I attempted Jester!

[Aggie_Ama]

My husband and I set out this morning with one gaol- JESTER. If you have ever been to Austin to ride or met a roadie from Austin. you will probably hear of Jester. It is an omnious sight off FM 2222, just past Tumbleweed hill. In .5 miles you gain 350 feet at an average grade of 14%. For a few years the nuts held a time trial up it. The elite racers of the area covered it in 2-3 minutes. I was hoping to make it to the top in 10 and not throw up.

We started out from our house and had to go about 25 miles to get to Tumbleweed Hill. First DH had to have a flat at 18 miles which caused quite a bit of cool down. We hit Tumbleweed hill- woohoo 42.6 mph straight down. Then came Jester. It doesn't just sneak the steepness on you, it throws it from the time you turn off FM 2222. I started along at 6 mph, watched as my speedometer tanked to in the 3 mph range. I was bobing all over the road, fighting to stay upright. I wanted to conquer Jester so badly. I made it to the half way point and gave up. In hindsight I wish I had pushed further, I don't think I was quite ready to fall over yet! I'll be trying again though, I will conquer Jester. We then took the worst road ever, textured pavement, narrow, swithbacks galore and steep down. After a couple more nasty little hills we made it to the bagel shop. Ate lunch went on our way home. About 10 miles from home my husband flatted again. Had to get a Co2 (the first flat he messed up on needed two cans) from some kind cyclist and headed home. 62.63 miles.

Here is a YouTube of someone riding Jester, I balied out right past that first mailbox you see about 1:25 into the film:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMT9p7AHCDc

And here are some shots from the now defunct King Of Jester TT race site, so I don't look like a weenie.