I was looking at the my choices for permanents for my August R-12 ride. I wanted to do a route that I hadn't done before. I considered doing a 300K but I didn't want to spend that much time on a ride. My wife is getting a little annoyed by how much I've been gone.
I decided on Miles's Project 145 route. It was the hilliest of the 200Ks in Marion. I had ridden part of the route before. The 300K that I did in March followed the same route from Creal Springs to Metropolis.
The weather on that Saturday was forecast to be in the mid 80's with very high humidity but very little wind. I started the ride at 7:00am in Marion. After about 20 miles I got onto the Tunnel Hills bike trail. I am not a big fan of this trail but it was in good condition. It was also easier because I got on the trail at the high point and there was a very slight downhill for most of the time I was on the trail.
The section from Vienna (where I got of the trail) to Metropolis is fairly hilly. But it seemed easier than it did in March. This could have been because my conditioning got better or because I reached these hills earlier in this ride.
I reached Metropolis (mile 42) around 10:30. I was making a pretty good pace and was hoping to finish under 10 hours. I figured nine hours would be out of reach because of the heat, humidity, and hills.
Most of the next section was on Illinois 145, which is where the route gets its name. I had not ridden on it before and I did not like it. It is hilly and has no shoulder. Drivers seemed to not worry about oncoming traffic when passing me. Several time cars crossed a double yellow line to pass me near the top of a hill. I was scared that they were going to get themselves killed if another car came over the hill as they passed me. Fortunately it didn't happen.
The second control was in Mitchellsville (mile 93). I took a break and had a slice of pizza and a coke. I also bought another bag of ice for my camelback. I did not buy any water this ride, just ice. After this control I backtracked for a short distance and then got off of 145. The hills here didn't look tough but they sure felt tough. Maybe a was just tired.
I made a relatively quick stop at the next control in Creal Springs (mile 112). This just left the last 15 miles. I finished at about 4:30 for a nine a a half hour time. I felt good but I might have been a touch dehydrated. After all the riding I've been doing, a 200K should be a piece of cake and this one was.
Friday, August 30, 2013
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
I get by with a little help from my friends
I needed another 600K to complete my goal of completing two Super Randonneur series this year. there was not a 600K in St. Louis this year. I had already done the one in Kansas City. The one in Marion was two days after the 400K that I did so that was out. Bob Booth suggested that I ride the Great Lakes Randonneurs 600K with him and Michelle on July 13th. This fit in well with my plans so I decided to do it.
I drove to Delavan, WI on the day before the ride and checked into the hotel. Bob lives in Madison and drove up after work. Michelle could not make it due to one bike being damaged by a landslide and the other falling off a bike carrier on the highway.
The ride started at 6:00 AM. There were at total of 16 riders, 11 doing the 400K and 5 doing the 600. Bob was very familiar with the route so I let him set the pace and do all the navigating. We let the rest of the group pull ahead of us (with the exception of one rider who fell behind us). At each control we kept seeing the people in front of us. They would be leaving as we were arriving.
Wisconsin is very pretty. Looking down at the farms from the tops of the hills made for some beautiful scenery. Unfortunately we had to climb each one of those scenic hills. At one point, as we were entering a valley, we were able to go about 2 miles hardly pedaling at all. Climbing out of that valley involved climbing 900 ft in about 2.5 miles. A few steep grades but mostly just steady climbing.
As always, I spent more time in the controls than Bob would have preferred. There was a ferry crossing at 135 miles where Bob was bonking a little. We didn't take the first ferry and waited for it to come back again so that we could rest a little.
The route was actually a 400K loop followed by a 200K loop. That meant that we could sleep a little at the hotel where we started and not need a bag drop. We made it back to the hotel at 3:03 AM. Bob mentioned that this was his slowest 400K in a while. I told him that 21:03 might be my fastest ever. I later check and found out that I did a much flatter 400K in 2007 in 20:37. That was before my accident.
We set our alarms for 6:15 but we both woke up before then. We were back on the road a little before 7.
I have to admit that I was a little slower on the second day, both on the bike and in the controls. For me this was one of the toughest ride that I would do this year. For Bob it was a warmup for London-Edinburgh-London in a couple of weeks. Bob never complained though. Keeping a good attitude is part of what makes him such a good rider. Also he's really good at turning the pedals.
I was hurting as we pulled into the penultimate control, 28 miles from the finish. My feet hurt and my seat hurt. I think that my feet hurt from all the grinding on the climbs. My lowest gear was not low enough.
I told Bob that I was going to take some snacks in case I needed to stop and rest on the last leg. I didn't want to stop but I needed a backup plan. I wasn't worried about finishing because we had over 6 hours left. I just didn't want to slow down Bob too much.
The last leg was painful. I would occasionally stand to take some pressure off my seat but my legs weren't strong enough to do that for very long. We finished at 6:10 PM. This was a personal best for me at 36:10. This was also not an easy route. This completed my second SR Series for the year.
This was the last long ride that I have planned for the year. I still need to do a 200K in August and September to earn an R-12 Award. I'll also be doing the MS-150 in September.
I drove to Delavan, WI on the day before the ride and checked into the hotel. Bob lives in Madison and drove up after work. Michelle could not make it due to one bike being damaged by a landslide and the other falling off a bike carrier on the highway.
The ride started at 6:00 AM. There were at total of 16 riders, 11 doing the 400K and 5 doing the 600. Bob was very familiar with the route so I let him set the pace and do all the navigating. We let the rest of the group pull ahead of us (with the exception of one rider who fell behind us). At each control we kept seeing the people in front of us. They would be leaving as we were arriving.
Wisconsin is very pretty. Looking down at the farms from the tops of the hills made for some beautiful scenery. Unfortunately we had to climb each one of those scenic hills. At one point, as we were entering a valley, we were able to go about 2 miles hardly pedaling at all. Climbing out of that valley involved climbing 900 ft in about 2.5 miles. A few steep grades but mostly just steady climbing.
As always, I spent more time in the controls than Bob would have preferred. There was a ferry crossing at 135 miles where Bob was bonking a little. We didn't take the first ferry and waited for it to come back again so that we could rest a little.
The route was actually a 400K loop followed by a 200K loop. That meant that we could sleep a little at the hotel where we started and not need a bag drop. We made it back to the hotel at 3:03 AM. Bob mentioned that this was his slowest 400K in a while. I told him that 21:03 might be my fastest ever. I later check and found out that I did a much flatter 400K in 2007 in 20:37. That was before my accident.
We set our alarms for 6:15 but we both woke up before then. We were back on the road a little before 7.
I have to admit that I was a little slower on the second day, both on the bike and in the controls. For me this was one of the toughest ride that I would do this year. For Bob it was a warmup for London-Edinburgh-London in a couple of weeks. Bob never complained though. Keeping a good attitude is part of what makes him such a good rider. Also he's really good at turning the pedals.
I was hurting as we pulled into the penultimate control, 28 miles from the finish. My feet hurt and my seat hurt. I think that my feet hurt from all the grinding on the climbs. My lowest gear was not low enough.
I told Bob that I was going to take some snacks in case I needed to stop and rest on the last leg. I didn't want to stop but I needed a backup plan. I wasn't worried about finishing because we had over 6 hours left. I just didn't want to slow down Bob too much.
The last leg was painful. I would occasionally stand to take some pressure off my seat but my legs weren't strong enough to do that for very long. We finished at 6:10 PM. This was a personal best for me at 36:10. This was also not an easy route. This completed my second SR Series for the year.
This was the last long ride that I have planned for the year. I still need to do a 200K in August and September to earn an R-12 Award. I'll also be doing the MS-150 in September.
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Marion 400K
I did my second 400K of the season earlier this month. This was part of Miles's Bare Bones Brevet Week. I was only doing the 400K.
I drove to Marion on Tuesday night and stayed in a hotel. The ride started at 6 am on Wednesday. Originally there were supposed to be 6 riders doing the 400. 2 riders who were coming from out of town canceled their trip. Two other riders who were planning on doing the whole series decided to skip the 400K. That meant it was Jim and me doing the ride. Ned also started at the same time but was doing a 200K.
It was warm at the start. This was the 9th month towards my R-12 and this was the first ride where I wasn't wearing wool socks at the start of the ride. I brought tights and a rain jacket with me but never ended up needing either one.
We ran into a little trouble around the 60 mile mark. We stopped to decide which way to turn. Jim thought that were should bear right. I said "Good, because if we go left we'll end up underwater." So we went right. About a half mile later, the road went underwater. There were a lot of cars park on the road there. According to a couple we met, people had been parking the cars and taking boats to get to their houses because of the flooding. The also told us the we could ride our bikes on top of the levee to get back to Old Route 3.
We rode back to get to the levee. It had a gravel road on top so we started riding. I only made it about 100 yards before I got a flat. I was worried that this was going to be a recurring problem on the gravel but it did not happen again. After about 3 miles we made it back onto the route.
The next challenge was the Tunnel Hill bike trail. The crushed limestone just seems to slow you down. It is certainly better than gravel but the trail seems to go on forever. The route followed the trail for about 50 miles.
By the time we left the trail at mile 150 it was starting to get dark. We knew that we would not get to Wayne City (mile 192) before the convenience store closed at 10:00 so we decided to stock up in McCleansboro (mile 173). On our way to McLeansboro it started to rain a little. We were skirting around the edges of a storm that was passing through. Luckily for us it never rained hard enough that that we need to put on any rain gear. It also stayed fairly warm.
We stopped briefly in Wayne City even though everything was closed. We had to sign each other's brevet cards. I needed a break so we stopped again in front of a post office in Belle Rive (mile 208). Nothing was open but I ate some of the food I bought in McLeansboro.
The final stop was in Benton (mile 232). We both tried to rest for the final leg. I may have dozed off briefly but Jim got a good nap. The last leg was only 20 miles and it was starting to get light. We are feeling okay but we certainly weren't setting any speed records. We finished at 6:25 am.
I drove to Marion on Tuesday night and stayed in a hotel. The ride started at 6 am on Wednesday. Originally there were supposed to be 6 riders doing the 400. 2 riders who were coming from out of town canceled their trip. Two other riders who were planning on doing the whole series decided to skip the 400K. That meant it was Jim and me doing the ride. Ned also started at the same time but was doing a 200K.
It was warm at the start. This was the 9th month towards my R-12 and this was the first ride where I wasn't wearing wool socks at the start of the ride. I brought tights and a rain jacket with me but never ended up needing either one.
We ran into a little trouble around the 60 mile mark. We stopped to decide which way to turn. Jim thought that were should bear right. I said "Good, because if we go left we'll end up underwater." So we went right. About a half mile later, the road went underwater. There were a lot of cars park on the road there. According to a couple we met, people had been parking the cars and taking boats to get to their houses because of the flooding. The also told us the we could ride our bikes on top of the levee to get back to Old Route 3.
We rode back to get to the levee. It had a gravel road on top so we started riding. I only made it about 100 yards before I got a flat. I was worried that this was going to be a recurring problem on the gravel but it did not happen again. After about 3 miles we made it back onto the route.
The next challenge was the Tunnel Hill bike trail. The crushed limestone just seems to slow you down. It is certainly better than gravel but the trail seems to go on forever. The route followed the trail for about 50 miles.
By the time we left the trail at mile 150 it was starting to get dark. We knew that we would not get to Wayne City (mile 192) before the convenience store closed at 10:00 so we decided to stock up in McCleansboro (mile 173). On our way to McLeansboro it started to rain a little. We were skirting around the edges of a storm that was passing through. Luckily for us it never rained hard enough that that we need to put on any rain gear. It also stayed fairly warm.
We stopped briefly in Wayne City even though everything was closed. We had to sign each other's brevet cards. I needed a break so we stopped again in front of a post office in Belle Rive (mile 208). Nothing was open but I ate some of the food I bought in McLeansboro.
The final stop was in Benton (mile 232). We both tried to rest for the final leg. I may have dozed off briefly but Jim got a good nap. The last leg was only 20 miles and it was starting to get light. We are feeling okay but we certainly weren't setting any speed records. We finished at 6:25 am.
Monday, May 20, 2013
600K
Packing for a 600K can be tough. Especially one without a bag drop. I needed to have clothing for highs in the 70's and lows in the 40's. This is what I decided to take:
The ride started in Grandview, MO. I had a little trouble finding the starting location but I called Bob and he told me where it was. There were 5 other riders: Spencer, Dan, Joe, Rod, and Steve. We rolled out at 10 PM in good spirits.
Rod fell crossing some railroad tracks. He was in pain but able to continue. We made it to the first control in Paola, KS (mile 41) at 12:49 AM. We got something to eat and were back on the road at 1:10. We were stopped by a sheriff somewhere in Kansas. He had gotten a phone call about "bicycles riding all over the road, some with lights, some without." Obviously he could see that all of us had lights. We told him what we were doing and he wished us good luck and told us to be careful.
That is what usually happens when I encounter the police on these rides. They wonder what we are doing. They usually think that we are crazy (we are), and they warn us to be careful (we are). They are polite and friendly. I've never had a bad experience.
Later in the ride, Joe broke his chain. Someone else had a chain tool and a quick link but the quick link was for a 10-speed chain and Joe had a nine speed. Fortunately, Joe was able to push out a pin and use it to fix the chain.
We reached the second control in Butler, MO (mile 97) at 5:22. The sun was starting to come up which made me feel less sleepy. We were still moving at a pretty good pace. Back on the road at 6:10.
On the way to Appleton, Joe's chain broke again. This time Steve gave him a chain pin to repair it with. We reached Appleton (mile 121) at 8:03. There were no services for the next 52 miles so we needed to stock up. I shed some clothes and put on sunblock here. I used the last of the sunblock that I had and planned to buy more at the next control.
This was the toughest section of the ride. It started out hilly and then got hillier. Many of the hills required grinding up in the lowest gear. I can't believe that Spencer was doing this ride on a fixed gear. The only advantage that we had was that we generally had a tailwind. Steve was not able to keep up and fell behind the rest of us. I know that it is more difficult to ride solo but everyone has to ride their own pace. I was also worried that I was the next weakest link.
We reached Humansville (mile 173) at 12:03 PM. This was a longer stop because we were so tired from the hills. Unfortunately the control did not have any sunblock. Back on the road at 12:44 and at Weaubleau (mile 182) at 1:22. It took us 15:22 to do the first half of the ride. That is a decent time for a 300K, we had just a little over 24 hours to do another one. I did find sunblock here. We all took a nap in the shade for 15-20 minutes and got back on the rode at 2:04.
We saw Steve headed the other way a little while after we left Weaubleau. This section was easy because we were headed south and the wind was out of the north. It had picked up too, just like the weather report said. We reached Humansville (mile 190) again at 2:35. We loaded up on supplies and headed back out at 2:45.
Now we had to face the tough section again. This time we had a headwind. In fact the wind had picked up so we had a stronger headwind than the tailwind that had helped us earlier. I did okay on the extremely hilly section where were headed west. Once we turned north I had more trouble keeping up with Dan, Spencer, and Joe. I seem to deal better with hills than with wind. Rod had already fallen off the back, and I kept falling back on the windy parts and catching up on the hills. Eventually I lost sight of Joe and stopped to rest and read the cue sheet. After 10 minutes or so Rod caught up and I followed him. About a mile later we found the other three resting outside a church. If I had know they were going to stop I would have kept going to catch them.
We rode together for a while and then Dan and Rod fell of the back. We reached Appleton (mile 243) at 8:05. The wind had died down some, and my legs still felt strong, but I was feeling sleepy. This was no surprise since I had been up for over 36 hours and had ridden almost 250 miles. If there had been a motel in Appleton I probably would have slept there. At 8:05 Spencer, Joe, and I were back on the road. I wasn't about to fall asleep on the bike but my brain had shut down everything else it seemed.
We reached Butler (mile 269) at 9:50. I got a motel room, took a shower, and went to bed. I set my alarm for 3:00 AM, but I woke up at 2:30 and just decided to get up. The 5 of us were back on the road at 3:40.
It was cold and getting colder. I ended up wearing everything except the rain jacket. When we stopped in La Cygne we saw at sign that said 33°. I was glad that I had just bought new shoe covers to help keep my feet warm. We spent some time eating and letting our feet warm up.
At 7:50 we got to Paola (mile 326). We got are cards signed and then went to McDonald's for third breakfast. We met up with Steve here. He had gotten to Butler after us and left before us. It was getting warmer so I shed some layers. We left at 8:20. After a little while Dan and Steve fell off the back.
The last 20 miles or so were a little frustrating. There was more traffic on a Sunday morning that there was when we left on Friday night. Also the hills seemed to have gotten steeper. It felt like we were almost done but still had a couple of hours to go.
We finally finished at 11:15 (mile 367). It felt good to be done. Dan and Steve finished not too much later. It was a good ride and I felt proud that I kept up with the "big dogs" this time (unlike the 400K). Actually, anyone who finishes a 600K can be considered a "big dog" in my opinion.
I ended up stopping twice on the drive home to take naps. I certainly did not want to fall asleep at the wheel.
- 2 pairs of shorts
- short sleeve jersey
- long sleeve jersey
- long sleeve base layer
- tights
- regular cycling shoes
- shoe covers
- balaclava
- rain jacket
- thin socks
- wool socks
The ride started in Grandview, MO. I had a little trouble finding the starting location but I called Bob and he told me where it was. There were 5 other riders: Spencer, Dan, Joe, Rod, and Steve. We rolled out at 10 PM in good spirits.
Rod fell crossing some railroad tracks. He was in pain but able to continue. We made it to the first control in Paola, KS (mile 41) at 12:49 AM. We got something to eat and were back on the road at 1:10. We were stopped by a sheriff somewhere in Kansas. He had gotten a phone call about "bicycles riding all over the road, some with lights, some without." Obviously he could see that all of us had lights. We told him what we were doing and he wished us good luck and told us to be careful.
That is what usually happens when I encounter the police on these rides. They wonder what we are doing. They usually think that we are crazy (we are), and they warn us to be careful (we are). They are polite and friendly. I've never had a bad experience.
Later in the ride, Joe broke his chain. Someone else had a chain tool and a quick link but the quick link was for a 10-speed chain and Joe had a nine speed. Fortunately, Joe was able to push out a pin and use it to fix the chain.
We reached the second control in Butler, MO (mile 97) at 5:22. The sun was starting to come up which made me feel less sleepy. We were still moving at a pretty good pace. Back on the road at 6:10.
On the way to Appleton, Joe's chain broke again. This time Steve gave him a chain pin to repair it with. We reached Appleton (mile 121) at 8:03. There were no services for the next 52 miles so we needed to stock up. I shed some clothes and put on sunblock here. I used the last of the sunblock that I had and planned to buy more at the next control.
This was the toughest section of the ride. It started out hilly and then got hillier. Many of the hills required grinding up in the lowest gear. I can't believe that Spencer was doing this ride on a fixed gear. The only advantage that we had was that we generally had a tailwind. Steve was not able to keep up and fell behind the rest of us. I know that it is more difficult to ride solo but everyone has to ride their own pace. I was also worried that I was the next weakest link.
We reached Humansville (mile 173) at 12:03 PM. This was a longer stop because we were so tired from the hills. Unfortunately the control did not have any sunblock. Back on the road at 12:44 and at Weaubleau (mile 182) at 1:22. It took us 15:22 to do the first half of the ride. That is a decent time for a 300K, we had just a little over 24 hours to do another one. I did find sunblock here. We all took a nap in the shade for 15-20 minutes and got back on the rode at 2:04.
We saw Steve headed the other way a little while after we left Weaubleau. This section was easy because we were headed south and the wind was out of the north. It had picked up too, just like the weather report said. We reached Humansville (mile 190) again at 2:35. We loaded up on supplies and headed back out at 2:45.
Now we had to face the tough section again. This time we had a headwind. In fact the wind had picked up so we had a stronger headwind than the tailwind that had helped us earlier. I did okay on the extremely hilly section where were headed west. Once we turned north I had more trouble keeping up with Dan, Spencer, and Joe. I seem to deal better with hills than with wind. Rod had already fallen off the back, and I kept falling back on the windy parts and catching up on the hills. Eventually I lost sight of Joe and stopped to rest and read the cue sheet. After 10 minutes or so Rod caught up and I followed him. About a mile later we found the other three resting outside a church. If I had know they were going to stop I would have kept going to catch them.
We rode together for a while and then Dan and Rod fell of the back. We reached Appleton (mile 243) at 8:05. The wind had died down some, and my legs still felt strong, but I was feeling sleepy. This was no surprise since I had been up for over 36 hours and had ridden almost 250 miles. If there had been a motel in Appleton I probably would have slept there. At 8:05 Spencer, Joe, and I were back on the road. I wasn't about to fall asleep on the bike but my brain had shut down everything else it seemed.
We reached Butler (mile 269) at 9:50. I got a motel room, took a shower, and went to bed. I set my alarm for 3:00 AM, but I woke up at 2:30 and just decided to get up. The 5 of us were back on the road at 3:40.
It was cold and getting colder. I ended up wearing everything except the rain jacket. When we stopped in La Cygne we saw at sign that said 33°. I was glad that I had just bought new shoe covers to help keep my feet warm. We spent some time eating and letting our feet warm up.
At 7:50 we got to Paola (mile 326). We got are cards signed and then went to McDonald's for third breakfast. We met up with Steve here. He had gotten to Butler after us and left before us. It was getting warmer so I shed some layers. We left at 8:20. After a little while Dan and Steve fell off the back.
The last 20 miles or so were a little frustrating. There was more traffic on a Sunday morning that there was when we left on Friday night. Also the hills seemed to have gotten steeper. It felt like we were almost done but still had a couple of hours to go.
We finally finished at 11:15 (mile 367). It felt good to be done. Dan and Steve finished not too much later. It was a good ride and I felt proud that I kept up with the "big dogs" this time (unlike the 400K). Actually, anyone who finishes a 600K can be considered a "big dog" in my opinion.
I ended up stopping twice on the drive home to take naps. I certainly did not want to fall asleep at the wheel.
Friday, May 10, 2013
Done with the 400K, getting reading for the 600K
Sometimes it seems like writing the blog post about my rides is harder than the ride themselves. Once again I am writing a report of a ride just before my next ride. I guess this is also a side effect of doing so many rides this year.
I did the Kansas City 400K on April 27. The weather report called for less wind than the 300K but rain at the start. It was about 45° with a light rain when we rolled out at 6:00. The rain kept our speeds down so I didn't have to worry about burning out early. Even so we made a good pace until our first stop in the Burger King in Cameron (mile 45) around 9:00. This wasn't a control, just a good place to grab breakfast.
The first control was in Pattonsburg (mile 73). I was a little late leaving this control, but I figured I could just catch up to the main group. I was hammering hard but I could not seem to close that last quarter mile. I caught up to Spencer for a little while but he later joined the main group.
Another rider fell off the main group. This was Steve who I had met briefly at the 300K. This was his first 400K. We ended up riding the rest of the route together. The next control was in Lamoni, Iowa (mile 117.8). We saw one rider here who made it to the turnaround and was on his way back. We decided to stop briefly here and make a long stop on the way back.
On out way to the turnaround we saw the rest of the riders who were ahead of us. We made it to Davis City, Iowa (mile 124.3) before 4:00 PM. This means that we had done the first half in less than 10 hours. This put us on a pace to finish in 20 hours but I knew we would be slower on the way back.
Steve and I rode back to Lamoni (mile 130.8) and had some pizza. When we left, I was feeling strong. I little too strong because I kept leaving Setve behind. I slowed down because I wanted to have someone to ride with.
We got back to Pattonsburg (mile 176.6) before 9:00PM. We were averaging 10 mph (including stops) since the turnaround. This pace would have as finishing around 4 AM. That would be 22 hours which would be fine with me. When we left the control it was Steve's turn to slow down for me.
Unfortunately we made a wrong turn somewhere near Winston. We ended up going 5 miles in the wrong direction before I figured out that we had done something wrong. We figured out our mistake and turned around. Steve seem to be a little deflated by this, or maybe he was just tired. After we got back on the route, we stopped at a c-store somewhere near Winston for about 30 minutes.
As we neared Cameron Steve told me that we was about to fall asleep on his bike. I told him that we would stop and let him try to take a nap. We had plenty of time so no need to take chances. I had heard about one of the riders talking about sleeping in the Walmart in Cameron (mile 203) on a previous ride so we decided to stop there.
We each lay down on a bench in vestibule of the Walmart at about 12:45. I don't think Steve actually slept much (I did not sleep) but the rest did him some good. After 30 minutes we got back on the road.
It was starting to get foggy. At first there were only patches in the low areas. Later, it was everywhere. It wasn't thick enough to be dangerous but it was disorienting. It was also wet. We made one more stop at a closed gas station to swap out batteries. I was very impressed with Steve's headlight and decided to buy one just like it.
As we neared the finish Steve was getting tired again. We swapped Airplane quotes to stay awake. In the last bit I pushed our speed a bit because I wanted to finish in under 24 hours. The time limit is 27 hours so we still had plenty of time. We finished in 23:58.
Being sleepy was the biggest problem on this ride. That's going to be a bigger challenge in the 600K which I'll be doing today. It starts at 10 PM on Friday. That means that there will be two nights of riding.
Since I've never done a ride with a nighttime start I'm not sure what to expect. My tentative plan is to ride the first 268 miles in 22-24 hours. That would put me in Butler, MO at 8-10 PM Saturday. I can sleep in a motel until 2-3 AM and still have 11-12 hours to finish the last 100 miles.
Of course I might have to take naps at other time which would cut into the cushion. I might decide to take several shorter naps instead. I haven't done this before so I'm going to have to play it by ear.
I did the Kansas City 400K on April 27. The weather report called for less wind than the 300K but rain at the start. It was about 45° with a light rain when we rolled out at 6:00. The rain kept our speeds down so I didn't have to worry about burning out early. Even so we made a good pace until our first stop in the Burger King in Cameron (mile 45) around 9:00. This wasn't a control, just a good place to grab breakfast.
The first control was in Pattonsburg (mile 73). I was a little late leaving this control, but I figured I could just catch up to the main group. I was hammering hard but I could not seem to close that last quarter mile. I caught up to Spencer for a little while but he later joined the main group.
Another rider fell off the main group. This was Steve who I had met briefly at the 300K. This was his first 400K. We ended up riding the rest of the route together. The next control was in Lamoni, Iowa (mile 117.8). We saw one rider here who made it to the turnaround and was on his way back. We decided to stop briefly here and make a long stop on the way back.
On out way to the turnaround we saw the rest of the riders who were ahead of us. We made it to Davis City, Iowa (mile 124.3) before 4:00 PM. This means that we had done the first half in less than 10 hours. This put us on a pace to finish in 20 hours but I knew we would be slower on the way back.
Steve and I rode back to Lamoni (mile 130.8) and had some pizza. When we left, I was feeling strong. I little too strong because I kept leaving Setve behind. I slowed down because I wanted to have someone to ride with.
We got back to Pattonsburg (mile 176.6) before 9:00PM. We were averaging 10 mph (including stops) since the turnaround. This pace would have as finishing around 4 AM. That would be 22 hours which would be fine with me. When we left the control it was Steve's turn to slow down for me.
Unfortunately we made a wrong turn somewhere near Winston. We ended up going 5 miles in the wrong direction before I figured out that we had done something wrong. We figured out our mistake and turned around. Steve seem to be a little deflated by this, or maybe he was just tired. After we got back on the route, we stopped at a c-store somewhere near Winston for about 30 minutes.
As we neared Cameron Steve told me that we was about to fall asleep on his bike. I told him that we would stop and let him try to take a nap. We had plenty of time so no need to take chances. I had heard about one of the riders talking about sleeping in the Walmart in Cameron (mile 203) on a previous ride so we decided to stop there.
We each lay down on a bench in vestibule of the Walmart at about 12:45. I don't think Steve actually slept much (I did not sleep) but the rest did him some good. After 30 minutes we got back on the road.
It was starting to get foggy. At first there were only patches in the low areas. Later, it was everywhere. It wasn't thick enough to be dangerous but it was disorienting. It was also wet. We made one more stop at a closed gas station to swap out batteries. I was very impressed with Steve's headlight and decided to buy one just like it.
As we neared the finish Steve was getting tired again. We swapped Airplane quotes to stay awake. In the last bit I pushed our speed a bit because I wanted to finish in under 24 hours. The time limit is 27 hours so we still had plenty of time. We finished in 23:58.
Being sleepy was the biggest problem on this ride. That's going to be a bigger challenge in the 600K which I'll be doing today. It starts at 10 PM on Friday. That means that there will be two nights of riding.
Since I've never done a ride with a nighttime start I'm not sure what to expect. My tentative plan is to ride the first 268 miles in 22-24 hours. That would put me in Butler, MO at 8-10 PM Saturday. I can sleep in a motel until 2-3 AM and still have 11-12 hours to finish the last 100 miles.
Of course I might have to take naps at other time which would cut into the cushion. I might decide to take several shorter naps instead. I haven't done this before so I'm going to have to play it by ear.
Saturday, April 20, 2013
Great day for a 200K
Today was a 200K in Edwardsville. This was my first ride in the St. Louis region this year. The weather forecast called for sunny skies, high of 56°, and light winds. I decided that this was going to a fun ride. If people wanted to go fast, I would go fast. If people wanted to go slow, I would go slow.
My wife dropped me off at the Edwardsville start about 6:30 for the 7:00 start. John Jost (the RBA) was there on his recumbent. The other riders were Bob Booth, Scott (who I had ridden with in 2007), and Jim, a recumbent rider that I hadn't ridden with before.
It was still chilly at the start so I had my big gloves, jacket, and shoe covers. We rolled out right at 7:00. We stay together for a little while but then Bob and Jim started to pull away. I decided to stick with them.
We were all feeling good so we did not stop in Pocahontas (mile 24.4). We figured we would be able to make it all the way to Breese before we need to stop. Jim was going a little faster than I would have gone but nothing that Bob and I couldn't handle. The flat route was ideal for a recumbent (imagine that, a route designed by an RBA who rides a recumbent, that is really good for recumbents). :)
There was a mild wind from the NNW that was helping us along. Occasionally we would turn to the west and get a sneak preview of the slight headwind that we would face later. We got to the first control in Breese (mile 51.4) at 10:12. I had some hash browns and chocolate milk. The hash browns turned out to be cheesy hash browns which tasted really good but were a little heavier than what I was looking for. We were back on the road at 10:31.
We head west and south for a little while before turning west towards Okawville. This is a deceptively long 9 mile stretch. The Gas Mart in Okawville used to be my favorite convenience store in the world when the long rides out of Edwardsville would stop there twice. Last year the Shell Station in New Baden made a strong effort to take the top spot. We got to Okawville at 12:11 and noticed two things: the Gas Mart had become a Circle K, and they had taken out the two booths that used to be there. We bought our food and sat outside to eat it.
We left Okawville (mile 78.3) at 12:44. There was a headwind now but nothing too severe. We took turn pulling but Jim's recumbent did not provide too much help for us upright folks. I pulled ahead a bit as we neared New Baden. There is one mile stretch on a busy road there so I did not want to slow down. Once I turned onto Ruth Schoolhouse road, I soft pedaled and waited for Jim and Bob to catch up. I eventually saw them behind me but it seemed to be taking them a long time to catch up.
When they did, Bob told me that his legs were tired and that he would need to ride slower for a while. He told me and Jim that we could go on without him. I told him that it was a nice day and that I didn't mind slowing down a bit and enjoying the day. Even though the tables in the New Baden Shell Station (mile 92) were calling to me, we decided that we could make it to St. Jacob before we need to stop.
It was finally reached the predicted high temperature and I was feeling great. I wasn't on a mission to set a personal best so slowing down just made the ride more enjoyable. We got to St. Jacobs (mile 107.6) at 2:55. We took off our jackets and enjoyed the sunshine. I texted Helen and told her that she should pick me up at 5:00. While we we snacking, we saw Scott ride by. He waved, but didn't stop.
We rolled out at 3:18. About 5 miles later we caught up to Scott as he pulled over to the side of the road. His left crank had come off the spindle and was hanging from his shoe. With the help of an Allen wrench and a rock, we were able to make a roadside repair (I supervised the operation).
I got a chance to talk with Scott and before I knew it we were back on Fruit Rd. I was still feeling great and was almost sad that we nearing the end. The four of us finished together at 4:44. I had a great time and still felt strong. Helen was already at the parking so I didn't have to wait.
After I got home, I played soccer with the kids for a while. I was tired but not exhausted. It was nice to have a local ride that did take up the whole day (or more).
Bike computer stats:
Time: 8:20 (9:44 clock time)
126.82 miles
Avg: 15.2 mph
Max: 26.0 mph
My wife dropped me off at the Edwardsville start about 6:30 for the 7:00 start. John Jost (the RBA) was there on his recumbent. The other riders were Bob Booth, Scott (who I had ridden with in 2007), and Jim, a recumbent rider that I hadn't ridden with before.
It was still chilly at the start so I had my big gloves, jacket, and shoe covers. We rolled out right at 7:00. We stay together for a little while but then Bob and Jim started to pull away. I decided to stick with them.
We were all feeling good so we did not stop in Pocahontas (mile 24.4). We figured we would be able to make it all the way to Breese before we need to stop. Jim was going a little faster than I would have gone but nothing that Bob and I couldn't handle. The flat route was ideal for a recumbent (imagine that, a route designed by an RBA who rides a recumbent, that is really good for recumbents). :)
There was a mild wind from the NNW that was helping us along. Occasionally we would turn to the west and get a sneak preview of the slight headwind that we would face later. We got to the first control in Breese (mile 51.4) at 10:12. I had some hash browns and chocolate milk. The hash browns turned out to be cheesy hash browns which tasted really good but were a little heavier than what I was looking for. We were back on the road at 10:31.
We head west and south for a little while before turning west towards Okawville. This is a deceptively long 9 mile stretch. The Gas Mart in Okawville used to be my favorite convenience store in the world when the long rides out of Edwardsville would stop there twice. Last year the Shell Station in New Baden made a strong effort to take the top spot. We got to Okawville at 12:11 and noticed two things: the Gas Mart had become a Circle K, and they had taken out the two booths that used to be there. We bought our food and sat outside to eat it.
We left Okawville (mile 78.3) at 12:44. There was a headwind now but nothing too severe. We took turn pulling but Jim's recumbent did not provide too much help for us upright folks. I pulled ahead a bit as we neared New Baden. There is one mile stretch on a busy road there so I did not want to slow down. Once I turned onto Ruth Schoolhouse road, I soft pedaled and waited for Jim and Bob to catch up. I eventually saw them behind me but it seemed to be taking them a long time to catch up.
When they did, Bob told me that his legs were tired and that he would need to ride slower for a while. He told me and Jim that we could go on without him. I told him that it was a nice day and that I didn't mind slowing down a bit and enjoying the day. Even though the tables in the New Baden Shell Station (mile 92) were calling to me, we decided that we could make it to St. Jacob before we need to stop.
It was finally reached the predicted high temperature and I was feeling great. I wasn't on a mission to set a personal best so slowing down just made the ride more enjoyable. We got to St. Jacobs (mile 107.6) at 2:55. We took off our jackets and enjoyed the sunshine. I texted Helen and told her that she should pick me up at 5:00. While we we snacking, we saw Scott ride by. He waved, but didn't stop.
We rolled out at 3:18. About 5 miles later we caught up to Scott as he pulled over to the side of the road. His left crank had come off the spindle and was hanging from his shoe. With the help of an Allen wrench and a rock, we were able to make a roadside repair (I supervised the operation).
I got a chance to talk with Scott and before I knew it we were back on Fruit Rd. I was still feeling great and was almost sad that we nearing the end. The four of us finished together at 4:44. I had a great time and still felt strong. Helen was already at the parking so I didn't have to wait.
After I got home, I played soccer with the kids for a while. I was tired but not exhausted. It was nice to have a local ride that did take up the whole day (or more).
Bike computer stats:
Time: 8:20 (9:44 clock time)
126.82 miles
Avg: 15.2 mph
Max: 26.0 mph
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Kansas City 300K
It's been a week and a half since I did my 300K in Kansas City. I guess I'd better blog about it before I do my next brevet.
This was my first brevet in the KC region, and oddly enough it was also my first brevet in Missouri. All of the St. Louis brevets take place in Illinois. I was look forward to meeting Keith Gates (aka CommuterDude), who told me he'd be there.
The start of the ride was in Oak Grove, MO. This is about 3.5 hours from my house so I planned on spending the night there before and after the ride. Traffic was a bit of a problem leaving St. Louis so I didn't get to the motel until about 10. At least I got a fair amount of sleep before the 6 am start.
I was a little confused about where the start was. The cue sheet said it was the Econolodge (where I was staying) but the start was actually in the Walmart parking lot across the street. Fortunately I saw another rider and asked him.
There were about 18 riders at the start. This is bigger than the rides that I've done lately. There was a lot of wind that morning. It was blowing out of the southwest so it would be helping us for the first half of the ride. After the turnaround things would be tougher.
The ride started at a pretty good pace. After a while there were about 9 of us in the front group. The pace might have been a little faster that I would have gone otherwise but I didn't want to drop off yet. I chatted with Keith a little. He was riding his green Kogswell. That is a nice looking bike.
The first control was in Higginsville (mile 26.7) at 7:45. I bought an empty package of hash browns and an empty container of chocolate milk. At least they were empty after I waited in line to pay. We were back on the road about 8:00 which is a pretty good time for that size of group.
The next stop was in Marshall (mile 58.2) from 11:05-11:15. This was not a control but it was a good place to resupply. the group has spread out a bit but I was still with some other riders. I still thought that the pace was too fast. At one point while I was thinking this, I realized that I was in the very front, so I slowed down.
When we got to the flat section near Glasgow, I realized that I was pushing myself too hard. I didn't want to fall off the front group. I knew that I was burning myself out but I just couldn't let up. Eventually I did slow down but the damage had already been done. The hilly section between Glasgow and Fayette was just a grind. By the time I got to the turnaround (mile 97.3) at 12:45 I was feeling pretty tired.
I spent almost an hour at the control. I finally got back on the road at 1:40. The hilly section that hurt be coming in was almost as bad heading back. The flat section by Glasgow was worse. Now we we headed into a monster headwind. It was a struggle to stay above 10 mph. I got to Slater (mile 122.3) at 3:55. This means I averaged just over 11 mph for this section. But when you factor in the 30 minutes I spent in Slater I was only averaging 9 mph.
The next stop was in Marshall (mile 135) at 5:40. At one point during the section, I calculated that I needed to do 7.3 mph to finish by the cutoff. This seems easy but when I left Marshall at 6:00 I would need to maintain 7.5 mph. This means that I was losing ground. Fortunately the wind was supposed to die down soon.
When I left Marshall at 6:09 I was riding solo. The other two riders were not ready yet and I didn't want to lose any more time. There weren't any turns for the next 24 miles so I wasn't worried about getting lost. The wind did indeed slow down when the sun went down. In Corder, I made a left on V. I decided to take a short break on the side of the road. I thought that some other riders might catch up but none did.
This is where I got lost. Somehow I thought that I was already on AA. On AA I was supposed to go 4 miles before the next turn. This meant that that I missed the right turn onto AA after 2 miles. Unfortunately, by going straight, the road I was on turned into AA. This meant that when I saw some signs that said I was on AA I though I was on the right track.
After going 4 miles (2 miles past where I was supposed to turn) I could tell that I had done something wrong but I didn't know what. I turned around and head back. My tired brain brain figured out that since I was on AA, and that I had made a left to get on the road I was on, and I was supposed to make a right on AA, that I had made a wrong turn at the last turn.
I went back the whole 4 miles (2 miles past the turn in the other direction). If I had made a right her I would have been on BB so I knew that wasn't right. I rode on MO-20 for a while to see if there was another right later on to AA (there wasn't). I finally came back to the the turn onto V and figured out what I did wrong. I had ridden about 9 bonus miles and several riders must have passed me.
Now that I was back on track I was extra paranoid about making wrong turns. I finally caught up to another group of three riders in Higginsville (mile 166 + 9) at 10:10. I got something to eat and joined up with them when they got back on the road at 10:32. They told me that there were only 2 more turns in the route at that they were both T intersections. I told them that I would have a 50-50 chance of making the correct decision at each one.
Some of the hills were very annoying. The roads were a little rough so you could not blast down the downhills in the dark. But you still had to work hard on the uphills. I fell back a couple of time but the other riders waited so that we could finish together. We finished at 12:47. Only a little more than an hour before the deadline but we weren't worried.
It was a tough ride but there were some great people there so I had a good time. I plan on returning for the 400K in a few weeks.
This was my first brevet in the KC region, and oddly enough it was also my first brevet in Missouri. All of the St. Louis brevets take place in Illinois. I was look forward to meeting Keith Gates (aka CommuterDude), who told me he'd be there.
The start of the ride was in Oak Grove, MO. This is about 3.5 hours from my house so I planned on spending the night there before and after the ride. Traffic was a bit of a problem leaving St. Louis so I didn't get to the motel until about 10. At least I got a fair amount of sleep before the 6 am start.
I was a little confused about where the start was. The cue sheet said it was the Econolodge (where I was staying) but the start was actually in the Walmart parking lot across the street. Fortunately I saw another rider and asked him.
There were about 18 riders at the start. This is bigger than the rides that I've done lately. There was a lot of wind that morning. It was blowing out of the southwest so it would be helping us for the first half of the ride. After the turnaround things would be tougher.
The ride started at a pretty good pace. After a while there were about 9 of us in the front group. The pace might have been a little faster that I would have gone otherwise but I didn't want to drop off yet. I chatted with Keith a little. He was riding his green Kogswell. That is a nice looking bike.
The first control was in Higginsville (mile 26.7) at 7:45. I bought an empty package of hash browns and an empty container of chocolate milk. At least they were empty after I waited in line to pay. We were back on the road about 8:00 which is a pretty good time for that size of group.
The next stop was in Marshall (mile 58.2) from 11:05-11:15. This was not a control but it was a good place to resupply. the group has spread out a bit but I was still with some other riders. I still thought that the pace was too fast. At one point while I was thinking this, I realized that I was in the very front, so I slowed down.
When we got to the flat section near Glasgow, I realized that I was pushing myself too hard. I didn't want to fall off the front group. I knew that I was burning myself out but I just couldn't let up. Eventually I did slow down but the damage had already been done. The hilly section between Glasgow and Fayette was just a grind. By the time I got to the turnaround (mile 97.3) at 12:45 I was feeling pretty tired.
I spent almost an hour at the control. I finally got back on the road at 1:40. The hilly section that hurt be coming in was almost as bad heading back. The flat section by Glasgow was worse. Now we we headed into a monster headwind. It was a struggle to stay above 10 mph. I got to Slater (mile 122.3) at 3:55. This means I averaged just over 11 mph for this section. But when you factor in the 30 minutes I spent in Slater I was only averaging 9 mph.
The next stop was in Marshall (mile 135) at 5:40. At one point during the section, I calculated that I needed to do 7.3 mph to finish by the cutoff. This seems easy but when I left Marshall at 6:00 I would need to maintain 7.5 mph. This means that I was losing ground. Fortunately the wind was supposed to die down soon.
When I left Marshall at 6:09 I was riding solo. The other two riders were not ready yet and I didn't want to lose any more time. There weren't any turns for the next 24 miles so I wasn't worried about getting lost. The wind did indeed slow down when the sun went down. In Corder, I made a left on V. I decided to take a short break on the side of the road. I thought that some other riders might catch up but none did.
This is where I got lost. Somehow I thought that I was already on AA. On AA I was supposed to go 4 miles before the next turn. This meant that that I missed the right turn onto AA after 2 miles. Unfortunately, by going straight, the road I was on turned into AA. This meant that when I saw some signs that said I was on AA I though I was on the right track.
After going 4 miles (2 miles past where I was supposed to turn) I could tell that I had done something wrong but I didn't know what. I turned around and head back. My tired brain brain figured out that since I was on AA, and that I had made a left to get on the road I was on, and I was supposed to make a right on AA, that I had made a wrong turn at the last turn.
I went back the whole 4 miles (2 miles past the turn in the other direction). If I had made a right her I would have been on BB so I knew that wasn't right. I rode on MO-20 for a while to see if there was another right later on to AA (there wasn't). I finally came back to the the turn onto V and figured out what I did wrong. I had ridden about 9 bonus miles and several riders must have passed me.
Now that I was back on track I was extra paranoid about making wrong turns. I finally caught up to another group of three riders in Higginsville (mile 166 + 9) at 10:10. I got something to eat and joined up with them when they got back on the road at 10:32. They told me that there were only 2 more turns in the route at that they were both T intersections. I told them that I would have a 50-50 chance of making the correct decision at each one.
Some of the hills were very annoying. The roads were a little rough so you could not blast down the downhills in the dark. But you still had to work hard on the uphills. I fell back a couple of time but the other riders waited so that we could finish together. We finished at 12:47. Only a little more than an hour before the deadline but we weren't worried.
It was a tough ride but there were some great people there so I had a good time. I plan on returning for the 400K in a few weeks.
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