some of the best roads Silver has to offer today - thru the Gila Forest out and back to Silver City.

Nice climbing effort for them.

Crit was successful today. I didn't get pulled and Foxy and I stayed near the front and out of trouble. The first 2-3 laps were pretty fast and its always tough getting your breathing under control out of the start house. We did 21 1.1mi laps, each with a short, steep 100' climb. I got to the point where I could spin up the climb, hit the top with momentum then not pedal for nearly 1/2 lap while advancing somewhat as it was mostly downhill. Hammer single file thru the 0.3 mile start finish straight, then head back uphill and repeat.

The pro race was fun to watch - Lance was at the front for the first 90%, after which his Livestrong babies took turns attacking. Highlight was when Floyd threw his water bottle on the last lap and Terri got it. Like the bridesmaids bouquet!! Terri asked Floyd whether he wanted it back as he rolled around after the sprint, he said no.

Wonderful Spaghetti feast at the Wasmunds complete with homemade tortilla chips and homemade cheesecake. Dave and Pat Wasmund live outside of Silver, on the race course, and in the always a small world department Matt used to race with their son Steve, and their daughter Sarah used to race on the MTB Bicycle-Heaven Racing Team run by Bill and Jacque Payne. Steve Betton, 60+ racer (with a sub 10 lb bike) from West Texas stays with the Wasmunds each year (they are part of Warm Showers) Steve Betton and I became friendly during past Tours of The Gila and Steve spearheaded the local money groundswell which kept the Tour alive just enough that when Lance signed up last year and SRAM came in and took over the race is now bigger and better than ever before. Sorry, too much background info!!

Last stage in am - the Gila Monster. Tough race for us 40+, super tough race for the Cat 2's and Pro's. Turk and Ydays have another good ride planned tomorrow also.

Until then.

ToTG Day 3 - Bad Decision

2010-04-30T19:54:00.000-07:00

Stage 3/5. 16 mile out and back (N->S->N)nTT. Always looks not so bad from birds eye view.

Ahh, and then the profile. Ouchie.

Chief Soigneur Beautiful Vernette graces some Southwest art.

As does our favorite feathered bird, the Turk.

There are two things in life which create problems or stress. 1. Procrastination 2. Bad Decisions. Yesterday we saw an example of procrastination causing problems. Kevin Barton never got around to upgrading to 10 speed, and couldn't find a wheel when he flatted at the start of the stage, forcing him out of the Gila. Today we saw an example of a bad decision, when despite Lance and Wes advising against a deep dish front wheel I used one in the TT.

The day started nicely - got to sleep in til 9am, breakfast, nap, then TT start at 1:20. Very cold today - high during the TT was about 50. I rode around the parking lot going thru my gears, didn't really think much of the rain and I was ready to go. Long Sleeved skin suit, Defeet gloves and shoe covers. TT helmet. Comfortable. Felt TT bike working great, HED Tri-Spoke front and rear wheels chosen for speed.

Start was good. Tried not to go too hard for first couple of miles (first 4.5 miles uphill.) After 1/2 mile breathing way too hard, took it back a notch and let my breath catch up to my body. Goal HR for first 2 miles was 165, 160 seemed to work better. Interestingly I never got my HR over 170 for the whole 16 miles - avg HR was 162, last year I averaged 173. I'm a little fitter this year, but I think yesterday was so hard that my body was a little more tired.

After 2 miles, breathing sorted out and I pushed a little harder, heart rate could only go to 168ish comfortably, breathing seemed to be the real limiter today. Over the Summit of the first climb - screaming downhill. On the aerobars after a half mile a big gust caught me and I realized how much of a "disc" the front tri-spoke acts like. Put my hands on the cowhorns and near the bottom started high speed front wheel wobble. I am amazed I didn't crash. Mentally all you can picture is the wobble increasing until it gets out of control and you wreck. Slowed with the back break, got it under control and it happened two more times, more mildly before the bottom of the descent.

Needless to say my TT was "over" at that point. I can't remember the last time I was scared. That scared me. I have no idea why I didn't crash. Out to the turn around and back of the rollers, afraid anytime I'd get over 30mph. Even on a small descent into the steep final 1.5 mile climb I felt unsteady and grabbed brake. I did a nice steady effort up the climb. But was very worried about the descent. The wind was a cross wind over the right shoulder on the way out, over the left shoulder on the way in, but it seemed like a head wind in both directions, so I was worried about its effect on the front wheel during the 4.5 mile descent to the finish.

I coasted 3+ miles in the last 4.5 miles. Never felt comfortable pedaling, nervous any time a gust caught me. I passed two riders and even that was terrifying. Anyways, time not to bad 47:11, lost a minute or two because of bad decision to use a disc-like front wheel. Finished 40/60, maybe should have been 30th. Foxy felt tired out there, put about 45 seconds into me. I'm interested in talking with George tomorrow - he was running 4 spoke Spinergys, I wonder how that front wheel felt.

I had a low profile rim EDGE wheel at the start line, should have made the decision to put it on. Cost me a couple of minutes and cheated me of measuring where I truly stand. Most importantly my bad decision might have resulted in serious injury, crashing at 50 miles per hour. I won't make that mistake again.

On a positive note - I've been watching the daily stages of the Tour de Romandie on Cycling.tv. Yesterday after our super windy road race stage, while watching stage 2 of Romandie the British announcer related that he had heard that the "Bayard road stage at the Tour of the Gila (pronounced with hard "G")" was "exceptionally windy." We're on the international cycling map! Oh, yeah and the Belgian though it was really windy too, which says something.

Another positive note - great meal tonight at Foxy's motorhome - spaghetti and meatsauce! Tracy's Killer Brownies. Foxy's mom spoils us on the road - she takes care of us every year at Ft. Davis. And I'm having the best time at the Gila, in my 8 trips here, because Turk came with me for the first time!

Pictures don't want to upload tonight, for some reason. I'll try again in the am - only have a few from today.

Tomorrow is the crit. I have been pulled the last 2 years, hopefully not this year!

Not sure if this is the last blog post or not - our Blogging service - Blogger.com says it is shutting down as of May 1, which is now. Stay tuned (or not!)

ToTG Day 2 - It's Always A Good Idea When You're Signing Up...

2010-04-29T20:30:00.000-07:00

Stage 2. Ft. Bayard aka "inner loop." Clockwise. Innocuous as a birds eye view.

The profile says it all. All groups except Mens 4/5, womens 3/4 do the same course today. This is the hardest stage for the Women, Cat 3 and 40+ men. The last day is the hardest stage for the Pro men and the Cat 2 men.

My goal was to get over the first climb - 6 mile climb 5 mile into the race. You can see by my heart rate data I gave it a shot. Didn't make it, but didn't overdo it like I did last year where I cracked during the last 25 miles... Ended up with 7000 feet climbing for the 80 miles.

The most beautiful race thru the Gila forest. This is why riding in Silver City is my favorite.

Across the valley towards the Continental Divide is Lake Roberts.

We crossed the continental divide twice today - at miles 12 and 44.

There are loose Cougars in the forest!!

Tough day. Our group (and all others) hit the first climb, at mile 5 really hard. The pace coupled with a tail wind took me out the back after the 1st of 6 miles. Foxy made the 2nd group, and I hung with the Bain/Heagart 3rd group until 1 mile from the top and just couldn't keep the pace.

After the top of the first climb we drop into the Gila forest and spend then next 20 miles in shady pine forest. Lots of climbing and descending. The descents are technical and there are always crashes. I ended up with a group of 4, including a large dude from Belgian. He had a pointy nose and I didn't know his name so I referred to him as Jens. On the final descent, around a hairpin, I was happy to see the Turk taking photos. She had started the ride before us and was enjoying the day.

After we leave the forest we ride across the Mimbres valley. 15 miles false flat uphill and 15 miles false flat downhill to and fro from the Continental Divide. We picked up a guy from London who had flatted - he had finished 12th the day before so I knew he was strong. I noticed that the wheel he had picked up had a 12-21 cassette on - I didn't have the heart to say anything to him but I felt sorry for him going into the last climb!

Jens and I mostly sat on on the false flat uphill towards the divide, then did a bit of work leaving it. With about five miles to go across the valley the trees were gone and we got our first taste of the days wind. 30mph with gusts to 60. We had grown to a group of 7 across the valley. 1 guy blew off the road.

We made the turn to start the final big climb to the feed into a full block head wind. 30 mph with gusts to 60. Our group split up. The strong guy with the 21 went up the road - I think because he had to push that big gear as a certain speed. Jens and I actually dropped the rest of our group, I think because they were scared of the wind. Foxy's dad and BV were in the feed and I picked up a couple of bottles. That last climb was long and about 6 miles per hour with the grade and wind. Halfway up a guy said it gets "really windy at the top." I laughed cuz it is "really windy right here." But he was right. We almost came to a standstill and I contemplated walking my bike as it would have been safer and might have been faster.

The last 25 miles into that wind were brutal. Jens was really hurting and kept dropping off. I shared some Bonk Breaker with him, to no avail. I passed a few more guys in my group, including the strong Englishman, I think my weight had some benefit into the wind - finally!! It was disheartening one time when I made mistake of looking at my Garmin and I was on a 5% downhill, going 15.6mph in the small chainring.

I finished the day, Foxy was waiting at the finish line for me - he had come in 15 minutes ahead with Bain and Heagarty. I had been thinking during the last miles of how nice the Oakley Jawbones are. I wear contacts and was having no eye issues, even with all that wind blowing. When I stopped to talk with Foxy and Kevin Barton I took them off and instantly my eyes filled up with dirt and crap and I was miserable.

This day was so hard. It claimed Ydays at the 2nd feed. I finished 47 minutes down, there were guys in my group nearly 2 hours down (6 1/2 hours riding for them.) We started 75, 67 finished. I place 49th. Foxy and my running joke this year has been that "It always seems like a good idea when you're signing up" for a race. Yeah it is so damn easy to sign up for races. But they are all hard and this one was exceptional.

Ironic story of the day. Our friend Kevin Barton and Foxy were talking before the stage about gears. Turns out Kevin runs 9 speed whereas everyone else who races runs 10 speed. Kevin flatted 10 minutes before the start and they couldn't find his spare wheel in the wheel truck. He tried to change his flat quickly and pinched the tube, so he couldn't take the start today. I think that will push Kevin over the edge and we'll see him on 10 speed soon.

Today is the TT. 1/10th the time of yesterday's stage. 10x the pain. Thanx for reading.

ToTG Day 1 - Progress

2010-04-28T19:15:00.001-07:00

Hotel parking lot is behive of cycling activity, morning and evening.

Our chief soigneur, BV, gets her pump on.

This is the first race I have been in with George that he didn't flat in. That's because he flatted before the race. Smart thinking, George!

Ladies field coming thru the 2nd feed.

My stats on the day. I really can't complain. The final climb took me 48 minutes. Last year it took me 56 and the year before 1:01. I got farther than I had with the group. I lost 17 minutes - last year 30 and the previous year 45. Marginal improvement is all someone with limited talent needs to keep'em coming back.

The route to Mogollon.

Just so you don't think the Turk is goofing off, here is her route for the day. She had planned to ride to the top of Mogollon. Decided to turn around when Doug and I passed her descending at about mile three. I think she was the smart one.

Her profile. It is interesting that the latest version of Ascent is giving us power data - since she doesn't have a power meter on her bike, and mine doesn't have a battery! I'll have to read the latest about this. The program knows our weight heart rate zones, and the Garmin collects speed, gradient and heart rate. The program must use some formula to estimate power. Interesting.

Funny story of the day. We had breakfast when Tom Danielson ate, and rode up in the elevator with him. He asked us what time we raced and wished us good luck. He said "The final climb is really really hard!!" Anyways, he got 2nd to Levi - pretty darn good. My final climb was 48 minutes, his probably 28 minutes. And it was probably just as hard for each of us. As Greg Lemond said "It never gets easier, you just go faster." Hearing that probably played a factor into the Turk turning around 3 miles into the climb, you know how much she loves to hear the truth!!

Day 1 is in the bag and I think we got a little lucky. The wind stayed relatively calm (gonna be 30 mph most of the rest of the race.) Our group mostly stayed together to the final 7 mile climb. Foxy and I got popped near the top of the 2nd feed due to straggling at the back a bit when a few guys jumped and took the group with them. Almost made my goal of reaching the final climb with the group - we were 2 miles from it!

Our group of 6 rode hard trying to get back on - we ended up about 30 seconds behind going into the climb. Not bad. The effort cost, however - I stayed with our small group for 2 miles, then when the hill began to get steep I knew I had to ride my own tempo.

Yday's first time racing to Mogollon. He got popped in the first feed zone. I think he did really well to get there - the first 25 miles was much tougher this year than in the past. He rode his own pace from there to the climb. Unfortunately he found out just how hard Mogollon is. 2 years ago when I really cracked I almost turned around with 150 meters to go and rode back down the hill without finishing the stage. Until today Ydays never believed that I was being serious, apparently he face similar demons on the way to the top today.

At least tomorrow's stage is harder...

ToTG 2010 - Again so soon?

2010-04-26T21:18:00.000-07:00

Sorry for such a long break between posts (or your welcome if you needed a break....)

Well we are in Silver City for the next week to once again try to figure out how to ride bikes uphill with ex-pros and skinny amateurs in the Master's 40+ race. 2010 SRAM Tour of the Gila

Ydays, Foxy and I are racing together, for the first time at this race, should be interesting. The race itself has grown - recall it arose like Lazarus last year when local contributions, SRAM headline sponsorship and Lance Armstrong racing snatched it from near extinction. This year the race is 50% bigger than I recall, with over 700 racers in all categories. Our category, the 40+ masters, has 85 registered to race, I don't recall more than 45 in a previous field. The Pro/1 category has 200 racers, including top international pros Lance Armstrong, Levi Leipheimer, Dave Zabriskie. It is gonna be a mad house at the starts and especially at the finishes this year.

I've done a little training - a bit of local racing and a couple of stage races including the climbing race at Ft Davis 2 weeks ago. My weight is still my weakness (besides my age and general lack of talent) so it will be interesting to see if I can meet any of my interim goals - the same as last year. 1. Make it to the final climb on Day 1. 2. Get over the first climb with the group on Day 2. 3. Finish the crit. 4. Make it over the first climb with the group on Day 5. Last year I only met goal 4, and that was because the top guys stopped and peed at the side of the road near the top of the first climb.

I have done a little specific training for Gila. For climbing I have done the Watertower climb in Timberwood. Over a period of a couple months I started with 3 climbs and finished with 9 climbs. The climb there is 1k, takes me around 3 minute, and the recovery side of it makes the complete loop around 5:30.

Ah, the infamous Timberwood watertower. Ideal for 3 minutes of cyclical self inflicted suffering.

Pretty consistent efforts. 2:58 to 3:08. My SRM needs a new battery, so I'm not reading power. During earlier weeks when I set my goal power to 350 and stayed at it the intervals were even more consistent.

The excitement of training! Doing the same "intervals" over and over. This is my course profile and heart rate profile from the Watertower Climb loops.

It helps you go uphill a little faster when you have a Cougar on your tail!!

Foxy and I also did a little bit of TT prep for the Gila - out and back on 211 from 471 to 16 works nicely (albeit painfully.)

Mostly up hill headwind for the first half, opportunity to use the easy gears (I run a 39/28 at Gila,) mostly down hill tailwind for the second half opportunity to spin out the big gears (I run 56/11 at the Gila.)

Here's what the actual TT looks like at the Gila - my data from last year. Forecast currently is for a 20-30 mile cross wind out and back . Ouch.

ToTG tradition #1 accomplished. Running out of gas 1 mile from Ft. Stockton. Turk made this sign and stood outside. Actually got a ride from a couple of dudes (and they brought her back, shockingly) and got some gas to get us into Ft. Stockton!!

Stay tuned.

ToNB 2010. Prediction? PAIN!!

2010-01-25T00:12:00.001-08:00

Innocuous enough looking course map.

Not so threatening looking course profile.

Got a chance to knock out 2 laps of this Saturday's ToNB RR course. Dickerson, Foxy, Park and I took an easy first lap with the Schleck bros, Turk and Moe. 2nd lap was anything but docile.

The race will play out a bit differently than today's ride - there probably won't be a steady 25mph wind out of the West!!

Some notes from the course.

16 miles with lots of turns, narrow roads and enough rollers. Near 1000 feet of climbing per lap. It will be interesting to see 50-100 man groups getting it on in the first road race of the season.

Turn #3 (Right off of St. Hedwig onto Zigmont) Watch out. Downhill approach, narrow road, >90 degree off camber turn will catch the unawares off guard and there will be a wreck in some of the races. Don't be in it. Ease up and treat this turn with respect.

Turn #5. 200m after this turn onto Stuart there is a 10' section of road under repair. Loose dirt. Leave a little extra room going into this and watch for sudden moves and a touch of wheels going in front of you. Don't be involved in a pileup here.

Do not go off the road on this course. There is barbed wire a'plenty lining this course.

When you make your last left turn onto Real Rd, there is 1.5 miles to go. It is a looong 1.5 miles. Expect people to jump to soon for the finish and blow here. There is a leftward sweeper with 1 mile to go which starts about a 1/3 mile uphill section. This is where it gets really tough with continued false flat to the finish.

Our "Hot Lap" today took 45 minutes. Expect lap times in the neighborhood of 40 minutes on saturday.

Kudos to Rob for a brilliant course. Should be a barn burner.

If you haven't yet volunteered, please do. Contact Rob directly (email.rob.kane@gmail.com)

Hope to see you out there.

2010 Mini Camp - Rain Foreshortened

2010-01-14T05:38:00.000-08:00

Day 1. Boerne, Welfare, 473, Kendalia, Edge Falls. Ice on the falls (see photo down below.)

Day 1 Profile. 93 miles. 5000 feet climbing. Our flatlander sisters from Dallas who joined us enjoyed the hilly terrain.

Day 2. Garden Ridge, 3009, Cranes Mill, Startzville, Sattler, River Road, Gruene, Landa Park, Krueger Canyon.

Day 2 profile. 99 miles, another 5000 feet climbing.

Day 3. Down South. Out and back the Missions and Mission Trail along the San Antonio river. Rolling around the farmland (in the cold and rain!!)

Alot less hilly down south and out east. 80 miles with 1000 feet climbing.

Edge Falls had water this year (no water for the past 2 years, until 3 months ago!) Unusually, there was ice formation.

Group photo. Monday we had out largest group with pals GG and John Lampe, B-H riders Matt and Bentley, Tom Bain and Kim Ciolli, George Thomas, the Dallas ladies, and Lara and yours truly on tandem.

Down south we generally stop at Jacks corner mid ride. Cold and rainy. All smiles, nonetheless.

"Southern" Philosophy.

Annual photo shoot at the Alamo. Lara and I on tandem, Kim holding her own in the middle. Matt and George on the right.

Muddy day. Rob is generally not freckled.

Well, we only got 3 days, but it was worth it. Several of our favorite rides, great company and outstanding training.

Monday we had our biggest group - around 12 riders - pictured above at Edge Falls.

Tuesday we did an new twist on an old ride and really nailed it. Great ride. Terri and Craig joined Lara, George, Kim, John Lampe and I. Terri had the ride of the day, earned the "game ball" and acquired a new nickname "Turktani" coming out of River Road. That is what, 8 nicknames for her??

Wednesday we met in Alamo Heights. It was raining and 50 degrees and a few who showed bailed, but there were enough of us not saying no so we saddled up and went forth. We rode in the rain the first 30 and last 30 minutes, in the middle it was just fine. Thanks to Rob's leadership we got a great ride in and salvaged the week!!

Enjoy the rain the next couple of days. See you on Saturday's shop ride. Ink in January 10-14 2011 and we'll do it again. Next year we should see alot of new faces as George is growing his Hill Country 600 race (again this year in March) and offering our rides as a intro/training camp for potential racers.

Check out Georges races at Race Across Oregon particularly the local Hill Country 600k race set for March 13-14 this year.

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 16 "Final Destination"

2009-08-24T14:23:00.000-07:00

No rain. Until boxing up the bikes, natch! We rolled out of beautiful North Conway after our group photo at 7am sharp. Easy rollers up to Kennebunkport, ME (Bush Country that is) for lunch. Then up the coast with several glimpses of the Sea to our Final Destination - Portland, Me. We had the bikes 80% boxed before the last of Hurricane Bill's rain started to dump on us. Quick recovery into the motel, all good.

Lots of fun and a little drama for the last day. Spartaca and I got tangled up when I sat up to point our "Potter Bridge Road" to her. Using our bike hangling daft skills, we stayed upright and she only banged her knee hard on the bars. Distracted her pain from her Achilles so that was a good thing.

Our Australian frend, Andrew Puddy, has personally restored order to the United States and possibly global economy thru his use of Chamois Butter. It streams out the back of his shorts during the ride and leaves a mark on the lunch benches. Course, my sweating leaves a similar mark - so you just have to wait a few minutes and if the mark goes away its mine, if it persists it is Andrews.

Our last Austrialian jargon was received today, just in the nick of time. Lebowski hit lunch and "spat the dummy." (That means he packed it in, or decided enough is enough. A dummy being Australian for a pacifier) He and BV rode in together in the lunch truck, giving them a little personal PACTour time for the day!!

Funniest comment of the day went to Klaus. He is german, so obviously highly intelligent. I had led our small group most of the way to lunch (I kinda knew the roads around there.) The way had been a bit confusing, but we got there without any difficulty. Klaus said "you are a great navigator, we will stay with you after lunch to the hotel." Ha! 5-10 u-turns and redirections later we did indeed arrive at the hotel, maybe a little different course than the route card had plotted.

Anyways, wonderful trip as always. If you ever have any inkling to sign up for a PACTour, just do it, you won't be disappointed.

Off to the celebratory banquet, Lobster!!!!

I'll think of some vignettes to throw at you all over the next couple of days, hope you have enjoyed listening to our adventure. We have appreciated all of the support and encouragement from home, thank you!!

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 15 "Fair Suck of The Old Sauce Bottle"

2009-08-23T15:22:00.002-07:00

Alright. Penultimate day. Tomorrow is last stage. We leave the White Mts of VT for the Green MTs of NH. Spartacus and I get dropped by the group we towed around yesterday 15 miles in, paying for the previous day's efforts. Lebowski, aided by his imported damsel's strength, showed up in full battle gear and made the split.

We rolled thru Norwich, VT (had overnighted in Norwich NY a couple of nights back. Thru Hanover NH, home of Dartmouth College. We were tentative early because we saw a significant climb on the profile from mile 69 (the sign of Cancer) to mile 75 where lunch was held. We were completely caught off guard by the climb before it - around mile 50!! Hors Categorie 4 miles 8-15% Spartaca muttered somthing about "sagging" and I said "absolutely not" not 1500 miles into a 1600 mile ride. I rode off leaving her and Lebowski to discuss. This unexpected challenge was "a fair suck of the old sauce bottle" the Aussies might say most easily translated as a real bite in the buttocks.

That descent was terrifying. 7-10%, frost heaved jagged roads, which were wet with earlier rains and had signs announcing "Pavement Ends." Comforting at 45 miles per hour. Fortunately the pavement only ended for 6 foot sections, no problem.

Quick rest stop before last climb of the Tour - up the famous Kancamangas Highway - which at Categorie 1 was feared, but made quite softer by the earlier beast. Plus lunch was at the top!!

We descended from mile 75, 5 miles at 7% then 15 miles of 2-3%. Woulda been phenomenal except that Hurricane Bill aka Hurricane Opa, had found us. We could barely see the road in some stretches, but there was only 1 place to go - down. The rain let off before we got to the hotel - Red Jacket Mountain View resort - glorious view of Mt. Washington, if you could see it - not today!!

Some how we cleaned the bikes and got our room keys and finished another day of the Tour, tired, but successful.

Tomorrow is the last day. Mixed emotions. Tired and ready to go home, but, sad to put such a wonderful odyssey behind us. Tonight we celebrate with Lebowski and BV and Lon and Susan at dinner in our hotel. Tomorrow we ride a quick 100 miles, box up the bikes, banquet then head to Opas to get ready to return to SA!!

Thanx for reading.

PACTour Eastern MTs - Day 14 "Lon Almost got Snotted"

2009-08-22T16:53:00.000-07:00

Hard, Hard day. 141 miles, 7000 feet climbing. Out of NY, into the Green Mountains of Vermont.

Day started well - no rain for first 4 hours. Busy rollout in traffic. Small group overreacted to road obstacle and Spartaca almost hit the tarmac. Trust me she mad a save that shouldn't have been saved when she rubbed wheels. Mad cyclocross skills.

That fired up her adrenaline and she shot to the front, where she stayed all day. Her efforts whittled the grou to 8 and eventually 6. The mood was serious because of the length of the stage and we were in a phenomenal group. Fast and worked well together. Reminded me of the socialistic nature of cycling - from each according to ability, to each according to need. We covered the 77 miles to lunch in under 4 hours. With 4500 feet of climbing.

Our group include Naughty Ann, the other Craig, John from Portland, Klaus from Germany and occaisionally Charles Breen and Karl. We rode kinda hard to lunch, then it was decided to roll easy afterwards. That went well until the rain started!! The pace lifted quickly, Spartaca again doing the lions share of the work - she was in a "Purple Patch" today (Aussie for being in the zone or in cycling parlance having a no chain day." The rain lifted as we rolled down along the rivers. Lon treated us with 4 miles of dirt road (still wet obviously.)

The route card claimed 136 miles with 4500 feet of climbing. We ended up with 141 miles and 7000 feet of climbing. When we hit 136 miles and weren't at the hotel Spartaca was unhappy to put it mildly. I heard words after that girls mouth I hadn't heard since the Turk and her south Philly sisters got together at a wedding. I hafta talk to David, the navy seal, tomorrow Spartaca is obviously ready to enlist in the Navy!!

Lon was in the parking lot when we pulled in and I'm suprised he hadn't been "snotted" (Aussie for punched in the nose) by then or by Spart. All good we were done!!

Big highlight of the day was Opa and Peg picking up Vernette for Craig at the airport and dropping her off with us. She gets to hand with PACTour for the next 3 days.

Into NH and MT Washington tomorrow, until then!!

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 13 "Moses wudda been impressed"

2009-08-21T14:36:00.000-07:00

70 of our 125 miles in the NY rain. Phenomenal day. Warm so rain capes barely needed. Lotsa climbing early, then we roded into Cooperstown at mile 40 for coffee and cookies. After that very little climbing but the rain started. And stayed. Until we were 10 miles out.

Had my first flat today - slow leaker from rear tire which was in need of replacing. Blew some sealant in and no prob. Lebowski'll be happy because he was sure I was teasing the gods when I mentioned in the ride that I hadn't had a flat yet!! Put on a new rubber at the hotel, and all good.

Late in the ride the rain had stopped and I was texting Phillips about a crankset so we went "Bush" (Aussie for off course or lost.) We had missed our turn by 3 miles (funny how we only go Bush when John Lake's with us?!?!) Fortunately we ran into a young convenience store clerk who actually knew where we were going and where we needed to go to recover and we regained our route only adding 1 mile!! So, we didn't arrive at the hotel completely "knackered" (Aussie for wiped out, Aussie 101 continues.)

Andrew Puddy continues to teach us Aussie slang and says I use it way too much that it loses its effect. I think that it helps and if I ever go to Australia they will think I am native Austrailian or at least "raise there."

Speaking of my being raised. Lebowski and Spartaca are starting to get a little weary of hearing all of the places I was "raised." New York (we spent the last 2 days riding in New York.) New England (about to get there and our final destination.) Germany (when I'm talking to Klaus our fellow PACTourian from Germany. Indiana when I pout over missing my fellow Hoosier Catie (Beautiful Aleeza is from Indiana but won't admit it so don't pass that along.)

Anyways the fun continues, we are getting fitter and skinnier, seeing lots of stuff (Cooperstown and a whole lotta rain which we Texans haven't seen in way too long.) We are all getting homesick for the Turk, BV and Parkchop. At least tomorrow we get to see BV for the last few days as she flys in to spend the final 3 days with us. Opa picks her up at the airport so I'll get to see him too!

Trip is winding down, we are a stones throw from New England. VT tomorrow, NH Sunday, ME Monday, then home to SA!!!!

Oh, followup from Alex's key and rental car misadventure yesterday. He rode the 30 miles back to the hotel we started from and somehow fitted his bike and carcass into the car with the 3 ladies. They drove him to the first sag (where he had turned around) and he rode the final 65 miles on his own, off sag. He ended up with 125 miles for the day, the ladies were treated with a day in Coney Island, so we haven't gotten their side of the story yet!!

Thanx for reading, 3 more days!!!

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 12 "One Woman's Chamoisltoe is Another Womans Pinchflat"

2009-08-20T16:02:00.000-07:00

Well, we are into NY. 3 states left. Kinda getting tired!! Easy little recovery ride 2day. 93 miles. 5500' climbing. Kinda like Vanderpool to Camp Wood and back ;-)

Day went well. We figured we'd ride easy to get ready for the last 4 days. Lebowski back in the game today we all rode together. Naughty Ann joined us for most of the day. Small rollers and big chuckles all day. Spartaca and Naughty were laughing about the chamois cameltoe which Lebowski promptly labelled "Chamoisletoe.". Naughty mentioned something called a "pinch flat." thats when yours truly drifted off the back to pee and stay out of that conversation.

A little rain after lunch (brats and sweet corn, yay!!) Nice fast descents. Phenonomenal scenery. Unique Barns and houses every mile. Light traffic. Highlight (lowlight!?!?) of the day was picking up my computer bag and noticing it was like 5 pounds lighter than I remembered. Yeah, I had left my computer at the hotel in the am. A few phone calls later and its on its way home yo San Antonio.

That pales in comparison to poor Alex. His wife and two daughters follow him in a car. Well, Alex arrived at the first rest stop and we saw him getting into his PACTour bag. Turns out the car keys were in his bag. PACTour stops or waits for no one, so Alex had to ride 30 miles back to the hotel. Don't have closure on that story yet. Did he then have to turn around and ride the entire 90 mile stage?!?! Doubt he and his bike fit in the car with the 3 ladies and his bike...

Sorry for the short blog. Hard to write on the phone. I'll find a computer next time.

Keep up the faith in us!!

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 11 "And Atlas Shrugged"

2009-08-19T15:33:00.000-07:00

Todays pix at B-H FB per usual. Sorry I can't post em here, blogger.com and B-H site don't like each other anymore??

Phenomenal PACTour day. Lebowski didn't start the stage, needing a recovery day. The morning started inauspiciously. We had crashed at 930 last night (barely making it to 930.) Woke up to pee, pitch black, thought (great I've got 4-5 more hours to sleep!! _15_ min later the alarm went off. It was time to get up. Oh, well I guess that means I slept really, really well1!

With the strength of Atlas, Spartaca "shrugged" off yesterday and was full of piss and vinegar this am. Combo of things - 8 1/2 hours sleep, Lil Jon' massage, favorite food (pizza.) Plus prolly a good dose of she and I yesterday being passed by a rider at mile 15 who exclaimed "I can't believe I'm still only catching the slow guys!! How far up the road are the fast guys?!?!"

Spartaca force the pace and a selection of 4 of us, 2 more would later join, in the initial miles. 8 mile climb Cat 1 starting at mile 16 confirmed the selection. All of a sudden we were riding with the "fast guys" this am. It was so humid that a climber rode past us near the summit and commented on the trail of water like a leaking air conditioner he could follow (from yours truly, natch.) We got tailed off and "Bushed it" at a turn (daily Aussie lesson "bush" is jargon for getting lost or going off course. No problem, the road had just the right degree of rolling and we regained our escape group at the first sag.

After the first rest stop we had a stinging little Cat 2 climb then lots of rollers. Our group of 6 worked well together. Craig, who rode with Will and I on the Ridge of the Rockies last year. John, from Boise, who rides the "best bike" = Cannondale SuperSix. Klaus from Germany who lived in the same town I lived in as a child. Wayne, our crewmember, lunchtime cook from Cali who is a CHiP (Cali Hwy Patrolman.) The boys decided to go for hilltop sprints for somereason late in the stage. Craig was rewarded with a flat tyre at the top of one, so we had a little break there (Klaus comment was "that's more than 2-3 minutes, eh??"

Spartaca and I decided that the stage finished at lunch (which was at delicious as always, brats and Fresh Sweet Corn!!) After lunch was recovery pace, we caught Joe, our 70+ PACTourian. We didn't go super easy, and there was 3500 feet of climbing in those 40 miles, and damn if Joe never left us. Never even got in trouble (a little more cautious than us on the decents.)

Rainstorm caught us out with 5 miles to go, so we rolled into Starbucks a mile from the hotel. I did my #2 there (road rules, no #2 in the hotel room.) Probably first time ever #2 with helmet on. Got a little cold there, but made for a nice end of the day. When the heavy stuff stopped we cruised to the hotel where a previous PACTour rider had driven up from Philly with tons of Philly Soft Pretzels and shaved ice. Awesome recovery meal.

Tomorrow will be chill. 92 miles ride with 5400 feet climbing into Norwich, NY. Hell, what will we do in the afternoon???

Thanx for reading.

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 10 "A Chink in The Armor"

2009-08-18T16:06:00.000-07:00

Today's pix at the B-H FB page, natch.

Today we left Breezewood, PA. The worlds largest truckstop. The group was way too big to start - ie the whole field. This sorted itself out early since we climbed 1500' in the first 7 miles!! Spartaca dropped her chain in the early slopes and had a little trouble getting it back on. We stopped and fixed it. Lebowski made the classic mistake of waiting when he shoulda kept rolling so when Spartaca and I came by we couldn't slow down, the climb was too step.

So the two of us took off on our 107 mile solo "raid." Very very cool ride. Lotsa small back roads, windy, twisty, incredibly steep grades (I saw 26 and 27% on one 500 meter stretch. It rained, but ahead of us so we rode on wet roads, but not in rainfall. The descents were similarly steep (8-12% today, like the climbs as opposed to the 6-7% grades on the Blue Ridge Parkway.) We had to be careful in the corners and use brakes liberally today.

The scenery is phenomenal. We are on back roads of Pennsylvania with tons of old houses, churchs, barns and farms. You could stop 4 times a mile and photo something unique. We didn't have a ton of tree cover, but the am overcast and earlier storm kept it a bit cooler today.

Spartaca actually got into a spot of bother today. She felt like she was riding on two flats and her legs were probably sore. Achilles is better, new cleat position has her utilizing new muscles. Plus the fact that we have been on the bikes literally for _3_ days out of the last 9 probably contributes.

We had a 2.5 mile 8-12% climb just before lunch that put a big hurt on. We stopped at the top to recover and take a few photos. Rolling downhill to lunch then flattening out I mentioned that we had 3 miles to lunch. The response was "What Kind of Miles?!?!" That became the laughing point of the day "10 minutes to the sag." "What Kind of Minutes?!?!" and so on. Good stuff.

After lunch we had alot of rolling, flat downhill, plus the company of John Lake, so that made the miles tick by quickly. 1 2 mile steep climb where I tried to follow Cat and Marc (they popped me 1/2 up , I could only manage a heart rate of 169!) We regrouped at the top for the nice ride in and here we are, in Lamar, PA. Another truck stop essentially. Hey, you gotta stop where the hotels are, yah?

Tonight we are in a Comfort Inn. The rooms are honestly a mile from the PACTour vans and breakfast. And we have to lug bikes and bags. Crazy, huh? I'm gonna ask Susan to put a rest stop on the cue sheet, BEFORE, breakfast.

Spartaca gets a Lil' Jon massage tonight, so with her favorite food (pizza) in her belly and a good night sleep, I'm sure the tiger will reawaken tomorrow. For 125 miles and 12,000 feet climbing!!! Yee haw.

Lebowski did very well on this tough stage today. Rode from start to finish. He didn't realize that Jen and I went into his room when he was sleeping last night and performed a bilateral Orchiopexy. Now that they are fully descended and can't pull back up in, he is fully committed!!

Until tomorrow.

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 9 "We pissed it in"

2009-08-17T14:43:00.000-07:00

Today was a great ride. We left the 6 days of Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline drive behind us and re-entered the "real world" of PACTour today. Yes, even perfect roads, continual vistas, trees and shades, gentle grades and low traffic can get boring. Today we had to ride with some traffic, did some piecing together of less travel roads thru towns and on major roads, faced some steep climbs (and descents) and spent alot more time exposed to the sun. And, I loved every minute of it.

Initial worry of the day didn't bear fruit - Spartaca's tender Achilles responded remarkably to icing/anti-inflammatories, and then cleat repositioning coupled with ankle taping into the "ballerina" position. She had no pain riding (except muscular pain from using different muscles in her "new" position and also the fact that we rode a little hard early on to get thru a bit of the more traffickey areas.) She made it nearly 70 miles until the top of her foot hurt to bad from the taping and we stopped by the roadside to free the sucker. From then on no worries, even with the majority of the climbing after lunch at mile 75. Her pain was about 4/10 today compared with 7/10 yesterday. That would be 10-12/10 for the average mortal, natch.

Ride of the day was Lebowski!! He rode with Spartaca and I the whole day, very little grumbling and no leg pain. Looks like he's back in the game. He did complain that he missed the first rest stop, fortunately I had an extra bottle to give him and a Powerbar that I'd been carrying in my back pocket for 6 days so he got thru to the next stop OK. Let's see. The rest stop is marked on the cue sheet, was in plain sight in a church parking lot 100 feet from the road (the church was the size of Cornerstone Church) and there were 30 cyclists, the PACTour lunch truck and mini van and the Evil van all in plain sight there. Yeah, it was easy to miss?!?!

I started behind the group - you know Slauson time, takes me a little longer to get ready and going in the am than most. So I pushed the pace a little to catch on, which made me miss a turn about 5 miles in. I realized this within 1/2 a mile and looked back to see Mr. Evil just behind me. We turned around and regained the route (hey he's in the military and oughta be able to navigate without difficulty me, you know I have a good sense of direction!! ;-) Since I had led Evil astray I figured I would just follow in the path of Evil for a while - I knew he'd set a fast yet comfortable pace. Passed Lebowski who had been going just a little slower that Spartaca then sat up when I rejoined her. We all got back together after the first sag, (member Lebowski had missed that one) so we picked him up on the road at around mile 30 and he hung on the rest of the day!!

After lunch (funny how we don't miss that stop) the climbing began. We were on 2 climbs of around 2 miles which were 10-18% grade. Spartaca's achilles held up and Lebowski held on. We rode alot with Naughty Ann who can hammer up those damn climbs too!

The savior of the day was George Jahant who set up a spontaneous sag halfway between lunch and our finish town. We hit it after the two big climbs and the temps had gone up into the mid 90's. So we arrived at the hotel happy, healthy and hydrated, rather than grumpy, salty and parched!! At lunch we had asked Lon what was in store and if there was going to be a last sag (there was none on the cue sheet, but I suspected that George was going to do one when I saw him speed off in the caravan from the lunch stop.) Lon described the route and said that George was going to do that sag, in 10 miles which we would get to in "about 2 hours!!" That sounded a bit excessive and Lon's little "Stanley Roper smile" gave away that he was exaggerating some. Anyways, that stop made the day since we could drink all we wanted after lunch then refill and drink all we wanted for the last 9 miles (drinking today for tomorrow, you know!!)

Our friend Andrew Puddy is an experienced PACTourian and is Australian. (Real Australian, you know the kind who lives there.) He is teaching us some Australian jargon. We say things like "Good on ya" which means great for you, or nice job. The expression "Pissed it in" means that what ever you did was a "breeze" like when you do something hard but say it was easy or a breeze. So today we just "pissed it in!!"

Tomorrow we were supposed to ride 135 miles with 7000 feet of climbing. Looks like route has been changed to 109 miles with 10,000 feet climbing. As they said in Dancing with Wolves, "that sounds like a fair trade."

Pix as usual are at B-H FB

Gail Collins NYT editorial on Woodstock explains in a way that I cannot why we do these types of trips. The essence of the message was that "A takeaway lesson from attending Woodstock is that when someone asks you to do something off the wall, you should really try to do it."

Thanx for reading, tune in tomorrow. Mental faculties and backwoods wifi permitting!!

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 8 "Hump Day"

2009-08-16T17:14:00.000-07:00

Todays Pix are @ B-H FB.

Lotsa action today. Here's the highlights.

We left Waynesboro at 7am per usual. Stayed in a small group, like we were sposed to. Done with the Blue Ridge Parkway! Onto Skyline Drive (in the Shenandoah National Park.) 105 miles of blissful, low traffic, gentle grade, undulating course with long climbs and super long descents.

Spartaca had a rough day. Achilles hurting. Stung by Bee. Lunch didn't agree. Homesick. Achilles hurting. Lon taped her ankle at lunch, which immobilized her achilles but cut off the circulation to her foot, so that only lasted 1 stop. Icing achilles, cleat repositioned time will tell. Shes tough, but won't be stupid.

Lebowski rode a bit more. Looks like he's back into the game. He spotted a very large women in the gas station with a Playboy necklace and "Miss July" on it. Wondered if she is the missing match to our Mister Yuly?

I loved the day, best ride so far. Mellow, lotsa gentle climbing and the most descending we have done so far. I did get a gnat in my eye after the last stop, but Jen got it out no prob. You can tell you have been climbing alot with 0-1% grades seem downhill, 1-3% seem flat, 4-5% seem like false flat uphills and you really don't feel like you're climbing until you hit 6-7%!

The tale of today's tape was 107 miles, 6:54 ride time, 11,000 feet climbing. Since we are 1/2 done with Tour de PAC we looked at our cumulative totals - 834 miles, 67,500 climbing, 57 hours 54 minutes ride time (yes that is 2 1/2 days on the bike.)

Another great, reasonable meal in small town Front Royal, VA. Steak #7 with Crabcake appetizer. Decent hotel tonight - Quality inn. Last night was one of those "eveners." The Afton Inn in Waynesboro was one of those you see in the movies - you check in, all goes to hell and you end up violently, even the pizza delivery guy and sheriff are in on it. Obviously we made it out...

We were a bit despondent to find out that the "real ride" actually took place near San Antonio today - Vanderpool to Camp Wood and back. Oh, well we can't make them all! We'll try to tackle that one when we get home. Of course we'll have to plan a ride for the afternoon that day, so we get a full day in, natch.

Tomorrow we pass thru 4 states, VA, W.VA, MD, PA. We were at dinner and hadn't looked at the route, so we asked Lon to give us the skinny. He told us about the 18% climb, the rollers, etc and that it is 94 miles "But, it will feel like 100!!"

With that I better get to bed.

Thanx for following.

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 7 Down the Hill

2009-08-15T17:15:00.000-07:00

Photos on the B-H FB site.

Today was the "Queen" Stage. 125 miles, 12,000+ feet of climbing. 8+ hours on the bike. Great ride. Lebowski started at first sag, rode strong then knee hurt at end so iffy for tomorrow. Spartaca attacked at the end to put the hurt on the boys. Fun day on the bike.

Long climbs, short climbs, 15 mile descent. Cool but humid. Hamburgers for lunch. Tiny bit of rain late.

We got yelled at by Lon for riding in too big a group at the beginning. First sustained climb sorted that out, natch. Spartaca and I rode a smart pace and felt strong all day. Yesterday's recovery pace really helped.

We rode a lot with Lil Jon today, a bit with Lebowski on the long descent and early slopes of next climb. John Lake got us from Lunch to the last sag (I bonked 5 min after lunch but got my energy back after a half hour or so.) After the last sag Marc attacked us 3 times - I could follow the first two. Throwing a "Cat" amongst the pigeons caused Spartaca to ride super strong and set the tempo of the final hills of the day.

Big drama of the day. After the 1st rest stop Jenny found mold in the lid of 1 of her bottles. Since I had filled them for her at that stop she accused me of switching one of my lids (which I didn't.) George saved her by cleaning out her lid at the next stop (she didn't drink a drop from that bottle until then...)

Almost 1/2 thru - tomorrow is hump day. Very tired tonight. Earned it.

See ya. Thanx for following and encouraging. It helps so much.

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 6 Rest and Recovery

2009-08-14T15:13:00.000-07:00

Todays pix on the B-H Facebook page.

Chill day. You could tell the group was a bit tired this am. Slow moving thru breakfast. Lebowski off the bike, nursing. Spartaca and I started slow, got passed by a bunch of people, saw alot of stuff, rode easy, ate alot, took a bunch of pictures. And still had to kill an hour in Starbucks so we didn't get to the hotel too early!!

The am weather was cool, 60's, very humid (foggy.) Blinkies on, we pedaled towards the Blue Ridge Parkway and rejoined the route. The day seemed easy as advertised (81 miles, 6000 feet of climbing.) We rode w/ a few folks, mostly let peeps roll by us, and took our time at each rest stop. Spartaca did notice her heart rate peaking in the 140's as she would push a hill, so she must be fatigued too.

We dallied at lunch and then rode the last 19 miles to Roanoake, VA with the Jahants (George and his son Jon.) George is PACTour vet and crewmember this trip. Jon is masseus #1. Jon's first PACTour was around 6 years ago on this very route - hooked him! We had a fast 5 mile downhill approach to Roanoake. Washed the bikes, adjusted the gears, showered and chilled waiting for dinner.

We missed the shuttle to dinner - BBQ at a rider's house who lives near Roanoke. Oh, well that happens sometimes on "Slauson Time." Had a nice meal next door (my 6th consecutive steak, I believe.) Now time to chill, hydrate and get ready for tomorrow's tough stage - probably the Queen stage on Tour de Pac. Roanoke VA -> Waynesboro VA. 124 miles, 12,600' climbing. Yikes. Glad I got 2nd bowl of ice cream with dinner tonight.

Lebowski will be back on the bike tomorrow. "Hi-lights" will be the lowest point of the Blue Ridge Parkway at 600 feet. And lots of climbing. And Hot. And long.

Tomorrow's stage is dedicated to our sig others. Relationships are hard work but oh, so worth it, like tomorrow's stage (credited to Spartaca.)

Thanx for reading.

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 5 It Evened Out

2009-08-13T13:18:00.000-07:00

Pix on B-H FB page

Lo fallutin hotel tonight. Isolated Days Inn with nothing around. We are gonna have to shuffle today. Apparently this is the part where the hotels even out.

1st break of the day - Blue Ridge Parkway closed outside of Boone, so we detoured and cut out 5 miles, reducing the day to 93 miles. Still managed 8,000 feet of climbing and 5:45 on the bike.

We were spoiled this am with a hotel breakfast (not that the PACTour breakfasts are bad, but we get to go to bfast a little more on our time frame and linger a little more.) Out the door and on the bikes at 7am, as we had done. The first 10-15 miles were on the Blue Ridge Parkway Detour, so it was traffickey, but nice - rollers with ripping down hills. We did hit a 3-4 mile stretch of the detour which was 2 lanes 2 directions with a bit of traffic so we whipped up the pace there.

Once we turned towards the parkway, the traffic was gone and the climbing beginning. The pace was reasonable to the first rest stop, then from there apparently "Tour de PAC" began. A group of around 15 went hard on a downhill, then a small selection happened on a 1 mile climb. Spartaca missed the split, I happened to be at the front so made it. Soon there were only 3 of us. I came off a few climbs later, but there was no group close behind so I kept going.

I saw Lebowski in the middle of a climb and planned to sit up with him (he had started at the first sag nursing a knee problem.) Mr. Evil came flying by so I jumped on his wheel. I think he tried to ride me off it, which played to my favor as soon the 2 that had dropped me were in sight. Once we touched them for some reason Mr. Evil sat up and I stayed on. After a few more climbs I was hanging on by my fingernails. It was so hard for me that even on a flat 2-3 mile section all I could do to stay on. I dug deep a few times to keep contact to the second sag so got my first hard effort of the "Tour" in.

The odd thing was my max heart rate for this effort was 165!! Normally I am comfortable up to 180+ and max at 196. The volume and intensity of riding over the previous 4 days has reduced my perceive exertion/cardiovascular ability to 20-30 beats below normal. Interesting.

The rest of the day was docile, chit chat and fun. We rode with alot of the Ultra Distance guys today and learned alot about their experiences. The weather today "evened out" yesterdays environmental challenge. Today was sunny, cool, just perfect. The views were fabulous and continuous. Ride time was 5:45 compared to 8:15 yesterday.

The legs are sore!!! Gonna be interesting to see how the legs and heart rate respond in the coming days.

We are in Fancy Gap, VA, tonight. Reminds me of JW "Fancy Boy" Slauson. I miss the Turk )-:

We miss Contador and hope Ken is recovering well.

Thanx for reading.

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 4 Into the Rainclouds

2009-08-12T16:59:00.000-07:00

Blogger will not let me upload pix. So, check out the B-H Facebook page for photos.

Nearly epic ride today. We rolled out of Ashville, back onto the Blue Ridge Parkway, and straight uphill for the first 20 miles. Rest stop 1 at 22 miles, refueled and headed down hill, as the heavens opened up. Torrential downpour for the next 50+ miles!!

Fortunately it wasn't too cold and we had our rainjackets so we were doing fine. There was the Mt. Mitchell option today at mile 28. 4.5 mile climb, then back to the parkway. We planned to do it, but with the heavy rain I questioned it. I threw it to Spartaca to decide and without hesitation she announced "I say we do it!" Mt Mitchell is famous in cycling for the annual Assault on Mt. Mitchell 102 miles with 11,000 feet of climbing (kinda like we did today!)'

Lebowski was nursing a tender calf (he thought he had gotten thru this and announced last night at dinner that his testicle had descended...) After the big first climb and descents he packed it in and enjoyed the rolling festival known as the PACTour support crew for the rest of the ride (and helped us with our bikes and bags when we rolled in, pretty tired.)

So at mile 28 we did the 4.5 mile 1400 foot climb to the highest point east of the Rockies, around 6700'. Heavy rain on the way up, and unbeknownst to me Spartaca was questioning her decision about 1/2 up!! Not much to see up top (we were in the cloud and fog all day) so we used the facilities and headed back down. Tough descent in the rain, hard to see, switchbacks and limited braking power. We made it down (seemed to me to take longer to descend than to get down and continued up the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Unfortunately we descended for the next 5+ miles so we were pretty cold by the next rest stop. The climbing, descending and freezing continued until lunch at mile 86 where Susan and crew treated us with coffee and hot cocoa and a lunch of hot spaghetti and meatballs. This good hot meal, coupled with the rain lifting gave us wings and we set off toward our overnight destination, Boone, NC.

Spartaca dedicated todays ride to our friend Catie (who shoulda been here!!!) Catie is known for her fearless descending. I calculated that Catie might have actually walked her bike down 20 miles of rainy, foggy descents on wet roads.

Classic Lon tonight. We walked across the street to a steakhouse and ran across Lon. I commented on the "High Fallutin'" hotel we are at tonight (Holiday Inn Express with multiple floors, beds with 4 pillow, no cigarette burns on the mattress or exposed wires from the walls.) I told him this was above usual PACTour standards. Lon simply commented "Oh, it will even out."

Tomorrow we continue the trek up the Blue Ridge Parkway to Fancy Gap, VA. 100 miles, a little less climbing and rain isn't expected til the afternoon (so we'll ride fast and hard to avoid it.)

Tomorrow is certainly dedicated to our friend Ken, who is sick in San Antonio and will be in our thoughts and prayers all day (and for the rest of the trip.)

Thank you for reading.

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 3 Into the Mountains

2009-08-11T18:12:00.001-07:00

Last night at dinner, Lil Kim, aka Cav, caught this critter. Look familiar? Hint, look thru the previous day's blog....

Kim was in search of magic potions today and found this for me. Wonder how a Cougar reacts to Badger sore muscle rub??

The room was wonderful, on the river. So peaceful.

Of course a town named "Cherokee" would sell Mocassins!

Into the Great Smoky Mountains. Our first major mountain range of the Tour. Sorry bout the shaky picture. The sun is low in the am and the iPhone dislikes low light conditions.

Today we entered the Blue Ridge Parkway. Which we will ride the next 4-5 days!

All of the ridges and gaps have, err, interesting names. Here Ann poses with Contador (Lil Kim is no longer Cav, but Contador after today's ride) and Spartaca.

Me taking a picture of Lon taking a picture of the girls climbing. Tourists??

"What kind of Bump?!?!"

We were well above the clouds at spots today. Or perhaps those are smoke signals from Cherokee, where we had no Mobile phone or internet service last night??

Spartaca practicing her descending technique. Training wheels?

Flowers at 5000 feet.

Contador and Spartaca made some new friends at the "highest point of the ride." Contador calls this "sharing the road!!)

Climbing to the 2nd rest stop. The climbs were steady 6-7% all the way.

The Devils Court house. The Indians called the devil "judakula." There is a cave in these omnious rocks and the legend is that the devil held court in here.

Jenny was stoked after the 2nd 5+ mile descent (made us forget the 7 mile climbs to get there, right? Right?!?!)

Ah, the provie. Immediately into a Cat 1, followed by a Cat 4 the Cat 3. 8000 feet (of 10,500) climbing in the first 45 miles (to lunch.) The next 45 was smooth and alotta downhill!!

Ascent view of the day. 85 of 89 miles on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

I hate to hyperbolize, but this was probably the best ride I have ever done. The roods were like glass (apparently North Carolina doesn't believe in chip seal.) The climbing was tough. The descents were fast and safe. The only time we had to brake was when we came upon a "Spiral Curve." Yes there was a "Spiral Curve" sign (which I had never been to before.

We started in Cherokee (actually I thought about faking an injury and staying at the hotel, it was on the river and so peaceful.) We started riding at 2000' and had climbed to 6000' in the first 15 miles. It was cool but super humid.

We rode through at least 12 tunnels (mostly short.) which was cool. On the parkway we are required (and all had) to have a rear and front lights. We were supposed to ride in groups of 1-3 which was easy given the toughness of the course.

There were prolly 50 areas to stop and overlook the Smoky Mountains. The air was drier and cool the higher we got. The descents rocked. The company was perfect.

Lebowski made a Floyd Landis like comeback today. Carefully tending to his pulled calf muscle overnight paid off and he made this tough tough ride. He had to sag in from 10 miles to go due to the biblical rainstorm which made the last stretch of the parkway and to the hotel dangerous. We were all standing in said rainstorm at the hotel, waiting for our rooms to become available which was fun also.

Great meal tonight, at the Fiddling Pig. Great Barbeque and Bluegrass music!! We bought the CD.

If you ever have a chance to ride the Blue Ridge Parkway - grab it. Better than riding in Silver City, my previous favorite.

Unfortunately we lost Contador today, speedy recovery to her better half!!

Til Tomorrow. The Queen stage of the Tour. Back on the Blue Ridge Parkway, with a Mt. Mitchell option. Sposed to be rainy and highs mid-70's!!

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 2

2009-08-10T16:24:00.001-07:00

The girls were ready to ride, after lunch. Facing the first real climb of this year's PAC Tour. I'm calling it a Cat 2. 3 miles - 5-7% grade, late in the stage.

Heading toward our true initial destination - the Blue Ridge Parkway. Apparently we will ride 400-500 miles on it!!

Quick little ride today. Quite a bit of climbing early, but we hammered it. First taste of a real climb late, w/ ripping descent.

Cherokee, NC is where we overnighted. Indian heritage, tourist destination (with obligatory casino.)

Like giving birth, the end result (getting to jump into an ice cold river) erases the memory of the pain of getting there. We actually were happy!!

Eat your heart out Jaime. The girls are in the river!!

We were so glad to jump into the cold water, we kinda set the bikes down oh so not gently.

Getting out of the river was tough, with the mossy rocks and our tenderfoots....

Lotsa bear in the woods of North Carolina. Fortunately this one seemed tame!

Good thing Cav didn't know that she was swimming around with these - Golden Trout!!

John Lake is experimenting with the new "clipless" seatpost. Not sure whether this will "catch" on??

Outa bed at 555, Breakfast at 630, on the bike at 715. PACTour is not a race. Lil Kim, aka Cav, didn't start today which left Jenny "Spartaca," Craig aka "Lebowski" and I. We rolled out easy for a mile or two, then Spartaca lifted the pace popping Lebowski who nursing a pulled calf muscle. Spartaca felt we were to far out down on GC so we lit it up.

Hammered the first 40 or so, then chilled to lunch. Lunch was a nice state park. Cav kitted up at lunch and jumped in with us. (Nice thing about PACTour, unlike that OTHER Tour, you don't have to ride every inch to stay in the game.)

Fueled by a little spat between Cav and me, we tackled the Cat 2 climb of the day - 3 miles 6-10% grade, in the heat of the day. Spartaca flatted at the top, giving us a nice break in the shade.

Onto the descent. 7 miles, top 5-8%, lower 3-4%. Turns out Cav had never done this type of descent before. A couple of miles down I hear Cav shout "What type of bmpbm?" "What?" I say. "What type of Bump is it!?!?" Turns out there was a "Bump" warning sign on the side of the road. Well, fortunately we still don't know what type of bump it was and weren't launched into outer space so it must not have been too bad.

The rest of the ride was uneventful, until we were about 3 miles from the hotel. We were close to the woods, rolling along nicely when we heard a big rustling sound in the grass near us. The hugest woodchuck you have ever seen went scurring up into the woods. Cav screamed at the top of her lungs, which sped up its exodus. A second later she had recovered and commanded "come back!!" as she wanted a photo of the critter. He must not have heard her as we didn't see him again.

A mile from the hotel we came across the river, and didn't need an invitation. Nice way to finish a hot hard day, in a cold, shallow, fast flowing river.

Tomorrow the real work starts - 88 mile ride with 11,000 feet climbing. Apparently there is a 15 mile climb in there some where!!

Real low point of the trip - Cav is leaving the Tour tomorrow for a family emergency. Pray for an optimal outcome and that she can rejoin later on in the trip!!

PACTour Eastern Mts - Day 1

2009-08-09T16:56:00.000-07:00

Jen and Little Kim, henceforth know as Spartaca and Cavendish. Ready to start day 1.

Lon leads the crew (Craig aka Lebowski just behind Cav) early in the day. The girls attacked Lon on a steep limb and he couldn't respond with his singlespeed!!

Our Georgia peach, enjoying a Georgia peach.

John Lake hauling the ladies across Georgia (off course, adding mileage, natch.)

Later in the ride, this Georgian joined us for a spell.

Marc and Cat, renewed their vows at the last rest stop. Marc wearing his tux. Tough to see the detail on Cat's jersey, but it was a bridal gown!! Now the direction of Marc's attention and the implication it has on their future is unknown at this time.

Relentless undulating ride today. And hot!! Notice, in the middle of the ride, the downward dip after rest stop 2, then back upwards to rest stop 3. Yeah, that was us getting off, then back on course.

Different aspect. Laps are done at each rest stop, cept I missed the last one!!

This is the official state car of Georgia. The Ford Mustang. We saw at least 30 on the roads today.

Post meal (great steak dinner) spirits are up. Back to our hotel, the Dandelion Inn!!

Sorry for the late post, no Wifi for a couple of days.

Day 1 was a great way to ease into PACTour. 125 miles with only 3000 feet of climbing! Well the course was relentless, Lon seemed to find it necessary to take the climbing up to 7000 feet, and we brought our TX heat with us so we didn't have that sissy first day we thought we faced.

We rode together for the first 40 miles, then I think Spartaca and Cav started sprinting for City Limit signs which dropped Lebowski. Good thing for him as we got lost (my first time in over 10,000 PACTour miles) and added 5 miles to the ride. Ha, jokes on us.

PACTour is top notch as always, the rest stops perfect, lunch delicious and nutritious. We stayed hydrated and fed and arrived at the hotel as expected. I have to be honest, that was the most tired at night I have been. It'll be interesting to see how the next 2 weeks and 1600 miles plays out. Stay tuned.

Observation of the day. Georgia cows seem to have more smarts than TX cows. They stand _under_ the trees!! We then remembered that TX has no trees. Shot holes in that theory kinda quick.

PACTour Eastern Mts - Travel Day

2009-08-08T19:15:00.000-07:00

We flew to Atlanta, to start Eastern Mt. PACTour, at 3:30. We thought it would be a good idea to do the State Time Trial in the AM.

Out and back course from Castroville.

This is how not to do a time trial. Power Curve on bottom. Musta gone too hard in beginning - notice the steadily declining power output over the 1+ hr 40k...

Onto the plane. Kim fanning herself to get ready for the wind in her hair and sails for the next 2 1/2 weeks.

Always gotta think about Wes. Nice Xmas idea for someone reading to get Wes for his truck.

You can tell someone in the airport is going to PAC Tour when their carryon consists of a Helmet pod and a metal laptop briefcase.

George Jahant, Kim and Jenny. Jenny memorized rule one of PACTour - Always Be Safety. George is the SWAT officer in San Antonio so he will help to ensure this!! He is also Jon's father, you recall Jon from the past, super masseus, mechanic, rider, crew member etc...

Stay tuned, we start tomorrow. Eastern Mountains Tour. Harder and hotter tour than Will and I did last year on the Ridge of the Rockies. Should be interesting.

Electronic Shifting - the new old school

2009-08-07T09:00:00.000-07:00

Latest Build. Cervelo S3 with Shimano Di2. Electronic shifting is here!!

The shifters have up and down "switches" and no internal moving parts, making them far lighter than traditional.

The front wiring harness ties it together and displays battery power (estimated at 600 miles usage!)

Alternate view.

Rear derailleur with servo motor makes shifts precise.

The front der harbors the "brains" of the system. It auto trims to eliminate any chain rub as you shift the rear cassette up and down. It drops the chain to the inner chainring in a 2 step process to avoid unshipping the chain.

The battery pack mounts into the downtube bottle cage and is easily removed and replaced for charging.

Shimano also offers a "bottle cage mover" to move the seat tube cage upwards so the bottom of the bottle doesn't hit the battery.

Alternate view with the cages removed.

Stop by the shop and check this beauty out. Electronic shifting will be on all top end bikes in the next couple of years and will be offered as an option on top end bikes in 2010 or 2011. Shimano is the first to pull the trigger (no pun intended) on drivetrain electronics. Campy alleges to have it but is waiting for the global economy to improve.

The shifting is precise and smooth, far more than usual mechanical shifting. Plus the derailleurs make a cool noise when actuated. I'm wondering if Lance might get a remote shifter and throw Contador into the 53/12 at a critical point on the Ventoux next year!?!?

Oh, and the frame is sweet too. Rode it in this weeks Tree of Life Crit and took 3rd, which is unusual. The aerodynamics of this frame save you alot of energy, you can do alot more coasting and recovering in the peleton.