Death Ride!!

[Biciclista]

he's used to long days in the saddle. What he's not used to is the intensity of the climbs! Apparently the road grades there are steeper and longer than ours (which i still find hard to believe, but he insists!!)
He's used to hills too, but even Ramrod (ride around mt Rainier in one Day) is not as intense as Death Ride..

So those of you who did this ride, i have to say I am amazed and you should be very proud of yourselves...

[maillotpois]

thanks for all the good wishes. it was a long day and full reports will no doubt follow, but bottom line is everyone finished safely. we had a team of just over 40 people including my assistant coaches and participants. there were some fluky things (seemingly illness related) that prevented 3 folks from doing all 5 passes but otherwise, everyone did. and most importantly, everyone finished safe. its a pretty stressful day being responsible for everyone.

death ride number 5 for me. it is really a lovely ride. i saw a bald eagle circling overhead on monitor!

[Blueberry]

Wow! Congratulations to everybody!! Will look forward to the ride reports - once you've all recovered

CA

[Trekhawk]

Congratulations to you all!
I look forward to reading your ride reports.

[andtckrtoo]

Major Congrats!!

[jobob]

I'll post pics sometime soon.

Lee & I hung out for most of the day on a grassy slope at the edge of Markleeville. It was really fun there, lots of people gathered there to cheer the riders on. We & the riders were even serenaded by a small yet enthusiastic marching band.

We cheered on on Dachshund & Mel & MP as they rode by, along with nearly all of the rest of the TNT gang (a few managed to sneak by when I wasn't looking).

And I saw gnat go by too - she's hard to miss! I yelled out to her but it was pretty noisy there so I doubt she ever heard me.

We also hung out later in the day at the TNT tent near the finish at Turtle Rock park. We saw most of the riders come in, although we left before mp arrived. She was riding with the last of the group but we weren't sure how much longer they would be, and we wanted to visit a bit that evening with the friends we were staying with.

We did actually drive by mp as she and the last of the group were riding towards Turtle Rock. The garbage bag she was wearing on account of the rain storm was billowing around her -- looking good, lady!

Mimi, it was great to see Donald, and he still bakes a mean pie!

[gnat23]

And I saw gnat go by too - she's hard to miss! I yelled out to her but it was pretty noisy there so I doubt she ever heard me.

Hahahah, was that you?? I remember going up Monitor's backside and hearing someone screaming down on the other side, but all I caught was "GNAAAaaa...*!" going by like a speeding train.

So. Uhm. WOW! That was about as soul-crushing as I needed it to be. Not to discourage anyone, but the difference between riding 3 and 4 passes was almost nothing. The difference between 4 and 5 was astronomical. You had to really really really want it. And I did. And so did a lot of people. It was *awesome* to see so many people slogging up the last pass with sheer grit and a thousand-yard stare into the horizon.

Something about freezing rain up the last bit of Carson, the fifth pass, almost made me turn around. Holysnot, being only 2 miles from the top wondering if I was going to make it (also the idea of having to turn around and descend in that crap, UGH!) It definitely killed the craving for the free ice cream, but I ate it anyway, shivering in my shorts, out of pure tradition and determination. When I turned into the last rest stop and got my pin, I burst into tears. What a trip!



(rest of my photos here, but I didn't take many given the day and all...)


-- gnat! (Ok, NOW WHAT should I do for the rest of the year??)

[SadieKate]

he's used to long days in the saddle. What he's not used to is the intensity of the climbs! Apparently the road grades there are steeper and longer than ours (which i still find hard to believe, but he insists!!)
He's used to hills too, but even Ramrod (ride around mt Rainier in one Day) is not as intense as Death Ride..

So those of you who did this ride, i have to say I am amazed and you should be very proud of yourselves...

Congrats to Raleighdon.

And from someone who rides in both California and the Cascades, yes, the mtns in California tend to be steeper.

[jobob]

Gotta say, Raleighdon was so nervous the evening before the ride!

I thought he was very well prepared, and I kind of suspect this was just his way of psyching himself up.

Still, I was very happy to see him ride through Markleeville after having already done four passes, looking very strong.

And he looked great at the end of the ride! He was such a happy camper.

I hope that's me next year.

[melissam]

I hope that's me next year.

Yes, Jo, it WILL be you next year!!

[jobob]

Gotta admit though, after hearing or reading the accounts from Twain, Raleighdon, Glenn (gw_12) as well as from some of the TNT gang, it sounds like the Death Ride is suffering from overpopularity. Happens to many of the good rides, alas.

Eh, I'm still going to train for it on next year's TNT team. I've already raised about 2/3rds of my minimum, and due to my "fortunate" timing I'll get to roll it over into next year's fundraising effort.

Plus I've already heard from a few team members who plan to do it again. It was a great bunch of people this year and I have no doubts it'll be a great bunch next year.

[crazycanuck]

Jo-i'm sure with your determination, you'll be there next year

How many participants were there? Is this the biggest one in California??

[maillotpois]

How many participants were there? Is this the biggest one in California??

The biggest what in California?

The ride is capped at 3000 riders (2800 entries available for purchase and 200 given to various sponsors). It is a pretty small field, all things considered (compared to other centuries), but the out and back nature of the course makes it feel like there are more riders than there are.