Sunday, May 9, 2010

May-08: Morrisville 400 km Brevet

I am toooo tired to write a blog post. Here is the quick version: 

Daylight riding: 

HOT.  WINDY.  HILLY.  TIRED.  All VERY. 


Nighttime riding: 

Chilly.  COLD.  WINDY (the wind changed direction).  TIRED.  All VERY.
Also, so SLEEPY and nodding off 3:30 to 4:30, that I weaved around on the road worse than the Duke.
So SLEEPY.  So TIRED.
Made bearable by riding companions Gary and Sara.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sara + Gary and me at the Snow Camp penultimate control. 
(Photo borrowed, with permission, from Biker-Bob.)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
The above was originally intended as a temporary, place-holding post, to which I would add "more" details.  I've decided I like the original post, so other than links to others blogging the day (or the pre-ride), and perhaps I'll "borrow" a photo, the above will stand.  (There are some details in one of the comments.)

To:  the "Irregulars" -- bonus points for correctly identifying your "fearless leader" in photos in the linked blogs.
To:  rando folk -- brownie points for correctly identifying your "fearless leader".

(I am quite confident that the "Irregular" that recently referred to me as "our fearless leader" has never seen any of the rando blogs.)

 Maria's pre-ride  ("how much climbing?"  "Too frickin' much.")
 MikeD set a record
 Doc on a bike  (I still don't know who "Keith" is.  Recipricol, I imagine.)
 Vance had a tough time, too  (Our paths crossed several times.  The last in Uwharrie, or Seagrove.)
 Hurrah for volunteers!  (We should have turned his camera on him at 3 am -- it would have made a better pic.)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A few "moments" to mention before I forget them:

 1)  the 'possum in the dark in the middle of my lane on the bridge on Abner Rd; I went right; it went left.
 2)  two deer in the dark leaping across Old Greensboro Hwy in front of me; a third stayed in the ditch.
 3)  three alert and "interested" black dogs Coleridge Rd; "visible" only by being even darker than the night.
 4)  the night sky as we passed beyond Nautical Twilight; followed by all night bright stars.
 5)  the sliver of a moon that rose not long before Civil Twilight.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
May-08: 

Morrisville 400 km Brevet; 250.1 m.; 18hrs, 55min in-motion time; 13.2 mph; Rando time: _start time 0600 Saturday; finish time 0734 Sunday; total elasped clock time 25 hrs, 34 min. 

Q-1 tot: 16 rides; __938.2 m.; _60 hrs, 39 min; 15.5 mph.
Apr tot: 10 rides; __717.9 m.; _45 hrs, 27 min; 15.1 mph.
May tot: _4 rides; __373.2 m.: _34 hrs, 03 min; 13.8 mph.
YTD tot: 30 rides; 2,029.3 m.; 135 hrs, 09 min; 15.0 mph.

At least five counties for this ride:  1) Wake, 2) Chatham, 3) Alamance, 4) Randolph, 5) Montgomery.

But the route description, as it winds back and forth across CLs, would be, at least:  1) Wake, 2) Chatham, 3) Wake, 4) Chatham, 5) Alamance, 6) Chatham, 7) Randolph, 8) Montgomery.

12 comments:

  1. Nice job Martin!! Few would contemplate or even attempt that feat, especially from our group. You da man!!


    NT

    ReplyDelete
  2. Martin,

    Wow. I hope you plan to sleep and eat pasta for a week or so. take care.

    Levi

    ReplyDelete
  3. congrats on the 400k

    Smitty

    ReplyDelete
  4. Way to go M! 25 hours.......man I don't even want to think about that.

    HH

    ReplyDelete
  5. I felt the big winds on Saturday and thought about you all day. "Certainly this is going to be a disastrous ride for Martin," I thought. Very pleased you completed the distance in very tough conditions. CONGRATS!!

    --Iceman

    ReplyDelete
  6. Martin -- first of all, congratulations! Also, I completely agree about the goodness of Sara and Gary as riding buddies.

    It was good to ride and talk with you for a little while. Next time, could you make the weather a little cooler, please?

    ReplyDelete
  7. 200K, 300K, 400K . Well done. I bet one in a million people have not accomplished such a thing.

    ReplyDelete
  8. To the truly anonymous one:

    First, add your name to the end of your comment next time, and we will all know who is making such complimentary comments.

    Second, "one in a million". Actually, many more than "one in a million" of the current world population have done 200, 300, 400. To qualify for the Paris-Brest-Paris 1200 km grand randonee, one must complete a 200, 300, 400 and a 600. In 2007, there were more than five thousand people that qualified and registered for P-B-P. That would equate, based on "one in a million" to 5 Billion people.

    By 2011, the time of the next P-B-P, I predict that many more than "one in a million" will have done the full 2, 3, 4, 6 series.

    But thank-you for the compliment, whoever you are.

    ...M

    ReplyDelete
  9. You may have noticed I put up a short, intended-to-be-temporary post on my blog for the 400.
    But as I think about it, I think I might leave my original post just as it is.
    Possibly add links to Maria, Vance, RTP, Doc on a Bike, etc?.

    When I was at the turn-around control, with Byron there abandoning, someone mentioned that Branson was having trouble.
    I commented "in that case, Branson and I each faked smiles when we crossed paths a bit ago. I doubt mine looked as effective as his."

    I had no energy on Saturday.
    If I had ridden "Irregularly" on Saturday, I might well have bailed early.
    I rode from Snow Camp to the turn-around, pausing every 10 to 12 miles to nibble, drink, get both feet on the ground.
    I spent a lot of time at the controls.

    I went into Uwharrie (8 miles after the U-turn), coming close to coasting into Vance with a left calf that cramped when I tried to "click-out" for the stop sign there. Thank goodnes there were no cars around.
    I spent about 20 minutes sitting in a rocking chair inside the convenience store / gas station in Uwharrie watching the "cramplet thunder-storm" in my left calf, and the lesser "storm" going on in my right calf.
    I was trying to figure if I should pull a Byron and recognize defeated legs/body.
    But I couldn't figure out how I could abandon.
    Who could I call?
    Maria, et al, were already dealing with Byron. (And one or two others, by what Alan said at the end.)
    I probably couldn't have gotten a cell signal in Uwharrie anyway.
    I knew I would be disappointed if I gave up. I might never try again, I thought.
    I knew that at least some of the "Irregulars" would be disappointed.

    I recalled finishing my Sep-19-2009 ride despite some noticeable pain and the two dislocated fingers (I think I popped the two fingers back in place before any of the others saw them).
    And then I remembered what it says in the handbook: "try riding to the next control and see what happens".

    So ... that's what I set out to do. Try to ride to Seagrove, and see what happens.

    Somewhere on Ophir Rd, just after cresting a hill, I cramped again.
    I was worried because I knew the hills on Flint Hill Rd would be worse, but I knew there was no option other than to keep trying to ride to Seagrove and the next control.
    Turned out that was my last cramp (I think). They weren't bad cramps, anyway.
    I was very worried riding up that "40 mph downslope" hill on Flint Hill Rd. If I had cramped going up that sucker -- splat!
    But 4.5 mph up that hill in the 30 / 25, pushing / pulling hard on the pedals, I got to the top, and ...
    I knew I could make it to Seagrove.

    Gary and Sara caught me about 10 km before Seagrove as I was changing out batteries.
    Gary asked how I was doing.
    I responded, "well, earlier, I was riding cramp to cramp, but that seems to have passed."

    Gary and Sara got me through the last 160 km. Nice folks. Sara always with a smile. Gary always serene.

    Byron invited me to join the L-L-L permanent ride this coming weekend, but I have to give it a miss ...
    I'm previously committed to a mini-3-hump ride with some of the "Irregulars".
    I think I'll skip riding up Pilot. My excuse will be "hey, I rode 400 km last week, and I'm riding 600 km next week."
    (Byron and Geof combined to tell me a funny story when I told them that line.)

    ...M

    ReplyDelete
  10. Congratulations, Martin. Way to hang in there and finish.

    Yep- I had some pretty bad cramps until Chet taught me something new. He shared some Tums with me at the turnaround and they did the trick. My problem was too much intensity early in the ride and not enough training. I didn't have as much fun as I thought I would, but like you, I just kept riding. Like you said, how else were we to get home?

    See you soon- Branson

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hilarious. I LOVE the original post; it absolutely reflects, in the fewest possible words what this ride was about. Congrats on finishing!
    Keith
    (I'm the one who rides the red Surly Long Haul Trucker)

    ReplyDelete