Rev Rider

Dragging myself out of bed and getting on the bike this morning was much harder than usual.  I argued against it all the way for 45 minutes.  The only things tipping the balance toward riding was the Malaria Project and the fact that Clint was expecting me (since we talked last evening).  It was a slow ride to the Rusty Bridge and when we pushed off, there were 7 of us.

The morning was dark but the sky was spectacularly clear for our area.  More stars were visible than usual.  I love these lower humidity mornings.  We set an easy pace along the route.  The fast young guys were still snuggled in bed at home.  Along Old County Road, the pace started to increase some.  When we got to the trail, Dan jumped in front and set a very fast pace, spinning his legs as if he were on a fixie and the rest of us simply fell into line.  I always marvel at a paceline on the trail in the dark.  It was not unusual to look down and see 25 mph on the Garmin and being less than a foot away from the rear tire of the bike ahead of me.

There were a few little challenges for the lead as Dan flagged a little.  We kept the pace up enough that I had my best time ever for the last section of the trail, averaging 27 mph over that partial mile.  We then turned around, and I was in the lead for a little while while Dan caught his breath.  Then, Dan decided he needed to be somewhere.  He again jumped in front and set a quick pace with all of us trailing him like ducklings following mama.  Dan kept the hammer down on B&A Blvd, easing only for the idiot driver on B&A.

We were tooling along at 25 mph with 3 cars “stacked up” behind us because the lead driver was not going to pass until it was safe to do so.  This was garbage day along B&A and so there was a little more congestion than usual.  When the lead driver passed, he was followed by idiot driver and hot rod driver.  Hot Rod driver (#3 in line) laid on the horn, and as lead driver and idiot driver pulled back into the lane, he stomped on the gas passing the other two around a blind corner and upcoming hill (across the double yellow line, of course).  Idiot driver at this point is screaming and shaking his fist at us, and hits his brakes hard, coming to a complete stop in the roadway.  Dan shouts a warning and the paceline scatters as we hit the brakes to avoid colliding with the idiot driver, who after making his point, guns the engine and speeds away.

Someone never learned sharing in kindergarten.

This act dominated our conversation the rest of the ride.  The speed was fun.  The paceline was exciting.  The company was terrific.  We didn’t let idiot driver spoil the morning.  (I’m sure there are a few choice words for us too.)  Always vigilant.  Hopefully we don’t see a red late model Toyota very often, because this could escalate.

My intent is to ride tomorrow morning (about 25 miles) but I’m likely not going to be able to post a ride report.  Then, I’m incommunicado for 10 days.  Look for me again after that.

This Ride: 21 miles
Malaria Campaign: 1,879.9 miles
Funds Pledged: $1,034
Contributed in support: $2,353.60

Total = $3,387.60

One day after the painful 200k, I drove to meet the guys for coffee.

Two days after the painful 200k, I got out and rode my bike.  Three of us took it easy while the rest sped off into the darkness.  We had a good time.  I barely broke a sweat and renewed my enjoyment of cycling.

It is amazing to me how long it is now dark in the mornings.  Soon the whole ride will be in the dark again.

This Ride: 18.8 miles
Malaria Campaign: 1,858.9 miles
Funds Pledged: $1,022.40
Contributed in support: $2,353.60

Total = $3,376

Despite still recovering from an end of the month illness, I planned a Labor Day 200k ride with friends.  I’ll not be able to ride September 7-17 and wanted to get September’s 200k in before having to scramble for that RUSA ride at the end of the month.  Clint, Jeff, Janet, and I conspired to ride together with a 7:00 start on Gardner’s Patapsco, Patuxent & Chesapeake 200k.

The forecast was for hot with a 60% chance of scattered thunderstorms.  But what do you expect on Labor Day?  We pushed off a few seconds after 7:00, all of us having ridden to the start (just 0.3 miles from my house).  Our mood was good.  We were all experienced riders.  We were prepared for the day.

The route covers very familiar territory for Severna Park Peloton riders.  It winds its way past BWI Airport, through the Patapsco State Park and into Ellicott City.  In Ellicott City, the route goes almost straight up (or so it can feel) and attempts to find every hill between Ellicott City and the airport.  Yes, we come back to the airport, come temptingly close to home and then head south to North Beach and return to Severna Park.  Here is the map of the route.

The morning ride through Patuxent State Park was absolutely gorgeous.  It is a gradual uphill that seemed more like a gentle downhill.  Full shade covers the trail.  The Patuxent River flows steadily to our left while steep banks are on our right.  We saw no deer along here this morning, although it is common to encounter a few on rides through the park.  We stopped short of Ellicott City for the obligatory 20 mile potty break and to make sure we had enough fluids for the next 30 miles where services would be few or at least inconvenient.  We climbed up College Avenue with hardly any effort!  I was surprised.  When that hill comes at the end of a ride it is almost insurmountable.  Even the rolling hills back to the airport were enjoyable.

We stopped again at Waugh Chapel for fluids and food.  I was feeling quite strong and had consumed about 48 oz of liquids in the first 48 miles of the ride.  Although that’s pretty good for me, that was really insufficient, I would soon discover.  I consumed another 20 oz of fluids at Waugh Chapel.  I had also been taking 2 ecaps every hour, attempting to stave off cramping in the heat and hills of the day to come.

We pushed off again, negotiating the tricky crossing of Highway 3 without incident and again experienced beautiful conditions.  It was getting warm.  Humidity was high.  But we had shade and cloud cover and sometimes we were riding on wet pavement that either had experienced a recent shower or was still wet from a pre-dawn rain.  The wet pavement kept a lot of the radiant heat down.  Fluids, ecaps, a little food, climb the hill, coast down the other side, watch the cue sheet, and enjoy the scenery seemed to be the routines of the day as we kept the pedals turning.

I will admit that I was anxious to get to North Beach for something to eat.  I was getting hungry, not having really consumed the calories I should have.  I felt like I was sucking down fluids at an appropriate rate.  But I was feeling the fatigue and I knew what the route was like on the return with some long uphills and frequent rollers that required effort on the way up.

There were also some twinges of leg cramps that were worrying me.

We stopped at the deli just past North Beach, sat down and took off shoes, got twice as much food as we could eat, used the facilities, and soaked up the air conditioning.  Outdoor temperatures had risen to over 90° F with more increases to come.  We heard about Diana Nyad’s amazing accomplishment.  We checked the forecast … thunderstorms were now unlikely.  We lingered a little longer than usual, but soon enough we were off and started the climb up Fairhaven.  Several of us commented that we really weren’t ready for that long climb right out of the food stop, but we pressed on.

I don’t know exactly where it started, but somewhere in those first 5 miles of the last 45 my legs started to cramp.  It started as a a little tightness with some pain.  Eventually over the next 20-25 miles it would get to the point where the front of my thighs would lock up tight and I couldn’t move my legs on the pedals.  This always occurred on the uphills as I was grinding my way up an incline.  Added to that was the related difficulty of some heat-related symptoms.  At one spot, although I was riding a relatively flat section of road, I noted that my heart rate was 160 and my speed was all of about 14 mph.  I could believe the heart rate if I was traveling at about 18-20 mph, but not 14!  I stopped in some shade.  Put my legs up.  Dribbled ice water over my head.  Anything to cool down and bring the heart rate down.  The other riders were amazingly patient.

Over the next many miles (until there were about 15 miles to go) I had to stop frequently with either leg cramps or heat stroke type symptoms, including dizziness, nausea, and out of control heart rate.  No one complained.  What troopers!

At 15 miles to go I was convinced that I would not finish.  Yes, it is only 15 miles, but the way I was feeling that could have been 115.  I stopped again for an extended period of time.  Clint stayed with me.  He called Lori letting her know we had slowed down.  I called Lori telling her to stay by the phone because I might need to be picked up.  Jeff and Janet were given the go-ahead to finish their ride and Clint agreed to stay with me.

Clint developed a plan after listening to me.  He would make sure that I got up the hills with as little effort as possible and would watch my heart rate.  The goal was not to exceed 140.  He yelled at me if I pressed too hard up the hills (I walked a couple early in those last 15 miles).  He urged me to coast as long as possible.  His encouraging words were always spot on without sounding made up.  He assisted in every possible way he could.

With 10 miles to go, I knew I would be able to finish.  I was starting to recover under Dr. Clint’s rigid direction.

We pulled into the finish before Jeff and Janet had left.  They were surprised to see us.

Our time was under 11 hours, respectable on such a hot day for me.

Diana Nyad stopped swimming a couple of miles from completing her 110 mile swim, called her team around her, and gave a speech to them about how long distance swimming seems like a solo sport, but it takes a team.  This ride was like that for me.  It took a team to get me across the finish line.

Clearly I need to get this hydration/nutrition thing worked out better on hot rides.  It didn’t help that I was still recovering from illness.

This ride was not a confidence booster.  It was a painful reminder that this can be a dangerous sport and it is a physical challenge.  I’ve had a motto for years that says, “On any given day … I can ride 100 miles”.  Well, some days that may not be possible.  I’m glad that this 130 mile day ended well.

It is now the day after.  I have some lingering soreness.  I’m really thirsty today which is a sign of my dehydration on this ride.

And now, the numbers:

This Ride: 129.9 miles
Malaria Campaign: 1,840.1 miles
Funds Pledged: $1,012.06
Contributed in support: $2,353.60

Total = $3,365.66

The Severna Park Peloton likes alliteration and names the weekday rides.

Mosey Monday

Terrible Tuesday

Wicked Wednesday

Torture Thursday

Friendly/Fixie Friday

Now add to that “Tasty Tuesday” since our Terrible Tuesday ride ends at The Big Bean for coffee and usually a hot breakfast cookie.  Yum!

This morning’s ride started out pretty odd.  I switched to the Kona pulling off the fender, loaded a new water bottle, and transferred over the battery for the headlight.  As I pushed out the door, I noticed that it was starting to rain.  I did not see that coming.  I looped around back home and grabbed the fender, debating about whether or not to add a rain jacket.  It was warm enough that I simply left the jacket at home.  I was now running very late, and made it to the Rusty Bridge just before it was time to push off.  The light rain had surprised everyone.  We had a large group out (because it is Tasty Tuesday) and we started out easy on the now damp pavement.

The speed gradually ramped up at distinct points along the way.  We increased our speed at the end of Jennings Road, after crossing Robinson Road, after the hills on Old County Road, once we returned to the trail, & after we crossed Joyce Lane.  On the return, the pace was pretty fast all the way back into Severna Park.  Several times on the flat parts of the ride I looked down and saw speeds in excess of 25 mph.  We picked up some more light rain and wet roads as we were at the southern end of the route.

Then it was time for the “tasty” part of the ride.  Good coffee, good cookie, and great conversation was only interrupted by the need to leave and start our work days.

This Ride: 17.9 miles
Malaria Campaign: 1,710.2 miles
Funds Pledged: $940.61
Contributed in support: $2,253.60

Total = $3,194.21

Our church picnic was yesterday.  Many asked about upcoming long rides and would just slowly shake their heads at their crazy pastor and his plans for long rides.

This morning was wonderfully cool and delightfully refreshing as we set a comfortable pace in the darkness for the usual 5:45 ride.  The fixie purred along spectacularly with at least two others, and those noisy guys on their geared bikes.  We are into the time of the year now where the spider webs are large and frequent.  We find a lot of them along the trail … at least the anchor threads.  I hate it when we catch a full web with the spider intact.  You never know where those little guys will end up.

I also picked up another couple of pledges over the weekend.  The Malaria Campaign kicks it up another notch.

This Ride: 21.8 miles
Malaria Campaign: 1,692.3 miles
Funds Pledged: $930.76
Contributed in support: $2,253.60

Total = $3,184.36

Happy Birthday to me!

For the last 4 birthdays, the goal has been to ride my age in miles on my birthday (or within a day of it).  Today was the perfect day for a birthday ride … it being my birthday after all.

There were 13 of us at the Rusty Bridge for the breakfast ride to Annapolis.  That made me a little nervous.  I planned to treat the gang for breakfast and the number of riders was edging up into expensive land!  We had an uneventful ride to the end of the trail, including Chip who 10 days ago had hernia surgery.  Several turned around to go back, so there were only 8 for breakfast at The Hard Bean.  One rider showed up later.  He trailed us by about 2-3 minutes the whole ride.  Treating everyone for breakfast and coffee cost me under $40.

On the return, Jack volunteered to ride with me on an extension of the breakfast ride.  We looped around the airport.  I showed him the emu.  He had heard that there was one near the airport but had never seen it.  We laughed at a funny image.  He told about the time he and his daughter had stopped at that very spot to take a picture of the sky and clouds.  What if … what if the emu was behind them the whole time and they never knew it?!

We wound our way back to Severna Park.  Jack was planning on another dozen miles or so.  I simply needed to keep riding so that I ended up with at least 57 miles, so we extended the ride south a little bit on the trail then said our goodbyes.

When I arrived at home, I had 58+ miles on the day, and a very good day on the fixie.

I’m now under 1,000 miles to go for my circumnavigation of the globe since 1/1/2010!

This Ride: 58.3 miles
Malaria Campaign: 1,670.5 miles
Funds Pledged: $835.25
Contributed in support: $2,153.60

Total = $2,988.85

There is malaise in the air.  Dave has barely ridden this week.  Dan has a summer cold and did not ride yesterday.  I was so fatigued yesterday that I took the day off the bike.  There were only six of us out this morning.  I almost stayed in bed.  My calorie restricted diet (1200-1400 net calories after the bike calories) makes the bike more of an effort.  Despite all this, I got out there and rode.  In fact, I was out early enough that I put in a little more than usual just getting to the Rusty Bridge.

It rained sometime early this morning and the roads were damp to downright wet (especially at the southern end of our route).  No one had installed fenders so there were times when the spray entered open mouths or flooded legs.  I can tell you that the water was warm.  We started at an easy pace, but gradually increased it so that by the time we finished this was one of the 4 fastest rides of the year.  This time I hung with the group and didn’t get dropped.

It was a lovely morning.  The nearly full moon danced with the early morning clouds as they skittered across the sky.  I love early dawn, as the world begins to wake and it emerges from dark shadows into ever greater detail.  It is a privilege to be able to witness this most mornings.  May I never take it for granted.

There were only four occasions when we had to adapt our riding for vehicle traffic.  I guess that is a pretty normal number for our rides.  One of those saw 6 bikes skidding to a stop as our ride leader only noticed the car as we entered the intersection.  It was a rather close call!

So it was a good morning.  I’ll need to adjust my attitude just a bit as I’m not really looking forward to a longer ride tomorrow.  I absolutely need to get a longer ride in … at least 57 miles in order to keep a streak going.  I’ll tell you about that tomorrow.

This Ride: 23.6 miles
Malaria Campaign: 1,612.3 miles
Funds Pledged: $806.15
Contributed in support: $2,153.60

Total = $2,959.75

With the weather website forecasting heavy fog this morning, I stepped out onto my deck to a cool but crystal clear morning.  The stars were bright pinpoints in the dark night sky.  Yes, there was some humidity, but it was not oppressive.  It was going to be a beautiful morning ride!

On my way to the Rusty Bridge, I noted a large SUV approaching from behind me while another vehicle was approaching from the front.  I moved as far right as I dared, which was probably the mistake.  Taking the lane would have been smarter.  The driver of the SUV squeezed between me and the yellow center line as she passed.  She missed me by only a foot with her side rear view mirror.  I sighed a deep breath.

As I crossed the Rusty Bridge, the full moon was setting in the west.  It was a spectacularly beautiful deep orange color, with trees silhouetted in the dim skies.  I only caught a glance of it, but the image lingered for quite some time.  When I returned to the bridge a little later, the moon had set.

The first quarter of our ride was not fast at all, in fact it was quite comfortable.  The speed began to pick up on the hills of Old County Road.  Bryan and I were a bit off the back and we tried to catch the other riders.  We were making some good headway in that effort when they picked up the pace and again we fell back.  Thwarted by my calorie restricted diet again!

Bryan and I rode comfortably together the rest of the route.  No one waited for us at the turn around, so we continued on to the coffee shop, arriving at exactly the opening time of 6:30.  Jeff happened to join us at Jones Station Road, so the three of us pulled in at the same time, just moments after the faster group had arrived.

We had great conversation and “ribbing” going on as we slugged down coffee and the absolutely delicious “breakfast cookie” that The Big Bean owner makes every morning.  The hot ones coming out of the oven are the best, full of oatmeal and cranberries.

And then it was time to ride home.  It was a little chilly at first, but still a beautiful morning for a ride.

This Ride: 18.8 miles
Malaria Campaign: 1,588.7 miles
Funds Pledged: $794.35
Contributed in support: $2,153.60

Total = $2,947.95

I was reminded this morning how much I like riding with others on familiar routes.  We had about 8 riders, with one of them having never before ridden with us.  The pace was faster than usual for a Mosey Monday but it was comfortable on the fixie.  We chatted.  We rode.  We remembered Saturday’s SPP party.  We gave the rundown to Brian, the new guy.  (He held his own.)

I cut the ride a little shorter than usual because of some early morning obligations, but thoroughly enjoyed being out with friends.

The bigger news is some updates on the fundraising for the Malaria Campaign.  Some additional one-time contributions came in so the new totals are below.

This Ride: 19.5 miles
Malaria Campaign: 1,569.9 miles
Funds Pledged: $784.95
Contributed in support: $2,153.60

Total = $2,938.55