GRUENE TIME TRIAL

I have the memory of a corner-back. Perhaps age has something to do with it, but I prefer to think not. Shortly after scribing that my organized cycling was over for the year and I would be "cherry-picking my days" to ride, something came over me and I got a wild hair (I don't think it's hare) to do the Gruene Time Trial.

Actually, I have wanted to do the two man TT for a couple of years now. So I emailed my gold medal USAC teammates to see if they knew of anyone looking for a partner. Tom and Tom had teamed up last year and were again this year. Then, AFTER sending the email, I began to look at the details of the race. That gave me pause for thought. It was all I could do to drag my body 40km in July, with three other people, and truthfully, needed Tom to pace me the last mile. What was I thinking, asking someone to team with me for a similar distance.

So, as their suggestions came back, I replied that I had changed my mind and would be doing the individual time trial instead. This is ONLY 17 miles. I really think I can do that distance, or as I prefer to measure it, 50 minutes or so. I'd like it to be 45 minutes, but that is extremely optimistic. I have no clue as to the profile of the road, other than it goes UP to Canyon Lake. Next week I plan to preview the course.

Now for the good news. After signing up for the race, I dusted off the tt bike and went out to my course to see what kind of shape I'm in. For starters, I just did a 5k warm up, 5k fast pace, then a 10k fast pace. Believe me, I know that 10k is only the beginning. But all went well, my pace was good and I felt like I had a lot left in the tank when I finished.

This morning I returned for round two. 5k warm up, 5k fast pace, then a 20k fast pace. I would love to tell you my stats, but inadvertently hit the "stop" button instead of the "lap" button, thus my times are skewed. However, the first lap was very fast, and the other three not much slower, and again I finished with more in the tank. It was during this practice that it finally occurred to me that 17 miles is less than 30 kilometers. All this time I had 40k in my head! So my confidence has returned and with a preview ride under my belt, I'm sure I'll do well.

One other confidence booster: I'm finally beginning to feel good. As other posts will attest, I have been somewhere between 80-90%, unable to really get the most out of my muscles. With more miles in the legs, especially the Blue Ridge and Six Gap rides, I appear to be hitting on all cylinders. We'll know as the next few weeks unfold.

THE OUTLAW TRAIL

This is the 25th anniversary of the Outlaw Trail. I've been telling everyone that Kurt and I did the first one, but in researching our photo album, plus seeing that the jersey I have says 1988, unless a younger memory can come up with a different year, it looks like my first one was the third anniversary. Anyhow, I've done ten of the twenty-five, including the memorable one when they closed the 100 mile course due to heavy rain, thunder, etc. They have since changed the course to stay east of I-35 and on less traveled roads.

I've only done one century, mostly 100k or 50 miles. This is the end of the cycling for the year, and truthfully, I'm more or less cycled-out and ready to cut back. Let me recap this year: outrageous wind that went on endlessly into July; outrageous heat (130 days over 90 degrees, of which 90 were over 100) and zero rain; seriously under-trained. And, I just got back from doing an epic ride and am still recovering.

So, I again signed up for the 100k ride. That was before looking at the weather forecast. Right after plunking down my registration fee, I returned home to see that we had a 40% chance of rain, and 100% chance of high wind. Bummer. As Saturday approached, the forecast moderated somewhat, in that the rain showers would probably come in the afternoon, and the high wind (40mph) was downgraded to 15-25mph. Of course, no one EVER pays attention to the low figure.

The Outlaw Trail ride is so well organized and has so many volunteers. Parking, getting ready, the start, all went smoothly. We even started out with the wind mostly at our backs. I only saw one of my Cyclopaths jerseys in the crowd. My friend, Janet, was with me at the start, but, like me, is very tentative and cautious when doing a charity ride. So, she was somewhere behind me.

I thought my speed to be average for a tour, but folks kept passing me. Not in bunches, but fairly steady. About a half hour into the ride I saw Barry (Blue Ridge ride partner) coming from the other direction. We waved. Not long after, Janet came up and passed, so I increased pace to keep up. Eventually we reached the northern most point of the ride and turned south, into the wind. About this time, Barry again appeared, coming from the opposite direction. This time he turned around and rode with me for a mile or so, to the rest stop. I transferred a flash drive from the Blue Ridge ride (Rick's pics), and he went on his way, as did I.

By this time, I had determined 100k would take too long and get me too beat up by the wind, so I switched to the 50 mile route (the way the routes are configured, switching among the 40,50, and 62.5 is very easy). My rest stop was quicker than the ladies, so I was on my own. The route direction continued south and east, the wind direction from the southeast. Most of the roads were quite familiar to me, a few were not. Eventually, I came to the Taylor city limits and knew the next turn would be to the west and finally give me a favorable wind. The next rest stop came at mile 35 (for me) and as I prepared to leave, one of the ladies mentioned that they had pickle juice because many riders started complaining about cramps at this stop. I took the opportunity to take a few ounces, because my calf had made a mild complaint.

Now, with the wind somewhat on my left shoulder and a short rest, my speed increased and I began enjoying the ride. About this time I saw Janet coming from the other direction. Hmmm. It seems she, too, had opted for the 50 mile ride, then the 40 mile ride. As soon as I saw her, I did a U-turn and joined the group. I guessed my final mileage now would be around 45.

The last few miles had a few hills, against the wind. We now passed people who had over-exerted themselves and were walking their bikes. Eventually we entered the park for the last few miles of traffic-less riding and cruised to the finish line. My estimate was correct: 45.5 miles in 3 hours, 5 minutes. I drove home, had lunch, had a nap, and am now musing about how beat up I feel. I'm not going back to check, but I suspect I whine about the wind at least once a month. It really is a big bully. I'm pretty sure this is my last organized ride of the year. From here on out, I'll cherry-pick my days.

SIX GAP CENTURY

The previous post gives a run-up to this one, which deserves to be separate. But you might want to read that one first.

A short history: for the past five years Marilane and I have been coming to Suches, Georgia for a family get-together. I bring my bike and cycle, as evidenced by numerous posts on the subject. Therefore, I have experienced all six of the gaps that comprise the ride. But I only do them three at a time, and that is only 33 or 37 miles. Early this year, I decided to sign up for the Six Gap Century, billed as 105 miles and 11,200 feet of climbing. Then, working backwards on the calendar, I planned an epic Blue Ridge Parkway ride. Unfortunately, as whined about in previous posts, I also planned a lot of big mileage training that never happened. Coming into Virginia, my longest ride this year had been 63.5 miles and only half a dozen had been over 50 miles.

Based on our performance on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Barry and I discussed opting for Three Gaps rather than suffer a whole day doing the century. But the weather finally turned gorgeous, with brilliant blue skies, light wind, and afternoon temperatures in the 80's. On Saturday we arrived early to pick up our packets on the square in Dahlonega, then wandered around the vendors, purchased a jersey, had lunch, and rested in the afternoon, watching football. We were then pretty much determined to suffer on Sunday.

Conversation with an experienced Six Gap rider Saturday morning convinced us to arrive early at the start, the high school. Breakfast consisted of bagels and juice at 5:30am, then the short drive to the high school. Even at this early hour, the police were directing the line of cars into the parking lot. Not much to do except sit around and use the facilities until start time, 7:30am. I had left my wind jacket at the hotel, so Barry lent me his (he had two). With a starting temperature in the low 50's, and being on the west side of the mountains, I knew it would be chilly for the first hour, especially going downhill. Usually I also cover my knees, but not when I'm serious, and I was definitely serious this morning.

We started mid-pack of an estimated 2,000 cyclists. Not because we wanted to, but because that is where we landed when we went to line up. For sure, we did not want to be with the crazy folks at the front. We are both experienced charity ride cyclists, which means we know enough to start off slow and warm up the body and conserve energy. What is different about this ride, though, is the lack of inexperienced riders. You know, the ones that zip around, change pace willy-nilly, generally causing a nuisance. Without these nuts, the atmosphere was quite relaxed, knowing that the folks around you were not dangerous.

So, I felt quite good as we eased into the ride. Lots of cyclists passed me, I passed a few. After the first half-hour I was warm, comfy, and finally came to that part of the ride where the roads were familiar. Just before Turner's Corner (a rest stop that hardly anyone stops at), I pulled off the road for a nature break and to remove the wind jacket. Neel's Gap, the first significant climb, started at Turner's Corner and finished nine miles later.

One interesting thing on the way up: a cyclist passed me (nothing strange about that) and the girl behind me called out loudly "are you going to stand the whole way!" Her companion asked her why she said what she did, in that cyclists periodically stand when going uphill, to give their backs and legs a break from sitting. She answered "he doesn't have a saddle." Sure enough, when I looked closely, he had no seat post and no saddle. No place to sit. This was not a mechanical failure, he planned to ride the whole way without it.

What wind there was came at my back. Given the temperature, the wind, the crowd, I ascended Neel's Gap better than any of my previous rides. Only glancing at the rest stop at the top, covered with a myriad of cyclists, I continued on down the other side and enjoyed a fast, vehicle free descent (the road wasn't closed, just empty of cars and motorcycles). Next came Jack's Gap.

Rather than being all uphill, the climb up Jack's Gap is a series of ups and downs, the ups being longer. Saving myself for the third gap, I just geared down and cautiously reeled up to the rest stop. Now almost three hours into the ride, I stopped and refilled my bottles, one with water and the other with the energy drink they provided. I carried a flask of energy gel (along with a couple Clif Bars). I also ate half a banana, then mounted up for the descent. All of this took seven minutes, two minutes more than what I preach should be the length of a fuel stop (it isn't about time lost, per se, but giving your muscles a break but not letting them begin to tighten up).

Halfway down, I turned off the course and pulled over for another nature break (the line at the porta potties having been too long), then proceeded down the rest of the way. This descent is downright casual, the only one of the six I can characterize that way. The start up Unicoi Gap began almost immediately. And like the just completed descent, the ascent up Unicoi was casual. Easy or not, I still started passing people. It is a short climb, maybe two and a half miles, but the descent is spectacular. Over seven miles of going down, the first three steep, fast, with wide sweeping curves. Having several cyclists in front to show me the lines helped in keeping my speed high. The last four were more moderate, in the mid-20's mph, pedaling mostly just to keep the legs moving.

Then it was time for the beast of the ride, Hogpen Gap. First came the several miles of transition to the turn on the Russell Scenic Highway. Make the turn and voila! you are going up. The first couple of miles lull the uninitiated into thinking this gap is just like the others, then you cross the KOM timing lines. Soon enough I came to guys (never women, hmmm) standing by their bikes gasping for air or just standing still hoping their heart rates would drop back to an acceptable range, or walking their bikes for a short distance to allow their legs to recover. Halfway up Hogpen a rest stop provides an excuse to ease the pain, and, of course, refuel. I took the opportunity to do both, and use the porta potty. It only took five minutes.

I still had another three miles to the summit, but almost a mile of that was downhill, and the hardest climbing had been accomplished. What with the rest and downhill, I felt fairly chipper as I crossed the KOM timing lines at the top. An aside: While the Six Gap Century is primarily a ride, not a race, they give everybody a timing chip and award prizes (and bragging rights) to the fastest finisher (male and female), and fastest up Hogpen Gap and Wolfpen Gap. I didn't enter the KOM competition, but they have my time anyhow. I finished 7th in my age group going up Hogpen. Had I put off the rest stop, I would have (woulda, coulda, shoulda) finished 4th. This is more musing than anything, I took the rest when I needed it. Besides, I finished 5th overall in my age group, so apparently two guys punished themselves too much.

Back to the ride. The downhill off Hogpen is extremely fast and the road is rough. I was happy clocking 47.5 mph and not trying for 50. Perhaps smooth asphalt might have tempted me. With a judicious use of the brakes, and again having a cyclist in front of me (about 50 yards, we don't like being too close at these speeds), the eight miles of downhill and transition went by quickly.

The next gap was Wolfpen. Wolfpen is my friend. It is three miles of steep, switchbacked corners. It usually takes all of my gears to get past some of the ramps, but because of my familiarity with it (at least five climbs per year), I never seem stressed with this climb. And the downhill has banked switchbacks than are a lot of fun for the first mile. Like Neel's and Unicoi, I zipped down Wolfpen at speeds previously unseen by me. Then came the short climb up to Winfield Scott Lake and the transition to Woody Gap.

Woody is a wuss (in this direction). It is short, maybe a mile and a half, with not much gradient. When you reach the summit, however, you have a great five mile downhill. I hardly glanced at the rest stop, as I pushed into the big ring and small cog for a fast descent. Alas, it was now afternoon and the wind had come up, blowing in my face. Rather than coasting in the high-20's, I now soft-pedaled in the mid-20s. Again, even with an open road, only one car came from behind me.

The last ten miles I took casually, mainly because I was really tired and secondarily because I knew I could finish. Actually, once I got past Hogpen I knew I had enough energy to complete the ride. One other thing kept me from pushing hard to the end: every now and then my left calf or right quad would give indication they might cramp if I asked too much of them. So we eased into Dahlonega and turned into the high school grounds, stopping the clock at seven hours and 55 minutes, three seconds.

Right after crossing the finish line, we stopped to turn in our timing chips. When I started to pedal away, the right calf balked, so I opted to walk the 100 yards to the truck and give different muscles an opportunity to work.

Having the start/finish at the high school is a great plus. Besides the bathrooms, they had the kitchen in which to work. A spaghetti plate, with rolls and tea, waited for me to pick up and find a table to sit at. My new friend, Mike, and his friends waved me over and we ate and discussed the ride.

I went over to see about getting a massage. The list and waiting period was too long. I just found a chair and let the day's work ease away.

ANOTHER EPIC JOURNEY

Or, cycling Skyline Drive, Blue Ridge Parkway, and finishing with the Six Gap Century. The Blue Ridge Parkway has been on my radar for a few years and my original plan called for a week riding its 470 miles. From my experience doing rail-trails and the Natchez Trace, I know that anything over five days tends to get monotonous and boring. I figured this being a mountainous ride, the vistas would allow seven. Besides, the Blue Ridge tends to have fog, so anyone riding it should anticipate one or more non-riding days.

One problem with planning epic rides: getting someone else to accompany you. My friend, Barry, expressed willingness and enthusiasm. He talked me into adding Skyline Drive, an additional 105 miles. This would be a long drive to the start (1,435 miles, two days) and we might not get this way again, so let's tack it on. Ergo, my #1 rule got violated. We recruited one more rider, Rick. We could not recruit a sag driver.

Actually, I did recruit a sag driver for the first 20 miles. Besides bicycles, Barry's truck transported several musical instruments for my grandchildren. Daughter, Jean, and her husband, Jim, drove to Front Royal to receive them, and Jim kindly drove the sag vehicle to the first exit on Skyline Drive, thus allowing the three of us to at least begin the ride together.

Seventeen of the first twenty-three miles pointed generally UP, at about a 6% grade. A 6% hill is not difficult, a 6% mountain can wear you out. We stopped at several overlooks, both because of the vista and to give our legs a break. Eventually we arrived at the truck and I became the sag driver for awhile. About 10 miles further, Barry took over the duties. Not long after, the clouds thickened and Rick and I found a few patches of fog. It started to mist. It started to drizzle. Then, miraculously, Barry appeared at an overlook. Making the hand-across-the-throat signal, we called it a day and loaded our bikes, bemoaning our fate of cutting short the ride by about 20 miles.

Not more than a half mile later, it started to rain, and then we hit heavy fog. We found out later that a group of cyclists behind us were pulled off the road (by the authorities) due to the fog. At the Big Meadows Lodge, we were in the parking lot but unable to see the lodge not more than 20 yards away. So, we moderated our moaning and congratulated ourselves on the perfect timing at ending our cycling day. I missed several thousand feet of climbing, but still managed 5,099.

Big Meadows has great scenery, unfortunately obscured by the fog. We got settled in our rooms and had a celebratory glass of wine. Eventually the bar at the lodge opened and we had a beer while waiting for the restaurant to open. Activities were nil due to the weather and we retired early. The next morning started clear, with blue sky, and we took pictures of the vista from the lodge. By the time we started riding thin clouds had greyed the sky and it stayed that way throughout the day.

This was Friday and I cycled 39.7 miles (of the 51.2) and climbed another 4,038 feet. The temperature started at 48 degrees and stayed mostly in the lower 50's throughout the day. But at least it didn't rain. We stayed the night in Waynesboro, VA and Rick knew a great Italian restaurant.

Saturday, the plan called for 86 miles and 8,500 feet of climbing, a really, really long day, the first on the Blue Ridge Parkway. I managed to do 46.6 miles and 7,314 feet of climb, with the temperature again in the mid-50's and damp. Again we stayed at a lodge, Peaks of Otter, located right on the parkway. Being in the middle of nowhere, we also ate there. And would have enjoyed the views, had we been able to see any distance.

Sunday, 54 miles and 9,147 feet of climb replaced the scheduled 74 miles. This took us around Roanoke. By now, we might glance at the overlook vistas, but the monotony of the valleys, especially without any dramatic sunshine and blue sky, pretty much kept our cameras in our pockets. Occasionally the fog settling in the valleys created a dramatic pic.

My legs really felt the mileage, so I did the majority of sag driving, only cycling 13 miles and 956 feet of climbing. And again on Tuesday rather than 63 miles, I did 28.5 and 3,533 ascending feet. Our stop today was in Blowing Rock, NC. Due to the weather, we didn't walk around town, but we drove around and found it to be quaint and pretty. A fun place to wander around in and out of shops had the sun been out.

Wednesday I turned in zero miles, but the other guys didn't get much in either, as they chose to pack it in due to the cold and rain. We all had rain gear, and the pictures show me in my jacket most days. On a paid tour one must suffer the vagaries of weather, but we had the luxury of choosing whether or not to ride.

Thurday, the penultimate day, the schedule called for 84 miles, of which 10 were the side-trip up and down Mt. Mitchell, the highest point east of the Mississippi. My stats show 40.4 miles and 7,877 climbing feet, most of which was Mt. Mitchell. The previous easy days apparently were what my legs needed. The temperature reading on my Garmin never moved more than 3 degrees, starting at 61, but the clouds were thin (early) and no wind. I prepared for Mt. Mitchell with a 3 mile downhill and 6 miles uphill, plus some rolling miles, then divested my outer-wear at the truck at the foot of the entrance. Most of the way up had new, smooth, asphalt. I monitored the heart-rate, keeping it in the 85% of max range, thus the speed remained generally paltry at 6 mph. Going down, we exceeded the posted speed by a lot, with my maximum being 40 mph, passing a cement mixer.


We were supposed to then ride another 50 miles, but the weather turned wet and chilly, so I ended up with an additional 11 miles before we again trucked it in. Our last day dawned cold and misty, and a planned 7,500 feet of climbing before a terrific 15 mile downhill to the finish. However, both Barry and I were saving our legs for the Six Gap, and Rick had had enough of cycling cold, so he opted to be driven to the Atlanta airport early.

So far I cycled only about half the planned distance, but climbed an outstanding 37,962 feet. My legs were beginning to come around. It was time for the crown jewel of the epic journey: Six Gap Century.

CHRISTMAS BIKE JERSEY

This is a re-posting of August 5. I'll be placing the order at the end of the month, so if you want to decorate yourself on your bike, please send your order and money before that. Of course, there is always a re-order, but that would push us right up against the Christmas rush.

Club fit, 45cm invisible zipper, mfg by Pactimo. Cost: $65

If interested, email me at jerrydusterhoff@att.net

COOL!

We've had 80 days over 100 degrees. I've been used to riding around 7am with a temperature around 80 degrees. This morning the thermometer registered 56 degrees. I have a soft rule of "cover the knees under 65 degrees." While 56 wasn't going to last long, the shock of over a 20 degree drop in temperature had me reaching for the tights, arm warmers, and wind vest (just in case).

My plan for this morning included a north/south trip of maybe 25 miles. The wind, indeed, came out of the north, but not as sharp as anticipated. Within half an hour the temp. had climbed out of the 50's and was very pleasant. So much so, I took a few turns (intentional this time, I know these roads quite well) and added 8 miles to the journey. The additional miles also brought a few excellent views: calm, clear, newly cleared or tilled fields.

The cold weather gear stayed on for about an hour and a half, keeping the muscles warm and functioning smoothly. But when the sweat started to build (this was just a casual ride, average heart rate at 110), it was time to stop and put them in the Camelbak. I cruised on in the rest of the way and put up the bike. What a great ride!

CRITERIUM

I thought when I finished USAC State Time Trials that racing for the year was over and I could concentrate on the upcoming Skyline Drive and Blue Ridge Parkway ride. Then my friend, Tom, emailed me. The 60+ category in the Austin Criteriums was in danger of being scrapped for lack of participation. Would I please at least sign up?

This is a three day set of criteriums in three different venues. I had already agreed to ride with Amy, Barry, and Rick on Saturday, and was scheduled to be out of town on Monday, but I signed up for the Sunday ride, which happened to be at the Jake Pickle Complex only a few minutes away from home. The bike had just come back from getting a tune-up at the bike shop and was ready to roll. Only thing to do was switch out the pedals, remove the bottle brackets and saddle pack. I suspect I was the only adult racing on a triple crankset.

Sunday morning the wind was bad, then got worse. Our race wasn't until 2:15pm, with the temperature once again above 100 degrees. Us old guys only had to race for 30 minutes, so I figured I could do that, especially if I drafted the windy portions. Even drafting, I had to drop to the middle chain-ring. Of course, we were booking along at 30mph when the wind was behind us.

I apportioned my energy, seeing that each lap took about 5 minutes. Not much calculating to know that 6 laps would get me to the end. Unfortunately, since I don't do criteriums, once I calculated the laps, I didn't really look at the smaller "laps to go" board. I had begun strategizing how to handle the last lap when I heard the announcer proclaim "two laps to go." Bummer. Apparently, it is a 30 minutes to the last lap time limit.

At the bell lap, Tom pulled ahead, the other two gapped me and when we hit the wind, I didn't have enough oomph to get back into the draft. Oh, well. 4th place isn't so bad, and it was a great workout. Of the 37 minutes of racing, I spent 29 in Zone 5 (90% of maximum heart rate) and 8 in Zone 4.

Now all I have to do is re-set the bike for touring and get ready to do some cycling in the mountains.