300K report (well, 108 miles of it)
Hey everyone
Well, yesterday was interesting. As you can see from my thread title, I didn't finish :( (Details below)
When I woke up it was 43 degrees and raining, but I felt good. I was almost angry I was so determined to do this ride. I'd gotten a decent sleep, had a good breakfast, and hit the road with plenty of time as to not be late like last time. I arrived at the start point about 30 minutes early. The organizers were like "back for more punishment eh?" I'm sure they were surprised I was there considering my attitude after the last brevet.
At the start, there were 20 people and I was the only woman. It was 42 and there was a light drizzle falling. But I was decked out in my rain gear, and had on several layers to keep warm. I felt good. We all left and quickly the group split into 3 separate groups. I learned later there are some RAAM riders who do these, which explains how fast they took off. I settled into the 2nd group of 3 riders. They were going about 16-17mph, which is well within my comfort zone. The route was the same, so things looked familiar to me, which was a nice. It rained steadily for the first 32 mile segment. But there was only a slight headwind, nothing you'd notice half the time, out of the north. I thought to myself that we'd have a tailwind coming back, which would be fantastic. I should know better than to assume things on my bike by now :D By the time we got to the first checkpoint, I'd settled in with a group of 4 other guys. We got to checkpoint #1 in about 2 hours.
The 2nd stretch is more hilly, which I remembered from the 200k. I knew I was going to get dropped in this section, which was fine. I didn't want to kill my legs trying to keep up. It's early in the season for me, so my climbing legs are still in hybernation. But thankfully the rain stopped, so it was just a matter of getting over those hills again. We got to the 2nd checkpoint in about 2.5 hours. I fell off the group but could always see them ahead of me. Sometimes I'd catch one of the slower guys, but he'd pass me, etc. Overall I felt a lot better at this point than I did at the 200k. I was a bit tired from the hills, but was ready for the next 30 miles which would be new ground for me.
We rode out as a group for this stretch. One of the guys got a flat, so we had to stop. Stops were a blessing and torture on this ride. You needed the rest, but it was so cold your body just tensed up. The 10 minutes after you stopped and got going were hard because all you could do is shiver. Your body was in a constant state of tension to try to keep warm. The next 30 miles were a bit flatter, though that's a relative term :D One of the guys tells me that there's "one really big hill" coming up. It's not long, but very steep. Another says "you'll definitely be using that triple on that one." I think to myself "oh sh**" since I've already been using my triple on a lot of the smaller hills to try and save energy.
We come to "the hill" which starts after you turn up another small hill. I look at it like "that's going to hurt". I drop into my triple and manage to make it to the top by standing. I about throw up at one point :D I get to the top and take the descent, and think "this is steeper and longer than what I just climbed up." Of course we have to go back out the way we came in, it wouldn't be fun otherwise! After the hill on Black Hill road, we had another 6 miles into town. When we got to the stop, I felt ok. We were about 7 hours into the ride. I was tired and needed a rest but it was too cold to stop for a long time. I ate another pb&j sandwich, had another starbucks double shot and a banana. I think we stopped 10 minutes. One guy who'd been there a while said "man you guys are hard core." I didn't consider myself hard core, just desparate to stay warm. But I felt it in my legs that the quick stops were catching up on me.
We headed out back toward that damn hill. It started to rain again. This is where my rear derailleur started to act up on me. On a small hill I changed gears and my chain locked. I managed to clip out so I didn't tip over. At first I thought it fell off and got stuck, but when I looked down it was still on. I moved the pedals backward and that seemed to dislodge whatever the problem was. I looked at my bike and it was covered in sandy mud and other various crap. It was certainly taking a beating with the rain and back roads. As we continued, the bike was shifting a bit hard. I wished I had some lube with me at that point. I also thought about how I should have cleaned my chain before we left since the 200k probably did a good job getting things gunked up. My chain snagged a 2nd time as we started back up Black Hill road. For the first time in my riding career I got off and walked up a hill. Not that that was much easier. But I was pissed. My legs didn't have it in to start up again. But because of that, I fell behind everyone and was last. I could see them about 1/2 a mile or so ahead of me.
I turned to the east to come back and heard that familiar wind in my ears, the fun sound of headwind and thought "WTF?" I looked at my speedometer and I was going 12 on a relatively flat road. I looked for some signs of which was the wind was coming from, and finally saw a flagpole. I literally yelled out "you've got to be f***ing kidding me" when I saw the 2 flags outstretched blowing in the opposite direction that I was riding. The wind had shifted, picked up, and I felt like I was having some screwed up deja vu of the 200k. But this time I had 80 miles left to go and was dead last with nobody behind me in case of a mechanical.
I rolled into a small town that was next to the highway. I pulled off at the Cheese Chalet (it was WI and all) and called my boyfriend to see what the wind was doing. He said "East / Northeast at 15mph". I did the math in my head and a good 40 miles would be into headwind. I thought of the hills, how much shifting I'd have to do on my wobbly derailleur, and the fact it was raining again. He offered to come get me and after some hemming and hawing I agreed. I said that I could ride to the next stop, but that would have taken him longer to get to since it was 30 miles from the highway. So I parked myself at a Culvers for the next 2 hours. They were nice enough to let me park my bike by my table since I had no lock. I peeled off my rain jacket only to discover that I was soaked. It must have been condensation and sweat that soaked through because the jacket worked well to keep the rain out. Sort of a little sauna I was contained in for 108 miles. Needless to say I got REAL cold. So I got some hot chocolate, and some food. I think I scared some of the locals with my outfit, but I didn't care.
So, I had to bail on the ride. I was half pissed and half relieved. I honestly don't think I could have done it to myself again. I called the ride organizer to let him know I had to bail and that I'd be by the motel start point in a few hours to get my car. We got there around 8:15. I'd bailed at 4:15, to give you an idea. It poured off and on as we drove, and I thought man I'd be out in this. Then I thought of the other riders and hoped they'd made it back by then. Or the rain missed them. When we got to the motel, there were a few riders sitting in the lobby, 2 of them being the RAAM riders. They'd been there a little while and were talking about Black Hill road. I felt better that that road kicked their butts too :D They'd heard about my mechanical problems, and we joked about worm buildup. There were still 8 riders out there at that point, and it was dark and raining. I felt bad for them, and partially like I took the easy way out. But I was also happy to be inside and not on my bike.
So there you have it.
Total ride time: 7:38. 108.4 miles.
I'm pretty sore today, especially my right knee and have a cough. I'm hoping that doesn't develop into anything more fun :D While I'm bummed I didn't get the 300k done, I think I have a relatively good excuse. There's always next year to get the series done. Or if I'm feeling masochistic, I can find another one to do. I just ask that it not rain or be 45 degrees that day!
Thanks for reading and all the support you guys gave. :D
Discretion is the better part of valor
beta, you are a woman in touch with reality. Good for you for knowing when to stop. That sounds miserable, and the cold afterwards--uhgk! Sucks that today is so beautiful in comparison. Well, you'll be back on your bike soon. BTW, I want a really flat, really dry, really not too hot not too cold day for the century I do with you! :rolleyes: I am a weather weinie, for sure.
I went by Performance today...walked out with a new helmet, shorts, cold weather riding gloves, underseat bag, and chain cleaner. All but the chain cleaner were on sale. Thanks for the tip! Don't tell the guys at On The Route that I was cheating on them with another bike store. I can't believe I've never been in there before! They have quite a selection.
Rest up, get warm, and thanks for writing up the story. It's a good one!
:) L.
