Ramrod 2015?

[khg]

Slightly longer version:

First, a huge commendation to the organizers and volunteers--it is a really well-run event, with a small army of people taking care of you. The route was marked, and some of the potentially less obvious turns had people stationed at them signalling the direction in addition to the marking; places of especially bad road surface on descents were marked, and at some places there were people there too to warn you ("metal grate just inside the tunnel"); the food was well-paced, and I really appreciated the abundance of fresh fruit and dearth of processed food; and so on.

I had ridden most of the course in previous rides, but not the beginning section from Enumclaw up to Inspiration Point, and that might have been my favorite part of the ride. I was prepared for the first 50 miles or so to be a long flat boring slog--it was long and pretty flat, but it was really gorgeous. We went through fields and trees and alongside lakes--all while the sun was rising, lighting up Mt Rainier, and burning off the picturesque mist that was streaked across the landscape. The climb up to Inspiration Point wound its way through forest with occasional glimpses of the Nisqually River, and was really peaceful and beautiful. There were some great glimpses of the summit of Rainier through the gap in the trees made by the road that were dramatic peekaboos.

With the ride restricted to 800 people, the stops are small and uncongestd (at least, compared to STP), so it was really easy to get through them quickly, which is what I did for the first part. Though I was chilly when the day started, I know that wouldn't last, and I don't always do well with the heat, so I wanted to get to Cayuse Pass ASAP. I was passed by the same people a lot of times, as they apparently lingered a bit more than I did--one of them had a bike by Hampsten bikes--I mentioned that I was thinking of getting one, so every time he passed me we chatted (briefly) about it--around the 3rd or 4th time he passed me, he joked "they're paying me a lot of money to ride this bike past you over and over!"

My short stops strategy worked well, as I made the turn to Cayuse at 11:30, and there was still a lot of shade on the road (I've read a lot of accounts of the misery of climbing it in the full, unrelenting afternoon sun...) I didn't even need to stop at the water stop partway up the pass--though my bottles were empty at the top, I knew there was another water stop there. (And I'm a sweater--I go through a lot of water...) I like Cayuse in that it is a very steady grade, and I just got into a rhythm, and then when I started feeling tired (or more tired), I just focused on my breathing and leg rhythm, and found that I could keep the pace going.

It was really nice to roll into the Deli Stop and see my husband. He (and all the volunteers) was being kept busy--I think he was as tired as I was at the end of the day, having only sat down for 5 minutes the entire time (he pointed out that while I might have done a really hard bike ride, at least I got to sit down most of the day...)

From there, it was the predictable slog against a headwind on a comparatively less scenic road (often chipsealed) in the heat and sun into Enumclaw. At this point, I clearly had blown my goal time out of the water, and I decided to just soft-pedal it back. I latched onto a couple pacelines for a little bit, but for the most part preferred to ride by myself, even if it was slower, rather than keep the intense focus of staying on someone's wheel. I was tired, and found it more relaxing to be able to look around and go my own pace. In fact, I avoided pacelines for most of the ride--in the beginning because it was so pretty that I would rather look at the scenery than someone's butt, and at the end because I was too tired to put in the effort.

Right before Enumclaw, the route turns off the highway onto Mud Mountain Road, and then takes a back road into town. Given that the highway route is shorter, this was a little grumpy-making for me, but on the other hand, the turn brought the mountain into view again, and it was pretty stunning to look at and realize that you just went all the way around it...

Anyway, it's a great ride, really well-run, and I'm so glad I got to do it!

[lauraelmore1033]

I'm glad you had an enjoyable ride! Congratulations! you must have finished before I even got there to wait for DH (2:30-ish). DH was really looking forward to the new route, but didn't tolerate the heat well. At some point, he said, he didn't think he was going to make it, but someone at the rest stop noticed he didn't look good and made him sit, covered with ice bags, and he was able to carry on after a while. I noticed there were kind of a lot of people SAGging out. Just standing in the shade all that time--DH finished after 6:00--made me feel nauseous and shakey, so I am amazed anybody survived a climb up Cayuse pass under the broiler.

[khg]

I'm glad you had an enjoyable ride! Congratulations! you must have finished before I even got there to wait for DH (2:30-ish). DH was really looking forward to the new route, but didn't tolerate the heat well. At some point, he said, he didn't think he was going to make it, but someone at the rest stop noticed he didn't look good and made him sit, covered with ice bags, and he was able to carry on after a while. I noticed there were kind of a lot of people SAGging out. Just standing in the shade all that time--DH finished after 6:00--made me feel nauseous and shakey, so I am amazed anybody survived a climb up Cayuse pass under the broiler.

We overlapped at the finish then--I got in at 3:40, and hung out until my husband arrived after volunteering at the deli stop, around 6:30. My dad surprised me by showing up at the finish line (he had told me he was going to be away sailing for a couple days) so that was really fun. Taking a shower and then getting a massage were also big highlights of the finish line for me.

We wanted to cheer people as they crossed the line, but it was just too hot in the sun, so stayed in a shady patch next to the school. I'm glad your DH ended up being ok, and major respect to him for dealing with some really tough circumstances. I will say that the one thing about biking in the heat was that at least you got airflow over you--standing around in it was pretty darn hot.

Here's me very happy I finished!

[lauraelmore1033]

I think I saw you then. I think I remember that bike at the finish (everybody tends to look the same, all kitted out...).