Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Aug-28: Kerr Lake Loop 208 km Permanent


From HelpER to HelpEE on KLL in only 8 days.  

Rick R, coming off bronchitis, and hoping to save his R-series, rode with me. 
He figured he'd be slowing me down. 
I figured I would ride with some gusto, again, and pull / help Rick. 
Wrong, wrong, wrong!

On a "severe clear" day that should have been great for checking the scenery and taking photos, 
But with my shoulder and elbow still aching some (but not as bad as they were), 
I looked around barely at all. 
Partially no-look because of the shoulder and the associated aches in the neck, 
But mostly because ... I was too tired to do anything but keep the bike on the road. 

I was lucky enough to have Alan's "no-go" on upslopes, 
And MikeH's legs attempting to cramp (beginning in Clarksville, maybe before). 
Took a lot of small (or not so small) breaks.  

We finished in 12h,06m. 

At least, assuming it gets approved, Rick got his R-ride in.  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Aug-21:  

---> Kerr Lake Loop 209 km Permanent; 141.8 (10.6 miles to the start)
.; 9h,38m in-motion (36m.42s to the start); 14.7 mph; rando-route elapsed clock time:  12h,06m.   

 _ 

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Final Word on Ricochet Robert on P-B-P

Here is the final P-B-P rider progress report on Robert:


       Contrôle                                Heure                 Cumul                       Intermédiaire

SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES  21-08 20:01  0h000 km/h0h000.1 km/h
VILLAINES-LA-JUHEL22-08 05:549h5322.4 km/h9h5322.4 km/h
FOUGERES22-08 10:40    14h39    21.2 km/h    4h46    18.7 km/h
TINTENIAC22-08 13:44  17h43 20.5 km/h3h0417.6 km/h
LOUDEAC22-08 21:0225h01   17.9 km/h   7h17   11.6 km/h
CARHAIX-PLOUGUER23-08 03:4831h4716.5 km/h6h4511.2 km/h
BREST23-08 11:0539h0415.8 km/h7h1712.8 km/h
CARHAIX-PLOUGUER23-08 19:0647h0514.9 km/h8h0110.6 km/h
LOUDEAC24-08 02:1654h1514.4 km/h7h0911 km/h
TINTENIAC24-08 08:4660h4514.3 km/h6h2913.1 km/h
FOUGERES24-08 12:1264h1114.3 km/h3h2615.7 km/h
VILLAINES-LA-JUHEL24-08 20:3172h3013.9 km/h8h1810.6 km/h

Heure estimée d'arrivée au prochain controle entre 25-08 02:20 et 25-08 04:10
Kilomètres parcourus: 1009 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I received this message from Angi, Robert's wife: 

Had a message from Robert. He didn't make it. Hmmmm. Bummer.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOT what I expected to be posting, but ...

Congratulations, Robert !!
1000 kilometers !! 
Your longest ride ever by 400 kms.

Probably on strange food on a stomach that doesn't "do" strange food. 
We know it was in an unfamiliar language.

I look forward to hearing about the good stuff.
And the bad.
 _ 

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Aug-21: Showdown in Black Creek 204 km Perm

UGH !!!

That's the note that LynnL left in the zip-lock bag with her control card.
That about sums up her ride.
And mine.

Lynn finished 1h,20m before me. All of it, except 10m, on the homeward leg.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aug-21:  

Showdown in Black Creek 204 km Permanent; 127.0
.; 8h,29m in-motion; 15.0 mph; rando elapsed clock time:  10h,31m.  

Career "Eddiington cycling number", E = 78. 
 _ I.e., I have at least 78 rides that were at least 78 miles long.  

Aug-20: Kerr Lake Loop 208 km Perm

It is good to be the HELPER. 
Because, next time you might be the HELPEE.

Route owner MikeD was headed to France for P-B-P.
I tried to contact him far enough in advance to NOT add to any stress he may have been having.
I probably should have contacted him even sooner.
How do I know?
It is obvious to those of us that did the ride.
When Mike is back from France, and nicely relaxed, we'll share with him.
Hopeful that he will laugh.

Ended up with a "Party of Six".
Could have been "Eight is Enough", but
One cancelled early the in week before claiming bronchitis.
And one over-slept on Saturday morning.

I had planned to cycle 10 or more miles to get to the start of the ride,
But when I decided to put a little more air in the tyres,
The seal between the valve and "rubber" of the tube in the rear failed.
Great.  Not.  I needed a "wayback machine", or 20 minutes, anyway.
I put bike in car and drove to the start.
I had to get to the start on time ... I had the group waiver signatures to collect.

Fixed the flat at the start, before the start.
Interesting thing about that tube:
It had a patch.  I had forgotten it was a patched tube.
The patch was still good when I tossed the tube.
The permanent style patch had lasted for at least two thousand miles.

A little confusion at the start, but nothing really worth mentioning.

At the first control, ~ 23 miles in to the ride,
I informed Irregular and newbie-this-year rando JohnA that he would be the lucky one
To ride with LynnL when she rode away from us.
6 or 8 miles later (I'm not going to consult the cue sheet),
I saw Lynn drifting off the front, and called out to John that his ride partner was making her move.
[John had never ridden with Lynn.  Only heard about her.]
John asked, "is that her moving away for the day?"
I responded, "yep, we won't see her again."
We didn't.

Also at the first control, or maybe it was at the store in Boydton,
I pointed out to RBA Alan that since MikeO had over-slept,
No one was on the ride that knew his tell-tale signs of ... bad things.
If he noticed he was over-heating, please tell us.
[I'm sure Alan later informed MikeO that he is not allowed to oversleep again
As I make a tougher "nanny" than Mike does.
Not really:  I saw Mike "frog-march" Alan into the air conditioning on a Jul-02 ride.] 

Alan had spent the early part of the month walking around San Francisco,
Fulfilling life commitments, and being a tourist.
He had ridden all of 27 miles in August before this ride.
All 27 miles were the day before.
I've been on rides with Alan when I couldn't keep up with him.
I've been on rides with Alan when he's had a bad day.

This ride, Alan struggled with his conditioning ... not so much the heat.
Just after the crest of Peace Mountain (aka, "Stovall Mountain"),
I pulled over to wait, BikerBob pulled over to wait, Alan pulled over announcing he needed a REST.
Next minute I look behind Bob, and saw
Alan's bike lying in the ditch,
His shoes and camelback neatly beside the bike, and
Alan lying flat on his back along the roadside.
Classic randonneur sleeping in the ditch kind of thing.

Neither Bob nor I had a camera.
If we had had a camera, this post would consist of ... that photo and nothing else.

Alan's lie-down and everything else only took 11 minutes of time,
From when he pulled over until we started again.

We soon caught up to MikeH, who had kept riding
As the best way to hold off cramps his legs had been trying to inflict since Clarksville.
MikeH had also had limited recent cycle time,
Completing the renovations to his house.
Those are done, now.
I expect I'll soon have trouble keeping up with him, again.

Our lantern rouge foursome split into two twosomes the last 18 miles or so.
Alan could "go" on the flat and downslopes,
MikeH's legs wanted to hold him back, regardless of the terrain.

We all finished.
Hopefully, when MikeD returns, we'll all get credit.

R-rides for Alan, MikeH and JohnA.
Kilometers towards goals for BikerBob and me.
I'm not sure what Lynn is thinking these days.

One more thing:  that flat I had before attempting to cycle to the ride ...
I'm thinking it may have been a Godsend ...
Otherwise, I would have either had to ride "home" in the failing light,
Or, I might not have wanted to be as much of a HELPER as the day called for.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aug-20:  

Kerr Lake Loop 208 km Permanent; 131.1.; 8h,46m in-motion; 14.9 mph; rando elapsed clock time:  12h,00m. 

 _ 

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Where to Find the Time

It is hard, right now, to find the time to blog my two weekend rides.
Because the time I could have used to do that ...
Has been used checking on friends and acquaintances currently in France or Alaska.
(Although I've only checked on Alaska once.)

Irregular and rando buddy Ricochet Robert appears to be riding with plenty of Ricochet.
Randos Jerry and Ian appear to be leap-frogging and near Robert.
Branson is a BEAST !!
MikeD appears to be near Jerry and Ian and Robert.
That probably means Cap'n Ende, also.

However, some of our "North Carolina" contingent have "Abandoned".
As I type this, I know that RonM and Chloe have abandoned.
I'm concerned about Thai and Denis and Sara and Gary.

Sara and Gary have a special place in my rando-heart.
They got me to the finish of my first 400 last year.
Without them ... I'm not sure I would have kept trying rando.
I hope the reports on them have simply been delayed and that
They continue to make their way across northern France,
Sara with her signature smile, and
Gary with his "cat that swallowed the canary" grin that he always has when he rides with Sara.

If, however, any of them have had to abandon, or have to abandon in the next couple days,
Perhaps they will follow the advice of Sridhar:
"How often do you expect to be cycling across France?  Take a nap, and finish the ride, anyway."
 _

Thursday, August 18, 2011

If I Had a Cyclo-Touring Company

Or, Reasons to Ride  

If I had a cyclo-touring company ... I might use photos such as the following to advertise the scenery and roads of central North Carolina to people living in over-crowded cities and/or states (all photos were taken on a single Irregulars ride in November-2010 and are courtesy of Gary Smith, TLC-4-Bikes):

In the valley of Bold Run Hill. 

Still in the valley of Bold Run Hill?

Smooth asphalt.  No traffic. 
NOT the usual livestock ... unless you know where to look. 


Stretching one's back ... in the middle of the road.  No traffic here. 

Into the valley of the Flat Rock.  We'll go back up the other side ... again. 


Not sure which road this is.  Colorful though.  No traffic. 


What more could one ask for? 

It is ALL about knowing where to go. 

 _

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Aug-14: Black Creek 204 km Perm

Not a single rain drop!

At "oh-dark-thirty", big rain finally passed through the north Raleigh area.
More storms were expected throughout the day.
Some possibly with hail and all the other stuff a thunder-storm brings.

Wakefield McD's by 0600.  It is empty.
0602, the staff with the key arrives.
0605, McD's lights up and comes to life.
So much for business hours commencing at 0600.
Their website still indicates 0530.

Long time thinking about whether to chance the weather.
And / or waiting to see if ChrisW would show.
He didn't.
0630 comes and goes.  (And quite a bit of time after that, too.)
But I finally got a receipt ... and decided it seemed like one of those days that
If you defy the weather forecast,
You end up with a great day for cycling.

Wet roads.  Damp roads.  Drying roads.  Dry.

Breeze from the south outbound.
Slightly off starboard bow until Hornes Church.
Then head-on all the way to Black Creek.
But only a breeze.

OVERCAST.  Clouds breaking up.  Partly sunny.  SUNSHINE.

Breeze from the southwest inbound.
Tailwind to Hornes Church.
Then mostly off the port bow.
But only a breeze.

Shoulder aches.  Elbow pains.
Most positions aggravate one or the other or both.
Enough ache that I sometimes feel nauseous.

Confuser okay at the start.
But on the first downslope on Purnell Rd, the humidity seems too much.
Confuser never stops pretending to record distance and time.
But ... I know it is dropping a lot of miles ... and some time-in-motion.

Somewhere around Hornes Church or Wilson,
Apparently there has been enough direct sun and heat to finally dry out the confuser.
The speed readings make sense, anyway.
(At Black Creek, I estimate the confuser has lost 12+ miles, but only 4 minutes of time-in-motion.)
I reset it for the trip homebound.

Black Creek Grocery closed.
Of course.
Black Creek a veritable ghost-town.
Saw nary a human on Center Street.
Pen handy to fill in the impromptu info control question at 1200.
Considering when I actually left McD's ... pretty good time.

Start back after eating from pockets and visiting the community wash / rest room.  1220.

It isn't that I felt tired per se.
But I didn't have a lot of pizazz in the legs or the guts.
Most of the day felt as if I was in 600 km pace mode,
Instead of a pace / cadence appropriate for a mostly flat 200k.

The occasional naseous feeling didn't help.
The aches and pains in the shoulder and elbow didn't help.

Finally, somewhere after the "climb" from Sutton,
It was "the heck with this" and I forced myself out of the saddle on an upslope
And forced some cadence.
Things seemed a lot better after that.

Sun was getting warm, and although I had found some guts,
I decided to visit Alan's favorite bench outside the Subway on the west edge of Youngsville.
18 minutes to rest the body and mind, and to chase the hot-foot away, were what was needed.
I actually did the last 12 miles or so, the hilly section, with a little bit of gusto.

R-13.
Also counts as C-18 and M-30.
 _ Don't know if I'll be able to get P-4 this month, though.
Career "Eddiington cycling number", E = 77.
 _ I.e., I have at least 77 rides that were at least 77 miles long.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aug-14:  

Showdown in Black Creek 204 km Permanent; 127.0.; 8h,32m in-motion; 14.9 mph; rando elapsed clock time:  11h,08m. 

Aug-13: Olive Branch Rd Upslope

Olive Branch Rd was recently re-surfaced.
Probably will be good to ride until a few freeze-thaw cycles this coming winter.
After all, they did NOT address the underlying roadbed issues on Olive Branch
In that little valley just south of the corner where Doc Nichols comes in from the southwest.

Anyway, for the first time in a few years, Olive Branch is fit to ride.
So I wanted to ride it.
The hard way.
From NC-98 to Carpenter Pond Rd.

The hard way does give a net 200 foot elevation gain in just a couple miles from
The northern-most of the creek crossings on Olive Branch to
Carpenter Pond Rd.

A net 200 foot gain is not all that much.
But ... there aren't very many (any) 200 foot net gains near north Raleigh.
The next closest I can think of is "Stovall Mtn" on MikeD's Kerr Lake Loop Permanent.
I suppose that Snow Hill Rd over north of Durham is a net 200 foot gain ... haven't checked.

One "problem" is that almost all our / my courses are clockwise,
And we'd need a counter-clockwise to include Olive Branch the hard way, near the end of the ride.

Not a problem ... just reverse one of the usual courses.
I wasn't going to bother with reversing a cue sheet.
Who needs a cue sheet for a familiar route?

Okay, so reversing a route can confuse one because the familiar landmarks seem out-of-place.
Okay, so we're taking a short-cut or two off the Stem-Mt.Energy-Grissom 100k course.
Will that actually confuse anyone?

Well, actually it could.
Especially if some newbies / guests are along for the ride.
So ... a reversed cue sheet was made available.
Some actually brought copies!
What a concept!

I've lost a lot of weight in the last six or nine months.  A LOT.
Six gallons of water worth of weight.
Cap'n Lt. Dave noted it would be interesting for me to do some of the climbs on the BRP now.

Anyway, it seemed to me that we were bogging down on the upslope from Falls Lake to
Old Weaver Trail and beyond toward Grissom.
I took the lead to set what I thought was a reasonable pace.
But as my confuser was still on the fritz, I didn't actually know what that pace was.

But there was a lot of envigorated conversation just behind me.
So I thought we were all together ... I didn't actually check my mirror ... my shoulder still aches.
Just after Ricochet Robert hit the pedals a bit extra for a turn or two so that
He could sneak the Granville County Line (chapeau!, Ricochet),
Snapper noted that Wendy and Gary were no where in sight.

Eight miles into a 54-mile ride and we've dropped two of the seven riders!
What the hell kind of leader does that make me?

We slowed to a soft-pedal and intent to stop at Grissom and wait.
We waited a couple minutes.
I rode back six-tenths of a mile to the churches at Rock Springs Rd.
No Gary.  No Wendy.
I rode back to Grissom and borrowed Iceman's phone.

Gary answered.
"Have you abandoned us?", I asked.
"Wendy recently slightly pulled her back and the climb up from the lake aggravated it", Gary replied.
"We're going to do something short and slow," he continued.  "It is alright."

Gary is one the most honest, non-obfuscatory people I know.
I took him at his word then.
I still am.
But I may ride by his TLC-4-Bikes shop in the next couple days just to chat and make sure.

Gary and Wendy probably ended up on the long-end of the stick.
The rest of us got sprinkled on shortly after.
Ricochet Robert expressing dismay, "oh, no, I just had Gary clean this bike for packing for France!"

Later, we got rained on pretty good.  But only for a few minutes.
NOT three hours such as some randonneurs experienced in Virginia.
And we didn't get poured upon such as it was doing just one or two hundred yards
Off to the west as we rode across Falls Lake on Cheek Rd.
By then, Ricochet was philosophical, "oh, well, this bike is already filthy, anyway."

Iceman was also philosophical and commented.  "I hope Snapper stayed dry."
(Harvey had taken the "Dove Rd way" home from Creedmoor, saving 10 miles from the ride.
He figured to use the energy thus saved during a sprint-triathlon the next day.)
I, however, disagreed with Iceman.
I thought it a shame if Harvey had missed the greater rain-fun that we were experiencing.

By the time we got to Patterson Rd, fellow Irregular-randos Ricochet and Ags
Were definitely in the groove.
I, however, was not.

As I told Iceman when I caught up to him (he had slowed considerably):
"I can do this pace for another 100-miles,
"But today I can't do that pace up ahead for even a few more miles."
Shortly after that, Ricochet and Ags slowed, and we all turned off Patterson onto NC-98 together.

Less than a mile later ... the highlight of the ride:  Olive Branch Rd -- upslope.
And me with no energy.

I guess it wasn't too bad.  I'm sure I've experienced worse on that road in that direction.
After all, I used to avoid doing Olive Branch upslope because it was so hard.
But I don't really recall anything except I had no pizzazz and just spun my way up.
One thing I do recall is that suddenly Ricochet was immediately in front of me.
He had concluded that I was suffering enough that I might like some company.
He must have virtually stopped on the road to wait for me.
Thanks, Robert.

On Carpenter Pond Rd, I was able to force myself to find some speed.
As I told Ricochet, Iceman and Ags:  "I've done that stretch, especially on my 'TT' route,
"So many time that I know how to find and force the pace,
"And where to do so, and where to let the pace slip away."

Four wet Irregulars, three of us also randonneurs, finished the shorted, reversed course at 1100.
All in all, we had a good time.

We all wished Robert good luck in France.
I am confident he will do well.
Because ... as I told him in the middle of the ride ... Ricochet is back!
Catching the wheels of whomever is slipping off the front.
Catching me on any and all upslopes.

We'll have to schedule a(nother) Irregulars 100-miler,
So the Mallet can tell us all the details from his foray into the Alps in July,
And so Ricochet can tell all the details from his upcoming ride through Normandy and Brittany.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aug-13:  

--> PUE:  reversed + modified Stem-Mt.Energy-Grissom --> fire station -->; 71.3.; est. 4h,28m in-motion; 15.9 mph.
 _

I Deleted the "Basic 'Irregulars' Cue Sheet" Page

It was a clumsy presentation.
Anyone that knows me also knows how to get much better copies of those 3 cue sheets.
All the Irregulars have soft-copy of those cue sheets (or should).
And, if they happen to misplace their soft-copy,
There is now a place on the big interweb where Irregulars can find those particular cue sheets.

So ... I've deleted the Page.
 _

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

More From Guatemala

Following up on the previous post:  
When local cyclists received their Irregular donations of helmets, seats, pumps, tires and wheels, they were ecstatic.  Young Guatemalan cyclists ride bikes that are old, heavy and sometimes very rusty. Many ride without helmets and on tires/tubes that have been repaired dozens of times. Those are some of the reasons that the donations of bike parts from Irregular members to young cyclists is mucho appreciated.  
Jorge L., the owner of the one bike store in town, is also the organizer of most local races.  He wants to thank any of you who might want to clean our your attics and garages of old biking parts, especially tires, tubes, helmets, pedals and shoes.  
I will deliver future donations when I return to Guatemala in early 2012. 
Tito  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

A short photo essay (I believe that all these photos were taken by Tito's "friend", Kim):  
At the start line. 
Kim's hero in action. 
Award presentation, or thank-you? 

Irregulars should embiggen the photo, and check out the print on the sign. 
Jorge and Tito bookend a recipient of a helmet. 


Here are some enthusiastic young cyclists from Bosareyes who could use our extra helmets. 
  
 _ 

Aug-07: Attempt at Mid-Ride Meet-Up

Never did REALLY meet-up with AND ride-with the crew I was attempting to meet-up with.

I wasn't sure when they were starting.
I'm not sure those I was attempting to meet up with knew when they were starting.
Or when they figured to be riding past PUE.
I'm not sure those I was attempting to meet up with knew when they'd be going by PUE.
I rode thru PUE just before 0800.

No one was there.
I concluded I was early.
And went to check out Olive Branch Rd.
It has just been re-surfaced.
Still no fog lines (every non-dirt/gravel road in North Carolina always has fog lines).
Still with clumps of mud on the road surface in some places from the new (dirt/mud) shoulder.

I expect that after a few freeze / thaw cycles this winter
That the valley bottom just north of the corner with Doc Nichols Rd will have new, large potholes.
After all, the road has been re-surfaced ... the underlying problems have not been dealt with.

But, in the meantime, I think some Irregulars rides will need to include
Olive Branch Rd from NC-98 to Carpenter Pond Rd in the finishing 10 or 12 miles.

I noted that Virgil Rd appears to have been re-surfaced for its entire length.
I may have to figure out when I can get in a "TT" on the "TT" course.
A smooth Virgil Rd ought to be worth a minute or two.

I called Gary to find out where they were.
I never should have trusted his report.
After all, once last year, when he and Wendy were running a few minutes late,
We told him, via phone, to ride Pleasant Union Ch Rd from PUE once they got there.
The rest of us would ride the 2 miles on that same road, and then U-turn to meet them.

We did not encounter Gary + Wendy on PUChRd.
Gary swore they had ridden the entire length of the road and were
"Now near Peed Rd."

They were on Mt. Vernon Church Rd.
PUChRd is flat.
MVC is not.

Anyway, given Gary's reported position,
I rode a mile-and-a-quarter down Coley, then back up to Kemp Rd.

Then Gary called to tell me he was near the intersection of Creedmoor and Old Creedmoor roads.
I ignored that ... because I doubt Gary has ever ridden his bike to that corner,
And it made no sense.

Then he said they were on Melvin Arnold Rd.
Okay, it is 4 miles from Melvin Arnold near Creedmoor Rd to the Kemp / Coley corner.
I rode a mile up Coley and back to Kemp.

Later, I learned that they were at the other end of Melvin Arnold Rd when Gary called.
That is still 3 miles from Kemp / Coley.
I suspect that they were somewhat beyond Melvin Arnold when Gary called.
Maybe already on Old Creedmoor Rd.

Why do I suspect that?
Because they never should have been able to cycle 3 miles while I was cycling 2 miles!

Since the Gary-led crew was still not in sight,
I started riding "loops" between Coley and Southview on Kemp Rd.
0.87 miles down Kemp to Southview.
0.87 miles, with a 100-foot climb back up to Coley.
To make it more interesting, I stayed in the 50 x 17, and
Stood out-of-the-saddle for most of the climb.

Three times I did that loop.

Then I called Gary.
To learn that they had gotten past me.
It had to have been while I took the second side-trip on Coley.

It was 3.4 miles from where I was to where they were.
NO WAY I could catch them ... unless they were slow and took some "long-cuts"
While I hammered and took the short-ways.

Patterson, Cheek, and straight up Old Weaver
Instead of turning just after crossing Falls Lake.
That cut more than a mile off my usual route.

Straight past Stool Tree Rd.
That cut another more-than-a-mile off my usual route.

I went thru / past the Old Weaver / Creedmoor Rd intersection
Without seeing any cyclists hiding in the shade.
And they apparently didn't see me, or realize I was me.

I knew I would never see the Gary-led group.
I was no longer thinking about them.
I was just riding.  Hopefully rather quickly.  But I didn't really know.
My confuser was telling me nothing other than the time of day.

I decided to take a real break at the corner of Old Weaver and New Light.
A minute or two later,
Here comes the entire Gary-led group.

Turned out that most had been taking breaks,
While Gary and Ken had been taking my usual route "around the lake".
That's how I had gotten ahead.

I put my helmet and gloves back on,
And followed behind Gary's well strung-out crew.

They stopped at the Peed Store.
So I did, too.
And partook of their welcome ice.

The Gary-led crew started breaking up at the end of Peed Rd,
As various people headed for their homes.

I headed to Bay Leaf Fire Station #2.
To see if LT was there.
And find out what his fire crew calls him, now that he is a Captain.

Answer:  "Captain LT."
As Steve said, "I've been calling him 'LT' too long to ever call him anything else."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aug-07: 

--> PUE:  MUCH modified Falls Lake Loop --> fire station -->; 62.6 m.; est. 3h,59m in-motion; 15.7 mph.  


(I determined the distance via use of "TrimbleOutdoors".  The time-in-motion is a guess, really; I used my algorithm that estimates time-in-motion given the distance ridden {and previously set-up based on historic averages}.  I may have been faster than indicated; I may have been slower.) 
 _ 

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Too Funny !!

From:  me 
To:  JohnA 
Sent:  Sunday, August 6, 2011 10:38 AM 
Subject:  Re: Permanent in August? 
  
Most of the local Permanent owners will be doing P-B-P this month.  

Therefore, I intend to contact MikeD -- Monday at the latest -- about arranging control cards for a running or two on the "Kerr Lake Loop" and the "Showdown in Black Creek" Permanents.  Do you have an interest in doing a rando Permanent in August?  If so, when?  And may I suggest the Kerr Lake Loop as the your August rando 200+k adventure.  

If you can let me know a preferred date before I contact Mike (probably some time Monday afternoon), and you are interested, I'll contact Mike on behalf of both of us. 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

From:  JohnA 
To:  me 
Sent:  Sunday, August 7, 2011 7:34 AM 
Subject:  Re: Permanent in August? 
  
I am 3 weeks removed from any biking. How about the 20th or 27th?  Thanks for the invite.  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
From:  me 
To:  JohnA 
Sent:  Sunday, August 7, 2011 12:35 PM 
Subject:  Re: Permanent in August? 

I'll go for the 20th KLL. 

3 weeks removed from cycling?  ...  ...  What kind of rando are YOU?  
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From:  JohnA 
To:  me 
Sent:  Sunday, August 7, 2011 4:40 PM 
Subject:  Re: Permanent in August? 
  
An irregular one. 
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Saturday, August 6, 2011

Jul-31: July Dunn, 1500+ RUSA kms, 1200+ total miles

Got 'Er Dunn, again, on Jul-31th.
Sort-of with fellow randos Dean and Janis.
But mostly I rode with a sore left shoulder and a very sore left elbow.

Pain can Distract the Brain.
Pain can also Focus the Brain.

I had the same pain problems the day before,
But the soreness seemed worse on the 31st.

So sore that I thought I was in danger of becoming unnecessarily acerbic during the ride on the 31st.
So sore after the ride that it hurt to type -- even only using my right hand / arm,
Which is why it took a week for me to make the post for this ride.

Back to the ride:
I may have been able to maintain some semblance of a reasonable personality for 50 kms.
But I'm not sure.
You'd have to get Dean's opinion on that.  And he might fib and say I was reasonable.
You might also be able to ask Janis.  But again, she might fib and say I was reasonable.

I didn't trust myself to make reasonable conversation.
So ... after the Erwin control at about the 40-mile mark,
When we got to the climb on Old Stage Rd,
I went around Dean and Janis, in the 50 x 17, and just kept going.

Dean and Janis were having a lively, seemingly fun conversation when I passed them.
I assumed Dean would ride most of the way back with Janis.
I never looked in the mirror to check.
It hurt to turn my head, so I never looked back over my shoulder, either.

My confuser was not functioning.
All I had for company was pain and the time of day reported on the confuser.

I concentrated on pedaling and the time of day.
Wondering, concentrating on "how long can I go without stopping?"
"Can I finish the rest of this ride without stopping?"

Since it hurt to turn my head, I paused to put my foot down, and turn my body,
When I got to NC-55 in Coats.
No traffic coming.

I "may" have coasted through some stop-signs,
But I will neither confirm nor deny that.

The stop-light at NC-42 held me up for 73 seconds.
I timed it on my watch (not the clock on the confuser).

I thought about waiting at the garden pond with the Loti.
But from just a glance I saw no bench upon which one could sit.
So I kept going.
Just as well on that score, as it started to sprinkle before the end.

I just wanted to finish.
And for the pain to end.

I did finish my solo purgatory ride.
But the pain did not end.

Sleep was a precious thing the next several nights.
It was still fairly precious last night.
Rain this morning has given me an excuse to stay off the bike another day.
But, actually, working a computer keyboard seems to be the most aggravating to the shoulder.
I think it is the combination of the position and the little finger and hand movements.
(I'm typing pretty much the way I was taught in high school some 38 or 39 years ago.
I don't have to look at the keyboard to know where the keys are, but I often / usually do.)

Back to the ride on the 31st:
I was shocked that Dean was only 7 or 9 minutes behind me (the official results "claim" 5 min.).
Dean told me after the ride that he got caught in no-man's land
Between me and Janis.
Sorry, Dean.
I don't know if I would have slowed or not if I had known you were "chasing".
I was trying to focus beyond the pain.


A few words about a tough randonnuese:

Janis had started the ride on time.
Dean had waited for me to finish prepping ... delayed slightly by the pains in my left arm.
That gave Janis a good 7 or 10 minute jump on us.
She rides faster when well out front and trying to stay there.

We caught first sight of Janis going into Coats.
After Coats, heading for the "shutter house", on a mostly false-flat downslope,
Dean and I were running 19-20 mph and making no headway on catching Janis.
We had to up our pace to 22-23 to catch.
I swear that when we got close enough for Janis to clearly see us in her mirror,
She stopped pedaling.

After the ride, Janis reported that she chased Dean for quite a few miles
After he left her to try to bridge to me.
She apparently almost caught him a couple times.
The last being just before (or was it as leaving) Coats.

I think it was good "long hot interval training" for Janis.


Post-mortem:

During the post ride chats, I tried to be amicable, but I'm not convinced I succeeded.
Dean and Janis went out to check Dean and Deborah's butterfly garden in the rain as I left.

No "tag-line" for this post.

Btw, Aug-06, as I type this, still pains in the shoulder and elbow.  But they are diminishing.
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Jul-31: 

Get 'Er Dunn 102km Perm Populaire; 65.2 m.; est. 4h,07m in-motion; 15.8 mph; rando elapsed-clock time: 4h,55m OFFICIALLY. 
 
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Among the things I "got Dunn" in July / on the 31st were: 
 - my first ever 1500+ RUSA km month. 
 - my first ever 1200+ total miles month. 
Neither was "planned".  They happened as the result of "helping Robert" and just riding. 
It is interesting, however, to  note that my shortest ride of July was 65.2 miles. 
Miles can pile up quickly when all the rides are "long". 
 _ 

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

July 31 -- Tito post from Guatemala



There was a 48 kilometer very hilly bike race on Sunday, July 31 in Antigua, Guatemala. The race was on Highway 14 that goes from Chimaltenango to the Pacific coast of Guatemala. Donations from Dave and John D. made the awards ceremony something never to be forgotten.

I won my category of Masters C, meaning men with more than 47 years. There were six of us in my category and about 100 altogether, and we followed a course from Bosareyes to "the orange trees" and back. The first 16 kilometers were hilly but not overwhelming, but I was huffing and puffing in the 4,000 feet of altitude.

There were 3 of us at the front of Masters C, and we were trading places until the huge, 10km descent. I picked up speed and left the other guys behind me. There are advantages to being so heavy.

However, as the speed increased to some ridiculous amount, I just could not believe that we would ever go back up that road. It was long and steep. Finally, I saw a few bright cones for the turnaround and some hands extended with water bottles. Someone extended a "pacha" to me, and then I had an awful premonition. I realized the water was from the dreaded, parasite-filled tap of the typical Guatemalan faucet.

This is a big mistake, according to all of the tourist literature, and I almost
tossed the bottle in the nearby coffee trees. Thinking a bit more of survival,
guitily I drank deeply and poured some down my steamy neck. Though in first
place by our arrival at the oranges, I felt heavy. After all, I had my 30 year
old Trek touring bike and fear of the ascent. Slowly, the others pulled away,
but I felt determined to not give up. A

After a few miles of pain (see the latest photos on the same web site I sent you), I felt better. I had slowed a bit and a second breath arrived. Much to my amazement, I saw the two leaders not too far ahead and I sped up. There was one last steep hill and I stood on my pedals the whole way. I could not believe that the other two dropped back. With a final sprint, I managed to win. Since the organizers had given the donated (by Irregulars) helmets, wheels, pumps and seats to all of the winners in all categories, they gave the one trophy to me. At the award presentation, there was a big speech by the organizer (Jorge Lopez) thanking the Irregulars for their support of young Guatemalan cyclists. Now there are 16 more Guatemalans riding with helmets. Ck the photo of the youngest new biker with his sort of new helmet.

 _
For a few more photos, go here.