How was the Cinderella! Let's have some ride reports!! :)

[slinkedog]

I hope you all had a wonderful day... what great weather!!

[smilingcat]

I'm a cat through and through... I don't like cold or rather cold doesn't like my bod.

I was so apprehensive about being able to finish the ride, I really didn't sleep the night before. Compounding to the apprehension, my last major accident about 8 years ago was partially due to lack of sleep so I was more than nervous about another serious crash. Along with the stress, my back started to tighten. And it was overcast and cold. Damp too, to this southern california spoiled kid.

Oh and I just caught a cold on last monday. Tuesday, took half a day off cause I was too sick. None of ths is adding up to being ready for a ride let alone not having trained for a 60+ mile ride.

We were planning to meet by table "Z" but I got there late cause who knew it could take 10-15 minutes to park one's car and get to the registration table. I got to the parking lot with 5 minutes to spare...

When I finished registering, I looked around table "Z" and I couldn't find anyone from the night before...

I rode slowly and paced myself. 15MPH on the flat. The country side was beautiful. Very little traffic, Mega mansions and wineries galore. And the cold wind. riding on paved country road, coming nearly face to face wih some cows (mooo moo) . sky was dark

only traffic were the roving SAGs. Some were the sweep. You could tell cause they carried a broom on the bike rack.

The first rest stop was only 15 or so miles into the ride. cold still apprehensive about being able to finish the ride. Sky was still dark overcast. Ate some fig newtons, oranges, had a very green banana (tasted like chaulk). Off I went.

I have no sense of direction so I had no idea where we were going. The good thing was that the route was not only really well marked, there were enough people so I just followed those ahead of me. Never took out my route sheet. Blind trust to total strangers.

At the second rest stop, 30 miles into the ride, they had lunch spread PB & J (I heard what Canadians call our beloved PB & J) or cold cut turkey/ham with lettuce, tomato make your own sandwitch. I was so cold... I was shivering under all my layers of cloth. Once on the road, we road into the head wind. seemed like we were riding into the head wind no matter which way we were facing. Then we "climbed" the Patterson grade. It was really gentle and no wind. So that was plus. As I neared the end of the climb, there were riders going up steeper hill, a longer hill That was for the Cindy Challange. I declined with my sore back and my inability to breath with the cold. I was eating cough drops most of the way. That was the only real climb.

More head wind...

I thought about dumping the ride but when we got to the final rest stop, the sun finally broke through and the wind died down enough. And I warmed enough so that it was pleasant. Enjoyed the last 20 miles of the ride to the finish. Riding through some beautiful neighborhoods.

When I finshed, they had another spread. sandwitches and soup. Trek, and Specialized had a booth. You could try some of their bikes. Talked to the gals from Specialized, told them about the problem with my transition pro frame and where they attached the screw holes for the bottle mount. some jewelry vendor, cloth, ... And to my suprise, Velogirl was there!! Another person I met in person woo hoo!!!

I was hoping to see TE booth but they weren't there this year.

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I would highly recommend this ride for anyone who never rode a metric century and wish to ride one of the "long distance" ride. I was sick, lack of sleep, stiff and sore back, not properly trained for the ride, and I still managed to complete the ride without being totally exhausted.

this is one of the best supported ride with bike mechanic at each stop. I stopped and helped a person who had dropped the chain. She didn't know how to get it back on. She didn't have to wait for SAG to show up. Lots of other people willing to help too.

I really don't remember seeing too many cars. Very few. Saw lot of the SAGs though...

multiple thumbs up. (like I have more than two )
smilingcat

[velogirl]

it was windy and chilly but dry. I've ridden windier and chillier cindy's. it wasn't my fastest Cindy and it wasn't my slowest. but I suffered. something went very wrong with my nutrition or hydration (haven't figured out which yet).

I met SmilingCat. I met BikeGoddess (easy to pick out because of her argyle cycling socks). I saw CindySue (is that your name, Cindy?). And BikeMomma. and Gnat. and I can't remember who else from TE.

I rode with a group from Velo Girls then sat in our booth and pressed the flesh. I was very proud of all the women who participate in our training ride series and my Tuesday/Thursday indoor training sessions and completed the ride -- yay!

I bought a sparkly pink cycling skirt from DOL that matches my Velo Girls jersey.

we went bowling last night. oh, yeah, no one cares about that. I won! I beat my bf (the genetic sports freak). does that tell you anything about my childhood?

[velogirl]

my cinderella photos are here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=32910&l=3abc8&id=617196282

[gnat23]

The wildflowers greeted us on several straightaways, there was some sort of horseshow at the first rest-stop, and I have never seen so many hats-taped-to-helmets in my life! I'm kinda glad I got started early, because we passed a ton of wineries that might have been fun to, erm, take a little break at if they were open then.

It was damn chilly. Not cold in that OMG I SHALL DIE winter sense, but a wet sort of cold that creeped under your clothes and soaked into your bones. The start of the ride was awash in safety green windbreakers that made us look like a crazy matched costume crawl. The sun finally started peaking out around 10:30, but it never felt like it got ubercomfortable, and the wind never really died down.

Pretty good spread of cookies, crackers, bagels, and carbs at the rest stops. I skipped the sandwiches at the lunchstop since the line had gotten pretty long, but there was certainly no lack of eating anywhere else.

I was so thrilled to see creaky old mountain bikes and cotton sweatpants and young and old and tiaras and feathers and panniers and mirrors and costumes and every woman out there just getting through 60 miles no matter what. YOU GO GIRLS!

My pictures!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/gnat23/...7604403977717/

-- gnat! (I blew kisses at everyone that honked)

[BikeMomma]

....otherwise known as BikeGoddess and her awesome Benicia Cycling Club cohort Sarah.

I was like Cat -- got in the gates and waited an eternity to actually park. But once parked and assembled, I headed over to registration, got my number, went over to line "Z" to find the others, stood there for a minute or so seeing no one familiar, then figured I was too late. Turning to head to my bike, I literally almost bumped into BikeGoddess. Comical! She asked if I had seen anyone else (no), then said she was going to bring her bike over to where I had mine while she looked for Sarah. So, I stood there for a few minutes, eating my banana nonchalantly, then to my amazement, saw her leaving! lol Guess she found Sarah and lost me! Chuckling at the irony and the "needle in a haystack" craziness of even momentarily thinking she could have found me too, I finished my banana and figured I'd catch up with those two at some point.

Yup, sure enough, at the first rest stop, I literally just about bumped into BG again, this time with Sarah and the matching argyles. And there it was - clearly, it was fate that I was going to ride with these two.

The rest of the ride was alot of fun, wind and all. Actually, each time I ride with BG, she seems to get stronger, and Sarah was just as fun to ride with. You can tell she's a triathlete...she just goes and goes, steady as could be. We made a great trio.

BG had informed us that she had heard wind gusts of 50mph reported earlier at Patterson Pass, so between that and, for myself, some research for a project at work I needed to do after the ride was over, we decided to scrap our initial plans to do the Challenge route. I sortof had tired legs anyway from training hard and racing the past month, so it was a welcome decision.

The food was good, fresh, and plentiful as always, I filled my pockets with animal cookies as I do every year, the Princes were charming, and the horses along the way gorgeous. I was having so much fun, I kept forgetting I had a camera to record it all.

But I did get this one:



Argyles rock. lol

Oh, and saw Velogirl at her 'Girl booth and bought myself some new sunglasses at the expo....I conveniently broke my regular sunglasses sometime after arriving at the hotel friday.

Hope everyone had fun!
~BikeMomma

[velogirl]

Argyles rock. lol

no, Nancy rocks!

[BikeMomma]

Here, here! Can't dispute that! lol I think I told Sarah a couple times and BG herself that I hope I'm that spry at her age. Heck yea, she rocks!

~BikeMomma

[cindysue]

I got up at 4:30 which turned out to be kinda silly since we didn't actually start riding until well after we got our registration pack. About 15 miles into the ride there was an accident, and we stopped for awhile because one of my riding partners was good friends with the girl (who turned out just fine).

The challenge was indeed a challenge due to the ridiculous headwinds mentioned in previous posts. My muscles were definitely feeling it! Happy to run into Bekki and friends at the lunch stop and then again after the last rest stop.

Champagne at the finish line was a special treat brought by the husband of one of my riding partners and then I got to chat a bit with Kim (Bikemomma) as she was leaving the fairgrounds. Also saw Lorri and my good friend Sharon. I saw a few of the Benicia Bike Clubbers but never saw Nancy.

Overall another great Cinderella; excellent riding partners and the pleasure of seeing so many women enjoying the day.

p.s. Sue is my middle name; southern girl, y'all.

[LikeMyBike]

Word from an argyle girl...

I know I haven't posted in a while. Thought I'd send out a note to say hi and drop a note about Cinderella.

I carpooled with Bikegoddess. And while we didn't seem to meet with anyone else at the "z" isle at registration (it seems that we all ended up there at slightly different times due to parking congestion, and in my case waiting in line at the bathroom...sorry about that), we did end up meeting up with MikeMomma at the first rest stop. I can't believe she's a racer and a momma! Wow, talk about impressive!

Anyway, by the time we reached the first rest stop, we were pretty cold. I would have to say that while, I'm otherwise a pretty solid cyclist, I'm a wimp when it comes to the weather. Of course, I forgot my shoe covers and my feet were popsicles by the rest stop.

But if I was cold on the bike, it was nothing to those poor volunteers (including some of our own argyle princes) who were standing around freezing their skin-and-bones off for us. Thank you, thank you, thank you to them!

At the lunch stop Bikegoddess had the idea that I should find some leftover bread bags and put them over my feet between the two layers of socks I had on to help thaw out my feet. It worked great, by the way. Nice tip!

At any rate we decided to forgo the challenge, which, I am told by the gals who attacked it, included 40mph headwinds!

Eventually the weather improved and by the end of the ride it got much warmer. No matter the weather, Cinderella is always a beautiful thing. Women and girls out to enjoy a sport and oneanother's company, many decked out in amazing costumes, and the men in our lives who come out to support us. (No one could ever forget the lemon drop man who attends every year and hands each of us a lemon drop).

We're only sorry we missed saying godby to BikeMomma!