Hey! Where did he go!?

hello again. I hope you all are well. it has been a while, for sure! well here is what's up:
I got my driver's license and stopped commuting daily. this happend right after the last post before that little 1200k. which, went pretty good, finishing in 75 hrs with Jerry & Ian after a splendid overnight ride in the mountains! 

I took some time off the bike. I was a bit burned out after living on them for 7 years. I got into bass guitar, which has been a long time love of mine. Of course that became another 'gear habit' I didn't need but, oh never mind..
It took no time at all for the fitness to fade-by winter I was up about 15 lbs. In january 2013 I rode a 300k. ugh. my endurance was 'ok', but speed and power were gone. it was a bit of a downer. when I showed up in the spring for the local series I was convinced I would ride back into form by the 600. not. even. close. I suffered thru all the rides, with the 400 taking nearly 5hrs more than the 2 previous years. I was not a happy camper, to say the least. One of my best buds, Tim, said I was "spending too much time playing in the dirt." He was referring to my renewed interest in mountainbiking. He was probably right..The rest of the year was a slog too. I did take some bass lessons, and saw some killer concerts. Music was good! I also sold some bikes and parts. They grew back..

I decided in 2014 I was going to turn it around. s l o w l y. I took a shot at an R finally and made sure to get a 200k in every month. with a car this is easier to accomplish. when spring came I was riding. often. still not commuting much though..from the series start 'til june I went every weekend for 13 straight weeks. results were coming gradually. july 4th was a hot as hell 300k out of salisbury,nc. spent most of it with Tim and we had fun but weren't fast. oh well. I had a weird drivetrain prob that took some time to figure out and missed the next couple longer rides. My redeaming ride of the year was the 'picnic ride' (200k) in August. I took my Bianchi Pista fixed gear and solo'd the course in 7:39. I probably spent the 39 min. off the bike and could have really done it close to 7hrs..I felt good about that day. I did keep the streak alive and got my first R in january!
This year has been an even better ride. I saw a post by a friend saying they were putting together a 1200k in Florida. since I am not going to France, this sounded cool. I signed up the minute it opened up. I needed a big goal. A target. Let's train. 
I rode one of Tony's 300k's in january. It was cold, and slow. I did another in February, and it was cold and slow too. the rest of Feb was a loss, it was just miserable weather this year. Things picked up in march and I managed a couple more perms. April was the big ramp up-100k, 200k, then a 300k in va, and a rainy 300k here. A week later on may 2 we returned to Va for a 400k. it went well, I rode the whole thing with Lynn, and other than finding out the rain had killed my garmin (i'll do separate post on that) it was a smooth ride. we love those roads up there! ya gotta go! after that, it was 9 days to Florida..
whew, that report is next, stay tuned...

ToC 1200K pre-ride jitters?

nah, more like excitement! there are less than 36 hrs to the start, and I can hardly wait.
after a nice 60 mile test run yesterday, I was a bit concerned with my climbing. I just had a 9 day break from the bike, and wasn't feeling zippy at all. Claire was not 'perfect' either. 3 hrs of maintenance fixed the drivetrain and she's running like a top now..all that's left is a few final kit selections concerning a jacket (we will see rain for sure, hurricane Isaac is lurking), wool, spare shoes?, and packing the different drop bags tonight.

what I am most excited about is all the cool people coming to do the ride. local buddies, and friends from 1200's past. this is gonna be fun! bon route to all!!

head games

so here's the quick and low-down on the rest of the series this year. it was me against myself..after a fun, (rainy) 200k, the weather was choice for the next rides. I felt like I was in a fairly good place too. Lady Luck was not in my pockets or saddlebag :(

The 300k was off and running nicely. as we approached the snow camp control, I felt a little swish in the back end. yup. kinda soft, so i pumped some air and off we rolled the 11 miles to siler city. soft again, I had to fix it..as the front group rolled on, i cursed the darn thing because it (the tube) was 'glued' into the tire! arrgh! I chased and chased and finished with a nice time. solo for 200k, I had no other probs, and was home before dark..

Sidetrip! after a shower and some food. i pulled on the compression tights and hit the hay. I was up at 4:30. it was raining. temp in the low 50's.. I left the house at 6:15 and was on the bridge at old reedy creek at 7, where 5 other guys on mountain bikes were taking a long planned epic trainer-100 miles of single track and trails! due to the rain, the single track was out. I hung with them for about 40 miles and headed home. the cold was not doing the knees any good. 4 of those guys made it all the way. congrats!

The 400k was again on a lovely day. This time I made it beyond siler city and somewhere on old coleridge I punctured. Damn! as 6 bikes vanished up the road I changed the tube. off I went. hammering to seagrove, and on to the turn around, short stopping each one. The return was warm. I rode a bit with Tim, and we ate in seagrove. I then proceeded to rock out back to siler city with new pal Paul from atlanta. a terrific 'bent rider. we scooped up the florians, ian, and ed there too..it was hot tempo to the finish! 16:51 time.
joe ray and joel were a half hour ahead. damn flat...

600k.NEW TIRES. can everything else go right? sure it can. don't make a wrong turn or fall asleep. oops. a little booboo in the first half threw us off for a while, but I regrouped in white lake. easy trip on down to wilmington. left there at 12hrs. nice. fairly easy ride back to white lake. took a nice break, cleaned up put on a fresh kit and rolled about midnight. went in the store for a coffee with cindy and ed. incredibly, the temps dropped into the 50's overnight. this didn't help with staying alert! had to stop about every hour or so, and really struggled thru the night. we hit a store in wade about 5:30. biscuit and coffee, 15 min nap, and the sun came up. things got a bit easier. made angier about 8, and had 2nd breakfast-pancakes, yogurt, juice, coffee. viola! rode the last 40+miles non-stop and really strong. 29:50. A PR., and under 30, but was hoping for better.

what are the new tires? rivendell ruffy tuffys. what were the old ones? gran bois.
to be fair, they had about 3000 miles and had only flatted once prior to the bad luck.
in my hasty fix on the 400k, i bumped a brake shoe and it was rubbing the tire. almost burned thru the sidewall which clinched the deal for a new set..

ramping it up

yeah, I made a little name change. after losing a bunch of weight (but still feeling fat sometimes), and trying to broaden my horizons, I think it's time to drop the old title. done.


the Morrisville (Al's) series is underway. given the cool temps and rain, we still had about 30 riders on board the last saturday of march. Ian was pedaling strong on the new moulton Gilbert put together for him. myself, the florians, mike and tim were all that was left at the turnaround. the six of us spent the return trip together for a very nice ride. the last 50 mi were dry, and the sun shined on us for the last hour or so! a good day done in 7.5 hrs with tacos and salsa for recovery. I went out the next day for 100k with Bryan whose perm fell thru. 


Bryan tried again on monday and I joined him for a nice roll on the Triple L. this is a great route for hill work and quiet roads. I'll probly do it once a month til June :) 7000ft of climbing is a good thing, but I must remember my knee bands!!


yesterday was the NCBC spring rally. the course was interesting for a fast 100k. the first hour or so was the usual nerves and sorting out before things "mellowed" a bit. there were still a couple dozen for the second half, cruising along at good speeds to finish in just over 3hrs at 20.7 avg..I felt OK on the hills and took the polka dots to the podium. of course, I took my plastic bike and that helped a little ;)
for recovery today I headed out on the MTB. just a 20miler to relax and run the trails since I hadn't been on them in a few weeks and well, if I'm gonna ride 'em all day next weekend..


this weekend is going to be big IF-1. I feel good. and 2. the weather cooperates.
my plan is to shoot for a (barely) sub 12hr 300K. basically short-stop to seagrove, eat, and short-stop back. if all goes well and I feel good at the end; I head home, recover, SLEEP, and get up at 5:30 to be on the trailhead to start a 7AM ride:100 miles on singletrack and doubletrack.. the ride is nearby. if I blow up, I'll be able to ride home. slooowly..
I just saw the weather and after many sweet days it looks like the classic return of 'screw up the weekend and be pretty on monday' :( if the trails are soaked late in the week, they will be closed. not sure if there is a plan B for this one. we need the singletrack loops to keep us from going crazy going around Umstead all day. stay tuned! I think it would be a great back-to-back well ahead of the next long ride. saddle time, baby...


have a great week. I'll be at the benelux ride downtown tuesday eve., and keeping it simple after that 'til the weekend..

springtime

hey everyone. I hope you all have made it through another winter. spring ( and pollen) are in the air! since my last post I have continued on an unusual journey in cycling-new bikes and rides. first off, I am signed on to ride the cascades 1200k in washington. that means training and that's where new bikes and rides came in. a chance trip through umstead park got  me thinking, 'hey man, lots of hills in here to grind'...right in my backyard. my new weapon is a gary fisher sawyer 29er.  it's a killer bike and I've had a blast riding and meeting new bike friends. shoot, I entered 2 races! the 2nd one was the bushwack where i came in 23 out of 100 on a 28 degree morning! super fun! i'm commuting through the park pretty regularly.

there have been some new brevets as well. I rode my handsome cycles speedy devil on 2 rounds of Mike D's carolina crossroads 200k in november, including the 'end of year ride and party'..jerry has a new route from raleigh as well-'the bomb'. martin has a new perm I want to try too.  on new year's day about 10 folks showed up in Salisbury (early!) to do Tony's brushy mountain 200k. it's a really nice route! give it a shot. TX rando stampede buddy John Preston was up from Fla and joined us. he did really good for a flatlander ;)
'twas a chilly start with rain at the end, but a great day for sure. 

i've been using some different gear for a while now, and feel I can give a good review. 
hopefully I will start putting those reports up very soon..

happy roads and trails...

 

checklists

well, it's been a busy few weeks since returning/recovering from the Tejas 1200..
writing has been on my mind, but working and riding have been the order of the day.
the heat is on too, and rides have been challenging, which leads to part one of this entries title. the first two times out (both 200k's),I managed to leave home without my endurolytes. On one ride I really suffered late in the day, and the checklist was reborn :)

Part two is riding new rides. I seemed to be riding the same 'ol perms again and again..
So, a small wish was to do some of the many perms in the area I had not yet ridden.
First up, Byron's Triple L. I was amazed I had not yet done this route as B and I are great friends and have ridden 1000's of miles together. It was a super nice day with Tim, Bryan, and David (who completed his first 200k!). I recommend this route! All the stores have covered seating, very nice on hot summer days. Next week was the Black Creek Showdown. this flat route goes down east. rain cooled us off on the way down, but the heat was real on the way back. I needed an extra stop coming back for more water. the tempo was strong from the front and a long cooldown was in order at mickey d's at the end.

turning around in black creek

 

gotta take a dam picture

I did a nice social 100k with the team CBC folks on memorial day. I spent the time telling tales from texas as i moved about the pack on a vintage '87 cannondale team comp..fun!
the next 100k was Deans' Benson Mule Pull-quick and fun. gotta love populaires. stay tuned as the newest one is Dr.A's Ham 'n Yam and the start is just blocks from my job. I can ride it after work! will report on this one soon, raleigh to smithfield and back. yeehaw..



Late Nite with Tony G.....
this past weekend a suprisingly large contingency showed up in Salisbury for a midnight start-time to a smorgasbord of brevets in the hills and mountains in NW Nawth Cackalacky.
4 folks chose 200, about a dozen the 300, 7 the 4, and at least 4 were on the 600.
the tempo was brisk for the opening stretch, Branson rockin' the fixie up front. all routes went out together, and the 200 split off (around 100k)and Tony was there with refreshments.
we donned warmers and headed for the first and heaviest climbs. the trip up stone mtn. was easily 5 miles up two roads and took almost an hour! the "kick" on oklahoma rd was the real deal, with some riders walking. ouch. Lynn and I were joined at the top by Mike and Taylor (a strong young rider from Ohio) the real suprise was getting passed by Branson on the descent to Sparta! wow, he's dialed in on that fixie. We had cheese omeletts and coffee at the cafe in twin oaks and bid adieu to the 300k riders. Tim and I soft pedaled hoping Bryan would catch and he did at the next controle. the scenery was terrific, lots of christmas tree farms, and cows and big blue skies. yard sales, too. still in warmers, tho. downhills were nippy, and unpaved in one spot. the afternoon was nice and warm and full of climbs and big views going down. Tony sent us to Laurel Springs for lunch with the Harley crowd, a cluster of biker bars by the blue ridge parkway! we marched on over more grinders all day 'til we were back in Sparta, completing the century loop in the western hills. a july 4th parade held us up, so Bryan and I grabbed a frozen coffee to cool off. Tim was up the road as I had pulled a flat repair back a ways, but we caught up later at another little store. from about 4:30 on, the 3 of us stayed together, this route never let up! the climbing was relentless to the end, all tolled, nearly 17,000ft.
We arrived at the bike shop at 11:25. whew! 23.5 hrs., longest stretch I'd done in one shot. day 2 in texas was almost 22 hrs., but a 'little more dramatic'..just the same, a great training ride for France OR the 1st day of Taste of Carolina.

into the nite

sunrise descent to sparta

christmas trees

40 to go!

Climb every mountain

Hot Springs 200K-

Soo, with major rides on the horizon, Bryan and I decided to go to the mountains again between brevet weekends. no triple hump, this was the real deal. with bonus miles over a bonus mountain (twice) we tipped the counter at almost 14,000 feet in 150 miles.

I had another reason to ride: i'd climbed the mountain of sobriety to year number 3..

the adventure really began friday  with the car trip out. rainy, rainy, twisty roads. running late. we got to the campground and pitched tents and crawled in about 1am..up at 5, and on the way about 10 min. to 7..tony was waiting for us, along with about 8 other riders-mostly locals, including Ashvilleians' Annette and Chris Kamm. 

Still foggy and cool, we headed out and into the mist. literally. in just a few hundred yards the road heads upward. for a little over two miles. ya see, hot springs is in a hole. the only way in or out is over the mountains. we would climb one out, and return by coming down the other. here I am on the way up:

up, up, and away...

that is Bryan and the Kamm's behind me, and up ahead,two young guys, Luke and Lee.
at the top, Tony waited and said-"last chance to turn back!" no thanks, T..
Downhill! whee! 40mph in seconds. look: headlights! it's Team Lantiseptis! Mike, Cap'n, Branson, and Spencer, climbing the last miles of their challenging fleche route that started on Mt. Mitchell! awesome riding, boys. onto the brakes and make a left, let the scenery begin. there are plenty of great views up here: river roads galore, farms, horses, and rocky cliffsides, big valleys. spectacular cycling for sure, but be prepared to work, too..

not long onto the course, in the middle of a 10 mile stretch we came to a T. the next turn was a right, so that's what we did. oops. a major climb ensued, and after nearly 3 miles we were on another screaming descent in the fog. I started soft pedaling hoping someone would come along, and finally Bryan and Kamms rolled up. we had a chat and B manged to get a map on his phone and we turned back-all the way back. over walnut mountain again!
a common thing out in country: the side road has a sign, but, no sign for the road you are on. makes navigating a little frustrating at times..those extra miles and climbing put us on the bubble for the first control. we jammed along another terrific river road and soon we were there. we kept it brief to get back in the game. and climbed some more. on the descent we saw the youngsters climbing to the control. they caught us in short order, strong boys. a bit more confusion nipped us in Asheville. thanks to local knowledge, we only blew a couple miles this time! the Kamm's and other riders were at the store. jumping their wheel would have been good here, as they seemed to know the next couple hours up the road! we had another mix up between 'new/old' leicester rd. but again kept it to 2-3 miles :o) next came a few miles on newfound rd..then about 3 miles up newfound rd... this was a looong climb finished by a tenacious hound and his gun wielding owner! at least this descent was civil- almost straight, smooth and wiide open. we arrived in town and found a store and waited for bryan and hopefully rick to show up. everyone enjoyed the break and off we went. 

B chillin'

 with navi probs behind us, the next several miles were a non-event. a bit of wind and a grind up to iron duff. plenty of fun sightings today, including this horse and buggy man.

last control. it's pretty hot out. I was enjoying the first use of a new mini camelbak. we still had 3 climbs to go in the final stretch: the first looked like a desert road. long, straight and deceptive. i was headed to low gear and we weren't on the hill yet. damn! the descent was the same too, looong and smooth. I flew by the turn to Betsy's Gap. took about 200 yards to slow and turn back. Luke and I headed to the big climb of the day, Bryan up the road about 10 min..this one hurt a little-4.5 miles of continuous ascent with turns and cliffsides. unrelenting and beautiful at the same time, and another attention getting descent with plenty of switchbacks and fast runs.

up to betsy's gap

 the final climb is not too bad. has a couple breaks. lovely hairpin descent down to the creekside road that takes you along to Hot Springs. fantastic approach! I want to come do this route around Halloween with fall colors (hear that, Tony?) we arrive about 7:30. looong 200. seriously rides like 300k. just sayin'..

a  couple notes if you go: 
-the campground is very mellow, I left my keys on the cars' roof! and everything was still there! $30 a night is a good deal, and the french broad river will sing you to sleep..


-it's in the middle of nowhere. make sure you have fuel in your car and supplies as it's about 15 miles back to marshall where you can get stuff.

morrisville 300K

by now everyone is aware of the wicked weather that ripped thru the area last saturday afternoon. quite a few randos' are glad the call was made to move the 300K event to sunday, too. we missed some of our friends who could not stay around to do the ride, but 21 randonneurs lined up to roll out at 7am sunday morning.. with just a slight chill in the air, Alan dropped the flag and off we went. the pace was easy going and the group was together through the 'new' roads in  miles 3-4 and we all missed a turn together! back on the route, we started motoring a bit more, out to chatham co. where Bryan pulled a cheeky snag of the county line. things remained calm and together, Mike told me about the neil young gig he'd just seen (jealous). we were on to lystra and jack bennet, before the climb finally broke us up. annette pleaded for an easy go up the hill, umm, OK? plenty of hills thoughout the day anyway...

from here on to snow camp it was a pretty run with 10 riders sharing the fun. the first control in snow camp was a quickee. the Kamms ran, Tim too, fearin a leaky front tire, he hoped to buy a few minutes to work on it in siler city, 11 miles up the road and control#2.. we were there in no time, and another short stop ensued. the first 100k was done in 3 1/2 hours. nice.. once again, chris & annette were off and Tom jetted after them. Tim finished his tire fix and we were all together on the road in a couple minutes. in three miles, it's country roads again, and coleridge rd. goes on for about 9 miles. the rollers begin too. they come and go in near perfect weather; at the half we're in the mid-fifties. 
the turn-around is busy. the store is rocking with patrons. after church folks and the like. the little Hardee's stops taking orders! I get my card signed, put ice in my bottles, and scarf down a bar, banana, and get prepared to go. Ian and Mary show up with refreshments, and Tim is there. the lead couples invite me to join, but I  hang back for Tim. after just a few miles back on the road he sends me on, his legs not wanting to go too fast. solo time. I start my march, and things go pretty well back to siler c.. this stretch has been a thorn in my side on prior attempts, not today. back in town, Joel has an oasis set up in the lot. he recommends the navel oranges and I oblige him. after a fig newton too, mike and john show up. I wait for them, and Tim shows! he settles in for a PB&J and off we go. It's only 3:10, but the front quartet is about 20 min ahead, forget it..I do some pulling to snow camp, and john is chillin' due to cramping. i jet ahead to do some housekeeping before they arrive. just as we are about to leave, Bryan pulls up! he didn't even snack at joel's drive-thru, he saw us leave and made chase. in minutes the 4 of us are on the road, but within a mile or two, it's bryan and i on the rollers, and by lindley mills I'm alone again. i'm fine with soloing as it's important training right now. getting my nutrition routine dialed in, and tempo making on the new bike is key.  hopefully everyone is coming along fine behind me. I kept up the rhythm across old switchboard and castlerock, turned on a blinky for the hwy 87 stretch ( and left it on), and motored on..

given the super temps, I felt I could make it home from snow camp (50 mi) on two full bottles. worked out just right. I also knew I'd make my original soft goal-finish without needing lights. I was smelling my hard goal-finish in 12 hours. with so much riding, and 1 very tough 1200K only 20 something days away, I couldn't senselessly push too hard. still, it was going to be close. if not for stopping to take a photo, and catching a light on the last road, it was a reality. Alan's watch says-7:02. I can live with that. 12:02. pretty good.
I ate some pizza and waited. bryan, mike, and john were along before 8. way to go, fellas.
just one minute off their goal of beating the official sunset..Tim should have been close by but a missed turn in the new part gave him a few bonus miles. an extra post ride treat was a birthday cake for john. happy birthday! 

next up- 200K around Hot Springs 10,000 ft climbing. yay! we'll be in before the fleche teams arrive, can't wait!! 


a little follow-up on my spring gear break-in/testing: 
-finally got a fender to rattle (fixed it)
-rode with the front boxy bag on the rack-really like the access to stuff! bike handles well too..
-took the M/L bag off the back and switched to the medium/banana style bag. basically it acted as a big, fancy tool bag with room to stuff my vest into after the sun was out for good around 125k.
-wool. I chose my joneswares Eddy again. super comfy allllllldayyy..

three great rides=one great bike test=rando time

Yo, A! rides

 Yo, A! Miles of smiles :o)

on sunday, march 13, NC cyclers gathered from near and far to remember our beloved Adrian Hands. known for not driving (my kinda guy) and pedaling to events, most rode to the start of this mini-Fleche, which began in Hillsboro, on the Eno River.. 3 friends-Bryan R, Bryan H, and David S met at my place and off we went into the dark around 6am. I delivered them right on time to Jerry P, at 7am, so we could head to chapel hill. we arrived at Adrian and Padmini's place in no time where we exchanged pleasantries, and watched A's son Ian prep his bike. 

Now we were 6 riders with special guest Adrians' ashes in Ian's  pannier! the sun was coming out and we had a good time rolling on up to H'boro..at the weaver st. market we met Branson, Jack, Rich, and some others I didn't know. A hearty breakfast ensued and off we went to the courthouse. wowzer. the crowd was BIG. bikes everywhere, and lots of folks. After a few words, the men put A's ashes in the river. A's brother spoke, and Padmini too, who told us to get on the road! Ian said he hadn't been to many funerals, but this was the coolest one ever :) we got the bikes together and off we went- lot's of reminders of Adrian out there, license plates etc. but I loved the pics hanging on the velos...

a few hands

 we just couldn't have had a prettier day. amazing! around mile 10 we missed a turn, who cared? Branson knew all the roads and had us back on route in short order. winging it and enjoying the ride was A's style, so bonus miles were de rigueur. riders came and went as we made our way through parts of Durham, RTP, and into Cary. we filled bottles and stopped for indian food (of course!) before making it to the Buddhist Center. here's Jerry's bike cinnamon girl, stocked to party:

it took a bit for everyone to arrive, and more socializing took place, and we had a little parade, led by the illustrious ( and dear friend of A's) Gilbert Anderson.

mr funky bike

the cermony was touching, funny, emotional, but more than anything, filled with love.
it was great to see everyone and share our love of Adrian and cycling together. a very special day indeed. a  frequent comment was that regarding Adrian's unselfishness on and off the bike. I too, was shepherded by him, on my first 300k, with that amazing coolness only he possessed. he made it seem OK, all the way, into the night, following me on his fixie with a small light stuck in blink mode. i'll never forget it. nor will I forget him..

3 amigos after the Yo A! day...

 brevet #1 on the Boulder-

after one more shakedown ride, it was time to kick-off Al's series in morrisville..
200K. this used to be the "season opener' , but thanks to Tony's winter action, this ride was a sprint before we settle into the longer rides of the series.. I'll say this now- I was humbled and impressed. a lot of folks are riding strong. NC is on the rando map!
we rolled at 7am. there was a change to the route, but not today, a bridge was closed so we headed out the old way. Bryan H and I pulled quite a bit to mt. Lystra where some little bitty climbers took the points. we were all together for the next major sections and again the Ti and Carbon quartet took the rollers into snow camp. short stops ensued, and our gang met them as they were leaving Joel's oasis in siler city. card signing formalities, reloading bottles, and gobbling fig newtons broke the crew a bit more. Tim and Annette jetted ahead with us in pursuit. it was Bryan's first 200, and I didn't want him to think it was all run-and-gun, but we were hustling. back at snow camp, tim was scooting out, as we arrived. another short stop and off we went. 

most storytellers on this day will say it was the big winds causing all the hustle and bustle to catch some push for the retour. whatev... they were swirling!  another element was a fairly big temp range-I left at 6 and it was 39 deg. it was about 45 at the start, and slowly crept to the low 60's. peeling layers was the game. Bagless Bryan had a funky look going on late in the ride! (if he comes to the 300, I'll loan him a bag) I chose bare legs lathered in Mad Alchemy's uber secret coffee Embrocation. worked great. arm warmers and a vest over a JonesWares wool Eddy jersey and their sprint base. perfecto. 
back to biking. I basically led bryan (when not grabbing a little wheel) point to point back to nc hwy 87, where we both were stuffing warmers  and along comes bryan r, jerry and chris, and a few others. we jumped the wheels and rode chicken bridge with the tri-types and stayed with 'em to parker herndon. the warmth had me drinking a bit so we filled real quick at andrew's store. we hammered jack bennett, and battled winds on the lake. cruised across lewter shop and fought serious traffic down thru carpenter to morrisville. 


the front folks were 10-15 min ahead of us. good job! we chilled out a bit, and in no time others were tumbling in. our time was 7:30. i'd say another dozen showed over the next hour, that puts about 2 doz., or half, back in 8.5 or less. really impressive on a rolly course with bitchin' headwinds. note to self..drink more (but not Al's homebrew)

so far, I lloooove the new bike. very fast, responsive, and comfortable. 
*also of note were two other new bikes ready to travel. chris' blue gunnar w/S&S, and
Keith's (doc on a bike) surly traveller's check. very cool and rando-centric!


Variations on the Triple Hump-

with hilly brevets looming and the 1200 on the horizon (it opens with back-to-back 400k's w/12,000 ft of climbing each day!) it was time for some real climbing. new rando david was camping at hanging rock over the weekend, so Bryan R came up with a nice lil' 50-something mile loop from there. we headed out at 6 to meet dave on the hilltop and roll 'bout 9:30..

climbing hanging rock-by car..

the weather was foggy but clearing and heading to the eighties. groovy. it was chilly and I forgot my arm warmers, but had some non-warming goop for my legs. i put some on my arms too. the opening descent was nippy! we all got shiver induced shimmys as we hit 40+ in spots. a quick left onto moore springs just outside the gate and the road mellowed out. there is a country store here. with a hammer nutrition banner above the ice machine. interesting.. we roll a bit, and warm up some. in short order we find markings on the road for '3 mountain madness'. time to head up sauratown. the first 100 ft of this road is straight up. we all settle into our rhythms and grind away into the fog. dew is covering our bikes, arms, and all things around us. i catch bryan in the rear-view about 2 miles up.

sauratown fog

just after this shot we ride into a turn, then head on to the top where the sun is shining. and the road ends. and cell towers abound. we all snack, update our friends and begin the descent. back into the fog and going fast! thanks to the organized rides, the road is marked with S-L-O-W painted across it. on the brakes  and into the turn. cool. no, not cool. i'm flat in back. ease it down to the edge. the challenge tires are rideable flat because they kept the rim off the pavement. no puncture found, I just cooked the tube. the hole was inside and I patched it. i washed up in the little brook rushing down hillside and off we went. no prob. from here. the blackburn frame pump was good at filling the big tire to nearly 90 lbs or so. i'm on a full blown dress rehearsal at this point trying out all my new stuff! 
still foggy, we meander over rollers and quiet roads for a half hour before the blue skies show up on approach to pilot mountain. the boys roll ahead toward the entrance and i steal a nature break. i'll catch 'em, right? a sign by the road (one of those pewter historical landmark types) says the summit is 3 miles west. shortly  beyond the visitor's center, i see david and finally overtake him. he's already spinning his granny gear (1st time since crossing the rockies last summer, BTW). it takes me a bit longer to spot bryan-he's spinning up a switch above me and looking good! i'm feeling it a tad because i'm pushing a 50/23. the chain won't stay on the 26, some cable stretch has me in  a spot of bother! I stop for 45 sec or so and proceed. this baby alpe d'huez is tough to clean out of the saddle. be prepared. the view on top is worth the effort! spectacular. take it in and eat something as your heartrate comes back down, but nature takes your breath away at over 2400 feet of elevation. 

pinnacle overlook

once again, time to descend. this one is technical. the very first right hander is a  decreasing radius scorcher that will put you head-on into the far lane so watch it! it's very switchy and takes just seconds to hit 30+ heading into turns and yours truly cooked the tube again after wondering if the smell was me, bryan, or cars. no joke. the stench of burning brake pads and transmission fluid is in the air..I did another mountainside repair and off we went. the plan was fill bottles at the visitor center. I put a new tube in there too. yes, flat #3..store-brand tubes are not up to the high heat challenge. use good ones!


we left pilot behind and made our way to pinnacle where we bought snacks and drinks for the final stretch. the roads and views were great. you get a couple of different looks at pilot as you leave the area. this one is after a grinder, before the only busy stretch we rode: hwy 66..

D & B  catch me..

the road gets quiet again and really fun for the return to hanging rock, we loved it! great rollers, banked turns, and whoopdees' kept us energized. so did the store I spoke of at the beginning. I just had to see what they had inside for cyclists. score! look at the full row of gels, bars, blocks, from Hammer, Gu, honey stinger, and Clif. also on the end were tubes, and helmets! if ya go to hanging rock and forget stuff, fear not, it's here..

damn gooey!

from here all we had to do was climb hanging rock. after splitting points with bryan I was ready to go. no 26 cog, and I hit the 23 about a mile into the almost 2.5 miler. I cleaned it no prob, but there is a good little kick about .5K from the end! yowza! burn!

 this was a really nice day, and we want to do it again soon. maybe a bit longer, too, including a southern return by danbury. watch the list. makes a fun day trip from RTP. 

since it was Paris-Roubaix day, here's my dirty legs at the end. most of it, believe it or not, is brake dust..crazy! 

dirty boy

time to rest for the 300. I've made adjustments to the bike and have everything running smooth. hope to see you all this weekend! Tailwinds!!

Prepping for Hors Categorie Tours

i've only 4 more weekends to ride and prepare for my first 1200K. a little thing called life must go on during the week so the schedule is full: mountain trainers, 300k, mountain 200k (w/10,000 feet of climbing!), 400k/200k back to back weekend, and nearly 200k's of commuting each and every week. yep, spring is in the air..

here's a quick look at some ordinary riders (yeah, the Rapha Boys are ordinary) pre riding this year's Paris-Roubaix course:

Hors Course from RAPHA on Vimeo.


myself and a couple cycing friends will be doing a variation of the famous 'triple hump' ride from hanging rock to sauratown mntn., pilot mntn., and finally back up to hanging rock. looking forward to it! should be a good test to see how the new bike will do on Tony's 200k in Hot Springs in 2 weeks.

so get out there and ride something tough. then relax and enjoy the queen of the classics.
you'll feel so much better knowing you left a little out there on the road..Allez!!